Improve your rapier fighting with One Weird Trick

(or, a personal reflecton on the importance of headspace)

What’s the trick? (or, “I will not be reading the rest of this post”)

The trick is to stay in the moment, from the time you enter the field until the time you leave. It’s as easy (and as hard) as that.

What enables me, personally, to stay in the moment?

Having received enough useful training that I can focus on higher level tasks and not basic footwork or blade work
Being physically able to be present - not tired, hungry, dehydrated, overheated, out of breath due to altitude, etc
Routines which signal to my body and brain that it’s time to be present - saluting my opponent right as the field becomes live or I step onto the live field, imagining a ring of light clearing the ground and making it mine right before that (which I only successfully imagine like… 30% of the time at most… h/t Bryn for that tip though!)

What does it look like to NOT be in the moment?

Worried about a conversation someone else is having nearby, if the geese by our park pavilion are going to swarm us, how long until sunset, or if someone’s dog is likely to run into the field
Thinking about whether I need to win this fight to remain in the tournament (there will always be other tournaments, and my reputation is worth more than one tournament)
Wondering about what my opponent is thinking or will be planning, which is different from observing what they are actually doing in the moment
Getting intimidated by my knowledge of the background of my opponent or their prior fights
Responding too much to what my opponent is chatting with me about and not enough to what they are doing

Why am I writing this?

I feel my success in tournaments has dramatically improved in the six weeks since I was admitted as a Defender of the Silver Tyne in late July. Right after that court happened, I wrote a message on Facebook talking about what it meant to me to be present in fights and why I thought it was important. I wrote this largely because I did not feel I was doing my best fighting on the day I was presented the award; I was overheated. Since then, I have tried to practice what it means to me to be my best at all times - I feel this is a sign of respect for my opponents, other Silver Tynes, the White Scarves who are my teachers, and in general for my martial art, which is dear to me. I think this is why I have been more successful recently; at a technical level I don’t feel I have particularly perfected any of my techniques, in fact I still feel like I’m at (or possibly just now leaving) a plateau I’ve been on for a while, in terms of technique. (I don’t do as many drills as I need to in order to make great strides in technique, I think.)

If you don’t trust only my feelings on my success - here’s the data I have:

In the 2022 Pennsic Cadet tourney (double elim) both of my fights were losses. In 2023, I won several fights before losing 2. (Dacia says it was 3 but I don’t remember, I think it might have been 2)
In the Caerthe baronial practice tournament held on the third Thursday in August, I placed third of 10 - the best I have ever done in any fencing tournament thus far, across 6 years of SCA rapier and, if you want to get pedantic, 2 of high school epée. (The second best was at Newcomers last fall, where I think I placed… fifth or so? after making it to finals, and was literally in my last month of newcomer eligibility, and that only if you didn’t count the two years of COVID in my time practicing)
In the Caerthe Dubhlan baronial championship, I was one person in a four-way tie for third place (out of 7), and was made the Rapier of Chivalry for the year (which is a retinue position awarded for comportment on the field).

Facebook message I wrote after Coronation excerpted below

I did not get to do as much fencing as I wanted to, but I did as much as I could handle before needing to get out of the sun. The heat index was 88, which doesn’t seem impossibly high, and the humidity was quite low, and the altitude of the location not an encumberance for me, but I was struggling anyway and pulled myself from the tournament before it ended, when I was starting to get dizzy/not feel completely well. In a midday court after the round robin portion of the tournament completed, I was called in and made the newest Defender of the Silver Tyne. (For my Eastern friends, this is the Outlands AoA level award for rapier combat - wimble.outlandsheralds.org/charters.php?AwardID=237 has the charter) I am grateful for Her Majesty’s words that I have been seen as a valued member of the rapier community since moving here two years ago. I could not get anywhere alone; know that I am grateful to everyone in our community who has helped me. I would also like to share what I feel it is for me to actually be at my best, since as I’ve said I didn’t quite feel I was there today. Here is my list, what would you include for your list?:

I am in tune with myself and can be present for my opponent (not too hot/cold/dehydrated, not distracted by emotions or racing thoughts, the field feels like a blank slate when I step on it)
I am joyous and creating a space where my opponent can have a good time/experience joy too (bringing positive mood/energy, caring about our safety)
I am courteous/chivalrous (listening to my opponent’s concerns, sharing excitement when I am defeated by a good shot, asking when I’m not sure if something was well calibrated and often asking anyway just to confirm, happy to refight if it’s not a decisive victory)