An Tir/West War Recap

Big wars aren't really my thing, but a large multi-kingdom event affords other fighting opportunities besides the constant press and clash of the battle field.

Tourney fighting for me of late has been offering up other demons besides testing my personal stamina.  Thankfully I had the opportunity to break down and discuss mental game and tourney refocus with some of the knights I train with on a regular basis.  The discussion was borne from a fight I had with a fellow who was a talker.  He questioned every shot I threw and this began to erode my focus.  The initial frustration after the fight pulled up some mixed feelings on field etiquette and how to manage and filter important info your opponent is trying to relay, either verbally or physically.  In my case, I needed to find a way to recenter and refocus myself to ignore these types of distractions.  The last thing I want to worry about is my opponent maintaining some degree of psychological control over me during a fight.

An essential question for regaining focus is: "What do I need to do now to perform my best?"

It is virtually impossible to maintain focus during an entire scenario/tournament, because it is both mentally and physically draining to focus continually throughout a competition.  The ability to regain focus on demand is what pushes us to perform at our best at the moments we need it the most.  The two components to finding a mental reset are:  discovering what distracts you and the creation of a process to redirect yourself toward performance related cues.  Understanding these two components is what lays the ground work for a strong mental game.

The next step is cultivating a solid competitive attitude.  I have tournament experience in the martial arts arena, but SCA fighting is an entirely different beast.  There are no age, weight, or gender classes which means my physical technique and dexterity MUST make up for a sheer lack of brawn.  While not as intimidating as it once was, still elicits an excellent fight-or-flight response during bouts.  Strong mental fortitude and willpower are necessary here when essentially fighting someone 4 or more times bigger than you.  The goal here is all attitude: This field is my field, this fight is my fight. I deserve to be here. I worked hard to take my place.  

Stormgod Champion leading us into battle.