Fencing at/around Harvey Mudd College?

[debrobjosh]

My son is thinking of going to Harvey Mudd college in LA (assuming he is accepted) and wants to know about the amount and quality of saber fencing at the school and in the area.

The school's PR says there is a fencing club on campus, but when I look at the "USACFC Map" and "LBI predictions" threads, I see no mention of Mudd or any part of the Claremont consortium of colleges having a club that competes. The school's web site also seems to have no mention of a current club.

So, does anyone have any knowledge of an active club at the Claremont schools, and if not, what are the options for training for an experienced NJ saberist who is not going to have a car, at least for his first year at school?

(Of course, he might get into either Stanford and CalTech, which I believe have fencing programs, and the training part of the problem is then solved. But that still leaves the question of number and quality of saber fencers in the area who like to come out and play. He really has been spoiled, as the NJ area really is a haven for saberists, with lot of chances to compete.)

Rob of DebRobJosh

[4qtrs]

My understanding is that there are a couple of people trying to get the fencing club going at Mudd. However, it isn't nearly as established as Stanford or Caltech.

Just to let you know the nearest fencing club to Mudd is Fortune Fencing in Pasadena. Not exactly close by.

Those are both good programs, but if your kid is looking for NCAA they should stick to Stanford or UC San Diego in California. Caltech and USC are clubs and not NCAA.

[oiuyt]

Originally Posted by 4qtrs

Caltech and USC are clubs and not NCAA.

While USC is a club program, Caltech has a varsity team.

edit: Caltech appears to ALSO have a club program in addition to the varsity team.

-B

[4qtrs]

Originally Posted by oiuyt

Caltech has a varsity team.
edit: Caltech appears to ALSO have a club program in addition to the varsity team.
-B

You are absolutely correct (and yes I am embarssed that I forgot that since I work there).

I will never hear the end of it if NoTalent and PurpleFencer sees this thread!

[notalent]

I think Geore Clovis is assisting the club out there on occasion, he is not coaching for caltech, but I think he is still giving lessons there. I do find it amusing that you didn't know the status of the program.

Originally Posted by 4qtrs

You are absolutely correct (and yes I am embarssed that I forgot that since I work there).

I will never hear the end of it if NoTalent and PurpleFencer sees this thread!

[4qtrs]

I know, Bad Suzy, Bad.....

[Larrison]

debrojosh --

There was an active fencing club at the Claremont Colleges last year. Ran into a couple of fencers from there at a competition. The club is a joint club between all the Claremont Colleges, as HMC with only about 600 students has a hard time keeping a team going themselves (particularly with thier academic loads).

A quick google search indicates the team is the Claremont Colleges Fencing Club. It's listed for Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd, and Pomona College on their web pages.

There was a local fencing club in the Montclair area, but I haven't heard much about them in the past year. Fortune fencing is a good club in Pasadena, about 30-45 minutes away. However, you're talking about a fair distance away and not within walking distance.

Options for training would be through the club, and through an independent study program through the combined Claremont Colleges athletic department (the athletic facilities are pretty much shared between all the colleges). It's not unusual for there to be a small cadre of very highly capable individual athletes getting a personalized program through the athletic department -- or at least that was the case when I attended.

I attended HMC years ago, although I took up fencing after I left the college. I've also got some substantial experience with Caltech and a few other universities in California. Private Message me if there's any questions I can answer.

The level of competition in Saber in SoCal is pretty good -- although its not as good as places like NY, where the number of fencers is higher. There are a number of good events within a reasonable distance, ranging from the Long Beach Invitational, to Duel in the Desert (in Las Vegas) and the usual round of intercollegiate and USFA competitions.

[4qtrs]

Originally Posted by Larrison

The level of competition in Saber in SoCal is pretty good -- although its not as good as places like NY, where the number of fencers is higher. There are a number of good events within a reasonable distance, ranging from the Long Beach Invitational, to Duel in the Desert (in Las Vegas) and the usual round of intercollegiate and USFA competitions.

I think that there are a few who would take exception to this statement. We have some excellent sabrest within the SoCal area and the Jr sabre team from LAIFC bet the NYFC team at Nationals this year.

I am not sure about the numbers in NY, but our sabre events are around 20-25 people consistantly.

[TrojanMD]

I think it's fair to say that sabre fencing in SoCal, while always of high quality, is now finally growing in quantity to match. (too late for me, of course )

[teacup]

Originally Posted by TrojanMD

I think it's fair to say that sabre fencing in SoCal, while always of high quality, is now finally growing in quantity to match. (too late for me, of course )

This year the LAIFC Invitational Men's Sabre was an A2 event. Three of the four members of the LAIFC SN Sabre Team were there, Jason Rogers, Teddy Levitt and Eric Arzoian. Harry Mahaffey would have been there too except he was competing in a Jr. World Cup in Kiev.

[Larrison]

Originally Posted by TrojanMD

I think it's fair to say that sabre fencing in SoCal, while always of high quality, is now finally growing in quantity to match. (too late for me, of course )

*laughing* Well said!