Monday 20 October 2008

Competitiveness

I hate Monopoly.

It all stems from my childhood when I used to play against my brother. He was, and still is, the most competitive person I have ever met. We never actually finished a game, it always ended in a fight. He'd cheat as much as he could and do whatever he could to beat me and anyone else that happened to be foolish enough to think it was an enjoyable game.

With a game like Monopoly you can get away with acting like that because the end goal is to win. Not to increase your level of knowledge of Monopoly.
Unfortunately HEMA is full of people like my brother.

People that simply have to win whatever the cost.

You know who I mean, every club has at least one of them. They don't acknowledge their hits when they are sparring, they sabotage drills in order to be the one that wins. They always react just a little bit faster than you, even when you are supposed to working slowly. They always hit you as hard and fast as they can and then moan when you hit them.

In short they are wankers.

They stop their own development and that of anyone unfortunate enough to have to partner them.

Drills are there to help develop technique and understanding, not just to prove to everyone how big a cock you've got.

Sparring is about applying the knowledge gained in drills and exercises in a stressful environment. It is about improving your ability by pushing yourself. It is about learning. It is not simply about being better than everyone else.

If you ever catch yourself not acknowledging a cut, or moaning about being hit, or trying to win when you should be concentrating on just getting it right then stop what you're doing right away. Take deep breath and apologise to your training partner. If you've noticed then you can bet your life they noticed first. Then start again and try and do it properly.

If you want to win then there are plenty of competitions you could enter. There's even a website specifically for them now.

Just don't play Monopoly with my brother, you won't stand a chance.

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