Bulletin for the Week of Nov. 9, 2009

1. Schedule for the remainder of fall term:
Weeks of Nov. 9 and Nov. 16: all classes and practices as usual
Week of Nov. 23-26: Thanksgiving vacation, no classes or practices all week.
Week of Nov. 30: all classes and practices as usual
Dec. 7 and 8: If make-up days are not needed, free bonus "Try Epee and Sabre" class for newbies, open fencing for everyone.
Dec. 8: Last Junior Team practice of the fall
Dec. 9: VFA Holiday Party and the Infamous Candy-Stealing Fencing Game (trust me, you don't want to miss this one). At the Bridge School in Middlebury, but for the entire VFA. I hope a number of Charlotte fencers will come down for this. We try to alternate between the 2 VFA branches as to who gets to host the holiday party, so this year it's Middlebury's turn.
Dec. 10: No Charlotte fencing unless a make-up is needed. Last Renaissance School class of the fall.
Dec. 11-Jan 3: Holiday Vacation

Winter term classes start the week of Jan. 4. Schedule will be the same as for fall, except Charlotte practices will need to start later (probably 7:30) due to sharing the gym with school basketball programs. Those of you currently in Level 1 classes will graduate to Level 2 and new beginners will be welcome to start from scratch in Level 1. Our club grows mainly by word of mouth. If you have friends who might be interested in starting fencing this winter, now is the time to tell them about it and have them get in touch with me. For every friend you recruit to the club, you get $5 off your own class fees.

2. Thank you again to all the fencers who attended or helped teach the Referama Clinic yesterday. I look forward to seeing our many new trainee refs practicing their skills in the club and eventually stepping up to become GMD officials. The official FOC ref course with Jon Moss will be offered on Dec. 12 in the Burlington area. It should soon be posted on FRED for sign up, with more details. I encourage all you trainee refs to participate in that and work toward being ready to take the national ref exam and earn your referee rating.

3. Big day for teen fencers on Saturday Nov. 14 in Middlebury: the annual GMD Junior Olympic Qualifier tournament at Mary Hogan School! Registration closes at midnight tonight, so if you are a teen fencer (born 1990-96) who has not yet signed up, now is your chance. Actually, nearly all of the teens in VFA Level 2 and 3 classes are already signed up. But if a male cadet foil fencer (born 1993-96) should come along and sign up for both cadet and junior mens foil, he would be a double hero, as he would be fencer #13 in cadet (the magic number for getting a 4th qualifier) and #15 in junior (the magic number for higher ratings and more Champlain Cup points).

Final event schedule (note: there are some changes from the schedule as originally posted on AskFRED, based on numbers signed up for each event).
8:30 a.m. Jr mens sabre
9:30 a.m. Jr mens foil
11:30 a.m. Ct mens foil, Jr womens foil
1 p.m. Ct mens sabre? -(I have emailed the 4 guys registered for this to suggest combining the sabre events, as all of these fencers are in multiple events, and cancelling this one will help the day go more smoothly)
1 p.m. Ct womens foil
1:30 p.m. Jr mens epee
2:30 p.m. Jr Womens epee
3:30 p.m. Ct mens epee, Ct womens epee
Womens sabre events are cancelled due to low numbers.
Please be present at least 30 minutes before your event start time. If you get sick or injured and know you won't make it, please let me know in advance if you can.
The VFA is hosting this tournament, meaning it is our responsibility to set up, clean up and contribute the most to running it. In return, we get to keep most of any profit made. Junior Team and any one else willing to help out: set up will begin at 8 a.m.

4. Registration is open for the Upper Valley Holiday Open and Youth tournament on Dec. 6 in Sharon, VT. Events include open foil and epee, Y14 epee (for kids born 1995 or later) and Y12 foil (for kids born 1997 or later). If you have been enjoying Level 1 classes this fall and are thinking about trying out some competition, this would be a good place to start. The youth events will contain many beginners and USFA membership is not required for kids under age 13 in our local meets. For those of you age 13+, you do need to join the USFA ($60 annual dues) in order to participate in competitions, but it's worth it as there are many fun events coming up in the winter and spring, including some specifically for rookie competitors. You can join the USFA online at www.fencing.teamusa.org (click on "memberships" and pay with a credit card) or at any tournament. To sign up for the Upper Valley tournament, go to www.askfred.net/Events/whoIsComing.php?tournament_id=9738. If you sign up by Dec. 1, you get $10 off your entry fees.