Q: Who can join the fencing
club?
A: Any
Q: Do I need to know how to
fence already?
A: No. The club provides
instruction for beginners, and most of our members have never fenced before
joining the club.
Q: Do I need to buy
equipment?
A: No. The club can provide you
with equipment both for practice and for competition. You may find, in time, that you would like to own your own equipment, but you
won't be required to.
Q: How many different weapons are
there?
A: There are 3 blades- Foil, Sabre, and Epee.
Q: What's the difference?
A: Foil and epee are thrusting
weapons while sabre is a cutting blade. There are
also differences in the rules governing what is and is not on target for each,
and how a legal hit may be scored.
Q: Will I have to learn all 3?
A: No. New fencers choose one of
the weapons to begin with, but may eventually learn others if they want to.
Q: How do meets
work?
A: Most of the meets we attend are
individual competition. This means that we go as a team, but register and
compete as individuals. There is
another format for meets, where each team competes as a team, and this style
may be employed more frequently.
Q: Is there a novice division?
A: Most of the meets we go to
offer novice competition.
Q: How likely am I to get hurt?
A: Not very. Fencing uses
protective masks and clothing, so injuries are rare. The most common injuries
are sprains and pulled muscles.
Q: When do I learn to do all the
flashy moves I saw in The Princess Bride ?
A: Probably never. Fencing has an
image generated by movies that is not quite correct. It is much more
constrained and disciplined than it is often shown. If you're interested in
seeing a more representative display, rent By the Blade or, even better,
drop by one of our practices and check it out!