h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

The description of the penalty system is just.. well.. wrong.

Yellow card is a warning, just like in football, but it's not for stepping off the piste, but for corps de corps (i.e. getting into physical contact with the other person, fencing isn't wrestling), arguing with the president, covering the target area with your arm etc. etc. The second time you do it you get a red card, which is a hit awarded against you. A black card is for drug-use, bout-fixing, cheating etc. A black card is mundo bad news, it means you're kicked out of the competition, and quite possibly other competitions will be reluctant to let you in with a black card on your record.

If you step off the back end of the piste that's also a hit awarded against you. Step of the side and you must retreat one metre, if that takes off the back edge, hit against you again.

The whole thing is riddled with mistakes. For instance the Foil is not based on the Rapier which was over 40 inches in length with a wide (compared to a foil) flat blade. The foil is closer in similarity to the English small sword and is evolved from that and the use of the practice blade in the salle, prepretory to a duel. There is also not really a dueling rapier but a a dueling sword. Most people would still find a rapier pretty heavy.

Also the modern epee is no longer than the foil both come in lengths from 32 inches to 35 inches with the most common being of course the 35 inch variety for obvious reasons. Also in saber the whole body is not target just the body from the waist up. Also there has not been an official F.I.E, U.S.F.A. or B.A.F. tournament that was fenced with Judges in ...oh say twenty years. With the advent of electric scoring ,which has dominated the sport for close to thirty years, judges have not been necessary.

Most championships and competions don't just use the epee. Most competions are open to all three weapons. The Foil is also considered a weapon of finesse not just a trainer for epee. Half the epee people I know can't fence foil.

Intersting this article also makes no mention of the vast split between modern fencing and classical purist or the SCA.

Obviously whoever wrote it doesn't know what there talking about. Propbably some neophite or would be Errol Flynn.

I said so!
Buddrah