Although swordplay has been around since ancient times, it was not until the 18th Century that equipment was safe enough for sport, and rules of engagement were codified. What developed was the basis for modern fencing, one of a few sports to appear in every Olympics since 1896. It is a fast, athletic game, made up of three events:
Dubbed the "Sport of Kings," the foil is a descendant of the light,
court sword formerly used by nobility to train for duels. It has a
flexible, rectangular blade approximately 35 inches in length and
weighing less than one pound. Points are scored with the tip of the
blade and must land on valid target: torso, from shoulders to groin
in the front, and shoulders to the waist in the back.
Foil employs rules of right of way. The fencer who starts to attack
first is given priority should his opponent counter-attack.
An electrical scoring system detects hits on valid target. Each foil
has a blunt, spring-loaded button at the point of the blade that
must be depressed with a pressure of 500 grams or more to register a
hit. The foil fencer's uniform features an electrically wired
metallic vest called a lame - a hit to the lame causes the scoring
machine to display a colored light on the side of the fencer that
scored the touch.
The epee (pronounced EPP-pay - literally meaning "sword" in French) is the descendant of the dueling sword. It is heavier than the foil, weighing approximately 27 ounces, with a stiffer, thicker blade and a larger guard. As in foil, touches are scored only with the point of the blade; however, in epee the entire body, head-to-toe, is valid target - much like in an actual duel. There is no concept of "off-target" in epee. Some people refer to epee as "Freestyle Fencing" because anything goes.
The saber is the modern version of the slashing cavalry sword. As such, the major difference between saber and the other two weapons is that saberists can score with the edge of their blade as well as their point. In saber, the target area is the entire body above the waist, excluding the hands. In addition, saber has rules of right of way which are very similar to foil but with subtle differences.
At Presidio Fencing Club, we consider the Epee and Saber to be advanced weapons. Seniors (i.e. those aged 13+), may choose to practice with these weapons during sparring sessions.
Presidio Fencing Club comprises a group of fencing enthusiasts from Santa Ynez and Lompoc all the way down to Carpinteria. Through bi-weekly practices, we provide opportunities for training in Olympic sport fencing to novice and experienced athletes, aged 10 to Adult. Presidio Fencing Club is a member of the Southern California Division of the United States Fencing Association. We operate under the umbrella of the Central Coast Fencing Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization (tax ID# 820540198).
The club began in 2004 as a recreational outfit called Santa Barbara Youth Fencers. In 2006 we changed our namesake to identify ourselves as an outpost for sport fencing in the Santa Barbara area. In 2011, we began Presidio North, a venue for fencing classes in Northern Santa Barbara County. Most Presidio fencers are recreational athletes, coming to practices to break a sweat. A few others travel to Los Angeles, the Bay Area, and elsewhere in the country for competition.
For insurance purposes, membership with the United States Fencing Association is required before joining any class. Membership is $10, and expires on July 31. It may be purchased by visiting USFencing.org.
Fencing is a great sport for athletes in middle school and high school. We are proud of our Varsity and Junior Varsity titles (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2016) in the Southern California Scholastic Fencing League. Upon graduation, our young fencers have gone on to compete at both the varsity and the club level at these colleges and universities:
We train as a team, with practices organized into Drills and Sparring. A typical practice starts with a group warm-up, along with some footwork drills to improve strength, agility, and power, and provide a foundation for tactics. We then split into groups for drills and then set up our electrical strips for situational sparring. Occasionally, we address topics such as nutrition, goal setting, tournament mentality, and equipment maintenance.
Note that fencers must have their own gear to participate. We only provide the basic equipment for introductory lessons (i.e. when you get to touch the coach, but the coach doesn't touch back).
| Tuesday and Thursday nights,
Sept 10 - Dec 12 6:30 pm Warm up and Footwork 7:00 pm Sparring and lessons No class Halloween or the week of Thanksgiving. New fencers start Sept 17. |
Westside Comm Center
Where Victoria St meets Castillo St
Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Lessons should be purchased in advance as a punch card/package, with a 5-lesson commitment, and must be taken during the quarter they are purchased.
Tournament Coaching Fees
For larger competitions involving travel (i.e. some
qualifiers, RYC, SYC, ROC, and NAC), all participating
athletes will share in their coach's travel expenses and Per
Diem.
Presidio's Dos Pueblos High Men's Foil team. 2016 SoCal Scholastic Champions, Varsity B Division. Los Angeles, CA. Photo courtesy Richard Block.
Photo courtesy Doug Golupski
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