Bulletin for the Week of Nov. 30, 2009

1. Charlotte fencers: don't forget, practice starts at 7:30 p.m. from now through February vacation.

Registration is underway for winter classes starting the week of Jan. 4 If you need to rent equipment this winter, be sure to reserve it as soon as possible so that I don't promise all the equipment in your size to other people. Also, if you have friends who may be interested in fencing, let them know to get in touch with me soon, as I will be traveling Dec. 11-28.

This week, all classes and practices will take place as normal (last week of regular classes for the term).
Schedule for next week (note, I have made some recent changes here):
Mon Dec. 7 and Tues Dec. 8: Free bonus "try epee" class for beginners in Middlebury and Charlotte. Open fencing for everyone.
Tues Dec. 8: No afternoon Jr Team practice (this week's will be the last one until January).
Wed. Dec. 9: Open fencing in Middlebury, 7-9 p.m.
Thurs Dec. 10: Holiday Party and Infamous Candy-Stealing Game in Charlotte, 7:30-9:30 p.m. It was pointed out to me that we did this in Middlebury last year (I lose track of these things....) so it should be Charlotte's turn to host it. I checked and the MPR is available that night (school holiday concert is the following week), so let's have it in Charlotte. All VFA fencers (Levels 1,2 and 3, Charlotte, Middlebury, Renaissance School) and any guests from other clubs who want to come are invited. Here's how the game works: everyone starts the evening with a bag of candy. The lower rated or less experienced you are, the more candy you get to start with. You spend the evening fencing 5-touch bouts with as many different people as possible. The fencer who started with less candy gets to pick the weapon. The loser of each bout must give one candy piece to the winner. The winner of the game is the one with the most candy at the end. We will count candy for kids age 12 and younger at 9 p.m. and for 13+ at 9:15. Don't worry, nobody goes sugar-deprived at our Holiday Party. Not only will there be enough candy so that everyone gets some, but everyone is encouraged to bring a beverage or dessert to share.

2. Calling all refs-in-training! The official USFA ref course with FOC Examiner Jon Moss will be given on Dec. 12 at UVM, in Patrick Gym room 217. This is an all-day clinic, from 10 a.m. until approximately 7 p.m. (bring a lunch). This is your chance to really learn your USFA Rule Book and prepare for the national referee exam. Although it's a long day, Jon is a great instructor and makes it fun and interesting. The cost of the course for fencers from outside the GMD is $50, but because the GMD wants everyone to learn to ref, we subsidize it for members so that your cost is only $35. On top of that, if you pass the ref exam within a year, you will receive an additional $15 rebate, meaning you can get your ref's rating for only $20 - that's the best deal in the country as far as I know! If you already have a referee rating, there is no charge for taking this as a refresher course (and in fact, you are required to do so periodically in order to keep up your referee rating). If you participated in the Referama Clinic in November, this will be a great follow-up. But even if you missed Referama, I encourage all fencers to take the Ref Course. Please sign up for it at www.askfred.net/Clinics/whoIsComing.php?clinic_id=10293

3. Champlain Cup tournament this weekend in Sharon! Upper Valley Holiday Open and Youth, Sun. Dec. 6 at Sharon Academy (direction on AskFRED). The open epee and foil events are shaping up to be big and exciting, but we could use a few more youth fencers. There are only 5 youth events all season (this is the second one, the next one isn't until late January or early February). Here's what's happening: 10 a.m. Open Foil - all USFA members are welcome, especially those of you who joined for the first time this fall. Come to this and use that membership you paid $60 for!
10 a.m. Y14 Epee - for kids born 1995 or later
2 p.m. Open Epee-same deal as open foil
2 p.m. Y12 Foil- for kids born 1997 or later
You may not enter two events which start at the same time.

The youth events are a chance for our youngest fencers to fence with kids from other clubs in a supportive environment. Youth events are great for rookie competitors. If you are 12 or younger, we do not even require USFA membership for our local youth events. If you just started fencing this fall or last year, and want to try out your first competition (perhaps your first electrical fencing), I encourage you to participate in this! Loaner club equipment will be available to all who need it, but I need to know you are coming. Also, the meet manager needs to know how many youth fencers to expect so that he can ask the righ number of referees to be there. So if you are considering participating, don't procrastinate! Sign up by midnight today (Mon. Nov. 30) and get $10 off your entry fees.

To sign up, go to
www.askfred.net/Clinics/whoIsComing.php?clinic_id=10293
Click on "preregister". If you have used AskFRED before and your computer recognizes it, your sign up page will automatically open and you can select your events. If this is your first tournament, you will be prompted to enter your last name and then get a drop-down list of all fencers with the same last name in the FRED database. Click on "none of these is me" or "add new fencer" (I can't remember which) and you will get a fill-in form to enter yourself on the FRED database. List your club as Vermont Fencing Alliance, your division as Green Mt, and your ratings as U or unrated unless you know you have a rating. Once you have joined the database, go back to "preregister" and select your events. If you then go back to the link above, you should see your name on the list. If you have trouble using AskFRED, e-mail me and I'll help you. I will need the fencer's name, e-mail address and birth year.

4. For you more experienced youth fencers, I highly recommend the Sword in the Snow Regional Youth Circuit at UNH Jan. 8-10. If enough VFA fencers sign up, I will come with you. This is a great way to get some large-tournament experience, and if applicable, prepare for JOs. Note that USFA membership and full equipment (fencing pants, electric equipment, etc) is required for this. The registration deadline is Dec. 12. To register, go to
www.unh.edu/fencing/syc/swordinthesnow/index.html
and click on "entries". You can register online or download a paper form.
There are events in 3 age groups:
Y14-born 1995 or later
Y12-born 1997 or later
Y10-born 1999 or later (note: Y10 events require #2 weapons)

5. A bunch of fencers (Ben and Jack Brisson, Jake and Jack Nop) are starring in the Window to Literature Theatre Group's adaptation of Shakespeare's MacBeth. Admission is free and they would love to see a lot of their fencing friends there:
Wednesday, December 2, 3:30 PM, Ilsley Library, Middlebury, VT
Friday, December 4, 6:30 PM, Hannaford Career Center Stage, Middlebury, VT