Due to the success and delightful feedback after our previous Blossfechten-style Fechtschules, we have decided that it’d be silly of us to not offer the same again every year!
The only mandatory kit requirements are a mask and light gloves. We’re hoping this will make it accessible to every attendee, regardless of their experience level or what kit they do or don’t have. In previous years, we’ve witnessed that this also allows us to see some beautiful fencing in the graceful and technical manner we all strive for with a Messer, but which is often unattainable with cumbersome safety equipment.
We know a lot of people are nervous to fence others they don’t know, especially if they’re not allowed to wear all the padding they’re used to. But, to ensure everyone’s safety and encourage participation by as many Messerists as possible, we have thought very hard about what is needed to make this fun, enjoyable and, above all, safe!
We do this in two ways:
The first is our ruleset. We have created a scoring system to minimise any toxic competitiveness which could lead to carelessness and aggression. As such we won’t be counting wins, losses or points. It will instead be scored entirely by your fellow fencers! They will get to award one vote for who they think is the most technical fencer and a second vote for who they enjoyed fencing the most. This can be for any arbitrary reason they like, ranging from “that person made me smile the most”, “that person had the most memorable fencing” to “that person kicked my butt but made me fence like I’ve never fenced before!”…. You get the idea. Basically, the nicer, more fun and more unique you are, the more votes you’re likely to get.
These votes are aggregated, so just being the most technical fencer, but a super miserable or aggressive one, is not likely to win you the grand prize. But, on the flip side, even if your technical skills or physical prowess aren’t the greatest, if you are a delightful person to fence with, you may end up with enough votes to actually win one of the fantastic prizes made by our epic sponsors. (But, more importantly, you’re more likely to win the most important thing of all…. New Messer friends!)
The second safety feature is a mandatory class as an introduction to minimal kit freeplay. This will give people the means to safely fence in a controlled manner so the reliance is on the fencers to keep themselves and their partner safe and not on the PPE. This introductory class and the tournament will be lead by our very own Lauren Ireland, who has run this style of tournament at this and other events for years and has had zero instances of injury (I really hope we didn’t just jinx it by saying that!)
