Things have been a little too quiet on the epee front lately, so we have officially declared Saturday April 30th to be Epee Enthusiasts Day.  We are inviting all epeeists, past and present, to come and fence with us.

The idea is to get as many epeeists there at the same time as possible, starting with group warm-up from 10am and taking over the pistes at 10:30.  We’ll fence lots of bouts, maybe even organise some team matches, and catch up with what everyone has been up to lately.

Not currently a member, or not paid up for this term?  No problem.  We’re not checking memberships or asking for visitor fees this day.  Just rock up and enjoy a really good session of epee fencing.

While we always welcome new members, right now we are particularly keen to get more fencers (beginners welcome!) for the following:

After School Class – Thursdays 4:15pm-5:30pm, Mitcham.  Ages 7+

Veteran (age 40+) Squad – Tuesday and/or Thursday nights, 7:30pm, Mitcham.

Women’s Squad – Women and girls of all ages, we’re hoping to run a specific squad session on Thursday nights in Mitcham.

It has been a busy start to the year – a big thank you to all the people who helped with our many activities!

There will be no fencing on:
Thursday March 24th
Saturday March 26th
Tuesday March 29th
Saturday April 23rd

Looking ahead, here are some things to think about for term 2:

Referee Course.  This is being run by Fencing Victoria on Sunday April 3rd.  It is free for our members to go, if you have been fencing for at least a year we highly recommend going and learning more about the rules of the sport!

Coaching Course.  The Level 0 course is being run with funds we received from a grant, so again is free for our members to attend.  Please sign up if you have any interest in learning how to teach fencing to others.  Level 0 is not often run, it may be a long time until you get another chance.

Club Merchandise.  Our new club jackets and t-shirts have been collected and will be available at the next fencing session on April 2nd!

Olinda Epee Class.  An Epee class will run at Olinda from Thursday April 14th.  You can sign up for just the class without needing to be a full member of the club.  Beginners welcome.

Competitions.  There are many competitions coming up in the next few months, check the FV calendar for details: http://www.sportingpulse.com/get_file.cgi?id=35707778

We are pleased to announce that the club secured development grant funding to run a Level 0 fencing coaching course.

The Level 0 course concentrates on teaching group classes at the beginner level, as well as general coaching theory to enable you to run safe and effective beginner classes, demos and assist with group work at a club.  This is ideal for anyone who just wants to run intro sessions or beginner classes at schools, or help out around their club.

The requirements to achieve accreditation are also less than those required for Level 1, so if you’re not feeling ready to jump straight into Level 1 then Level 0 may give you a gentler introduction and boost your confidence for further coach training.

For our members, the course will be free.  You will need to be at least 16 years old by the time the course finishes, and currently affiliated.

The first of 4 sessions will be held on Sunday, April 10th, at the State Fencing Centre on Arden Street.  The next sessions will be scheduled for the term 3 and summer school holidays.

Please note that this is the first time in several years the Level 0 course has been run, and is only running now because of our grant.  If you want to do this course make sure you sign up for this one – it may be a long time until it runs again!

For more information, please contact Lisa: coach@whitehorse.riposte.com.au

We are placing another order for club clothing!  We’ve got some really nice new jackets to offer ahead of the cooler weather, as well as the club T-shirts in your choice of black or navy style.  The material in these shirts makes them great to fence in.

Below is a copy of the order form – please return it by the morning of February 29th in order to receive the lower pre-order price (and ensure you get just the right size!).

Thanks to our successful application for the Active Sport clothing grant, we are able to offer you top quality items at a relatively low price.

Merchandise order form 2016

We will be running a 6 Week Beginner Course, starting on Thursday 18th February.

Each class runs from 8pm to 9:30pm at our venue in Mitcham.  No previous experience is required and we provide everything you need. It is open to all ages 10+, aimed primarily at adult and teen beginners.

You will learn the basics of fencing, and get a chance to try each of the three weapons.

The cost is $100, which includes trial club membership for the 6 weeks.

If you already have a club membership, you can join in with the course for free!   So why not get a friend to come and learn fencing, and you can join in as their practice partner?

To enroll, or for more information, e-mail coach@whitehorsechevaliers.com

We regret to announce that our Olinda training session will be on hiatus this term, so no fencing in Olinda for term 1.

However, we are planning for it to be back bigger and better than ever in term 2, so watch this space for announcements!

In the meantime, we will trial a Thursday session at Mitcham.  Initially it will run 8pm-9:30pm on Thursdays from February 18th.  If there is enough interest, we can look at expanding the training time offered.

To help kick things off, we will run a Beginners/Novice class at the new Thursday session.  The class is open to anyone who is allowed out after 8pm on a school night, and will give you a chance to sample each of the three weapons.  Spread the word!

It was great to see a good turn out for our early January sessions, but things really kick off for the year on January 30th when our term 1 classes begin.

If you haven’t already paid your membership, make sure you do so either this week or at your first class.  If you are planning to attend a class, make sure you tell us you are coming!  Reminders have been e-mailed to 2015 members, if you haven’t received them then check we have your correct e-mail address.

Here’s a quick guide to the next couple of weeks:

Saturday 30th –
9am: U9 Swordplay , U15 Competition Foil
10am: Beginner and Novice Skills
10:30am: Competition Sabre , Free Bouting on pistes

Tuesday 2nd –
7:30pm: Group Warm-up, followed by Beginner and Novice Skills
Free Bouting and Individual Lessons

Wednesday 3rd – 4:15pm, Competition Training (ages 9+)

Thursday 4th – 4:15pm, Skills Training (ages 7+)