Looking for Fencing Club in San Francisco Bay Area!

[JReilly]

Hi, I recently moved to San Jose about a year ago and haven't been fencing since. I've been meaning to look into clubs myself, but could use some recommendations; and help with a project for school.

One of the classes I'm taking involves getting paired up with another student, and then teaching/engaging your "leisure buddy" in your favorite recreational activity. The point is to introduce your buddy to something they've never/hardly ever done. I love and miss fencing dearly, and I doubt that this guy has seen anything fencing related outside of The Princess Bride. So, I thought bringing him to a fencing club would be a good experience for both of us.

I am looking for a nearby fencing club that would be both optimal and convenient for this project. I'm looking for a place where we would be able to rent out some equipment for the day/a couple hours, perhaps have some sort of basic mini lesson from someone for him, and then be able to fence a bit afterwords. Now it doesn't necessarily have to be a hardcore private lesson, it could be a friendly introduction from someone who works there, a group lesson, ect. Just something to get his toes wet. Also, keep in mind that we're poor college students, I know we'll have to shell out some money for this, but not an arm and leg. Friendly would be nice too, it'd be great if there were other people to interact and fence with besides ourselves. I fence Epee so that's what I was planning on teaching him; this is a must, so if there's a good Epee night somewhere, let me know!

Also, we might have to rely on public transit, so the closer to San Jose, the better!!! However, if there is someplace perfect in San Francisco, I'll try my best to drag him up there.

I would appreciate any suggestions or feedback, thanks!

[catwood1]

Well for your project, I'd guess First place fencing would be a good club. Its in san Jose, or damn close to it.

Also, if you are looking for a competitive club, there are a good number around there. First Place Fencing, Halberstadt, and Massialas are all good clubs. Massialas is now arguably the strongest foil club in the nation.

[mfp]

Well for your project, I'd guess First place fencing would be a good club. Its in san Jose, or damn close to it.

First Place is in San Carlos, not San Jose. There are at least 4 clubs closer to San Jose than First Place.

The Fencing Center (aka TFC) is in downtown San Jose. They fence epee most Tuesday and Thursday evenings, they're nice people and they have an awesome domain name: fencing.com

[Jason]

First Place is not in San Jose, though it is fairly close.
Unless things have changed since I lived there, there are two fencing clubs in San Jose:

The Fencing Center of San Jose and California Fencing Academy. They both have epee.

Edit: Looks like mfp beat me to it.

[catwood1]

Ah, and I forgot to check to see what weapon he fenced. Thats what I get for being lazy..

Sorry bout that.

[wahrman]

As said already, The Fencing Center is your best bet.

It's in San Jose, send me a PM and I'll hook you up.

[misha]

CFA has 3 weeks beginner classes for $59, all equipment included
http://calfencingacademy.com/Docs/intro_classes.pdf

.

[contre-Sixte]

Well, if you are a poor college student, I'd recommend TFC or even Santa Cruz for the lowest floor fees. If you actually plan to join, Stanford is cheap and chock full of competitive epeeist. If you are super recreational - and fun is more important than quality - you can always try Salle de Cesare in Sunnyvale. They fence in the park during summer. It's nearly free. CFA is an expensive choice, but they do have lots of students.

If you want something close to public transport (and live to tell), your choices drop dramatically. Stanford definitely, CFA-Mountain View, maybe.

[epeemike81]

Wow... an epeeist looking for a club in the SF Bay area and nobody's mentioned Golden Gate Fencing Center yet?

Well, now somebody has.

-m

[edew]

Difficult to get to GGFC from San Jose. Anyone not in SF would be (almost) crazy to drive into SF for fencing practice. It's just so ornery traffic- and parking-wise, especially given the alternatives that so many others have opined.

BTW, Stanford is not near any public transportation AFAIK. Indeed, I don't think any of the named clubs are near any public transportation. The closest would be First Place, which is 1/4 mile from the San Carlos CalTrain station.

[mfp]

BTW, Stanford is not near any public transportation AFAIK.

Stanford has a free, open to the public, no ID required shuttle service called "Marguerite" that connects to CalTrain at the Palo Alto transit center and runs through campus. There is a Marguerite stop a few hundred feet from the building that houses the fencing facility.

Indeed, I don't think any of the named clubs are near any public transportation. The closest would be First Place, which is 1/4 mile from the San Carlos CalTrain station.

Depending on where you start out in San Jose, it might be silly to take Cal Train up to San Carlos to find fencing near public transit, considering TFC is a 5-ish minute walk from the San Jose CalTrain station.

[Duck]

TFC is walking distance to HP Arena, so there is plenty of public transportation.

[edew]

Stanford has a free, open to the public, no ID required shuttle service called "Marguerite" that connects to CalTrain at the Palo Alto transit center and runs through campus. There is a Marguerite stop a few hundred feet from the building that houses the fencing facility.

Depending on where you start out in San Jose, it might be silly to take Cal Train up to San Carlos to find fencing near public transit, considering TFC is a 5-ish minute walk from the San Jose CalTrain station.

And we don't have much by way of epee.

[eac]

I used to drive up to SF from Mountain View three times a week. If you can find parking (which is doable at least near Halberstadt), traffic isn't always that bad. If it were me, and GGFC were that much better (I wouldn't know; I fence foil), I'd do it.

[contre-Sixte]

TFC is a 5-ish minute walk from the San Jose CalTrain station.

True ... and you can meet some very special people on that 5 minute walk.

[wwalkerjr]

True ... and you can meet some very special people on that 5 minute walk.

Not even counting the ones that you will meet at the club.
Actually, TFC has some great people and some very good epee fencers of all ages.

[JReilly]

I had no clue there were some in San Jose! Well I feel stupid. I just assumed I'd have to travel far and wide to get to one. I asked someone about fencing clubs when I first moved here, and he mentioned places like Golden Gate Fencing Club, and others that sounded more like an expedition to get to, rather then a bike ride away.

But I'm thrilled to find out that they're that close! I'm officially dragging this guy to a fencing club now whether he likes it or not. It's all about trying new things! Unless he has serious health issues or something... I'll definitely check out The Fencing Center, and look into a couple other ones really close by for this project. But I would love to get back into fencing on a regular basis, and now I have a better idea on where to find other epeeists. And this fencing in the park shindig sounds interesting....

Thanks a lot for the suggestions!

[RITFencing]

TFC is walking distance to HP Arena, so there is plenty of public transportation.

Which also means that if there's a Sharks game, parking is hell to find.

[Duck]

That is not really true. TFC has its own parking in the back which is not open for public/ Arena events.

[jjefferies]

That is not really true. TFC has its own parking in the back which is not open for public/ Arena events.

Really?!! Then why have we been parking out on the street fighting with all the arena users all these years??