I spent the holiday weekend with a good friend in Salt Lake City watching my youngest sibling and hundreds of other people compete in the USA Fencing National Championships. While I have seen my sister fence one other time, decades ago, I had never understood the difference between epee, foil and sabre. This week my sister is fencing epee in the 40-49 year old competition while one of her colleagues is fencing sabre and foil in the 70+ veteran competition. As I watched the bouts over the last 2 days, I have gained a different perspective about knowing when to advance and attack versus when to recede and prepare for an approach. I also gained a different perspective about increasing reach through use of a French grip. What was interesting was that both my sister and her colleague warned against over-thinking a competition strategy and instead just responding to an opponent. And what seemed an obvious advantage for her opponent (height and reach) didn't stop my sister's colleague from winning a bout against a contestant who towered over her. My sister and her colleague must know something about the sport; after just a few years in the sport, my sister's colleague medaled today in sabre and is intending to qualify in foil on Thursday for the 2017 World Championships in her age bracket. Tomorrow is my sister's age bracket competition where she hopes to medal; to this point she has been warming up by competing in open class competitions.
I've learned a thing or two from each of my siblings over the years. Some of you may have heard me reference a conversation with one of them about their company's mindset towards annual change as a means of staying relevant to clientele. From the fencer, I have come to recognize the value of persistence and commitment. She practices constantly at late hours of the evening. But clearly she's found reward in a sport that she can continue for the long haul.
Dan Macon joined UC ANR on today as the Area Livestock and Natural Resources Advisor headquartered in Auburn, including programmatic responsibilities in Placer, Nevada, Sutter and Yuba Counties. Welcome Dan!
This Fourth of July weekend was definitely a big change from how I spent it last year – in Michigan wrapping up a broiler chicken study. I hope everyone enjoys the holiday tomorrow!