Go / no go

Go/no go

Often in class people ask how they should attack. The how part is usually easy, but when & why are much harder questions to answer, and require a deeper understanding of fencing. The choice of correct time is crucial for the success of an attack. Attacking at the wrong time generally leads to your opponents successful defensive actions. Thus learning when not to attack is very important. These situations usually involve  misjudging of distance / the tactical situation, choice of wrong fencing action and compulsive need to follow trough your fencing phrase when the situation is not right for it.

Go/nogo essentially is a condition clause during your preparatory step to striking distance, where according to your opponents reaction to your preparation you either follow trough with your original plan (go) or will not follow trough (no go ). Here’s a few ways to incorporate go/nogo to your training to help you deal with these issues.

Go/nogo exercise relative to distance:

As students initiative: Coach stands in vom tag, students starts in pflug outside of passing measure. Student steps into passing measure, and simultaneously rises his sword to vom tag. If coach stands still, student strikes with a zwerchaw. But if during the students preparatory step to distance, the coach steps backwards, the student cancels his attack plans and does nothing ( the student now should be out of measure for his passing attack to work ).

As coaches initiative: Student waits in vom tag. The coach starts outside of fencing measure, in any guard of his choosing. Both move freely, and at a time of the coaches choosing, the coachs switches guards to vom tag. Now this coaches switching of guards action will either bring him to passing measure of the student or not ( the coach controls the distance and nature of the guard swap ). If the coach is in measure, the student goes and attacks. If he is not in measure, the student simply stands in vom tag and does not attack.

Go/nogo exercise relative to tactical situation:

Coach stands in vom tag, students starts in pflug outside of passing measure. Student steps into passing measure, and simultaneously rises his sword to vom tag. If coach stands still, student strikes with a zwerchaw. But if during the students preparatory step to distance, the coach switches to any other guard, the student cancels his attack plans and does nothing.  

Some people might argue that the student could now switch his way of attacking relative to the coaches guard, but I do not think this is necessarily the best time to attack. In the original instance the student completes the motor program he has preplanned if the pre-requisites for the attack happen, in the latter one you would have to plan a new motor program after you notice the switch of guards. 

As coaches initiative: Student waits in vom tag. The coach starts outside of fencing measure, in any guard of his choosing. Both move freely, and at a time of the coaches choosing, the coach switches guards to either vom tag, or to some other guard. If the coach is in Vom Tag, the student goes then and attacks. If he is in any other guard, the student abstains from attacking.