The rules for foil fencing are not very complicated, and they make sense when looked at with the historical use of the foil in mind. Basic rules include equipment specs, target area, right of way, and the strip. Since equipment specifications change periodically, I won't cover them here. A link will be provided to the USFA, they govern the sport of fencing in the United States, so they have that info up to date. Another source would be equipment distributors (stores), they may have that information as well, seeing as they would not make money if the gear was illegal. Finally you can contact your friendly local fencing club and they will tell you what you need to know (you may want to join them, if you intend to compete). Also note that because of electric weapons, a hit is any tripping of the button switch on the target area... including cloth snags. Lay ons do not count because the switch will not trip.

For foil, the target area is the jacket and bib, less the sleeves. So that would be the back, throat, chest, stomach, groin, shoulders, and sides. The lines that separates the target area from non target area are the seams. The shoulder seams separate the off target sleeves from the on target shoulder. The parts of the mask that are cloth are also legal targets, they too have a seam where they join up with the mask.

Right of way is the most difficult concept to get nailed down in practice, although it is very simple in theory. Right of way means that the person who attacks (extends the arm) first (and tags their opponent), gets the touch. This can only be changed with a parry, miss, or a hesitation on the attack. If fencer A moves his arm forward slowly and then fencer B attacks and hits fencer A, then Fencer A hits fencer b and gets the touch. This seems a little odd at first. B would have killed A in an actual duel, but A wins anyway? What gives? Remember that the foil was intended as a training weapon, not as a dueling weapon. The right of way teaches that a fencer really needs to defend himself and not just go for a quick hit. If say, you and I were having a duel, I slowly attack, you lunge in to take advantage of an opening, but I suddenly speed up: you will find yourself as a human shiskabob. If you parry and then lunge, the chances of killing yourself decrease exponentially. The right of way was intended to get new fencers to slow down and protect themselves. Beginners and younger people tend to be very aggressive, right of way teaches defense, it values wisdom over raw speed. Yes, attacks are hard to keep track of. I still have trouble my self. But as a learning aid it works. It built reflex actions that helped me beat waay more experienced people who had not had that training. Pay attention to the weird little rules in foil, they usually have very good reasons if you can figure them out. Practice the right of way on training bouts no matter which style you practice, and you will see the benefit that this rule brings you.

The Strip is the same for all three weapons of sport fencing. The strip is about 5 feet wide and 48 feet or so long. There is a line in the center and off of it six feet in either direction are the on guard lines (where fencers start bouts). Behind them another 11 feet are the warning areas (they are to warn a fencer that he is approaching the end of the strip). The strip extends for seven feet from the beginning of the warning area to the end of the strip. A fencer who retreats past this point will be penalized one touch (as in, his opponent gets a point). Stepping off the side of the strip during a bout results in a yellow card (warning) the first time in a bout, and a red card (penalty touch) the second offense. The strips help keep fencers contained and on task, which is quite handy in completions and drills alike.

Other than that stuff, if you are polite, patient, and don't flail on people with your blade and pommel; you should not run into any serious foul trouble. Just remember if it is your first time in a competition, ask one of the more experienced guys for pointers (mention that you are new and don't know all the rules), and don't go first. Watch a couple of bouts and mimic the etiquette. If nobody is doing something, DON'T DO IT! It probably violates an etiquette rule. If you do, and you are obviously new, likely some one will pull you aside and mention that it was a bad idea. If not, you could get tagged with a petty foul. Or just annoy people to no end. Don't do either.

Erik Schlagel, December 7, 2009
  

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