New fencing club

[S. Richardson]

I have recently started a fencing club in Danville, PA, which is located in the eastern central part of the state. I've had quite a bit of interest and enthusiasm shown by the teenagers that have joined my club, but of course they come without any prior knowledge about the sport, making it more like a school than a club. If there are any fencers in the central area of the state who would like to meet weekly to fence (for free!) I'd certainly appreciate a more varied and wide range of skill levels for the club. Contact me if anyone is interested.

Thanks
Scott

[Goldgar]

Best of luck with it, Scott! How do you see your club operating? What sort of club do you hope for it to be? How, when, and where will it meet?

Unfortunately, you're a bit too far for me to come except on a special occasion (2.5-hour drive), but it's nice to hear of another club starting up, and maybe I can get out that way some time.

[Mergs]

Search the forum for information on starting a club. I know there have been several threads on it. Also, I believe that there is something on the USFA website, or someone has written a book on it, too. Best of luck!

[S. Richardson]

Thanks, Goldgar. Ideally I'd like the club to be like the salles of old, in which fancers with different levels of experience can meet, fence, learn from one another and have a rattling good time. Unfortunately there aren't many people in these parts with any experience at all, so all of my club members are teens. What's great about that is that they bring so much energy and enthusiam to the club that it's infectious, and they're really good at recruiting new members. The drawback is that they're all newbies so its more like a school than a club. But, one must start somewhere, right?

[Goldgar]

Ideally I'd like the club to be like the salles of old, in which fancers with different levels of experience can meet, fence, learn from one another and have a rattling good time.

Sounds great!

Unfortunately there aren't many people in these parts with any experience at all, so all of my club members are teens. What's great about that is that they bring so much energy and enthusiam to the club that it's infectious, and they're really good at recruiting new members. The drawback is that they're all newbies so its more like a school than a club. But, one must start somewhere, right?

You may want to contact some of the other clubs in your general area and see if they want to come play. You'll find a list of Pennsylvania clubs, organized by division, here on the USFA website:

http://www.usfencing.org/usfa/content/view/1728/80/

[ccoppola]

Hi, I'm moving to Danville. Just checking if you still have this club active!

Thanks, Chris