How to Improve your Fight Practice Over the years I have attended a lot of fighter practices at many different locations. I have seen the ebb and flow of practices and wondered why some practices get "good" all of a sudden while others stagnate. Here are some of my thoughts from talking with others and watching our practice. These can be boiled down to two things retaining present fighters and getting new ones interested. In all areas there are a loarge number of people who fight who do not attended practice. Some of these have unavoidable conflicts but most could attend if they wanted and that is the problem. Practice is not fun. Most people started with a group of friends and often stop when one moves or quits. Often they feel no one at practice cares if they attend or not. There should be someone at practice who contacts people whn they do not show up for a few weeks and mentions how they miss them and ask if they are all right. This goes a long way to making people feel welcome. We also go out to eat afterwards and this creates a sense of commradery which encourages greater participation. It is even a good idea to plan some activities together like running fighting at an event, going to events, or going to a movie. The practice should also include a mix of melee and singles. this will allow everyone to get the type of fighting they prefer and often is the carrot which keeps people going. Finally the better fighters need to talk to everyone. They should have encouragement for everyone and advise a-plenty so people can feel improve if they want. Of course there will always be the need to get new fighters and this is where most groups fail. Now there is a lot that could be said about advertisement and there is never enough of this but what I find of most interest is how to get new people to actively join once they show up. One of the biggest problems is loaner armor. Now ideally every onlder fighter should have a suit of loaner armor even if it is only there old armor but we should all be movie stars too. Most often groups are relied upon for loaner armor and they often have one poorly maintained suit. This is a great opportunity for people to work together and create either new armor for people or loaner armor for the group. As new people will improve everyones experience. Once the armor is there the group also has to make it fun. Frequently new fighters need special care to learn what to do but want to just start fighting. So let them start and instruct as they go along. Also they do not need to be hurt or have have their shots blown off so be fair with them. In general a lower calibration will allow more people to enjoy the sport and give them a readily accessable reward. After all killing the best fighter at practice once is quite the thrill for a new fighter while getting shots blown off by someone is an enthusiasm killer. Finally after they try fighting make sure to follow up with them to let them know you want them back and would like to help them make the equipement they need. Well I hope this is helpful and that your practice thrives.< br> Boldo