In Practicing of Footwork, One Should Strive for: 1. Uninterrupted "fluid motion" displacing the center of gravity 2. A natural "erect" body position 3. Parallel position of the shoulders to the floor during foot movements 4.  Simultaneous movement of the trunk with the legs5. Light "smooth" change of direction6. Light "smooth" Footwork  On guard Toes at ninety degrees, torso aiming in between feet toward corner (not twisted). Neck and back lengthen and stay straight as the knees bend way out over toes, making sure to soften knees, hips and ankles to allow the movement. Heels on the ground weight stays in feet as you bend. Arms float up and away from the body as you feel as long and wide as possible. All joints stay soft and any push launches you into motion. Half-advance Able to release the front leg joints, and swing it forward as in walking with body moving only to the center between the legs. Half-retreat Able to release the back leg joints, moving the leg back freely with the weight moving back to the middle. Advance Movement is smooth and easy. After a number of slow advances--feet maintain correct width and toes and knees are pointed in the right direction Retreat Movement is smooth and easy. After a number of slow retreats feet maintain correct width and toes and knees are pointed in the right direction. Lunge Front leg moves independently, stay on the back leg as you lunge. Land softly and stay upright with weight only going to center. Foot width and direction correct on lunge and recovery. Don't tighten at the end of the lunge so that the flow of movement begins the recovery.		Footwork From the On Guard Position Facilitates: 1. Better Balance 2. Easier Change of Direction 3. Elimination of the "Up and Down" Movement of the body's Center of Gravity (C.G.) 4. Simultaneous Movements of the Trunk and Legs  * * Fencing Footwork Categories: 1. Simple 2. Compound * * Simple Footwork Movements: 1. Forward Cross Over 2. Backward Cross Over 3. Half Advance 4. Half Retreat 5. Advance6. Retreat 7. Lunge 8. On Guard & On Guard Forward 9. Jump Forward 10. Jump Backward 11. Fleche12. Appel       a. Appel Advance       b.  Appel Lange 13. Slide 14. Check
Fencing Distance and Orienting Movements.  Orienting movements are responses that help a fencer focus and adjust themselves to receive helpful input. Identifying three types of orienting movements: Previewing, Tracking. The fencer must predict where he or she will be in relation to environmental features at a future point in time, the performer must "look ahead." The task for the a competitive sport fencer is to: > accurately assess the characteristics of the contest situation (What's Going On) and then > organize the movement response (What to Do & How to Do It) so that the spatial and temporal characteristics of the movement match the characteristics or constraints of the environment.		Compound Foot Movements: Double Advance Double Retreat Advance Lunge Jump Forward Lunge Learning Correct Footwork Recommendations: 1.  Avoid prolonging the advance, retreat, or jump. 2. The foot should be in the air as short a time as possible. 3.  The final movement should be completed without delay. 4.  The trunk and the legs should move in coordination with each other. 5.  The center of gravity should move parallel to the floor. 6.  Avoid "telegraphing" the action. 7.  Keep distance and change the rhythm of the footwork.  Previewing. The orienting movement required whenever performance involves body transport is called previewing. The critical factor in previewing is the rate of the performer's movement. For a particular rate of body transport, the sport fencer must look for a given distance ahead to obtain information about objects in the environment in time to subsequently avoid or contact them as in not running into a fencing opponent when attacking. The problem confronting the performer is much the same as that facing the driver of an automobile at night. In order to avoid hitting an object or person, the driver must be able to stop the vehicle within the fixed distance illuminated by the headlights. If the stopping distance for a given rate of speed exceeds the "previewing" distance, the rate of speed of the automobile must be decreased.
Site Map (Pages) Home Fencing Practice Starts Here FENCING FOOT WORK & TRACKING BLADE WORK with the sword Psychological basis for choosing fencing actions. SIMPLE ATTACK Exchange Drill, Coach Vincent Bradford. Using Hungarian Sport Fencing Methodology - Coach David Littell Fencing Actions Part 1 Fencing Actions Part 2 Counter-Time, Counter-Attack Definitions. OLYMPIC Sport Fencing at BERKELEY Prep. Summer PE Credit Course; Individual Lessons Program with CoachGerryD Tampa School Group Fencing Program with CoachGerryD Foil Fencing Sabre Actions Sport Fencing DUELs Holistic Recreational OLYMPIC Sport Fencing Program.		Tracking. For motor skills performed within a moving environment, the performer must predict where the moving objects or people will be at a future point in time, in order to plan a successful response. The orienting movement required in the performance of open skills is called tracking. Tracking is involved in a variety of sport skills e.g. an epee fencers while retreating stop thrusts an attacking fencers wrist and parrying an opponent's counter-attack. In both examples, the performer must maintain visual contact with a moving object in order to obtain relevant information regarding the speed and direction of the object's movement. Tracking is required whenever elements of the environment are moving, regardless of whether the performer is stable or moving. When performance takes place in a moving environment and the performer is also moving, both tracking and previewing are essential (as in the sport of fencing)  for obtaining critical environmental information.The overall goal of good tracking skills is for risk management of the competitive situation. Figuring out time and space requirements so a safety margin can be maintained. Three factors affect your safety margin: 1) your technical and tactical capabilities and limitations, 2) the technical and tactical capabilities and limitations of your opponent and 3) the bouting situation at a specific time (such as score, time remaining, physical condition, and prognoses of outcome). For example,  a safety margin is gone if: the required technical-tactical skills called for is beyond your skill level,  the bouting situation requires more technical- tactical skills that your capable of andthere is no time to execute unforeseen actions.