Bulletin for the Week of Sept. 21, 2009

1. Welcome to the 17 new students who are starting their fencing careers this week! We are expecting 8 new club members in Charlotte and 9 in Middlebury. For those of you new to the VFA Bulletin mailing list, I send out this newsletter weekly, usually on Mondays. The purpose of the VFA Bulletin is to keep everyone informed of what's happening in the club, the Green Mt Division, and the fencing world in general. In the Bulletin you will find important notices (such as changes in our practice schedule that may come up), tournament information and results, and news about fencing and fencers. I am not known for being short-winded, and the Bulletins can be pretty long sometimes. In deference to those of you with limited time or short attention spans, I will always put pressing information in the first few items, and stuff which is less important for everyone to read further down the page. I also post the bulletin on the VFA website, so you can read it when you're supposed to be working, and also you can look up old bulletins in case you deleted yours.

This is the first "official" week of practice for everyone, which means that all fall term fees are due this week. Please bring a check payable to Viveka Fox, or exact change if paying in cash, to practice this week. Jr Team fencers, those cashing in teaching credits or those who have a still-valid punch card: don't forget, you still owe your $5 club dues this week.

We are guests of the schools where we practice, and must respect their rules and property if we are to continue having a place to meet. Please make sure your shoes are clean before entering the gym. No food or drinks other than water bottles in the gym, and water spills should be immediately cleaned up. We have permission to use the gym and nearby bathrooms only (and the library at Bridge School-but do not enter their office area or touch their computers). Do not enter any other area of the school or touch any student work. No smoking, alchohol or drugs anywhere on school grounds (needless to say, those things aren't exactly conducive to good fencing anyway), and do not bring reading material which might be deemed inappropriate for very young kids into the school (we had an issue with a teenager forgetting a copy of Rolling Stone in an elementary school, so I have to mention this). Mondays at Mary Hogan School: doors get locked around 7 p.m. If you arrive late and find the main door locked, just come to the gym door (you'll see us through the window) and knock.

2. Coming to your first fencing class this week? Here's what to expect:
a. Wear loose comfortable long pants - no shorts - (sweatpants are ideal), a t-shirt and sneakers. If you have a choice of sneakers, court shoes (those made for tennis, raquetball, basketball etc) work better than running shoes (which have a wedge shape to the sole). Bringing a water bottle is a good idea.

b. Plan to arrive about 10 minutes early (i.e. at 6:20 in Middlebury or 6:50 in Charlotte) to sort out your equipment and get ready for class. I have assigned each person a mask and jacket based on the size information you gave me. I will have a printed list of names and equipment assignments. Note that there are 2 columns on the list - one for Middlebury and one for Charlotte. Make sure you are looking in the correct column, as someone in another class may have the same first name as you. Your mask and jacket may not have the same number (the equipment is not in sets, each item is numbered individually). The masks live in a large camoflauge duffel bag (in case I ever need to hide a bunch of masks in the woods....) and the jackets live in a black duffel bag. Mask numbers are written on the sides and back, jacket numbers inside the collar and on the straps. When you arrive, find your mask and jacket and set them aside somewhere along the edge of the room. Then find any glove that fits your dominant hand (you only need one glove, and you don't need to use the same one each week). The gloves live in a zippered tote bag that lives inside the same duffel as the jackets. Finally, take a foil from the black-and-green bag. Foils with red tape on the handles are for lefties. Foils with yellow tape on the handles are for small children (there are two of them, and they should go to the two smallest kids in the class). Foils with no tape on the handles are for righties. Set the glove and foil aside with your other gear. One more piece of equipment for adult and teen women: in the bag with the gloves are some plastic cups called breast protectors. You insert these in the pockets in your jacket lining and they protect you from hard hits to the chest (plus they make you feel like Xena the warrior princess). When you are finished for the evening, please do me a big favor and pack all rental equipment back in its bags (that would be IN the bag - not just near it or on it).

c. Class will always start with a warm-up - a moment of breathing and focussing, a game to get everyone loosened up, and a set of exercises to increase your flexibility, strength and balance. The next thing we will do is footwork exercises, as the most important thing in fencing is how you move your body (what you do with the blade is secondary to this). Often, these are done without equipment on, but sometimes I will ask you to get dressed in your gear at this point. The final part of class is the bladework drills. Here, we will teach new moves or new combinations, and you will practice them with a partner. We rotate partners often, so that you get used to fencing with people of all shapes and styles. For most bladework drills, we will divide into groups - Level 1 foil, Level 2 foil and Level 2 epee, and each group will be given a different set of drills. Drills require that you take turns with your partner playing the role of the coach or leader (the person who gets hit) and of the student (the person who does the hitting). It is important that you pay attention to both aspects of the drill when it is being taught so that you can be a good leader, and that you let your partner hit you when it is her turn to do so.

d. I have a number of advanced students who help me teach. They are experienced competitors, either adults or teenage members of my Junior Team program, who enjoy sharing their knowledge with beginners. Please use them as a resource - ask them questions and pay attention when they correct your technique.

e. Class will end with you saluting your classmates and instructors to thank them for working with you. Then the real fun begins! By the second week, you will be ready to play a game that introduces you to some limited improvisation, and by the third week, you will learn the rules of foil and be ready to fence your first real bouts. I encourage you to stay after class and fence bouts with other club members. Don't worry about the score (in fact, I encourage you not to keep score most of the time), just try to apply the techniques you are learning against real opponents. Whether you can stay for just 5 minutes after class or all the way until closing time (9 p.m. in Middlebury, 9:30 in Charlotte), please do try to stay for a while and not just go home when the organized class ends.

f. If you're still around at closing time, we have a club tradition called "Five Minutes of Glory". We end each practice by doing a set of core strength building exercises together followed by a relaxation and visualization exercise. Beginners are very welcome to join us for that - it requires no special fencing skill beyond what you will learn in the very first class. So if increasing your fitness is one of your motivations in taking up fencing, or if your goal is to eventually fence competitively, consider participating in Five Minutes of Glory.

g. If you are ever sick, out of town, etc and have to miss a class, I am happy to come in a few minutes early the following week to give you a quick catch up. Just remind me by email that you want to do that.

h. Finally, one of the best ways to become a good fencer is to watch good fencers. There are often experienced fencers around the club bouting with eachother on Monday and Tuesday nights, and they don't mind your watching them and asking them questions. It's also interesting to attend a few tournaments as a spectator (and it may help you work up your nerve to participate in a tournament or two by the end of the season). The first tournament of the season is the Fall Foliage Epic, taking place this coming Saturday, Sept. 26 at UVM, in the indoor tennis courts which are in the Patrick Gym complex. Spectators are welcome free of charge. Foil starts at 10 a.m., sabre at noon and epee at 2 p.m., so if you come in the middle of the day, you might catch some of each weapon. The foil and epee events are shaping up to have a very competitive final, with some excellent fencers expected.

3. Are you planning to fence in the Fall Foliage Classic on Sept. 26? Don't forget: Today (Monday) is the deadline for preregistering on AskFred in order to receive the $10 discount on your entry fees. After that, you may still fence, but you pay the higher $20 entry fee. If you are having trouble accessing AskFred.net or figuring out how to register yourself, e-mail me your name, birthdate (important: include the year) and which event(s) you want to enter and I'll do it for you. You do not have to own your own equipment to participate - I will send club gear for you as long as I see your name on the AskFred registration list. If you do not sign up in advance or otherwise let me know you are coming, I will not send basic protective gear for you. I will send club weapons and body cords in case anyone needs them. If you have not joined the USFA or renewed your membership for the season, you'll need to do it at the Fall Foliage in order to compete. USFA dues are $60 per year. If you joined the USFA for the first time after April 1, 2009, your membership is good through the entire upcoming season (so get out there and use it!).

Attention unrated fencers and first-time competitors! The first U foil and epee events of the season will take place at the Fall Foliage. If you miss, them, you will have to wait until January for the next E or U event (although there are several opens that rookie competitors can enter this fall). E and U events are especially for less experienced competitors and are a lot of fun because the playing field is fairly level (no big guns to contend with). Most fencers earn their first rating at an E or U event (although it's not unheard of for a rookie to earn a rating at an open event). So don't miss this chance at the only event just for unrated fencers this fall.