NO, I dont wanna go to tournaments with my parents!

[foilfencer0617]

Question:
For national tournaments (I'm talking at the Cadet level), do the fencers travel with their parents? Is there some type of club such as NYFC that will just take a whole bunch of kids to these events? Thanx

[KShan5[PrFC]]

ummm, I am going with my mommy, maybe our mommies can meet and we can have a slumber party...honestly though, my mother is coming with me. You'll need a parent to help with equipment expenditures etc.

[MyrddinsPrecint]

i'm not going until next summer (the summer before my freshman year of college)-- partially so that i can avoid going with my parents..... but mostly because that's when i'm going to be able to pay for it!... .

it's really going to depend on your parents though... how strict are yours? because if your parents are strict and overprotective, i doubt you'll be able to escape them, even if you can find people to go with..

[Dee EffEll]

My dad is taking me to nationals again this year, even though I'm not old enough to make the world team yet.

[Sarah]

I'm 14 and I depend on my mom for every thing! We have a special relationship. She's my best friend. There are clubs that let kids go without their parents though, but I don't know if their as comforting as having a relitive there.

[afc fencer]

Most parents travel with there kids up till some of them are out of college. Its perfectly normal for parents to go.

I know how you feel, having parents at comps is tuff, but i have mine well trained (jk)

[thyme_daniels]

yeah, my parents go with me, and most of the parents go with their kids from my club. especially cadet and under fencers. i have seen some juniors from the coasts travel together as a team, but the norm is to bring a parent with. though they can "cramp" one's "style".

[Mo]

Originally posted by thyme_daniels
yeah, my parents go with me, and most of the parents go with their kids from my club. especially cadet and under fencers. i have seen some juniors from the coasts travel together as a team, but the norm is to bring a parent with. though they can "cramp" one's "style".

If one cannot be one's self in from of one's parent, maybe they need to re evaluate their "style."

[whtouche]

Originally posted by Mo
If one cannot be one's self in from of one's parent, maybe they need to re evaluate their "style."

Spoken like a parent

Seriously tho, my parents are going with me this year just as last year. It sort of turns into a vacation, with my parents likely spending most of their time with other parents from my club. They're there if I need em.

[Zelda]

I know here at least at U/17 and school champs there are plenty of parents around. At U/20 there seems to be alot less, with most people staying at the Uni halls and a couple of older fencers/adults supervising them. I know some fencers who are seniors whose parents still come to comps with them.....I guess it depends on your parents....mine are willng to help me get there, but generally dont come with!

[Marcos]

some of my best memories (see other posts) are of my dad taking me to competitions as a kid - bacon rolls in the morning, driving at 6am in crystal blue sunshine across the country, sharing the emotions, dad there when i won my first Gold medal...magic


then when I was a bit older, i started taking my younger brother with me...best feeling in the world when we both won on the same day

the feeling of independance you get when you go to a comp with your mates is great, but don;t try to grow-up too quickly...going to comps can be a great way for a family to bond

[WoodsideDr]

What's a "bacon roll?"

[a517dogg]

there are clubs where their whole junior team goes without parents. most aren't like this though. parents are useful because they have cash, and buy you stuff at tournements from vendors, and pay for nice restaurants.

my rule when i traveled on fencing trips with my parents was that neither of them were allowed to say anything while iwas fencing or in my pool or in my DE table or anything unless i asked for something.

[Mo]

I would just like to add a few things.

As a parent I ask my kids how much I can cheer, how much space they need etc. We as a family have guidelines and agree before we ever get to the competition.

It is very stressful to watch your kids fence. Most parents do not like their kids to be upset as all git out. We want them to have a lovely childhood. So, when the kid is quite upset which they have every right to be when they do not feel they fenced where they should be, it is very difficult to know how much to comfort or how much to just back off.

For some kids there is a heck of a lot at stake at meets. Being a parent and tip toeing through the emotions is harder than heck.
Another thing that is difficult is when your kid does something shocking, like beating someone you never thought they could.
It is so hard to be cool when inside you want to just BURST. It is not that you want to go around saying "ha ha my kid beat your kid" it is more like, "OH MY GAWD how did he or she pull that one out?"

Parents at meets can provide a lot of comfort to each other (or be real jerks too.) While the kids think it is all about fencing, there is so much other crap going on that it is mind boggling!
There are kids you get to know and have known for years and you get close to them. When they beat your child or your child beats them it can be unsettling for a while. I often have no idea what to say or do. Maybe it is just my problem, do other parents have a hard time too??

[Peach]

Personally, I like talking to the parents of my opponents at national meets, whether I beat their children or vice versa. The parents are closer to my age, after all . Parents are some of the people I most look forward to talking to when I go to these events. A lot of them, like me, end up fencing themselves.

Some of the parents are more fun to talk to than others, though--I agree with Mo that some of them are jerks. An awful lot of them get over it after they survive their first national tournament. It's funny watching some parents at their first one, being sure they are supposed to hate all their children's opponents, argue with the referees, protest all decisions, and annoy their children.

However, it's hard for me being a parent at these things. I'm not expected to be around when she's fencing, because it annoys and distracts her. It would be nice to be allowed to cheer because it's so much fun watching her and I'm so proud of her. I love it when she cheers for me, after all! That's one of the reasons I took up fencing in the first place, because it was so frustrating being the "fencer's mom."

[DJ Apostrophe]

Interesting... I have asked my mom to come to several of my tournaments... she has come to one, and left half way through my pool, because she was bored... I was 3-0 and she couldn't have cared less.
-w

[afc fencer]

There are kids you get to know and have known for years and you get close to them. When they beat your child or your child beats them it can be unsettling for a while. I often have no idea what to say or do. Maybe it is just my problem, do other parents have a hard time too??

Heh its funny when that happens, you parents get the funniest looks on your faces. But gee you think its tuff to be the parent of a kid who beats a close friend? What abot the kid? I hate when i have to fence my friends. If you beat them your not really quite sure what to say to them, and when you lose to them theres this weird silence for a little while.

However, it's hard for me being a parent at these things. I'm not expected to be around when she's fencing, because it annoys and distracts her.

Yah im the same way about my parents. Anyone can cheer for me except for them. I dunno why but if they cheer for me it gets on my nerves and distracts me.

[MyrddinsPrecint]

Originally posted by DJ Apostrophe
Interesting... I have asked my mom to come to several of my tournaments... she has come to one, and left half way through my pool, because she was bored... I was 3-0 and she couldn't have cared less.
-w

hey, wayne, let's team up... i'll be your sister if you're my brother!!! we can cheer for each other....

[MHS Fencer]

I'm an old hat at these tournaments now, but my mother still comes with me. Why? Well, first of all, as long as she's paying for the trip it's her right. Secondly, she knows what to tell me when I'm too tense. Thirdly, she's been doing this for several year now, so she's starting to pick up on my fencing mannerisms and gives me general advice (usually what i told her to tell me at the beginning of the day, but still, it helps).

I'd advise you to just go with a parent, especially because when you lose and look vulnerable they're much more likely to spring for those 3-5 new FIE blades you'll need shortly than if you beg at home.

[Marcos]

Originally posted by WoodsideDr
What's a "bacon roll?"

come to the UK or Ireland and ask for a bacon roll with ketchup for breakfast

quite simply the food of the gods