Duel Off: Fencing

Unleash Your Inner Musketeer….

and learn the dueling sport of fencing!

Fight with honor, battle with bravery or just have a load of fun with your friends and the Silverlake Fencing crew in Los Angeles.

Whether you think it will be an interesting way to cut loose with your colleagues or you just fancy trying something different, fencing is the perfect activity to put your skills to the test in a friendly match of a sport which actually dates back to the 15th century. 

Writer Victoria Schwab described fencing as a ‘game of living chess’, advising that in order to do well in the game, your body and mind must work together at each stage of the game. 

Not to be confused with sword fighting, which is a completely different skill in itself and considerably more popularised thanks to swashbuckling depictions in Hollywood blockbusters such as “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “The Mask of Zorro”, fencing involves 3 weapons.

Each with its own distinct purpose and set of rules; briefly, the foil is used for thrusting and targets only the torso, the epee is slightly heavier and targets the whole body and the sabre is used for targeting above the waist, inclusive of the arms but not the hands.

Between two competitors, the main objective of fencing is to strike your opponent with your weapon whilst avoiding being hit yourself. 

With lots of rules to wrap your head around, how do you know if fencing could be for you? Well, look at fencing if you and your friends are patient with a need for speed and strategy as the sport requires short, sharp bursts of energy and a good technique. Fencing is also one of the friendliest sports out there so it is super welcoming if you are looking for a new hobby to embrace.