International travel with fencing gear

[Einin]

Hi all,

I'm going to study in the US for six months, on exchange. I'm going to take my fencing gear with me and keep fencing at a local club. But I'm a little bit worried that there might be some issues getting it through customs. Technically, fencing weapons are, well, weapons.

So here are my questions:
Has anyone here been through US customs with their fencing gear? Was it fine? How hard did you have to push the 'sporting equipment' line?

Maybe I'm just a little paranoid. A friend of mine here in Aus had a bad experience with the local police. He got pulled over for a routine check of some sort, and seeing a spare blade in the back seat, one of the policemen asked him if he had any weapons in the car. It wasn't till the cop's partner came over and explained that fencing was a legitimate sport that he was allowed to drive off...

What if I get stuck with the ignorant customs official who doesn't know what fencing is?

[DangerMouse]

I've never had an issue and I've flown internationally with my gear a few times. One of my friends had trouble leaving Munich, but that's because when they asked what was in the bag he told them "weapons".

[Inquartata]

Never had a problem ( 3 times ).

Australian Customs asked about the "golf equipment" in my bag. Apparently they had concerns about possible traces of soil and/or vegetative matter on clubs or shoes. Once I told them it wasn't golf stuff, that was the end of the matter.

Coming back to the US was uneventful.

[Gav]

Hi all,

I'm going to study in the US for six months, on exchange. I'm going to take my fencing gear with me and keep fencing at a local club. But I'm a little bit worried that there might be some issues getting it through customs. Technically, fencing weapons are, well, weapons.

No they're not.

So here are my questions:
Has anyone here been through US customs with their fencing gear? Was it fine? How hard did you have to push the 'sporting equipment' line?

Maybe I'm just a little paranoid. A friend of mine here in Aus had a bad experience with the local police. He got pulled over for a routine check of some sort, and seeing a spare blade in the back seat, one of the policemen asked him if he had any weapons in the car. It wasn't till the cop's partner came over and explained that fencing was a legitimate sport that he was allowed to drive off...

What if I get stuck with the ignorant customs official who doesn't know what fencing is?

I can't speak to US incoming checkpoints but I've never had a problem travelling internationally. If asked just say it's sporting equipment.
I would check to see what your air company says (regarding extra charges).

[Allen Evans]

You shouldn't have a problem provided you stick to the "Sports Equipment" line. I usually also carry my USFA and AAI (coaching) cards with me, so if there any questions, I volunteer to show that I'm affiliated with a National and International Fencing association.

Custom officials may be ignorant, but they are not inexperianced. Many of them will have seen fencing gear before.

A

[oiuyt]

AAI (coaching) cards

Huh. Now I feel cheated. I don't think I ever got one of those.

-B

p.s. I would say something on the actual topic of the thread along the lines of how there won't be any issue and the OP is, indeed, being paranoid (or, rather, is inexperienced and worried about something which does not require concern), but the question appears to already have been adequately addressed in the four posts above mine. So I'll try something new for FdN and simply go off on a tangent instead.

[Allen Evans]

Huh. Now I feel cheated. I don't think I ever got one of those.

Did your attorney threaten legal action after you passed your USFCA exam and they refused to accredit you?

All my entries through US Customs with fencing gear have been painless. On the other hand, going into Canada almost always resulted in my car being emptied, my gear strewn over the payment, and a lot of questions from the Canadian custom's officials.

[telkanuru]

Did your attorney threaten legal action after you passed your USFCA exam and they refused to accredit you?

All my entries through US Customs with fencing gear have been painless. On the other hand, going into Canada almost always resulted in my car being emptied, my gear strewn over the payment, and a lot of questions from the Canadian custom's officials.

Interesting. Last time I went to Canada, they would have let us through without noticing the other 8 people in the back of the 15 passenger van, if we hadn't said something.

[Allen Evans]

Hmmm....I must have fit some profile or another: traveling alone, in a sports car.

A

[Capt. Slo-mo]

On the other hand, going into Canada almost always resulted in my car being emptied, my gear strewn over the payment, and a lot of questions from the Canadian custom's officials.

How much payment did you offer? It must have been insultingly low for them to act so disrepectfully to your gear.

[oiuyt]

How much payment did you offer? It must have been insultingly low for them to act so disrepectfully to your gear.

Enough payment to strew gear over. Even in small denominations that's probably a fair amount.

-B

[dridge]

I have never had a problem reentering the USA. I have had difficulties only once, while leaving Istanbul.

The authorities found my gear suspicious. They were escorting me to what they described as "a little room" for questioning when I produced paperwork from the Turkiye Eskrim Federasyonu. Their concerns were allayed, and I was free to depart for Frankfurt with my SKB hardsided golf bag.

Since then, I've kept copies of documents in my carry-on, even after the comp.

Drew

[Alexander Kai]

I have never had a problem reentering the USA. I have had difficulties only once, while leaving Istanbul.

The authorities found my gear suspicious. They were escorting me to what they described as "a little room" for questioning when I produced paperwork from the Turkiye Eskrim Federasyonu. Their concerns were allayed, and I was free to depart for Frankfurt with my SKB hardsided golf bag.

Since then, I've kept copies of documents in my carry-on, even after the comp.

Drew

What type of documents? The FIE License? Results? Initial Seeding? I'm just curious.

[KD5MDK]

How much payment did you offer? It must have been insultingly low for them to act so disrepectfully to your gear.

Once they took the Mounty off the $50 nobody knows how much to offer anymore.

[Fencergrl]

Did your attorney threaten legal action after you passed your USFCA exam and they refused to accredit you?

All my entries through US Customs with fencing gear have been painless. On the other hand, going into Canada almost always resulted in my car being emptied, my gear strewn over the payment, and a lot of questions from the Canadian custom's officials.

That's weird because I often get waved through, they don't often even ask what I'm transporting back in my car. The US customs however... lordy lordy they can ask some odd questions. I have heard that different crossings have different attitudes. Generally I find the smaller crossings to be less troublesome. Plus of course if you're Canadian or American, each country seems to think the other one is more evil.

Re: The original post... I've transported everything from 30 foils, to reproduction swords across by ground from US to Canada without issues. I have found that when you tell US Custom agents "sporting equipment", they'll often ask what type. Telling them it's fencing gear at that point doesn't seem to cause any problems.

Fencers travel all the time in and out of the US.

[Einin]

the OP is, indeed, being paranoid

Knowing me, that's quite possible.

Thanks for all the responses, I'm certainly less worried about it now.

[Fencergrl]

You have every right to be paranoid those Americans are nuts! There's no reason to believe their customs agents & law enforcement isn't even more so.

[Inquartata]

...go off on a tangent...

Why would you want to yell at George Hamilton?

That's weird because I often get waved through, they don't often even ask what I'm transporting back in my car.

Well, that's probably because of the way you talk, eh?

The US customs however... lordy lordy they can ask some odd questions.

Well, that's probably because of the way you talk, eh?

...each country seems to think the other one is more evil.

At least one country is correct.

[dberke]

All my entries through US Customs with fencing gear have been painless. On the other hand, going into Canada almost always resulted in my car being emptied, my gear strewn over the payment, and a lot of questions from the Canadian custom's officials.

Some years ago, myself and a group of fencers drove up to Vancouver, BC for a tournament. When the guy at the Canadian border asked us why we were visiting and we told him for a fencing tournament, he became very interested - he said he used to fence saber! Since there weren't many cars crossing the border (it was crazy-early in the morning), we chatted fencing for a few minutes with the guy.

Needless to say, we didn't have any problems crossing the border!

Another time, we were transporting a truck full of rolled copper strips into the US from Canada - that drew some attention from US customs! Luckily they seemed to only care about whether the stuff was hazardous so we didn't get delayed too much...

Dan

[Inquartata]

Good thing 'Fringe' wasn't on the air back then.