Excalibur Newsletter, APR-07

Term 2 Dates
First week
Friday 27/4/2007 7:00pm - 9:00pm.
Warm up starts at 7:30pm
Saturday 28/4/2007 1:00pm - 2:30pm Sabre
2:30pm - 4:00pm Foil
Tuesday 1/5/2007 7:00pm - 9:00pm

Last Week
Tuesday 26/6/2007
Friday 29/6/2007
Saturday 30/6/2007

Club dinner Friday 6/7/2007 venue and time to be announced

First Aid Course
Thanks to a grant from Healthway, 14 club members have attended a first aid course. We are the first Fencing club in WA to have achieved this, so a pat on the back to all the people at the club for getting this organised. Congratulations to the following club members who are now qualified in Senior First Aid: Jon Allard, Frank Kocsis, Stephen Lim, Tim Inglis, Heather Inglis, Ferg Inglis, Chris Rollins, Anne Rollins, Allan Aitken, Monique Aitken, Josh Gorman, Jess Higgins, Michelle Boughton and Andrew Scott. We will apply for another grant to do a first aid course early next year.

Coaching Course
On Friday nights five members of the club have been taking lessons with Stephen to become Level 1 Foil Coaches. This is a continuation of our Assistant Coaching Course, which we ran last year. These budding coaches need to get as much practice as possible so if you feel like a lesson and they are not busy taking a session, please ask. Most trainee coaches are skilled in both sabre and foil. Our trainee coaches are Alison Inglis, Michelle Boughton, Rob Lane, Jon Allard and Andrew Scott.

Club Championship
On the last week of the last term we had our club competition; points have been awarded based on the number of hits during the poule round. The results will be posted on the notice board and the web site so you can see how you did. Club competitions will be held each term with prizes awarded at the AGM.

Cadets
The Cadets competition in Sydney at the end of this term is being organised by WAFA. All State Squad members that are younger than 17 years of age on 1 January 2007 should have received notification of this event. If you wish to compete but have not received any information, please see Jon for details.

AFF #2
AFF #2 will be held on the weekend of Friday 8th June to Monday 11th of June, 2007 at Kingsway International Sports Stadium, Kingsway Road, Madeley. Please see Jon for application forms. You need to be WAFA Affiliated and a State Squad Member to compete. Volunteers are required to help out especially on Thursday night to set up the pistes, these are very heavy so we need some parents to help load, unload and set up at Kingsway. Please see Jon if you can help out on the Thursday night-you will get free pizza after the work is done. If you are competing, please offer your services while you are there, e.g. if you are competing in the afternoon come in the morning to help out.

October 2006 News Letter

Term 4 dates.
First week
Tues 17th Oct 7.00-8.30pm, big gym
Thurs 19th Oct 7.00-8.00pm, small gym
Fri 20th Oct 7.00-8.30pm, big gym
Sat 21st Oct 1.30-3.30pm, big gym (2.00 normal start there after)

Final week
Thurs 23rd Nov 7.00-8.00pm, small gym
Fri 24th Nov 7.00-8.30pm, big gym
Sat 25th Nov 2.00-3.30pm, big gym
Tues 28th Nov 7.00-8.30pm, big gym

Term 4 programme.
As Term 4 is a short term, we aim to pack as much into the time available as possible. State Championships are on the w/e of 21st/22nd October, and National Championships are around the first w/e in December. Between those dates we will fit our Quiz Night, rolling Club Championship series, AGM/Awards presentation, complete our leadership training programme for the year and get as many members through their next proficiency award as we can. We will run a beginners' programme this term. If you'd like to bring along a friend the first Friday and Saturday sessions of term would be the best time to do so.

Remember to bring your term fees along your first session of term. Our first Saturday will start early to let parents settle with our T reasurer and Membership Secretary. Remember that, for insurance reasons, we cannot allow people to continue fencing who have not paid their membership fees.

Quiz Night and Weapon Raffle.
This is a family event, with questions, games and prizes for all ages. Bring your friends and family for a fun night out. Get a table together and bring them all along. When: on Saturday 28th October starting 6.30 pm. Where: Hilton Bowling Club, South Fremantle. Cost: $10 per adult ticket, $6 per junior ticket (tickets from Jon, Heather, other members of the Club Committee). Family quiz, games, a full size Excalibur sword raffle (tickets available now). Donations of additional prizes will be gratefully accepted. Proceeds will go towards new equipment.

Competition results.
Congratulations to Sutherlan for his bronze medal in the Open Mens' Sabre during AFF #3. Also, well done to Michelle (Open Foil), Jess (Open Women's Sabre), Gary (Men's Veterans Foil), Edward and Chris (Men's Veterans Sabre) and to Ann and Heather (Women's Veterans Sabre) for their respective placings.

Fremantle Masters' Fencing 2006.
The fencing event for veteran and pre-veteran fencers on 23rd September was a great event for our club, drawing fencing friends from as far afield as Albany and York. Competition was run in all three weapons, as well as a barbie, in the space of six hours. We were able to keep people in action right up to the end, when edible medals were presented to the last set of winners. Club coffee mugs were presented to all entrants. It was a good trial run for the next Fremantle Masters' Games (September, 2007) and might even be connected to WAFA's decision to run veterans' events during the annual championships this year.

New this term.
On Thursday evenings Tim will focus on one-on-one coaching. If you want to go for silver or gold awards, book a slot for your test. A charge of $15 will be made to cover your award badge and hall hire. Coaching assistants will also be available to help you prepare you for your test. Remember to bring your training diary.

As a result of the success of last term's introductory fencing class for students at South Fremantle Senior High School, we welcome some new junior members to our sabre group. We hope to repeat the South Fremantle SHS course next year, and will also consider a primary school introductory course in the area.

Beginners' courses.
In term four we will run an introduction to epee (adult beginners) on Friday night and introductory sabre on Saturday (junior beginners). New beginners will be joining these classes, but established fencers who want to try a new weapon are welcome to join the group. Some help will be needed from senior foilists.

National Championships, Brisbane, December.
The AFF National Championships will take place in Brisbane in early December. Those who haven't already registered need to get in touch with WAFA immediately. This year, a WAFA State Squad application form is also required for all entrants. Details on the Club noticeboard. The National U20 championships will be held in Melbourne in late January. Speak to Steven Lim if you intend to go.

Notice of Annual General Meeting; Saturday, November 25th, 2006.
The Club AGM will take place in the large gym, South Fremantle SHS, Annie St, South Fremantle at 3.30pm on 25th November. During the meeting we will appoint the new Committee for 2007, hear the annual reports and present our vision for next year. The AGM will be followed immediately by a presentation of Excalibur competition and service awards.

We need your help.
Members, family members and friends who'd like to help the Committee run our Club's expanding programme are asked to let us know how they can help before the AGM. Assistance is particularly needed to look after our expanding complement of safety gear and fencing equipment, in keeping the membership & attendance record and supporting our junior members in State (WAFA) competitions. These tasks are all done more easily and effectively if the work is shared out mong several people. Practical assistance without committee involvement is warmly appreciated

Just in time for Christmas.
Excalibur has its own coffee mugs, complete with Club logo and classy motto. It you want one to give as a Christmas present (or even to reward yourself), mugs cost $10 each or $15 for two. There is a limited supply. First come, first served.

Regards

Michelle Broughton
Club Secretary

July 2006 News Letter

Term 3 dates.
First week
Tues 25th Jul 7.00-8.30pm, big gym
Thurs 27th Jul 7.00-8.00pm, small gym
Fri 28th Jul 7.00-830pm, big gym
Sat 29th Jul 1.30-3.30pm, big gym

Final week
Fri 22nd Sept 7.00-8.30pm, big gym
Sat 23rd Sept 2.00-3.30pm, big gym
Tues 26th Jul 7.00-8.30pm, big gym
Thurs 28th Jul 7.00-8.00pm, small gym

Competition results.
Congratulations to our four junior members who took part in the 2006 National Cadet Championships in Lidcombe, NSW. The squad won the trophy for best state overall; a sensational result that reflects the large number of medals and top eight finishes for WA. Our four members contributed to the overall result. Jess and Henry won their first poule round bouts in a national championship and will now have a national ranking. Ali scored a bronze in the U17 women's sabre. Sutherlan took the gold in U17 men's sabre and shared in the U17 men's team sabre overall victory. Three medal winning results from Excalibur fencers, and all in sabre.

Term 3 programme.
The first Friday and Saturday sessions of term will include a have-a-go spot if you'd like to bring along a friend. The Friday night fencers will get continue the social programme with after-fencing cappuccinos.

Remember to bring your term fees along your first session of term. Our first Saturday will start early to let parents settle with our Treasurer and Membership Secretary. Remember that, for insurance reasons, we cannot allow people to continue fencing who have not paid their membership fees.

New this term.
On Thursday evenings Tim will run an introduction to coaching methods. The sessions will be short, specific and based on small groups. Participants need to come with a notepad and be ready to fence as well.

We will also be running an introductory fencing class for students at South Fremantle Senior High School after school during the term. Excalibur coaches will teach a sabre beginners' class this term. If the course goes well, we will repeat it next year.

Beginners' courses.
In term three we will run an introduction to foil (adult beginners) on Friday night and on Saturday (junior beginners). New beginners will be joining these classes, but established fencers who want to try a new weapon are welcome to join the group. Some help will be needed from senior foilists.

Fremantle Masters' Games 2006.
There will be a fencing event for veteran and pre-veteran fencers during the Fremantle Masters' Games in September (Sunday 23rd, starting 10 am prompt). The competition is open to any WA fencer older than 30 years on 1st January 2006. Entry will be $5 plus $5 per weapon. There will be sabre, foil and epee individual and if sufficient numbers, a team event. Further details and entry forms from Fremantle City Council, or via the club later in the term.

AFF #3 competition.
In late August there will be an AFF circuit competition in WA. Club training activities will be suspended on Thursday 17th, Friday 18th and Saturday 19th August. Members are encouraged to come along to Kingsway International Sports Stadium, to see how a national competition runs and to support WA entrants.

Dates: Friday 18 - Monday 21 August.
Venue: Kingsway International Sports Stadium, Kingsway Road, Madeley, WA.

Tournament Schedule - August 2006

Friday 18th
9:00 Men's epee
12:00 Women's sabre
14:00 Veteran Women's foil
14:30 Veteran Men's Sabre

Saturday 19th
9:00 Women's foil
11:00 Men's Sabre
14:00 Veteran Women's sabre
15:00 Veteran Men's epee

Sunday 20th
9:00 Women's Epee
11:00 Men's Foil
13:00 Women's foil CLUB TEAMS

Monday 21st
9:00 Men's Foil CLUB TEAMS
14:30 Veteran Women's Epee
15:00 Veteran Men's foil

Weapons Check

Weapons check will be open on Thursday the 17th from 6pm to 8pm.
On each day of the competition it will be available from 8am to 5pm.

Fencing equipment order.
We will be putting in another jacket order at the beginning of term. If you want to order be sure to hand in your request by Saturday 29th July. Weapons and other equipment should be placed with Steven or Burke separately.

Club fund-raising.
We're raising funds this term to keep membership fees down and improve our club equipment. We'd like to give you prior warning of our annual quiz night, a car boot sale and a working bee to drop telephone directories. The club executive is busy filling in grant application forms to match every dollar we raise with at least another dollar from local government sports development sources. We aim to get more of our members in electric fencing gear at any one time. To do this, we need to raise the funds for more electronic scoring equipment. With your support we can get more of our members within reach of medals in state, national and regional competitions.

Regards

Michelle Broughton
Club Secretary

April 2006 News Letter

Term 2 dates.
First week
Tues 2nd May 7.00-9.00pm, big gym
Fri 5th May 7.00-8.30pm, big gym
Sat 6th May 1.00-3.30pm, big gym

Final week
Fri 23rd Jun 7.00-8.30pm, big gym
Sat 24th Jun 2.00-3.30pm, big gym
Tues 27th Jun 6.30-8.00pm, big gym

A great end to term 1.
The club tournaments at the end of term 1 were a huge success, and showed how far many of our members have come since the start of the fencing year. Thanks also to Alan & Monique, and the many parent volunteers who made our Big Day of Fencing a great event for all.
Congratulations to our club champions:

Weapon	Place	Open	Senior	Junior	Junior Team
Foil	1	Drew	Michelle	Callum	Josh's team
	2	Rob L	Gary	Josh
	3	Gary	Jon	Niamh
	=3		Rob
Sabre	1	Andrew	Edward	Zac	NA
	2	Zac	Jess	Andrew
	3	Henry	Serguei	Henry
	=3			Liam

Congratulations also to our beginners who passed their bronze proficiency award, and to our other members who made progress on silver and gold awards.

Masters Games Albany.
Congratulations to Gary Sudran, Lindy Porter and Jon Allard for their participation in the Masters Games. Gary finished Third in the Foil, Lindy Third in the Sabre and Jon Second in the Sabre and Third in the Epee.

Request for sponsors.
We'd like to be able to present all our winners with a proper medal to mark their achievement. If you know a company that would like to sponsor an Excalibur medal for our club competitions, please let a member of the Executive Committee know.

What's new for Term 2.
We'll be running junior and adult beginners' classes in sabre during term 2 following successful fencing demonstrations by Rob Lane at an April 1st event, and a team of club members at Beaconsfield Primary. Fergus will be taking both beginner classes. Foil will continue with Steven, assisted by Ali during Tim's absence. Tim will be away chasing germs for a couple of weeks, then off due to a surgical operation. Variations from the timetable in the training diary will be posted as the information comes through. We will finish term with another round of club competitions. The dates are likely to be brought forward one week to avoid a clash with the national cadet championships in which several club members will be competing. Parents and coaches are also likely to be away for the national Cadet event.

Other competitions during term 2.
WA open sabre: Sunday, 14th May, 0900 hrs, Belmont City College
WA open foil: Saturday 20th May, 0900 hrs, Belmont City College
WA U17 sabre: Saturday, 17th June, 1300 hrs, Shenton College
WA U17 foil: Sunday, 18th June, 0900 hrs, Shenton College
WAFA training camp: 3rd-5th June, Albany
Great Southern Duel: 3rd-5th June, Albany
AFF National Cadet Championships, Auburn, Sydney 30th June-4th July

Termly fees.
Remember that you will need to pay fees for term 2 if you only paid for last term. Junior fee = $60 and senior fee = $70, no matter how many sessions you attend.

Training diary.
Remember to bring your club training diary along to every session to mark your progress towards proficiency awards. You may also want to use the score record to keep track of your personal performance.

Equipment supplies.
Anyone who needs new fencing equipment from overseas should discuss what they want with Steven Lim who will be sending off another order shortly.

Assistant coaches.
Some senior members have expressed interest in helping out with coaching. We are exploring the possibility of running a course for assistant coaches during term 3. You will need to have at least a gold proficiency award and be 16 years or more. The course is likely to run for most of term 3. If interested, see Tim, Frank or Steven.

First aid course.
We also intend to expand the number of qualified first aiders and sports trainers in Excalibur. If you would like to gain a senior first aid certificate or re-qualify, ask Tim about opportunities for first aid courses.

Regards

Michelle Broughton
Club Secretary

January 2006 News Letter

Welcome Back.
Happy New Year to one and all.
You should be just about ready to get back into fencing after the long break. It's time to stretch those legs, polish your weapons and look out that water bottle. We welcome our members, family and friends back the first week of the school term. The Friday and Saturday sessions will run a have-a-go spot if you'd like to bring along a friend. The Friday night fencers will get the social programme off to a prompt start with after-fencing cappuccinos. Saturday 4th Feb will begin early (1pm) with a sausage sizzle to give you enough time to sign up for the year. There will be a have-a-go session for any friends you want to bring. Parents will be able to find out about the programme the coaching staff plan for 2006. By popular request, the fees have been simplified. A separate information sheet lays out our fees and how you can pay them.

Key changes
The growing number of fencers at Excalibur means that we will be expanding the high performance training session, and moving it to the main gym on Tuesday evenings. There will be no club session in the small gym on Thursdays. This time slot will be available for one-on-one lessons with your coach by private arrangement. The Tuesday fencers will now be able to train with electric equipment. We will also be expanding the foil programme this year. Steven Lim will be with us every Saturday from March onwards and will lead the foil high performance group on Tuesdays. Eg: our junior leadership programme, will kick in again early in the term for those who want to progress past the gold proficiency award.

Training diary. We're going to introduce a club training diary this year with lots of useful info about the fencing year.

Beginners' courses
In term one we will be running an introduction to foil (adult beginners) on Friday night and on Saturday (junior beginners). New beginners will be joining these classes, but established fencers who want to try a new weapon are welcome to join the group. We aim to get you up to Bronze Award standard during these courses.

Executive stretch
If you have friends at work who'd like a one day introduction to fencing in a fun and friendly environment, contact Tim for details. We will be running sessions for groups from the workplace, subject to demand.

How to calculate fees for fencing in 2006

Summary

Category	Beginner	Annual	Term	Session
Senior	$70	$250	$70	-
Junior	$60	$240	$60	-
Visitor, regular	-	-	$30	-
Visitor, casual	-	-	-	$5 per session

Club fees were a bit complicated in 2005. This year Excalibur has simplified the way fees work. There will be no separate floor fee except for casual visitors from other fencing clubs. The sessional (floor) fees are now included in your annual or term fee. There is no extra fee if you fence two or three times per week. You just pay once at the beginning of the year, or the beginning of term. If you do the sums you'll find this is very good value.

Beginners
The first training session is free of charge for beginners. The fee for the whole beginner's course is $60 for juniors (<21 years) or $70 for seniors. This is payable on your second session. This fee covers equipment hire, coaching and insurance.

Club members
Established club members pay an annual fee of $250 (seniors) or $240 (juniors). This covers all your fencing costs at scheduled training sessions 2006. The more sessions you attend per week, the better value you get. For those who start later in the year (e.g. after completing a beginner's course) we will accept a term membership of $70 ($60 for juniors).

Visiting fencers
Regular visitors who are members of other WA fencing clubs and who train with us weekly (e.g. every Tuesday night session) can do so for $30 per term. Fencers from other clubs who come for a single visit will be charged $5 per session.

Unpaid fees
Insurance requirements are getting tougher. Your fees include your insurance. To make our fee system work we're going to have to be stricter about unpaid fees. So from this year we will send you a written reminder if you have not paid up. We regret that we are unable to permit anyone to fence whose fees are more than three weeks overdue. To avoid disappointment, please make sure you pay your fees on time.

WAFA affiliation
The additional WAFA (state fencing association) affiliation fee is not included in club fencing fees. You only have to affiliate to WAFA if you intend to compete at state and national level. For further details see the Club Secretary or the WAFA website.

Regards

Michelle Broughton
Club Secretary