My daughter will be fencing at NAC-B. This will be her (and our) first NAC. She fenced a couple of SYCs last year, but this is her biggest event to date, and her first travel event.
Anyone who's done this before have any helpful tips and advice on how we can make this the best possible experience for her?
#1 piece of advice is to plan for extra time. don't expect anything to work out correctly. arrive early, prepare for problems with your flight/drive/whatever, etc.. if you have a "tight schedule", one hitch will mean you won't be fencing.
#2 piece of advice is to treat it as a learning experience. This is her chance to find out what a NAC is like. Take notes. Watch and talk to other fencers, other events, referees, bout committee, armorers, and parents. When my daughter went to her first national event, we didn't know what to expect and we were way over-excited and scared; I suggest that unlike us, you mellow out, because it's just the first in a loooong series of NACs for you if your daughter keeps going with this, and though it's always nice if she does well it's more important to learn something from it.
__________________ I'm not anonymous. We just haven't been properly introduced.
If she fences Sunday, best to get there Friday. Should aim for noon of the day before she fences. Avoid if at all possible the last flights of the day. Have time to get equipment checked the day before. If she fences first day, find out if there will be equipment check at venue or host hotel afternoon/evening of day before.
Have someone check that Lame (if appropriate), all weapons and body cords work correctly. Should have 3 body cords minimum, borrow one as spare spare if she has only 2. I fenced Sabre, brought 3 full weapons and 2 spare blades. Probably minimum of 3-4 F/E weapons. Doesn't hurt to have a couple of spare blades with tangs already canted and a slight bend. There will be people who could help change blades, you don't want to start asking what kind of blade to buy.
Make sure she will have water, gatorade, granola bars or something she can nibble to prevent empty stomach. Get a 24 oz pop top water bottle and write the name on it, you can refill. Don't let dehydration get ahead of her. She should be visiting restroom every 3 hours. Aim for a pint or half litre of water for pool and almost every DE. For me, a granola bar (oatmeal raisin preferred) every two hours worked well.
Good luck. Don't worry about being anxious at first NAC. Next will be the second and there will less anxiety.
Think about what equipment you will want to buy while you are there. With very rare exceptions the best prices are found at NACs. Shop either well before or after fencing.
Track down your referee soon after they turn in the pool sheet, not before, and ask if they have any advice for your fencer.
__________________
Anyone giving odds that I don't change out my Xmas avatar for another year?
Have her carry her mask, lame, bodycords and uniform (jacket, knickers, under-arm protector and chest plate), socks and shoes on board in a regular rolling carry-on. Pack and protect the weapons well in the fencing bag and check that as baggage. When the kindly ticket agent asks what's in the bag, don't say: "our weapons." It happens.
Make sure her uniform/lame has her blue lettering name in the appropriate place, or arrive the recommended day and a half early to get it done. Go drop the uniform off first thing when you get there, if needed. Go to the armory line the day before her competition if at all possible. When she's in line, have her unwrap all the body cords, and have everything ready to hand to the armorers. They love that.
She may well be too nervous to eat or drink properly. Gently hand her stuff from time time if needed, but don't get into a distracting war of wills over it.
Above all, have fun. It'll likely be the most fencers she's ever seen in one place...which can be both intimidating and exhilarating!
__________________
"Fraud is the creation of trust. And then: its betrayal."
William Black, Ph.D.
Remember you will be in a hurry up and wait situation. At our son's first NAC he had a great deal of difficulty staying "ready" to fence - he got so burnt out by the waiting. Encourage your daughter to watch fencers in her weapon in other events, to observe how directors are calling, enjoy the chance to meet new fencers. ipods are seen in abundance these days.
I would add bananas and something a little salty to the food list as well.
Warm up is very important - encourage her to find someone to bout with - everyone needs to and most are happy to find a partner as well.
Plan to buy a t-shirt... even if the design is not great she will probably want one from her first NAC with her name on it.
Finally - bring paper and pen along - write down her results in the pools for her to use to verify her score. It is also good to note who the director is so that she gets to know them. It gives you something useful to do while she is fencing and will help with your stress level!
Above all - as others have said - come to learn and have some fun. Make reasonable goals - like score a touch in each bout rather than stress winning.
If possible, attach yourself to someone who has been to a NAC before. A NAC, a first glance, appears completely disorganized and it is very helpful to have someone who can put a little structure on it for you.
If there isn't anyone and you are on your own:]
-- make a check list of everything that you will need for fencing and do a final official checkoff before leaving. Something about NACs that seems to cause equipment to be left behind.
-- know that you will need to go through weapon's check and that you should do this well before the check-in time if possible. If is not uncommon that equipment that has generally passed at the local level is failed at the national level. Be mentally and financially prepared to replace equipment. If you are in foil/saber, remember that you may need time to get new lames stenciled if your current lame fails.
-- watch for postings! When you arrive at the venue on the day of your competition, find out where your event is being posted. There will likely already be a posting with the competitors. There will be a series of postings in that space during the competitive day. If you see a crowd around the posting area, it generally means that there is something important for you. Strip assignments will be posted rather than read over the system.
-- treat your first NAC as a learning experience. Don't worry about placement. Far too many parents think, "Well, my kid is ready for nationals so they should at least be able to finish in the top half (top quarter, etc)," or, "I've spent all this money so my kid needs to go through at least a couple of D.E.'s to make it worth while." If doesn't necessarily work that way. Half of the kids who make it to D.E.'s will be eliminated in the first D.E. First timers, of course, have a greater likelihood of finishing in the bottom half.
-- get to know the other parents. Most fencing parents are nice people and if you continue going to NAC's, these are people that you will spend a lot of time with.
__________________ --Be merciful to those who doubt. Jude 22.
Oh, yeah, and one other thing. Try to remember that most of the people working there, even if they're being paid a little bit, are essentially volunteers, and they really want everyone to have a good experience--just as at a SYC. Also, they really like the sport and are involved at many levels, so you will meet them in many different roles--the people running the thing aren't some monolithic "they." I've been a parent, a bout committee member, a fencer, a coach, and a referee, and my experience isn't at all unusual. If you get to know a few people you will develop relationships that last for years.
(And when it came time for my daughter to apply to colleges she already knew all the college coaches because they were also parents, club coaches, bout committee members, and referees she had known for years, and they knew her)
__________________ I'm not anonymous. We just haven't been properly introduced.
If is not uncommon that equipment that has generally passed at the local level is failed at the national level. Be mentally and financially prepared to replace equipment. If you are in foil/saber, remember that you may need time to get new lames stenciled if your current lame fails.
-- treat your first NAC as a learning experience. Don't worry about placement. Far too many parents think, "Well, my kid is ready for nationals so they should at least be able to finish in the top half (top quarter, etc)," or, "I've spent all this money so my kid needs to go through at least a couple of D.E.'s to make it worth while." If doesn't necessarily work that way. Half of the kids who make it to D.E.'s will be eliminated in the first D.E. First timers, of course, have a greater likelihood of finishing in the bottom half.
-- get to know the other parents. Most fencing parents are nice people and if you continue going to NAC's, these are people that you will spend a lot of time with.
Absolutely be prepared to spend some money on equipment that does not pass. My son has several sabre gloves that failed weapons check but are still servicable for practice. If cords fail, sometimes it is cheaper to let one of the vendors repair the cord than to buy new ones. Also, as someone else said in another thread, if you have to buy equipment, the vendors at the NAC are great, the prices are usually discounted, and you get to "touch and feel" the items andf try them on before you buy them. Great opportunity to stock up.
As far as placement, everyone save the gold medalist is going to leave the tournament having lost their last bout. And just because an event has 120 kids doesn't mean you have to fence every one of them. Pools are just like your local tournament, DEs are one at a time. You play the music the same, the audience is just bigger. My son's first National event, my mantra to him was simply, "hey, have fun".
My last advice, for what it is worth, is to simply let your child be, and deal with, the nerves herself. From that alone she will take away a sense of accomplishment, regardless of the finish, which will help her next time.
P.S., Of course, all rational parental thinking and common sense goes out the window after the your kid starts moving up through the ranks.
...
P.S., Of course, all rational parental thinking and common sense goes out the window after the your kid starts moving up through the ranks.
Fencerwallet is absolutely right. Most importantly - enjoy the fact that you and you kid are there at all - fencing in a National tournament (actually sort of international as usually there are fencers from Canada and a few other random countries competing too) is pretty cool just by itself - no matter how you finish! The first tournaments are the most fun because everything your fencer does will be wonderful and new. There are no expectations and therefore any disappointment should be minor and any well fenced bout should be cause for celebration.
Enjoy these early comps. As your fencer starts to do well and climb up through the ranks and expectations rise (and the highs become higher/lows become lower)- parental enjoyment tends to decrease accordingly. I believe most parents of highly ranked fencers will attest to this. But as long as your fencer is still having fun at these comps - the omnipresent knot in your stomach is worth it I guess!
Let your child be the lead as to how much she needs you, be mindful of her reactions to your presence. This is her first so she will probably want you pretty close for support but as she gains experience she might not need as much supervision. Some kids want and need thier parents close to them, some kids want thier parents in another state when they fence. Most kids fall somewhere in between - your child is acutely aware of your presence, you as the adult need to see how that affects thier fencing and make the adjustments so your child can be as successful as possible.
Again, this being her first she will probably want you close. Make sure she is eating and drinking as kids are often really bad about this. This is a big deal deciding to compete in NACs, no matter what the end results let her know you are proud of her for making this comittment.
I have been going with my daughter to NAC's and World Cups for the past 9 years and I have to say that shoes laces and safety pins are the ONLY things not immediately available for purchase that a fencer might need during the course of a competition (prices aside). Both are VERY useful to have - I once had to literally run back to the hotel - mercifully attached to the convention center that competition - to rip the shoe lace out of an extra pair of sneakers. But do have fun - it is a complete sensory overload at first - incredibly big, noisy, overwhelming - but the first one is a total learning experience. I do also agree with a past post that it gets tremendously harder the better your child does, as their expectations grow. As my daughter is a college fresh-person this year, I am planning to travel with her much less - I will be happy to not have the tension (and the jet lag) but will miss seeing her victories first hand, and being available on days when it doesn't go so well - which are inevitable, even for very high ranked fencers. Good Luck!
The first tournaments are the most fun because everything your fencer does will be wonderful and new. There are no expectations and therefore any disappointment should be minor and any well fenced bout should be cause for celebration.
LOL- I remember the first competition ever-an A4 tournament sectional event, HUGE, and the kiddo got 6 total points-between pools and DEs-and we were thrilled (he wasn't). And the first time he didn't end up in last place...next to last was good.
Quote:
Enjoy these early comps. As your fencer starts to do well and climb up through the ranks and expectations rise (and the highs become higher/lows become lower)- parental enjoyment tends to decrease accordingly. I believe most parents of highly ranked fencers will attest to this. But as long as your fencer is still having fun at these comps - the omnipresent knot in your stomach is worth it I guess!
Purchase your AED now, better put a cardiologist on retainer for those heart-stopping 14-14 DEs....stock up on Tums...bring out the Miss Clairol to cover the gray...
What the Weasel said is true-the more you do this, the higher the highs and the lower the lows-but the truly gratifying thing is that they can't wait to get back to practice and do it all over again. Welcome to the club and have fun at the NAC!
Be sure to come back after the event and give us a blow by blow recap, so those of use who are long past our first entry into the wonderful world of NAC competitions can have a chance to be nostalgic!
__________________
"Fraud is the creation of trust. And then: its betrayal."
William Black, Ph.D.
I think the thing that throws parents the most when going from SYC to NAC is the pool and DE boards. Somehow, everyone figures out the SYC system, but doesn't get the NAC system.
There are at least two bulletin boards where they post pool assignments. You need to know where they are, and hover near them some time after close of registration (from as short as 15 min, but usually at least 30 min for early events, can be a couple of hours for late events). They do announce when they do that, but its often hard to hear. You must get to the board, and find out the STRIP NUMBERS, not the pool number. The strip number is handwritten, the pool number is printed. Hustle over to that strip with all equipment.
Then, you do it all again with the DEs (if she makes the cut). There are often 3 or more strip numbers, but they are usually all in the same pod.
Armory advice has already been given. We (I am an armorer as well as a parent) test any equipment for any event when we're not busy. The absolute worst time to get your stuff tested is the first or second morning. The lines are often huge. An hour long line is not unheard of depending on what events are scheduled early. Failures on club equipment is very common. Be prepared. A sore point with many armorers, and others, is masks. If the armorer questions a mask, don't argue, thank them profusely and go buy a good mask. If you are pretty sure she is serious about fencing, she should have an FIE mask in good condition.
As others have said try to arrive early the day before the competition. Go to the venue while other events are being fenced and just take it all in. The size, energy level and amount of people can be overwhelming. Going on a non-fencing day allows your child and you to get use to some of the activity level and to get your bearings without the further distractions of competing.
You will meet some wonderful fencing families. They are the people that keep me from going nuts when my son is fencing.
or you'll have to clear the barbarians off every time you want to sit down. It's "hoard." 
Linear Mode
