Salute, Masks, En Garde

It was wonderful to see so many of you again in Philadelphia! 

Even though, most of the time, I could only see half-faces

Quite an ingenious and fashionable selection of (COVID) masks there were. Above right, my teammate Gemin Channing sports an "Air Queen."

Very light, good breathability, and holds fairly flat to the face (minimal obstruction to a fencer's field of view.)

Here's an ingenious solution to the problem of glasses fogging, courtesy of Marie Lawson, of DCFC:

   

She uses #M Micropore tape to seal off the top of the mask. (Sticks to the mask, painless removal from the skin. Yay.)

Many people went for style points:

 

Pinstripes are always classy

At the other end of the spectrum, RHINESTONES

This "Airgami" mask promises "Won't fog your glasses. Won't fall off your nose. Won't collapse onto your mouth. Won't muffle your voice." (Extra points for the pun.)

Bats, because...oh heck, why not?

A little political messaging was, shall we say, on point.

Some masks were even fencing-specific.

Notice all the "smizing!" (Eye smiles.) 

I think we were all a little nervous about the first national vet tournament since December 2019. Nothing to boost confidence like channeling your inner super hero.

After ~17 months of socially distanced, home-bound training, I know many of us struggled to convince our muscles to return to the strip. My teammate Pam Dressel introduced me to a miracle device to help with that challenge:

This, my friends, is a Sonic Handheld Percussion Massage Gun. Highly recommend. (Listing for $119.99 over at LifePro.) 

Speaking of socially distanced home training, I bet these "fencing arms" were a 2020 best seller for Blade Fencing:

(Maybe they sold out--I couldn't find these arms on their website)

Here was my own (involuntary) style statement for the event: 

Mismatched shoes, one my normal size 7 1/2, the other a 9 to accommodate a broken big toe and attendance padding. The emergency shoe is a Kempa "Attack," with a nice wide toe box. Have to say, it is quite comfy. They may be my next pair of "normal" competition shoes. In a smaller size. (If you are in the market for a very slightly used pair of size 9s, let me know.)

See you in Atlanta?