blood! death! war!
Apr. 21st, 2004 10:42 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
anotheranonYep, just got back from fencing ;)
Our regular club didn't meet this week so we (A., new person B., and myself) went out to our coach's "serious" club in town. I scored a few more touches than I have in the past, so I was rather pleased. It was also sweltering - either the air conditioning wasn't on or wasn't working. Strangely, once you've been standing around in your jacket (and underarm protector. And glove. And...) for awhile the heat wasn't as noticeable as it ought to have been.
I also helped "judge" some bouts, very difficult in foil because of the difficulty of determining which fencer has right-of-way, especially at "bout speed".
Also much discussion of fencing - can we dare to hope and see any of the Olympic fencing on tv this summer? I think it's unlikely - as much as people seem to enjoy watching swordfighting in movies, I guess there's little demand for televised sport fencing.
Which makes sense in a way - it's not very theatrical, and fencers don't display much personality (everyone wears a mask, so you can't see anyone's face). What we really need to get fencing on tv is 1) drama or 2) sex. Preferably both.
Think of it: either a fencer with attitude who throws his/her mask around when they lose a bout or someone with a great ass and fencing knickers a size too small would garner huge interest from the public at large, I just know it!!
So, note to Olympic fencers - tone those glutes and learn from John McEnroe - we too can steal the airwaves!!
I mean, if people will watch golf... come on, it' can't be that hard!
Our regular club didn't meet this week so we (A., new person B., and myself) went out to our coach's "serious" club in town. I scored a few more touches than I have in the past, so I was rather pleased. It was also sweltering - either the air conditioning wasn't on or wasn't working. Strangely, once you've been standing around in your jacket (and underarm protector. And glove. And...) for awhile the heat wasn't as noticeable as it ought to have been.
I also helped "judge" some bouts, very difficult in foil because of the difficulty of determining which fencer has right-of-way, especially at "bout speed".
Also much discussion of fencing - can we dare to hope and see any of the Olympic fencing on tv this summer? I think it's unlikely - as much as people seem to enjoy watching swordfighting in movies, I guess there's little demand for televised sport fencing.
Which makes sense in a way - it's not very theatrical, and fencers don't display much personality (everyone wears a mask, so you can't see anyone's face). What we really need to get fencing on tv is 1) drama or 2) sex. Preferably both.
Think of it: either a fencer with attitude who throws his/her mask around when they lose a bout or someone with a great ass and fencing knickers a size too small would garner huge interest from the public at large, I just know it!!
So, note to Olympic fencers - tone those glutes and learn from John McEnroe - we too can steal the airwaves!!
I mean, if people will watch golf... come on, it' can't be that hard!
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no subject
Date: 2004-04-22 03:55 pm (UTC)Yeah, it does look a bit like golf on ice doesn't it? Both games originated in Scotland, so that's hardly surprising.
Curling is actually more like old-fashioned bowls (the type where the object is to knock each other's balls away from the high score zone), with a bit of shuffleboard and crokinole thrown in. There's a long lane marked on the ice, with a target zone resembling a bull's eye at the end ... the object is to place your team's stones closest to the centre (each ring of the zone is a diminishing score as you go outwards). Because the teams of four take turns, you not only have to aim your stones at the centre, you have to try to knock opposing stones away from it. Skilled curlers can do banks and trick shots like a pool player. The brooms help control the speed of the stone as it travels ... they're used to brush loose snow/ice particles out of the path to increase speed ... one stops sweeping to decrease speed. The person who throws the stone must call commands to the team mates who are sweeping. Curling stones are quite heavy, being carved from solid granite, so learning to control your throw so that it stops on target is also a skill.
The most fun way to learn about curling is to rent the movie Men With Brooms, co-written/directed by and starring Paul Gross (Frasier of "Due South"). Co-star is a Saskatchewan actor you may also have heard of ... guy named Leslie Nielsen ***grin***. Contains an excellent, for-beginners explanation of the rules of the game, plus you get to see it played (as well as see Mr. Gross go skinny-dipping).