The modern sport of fencing is based on the European schools of swordsmanship and armed combat. The goal is to score a specified number of touches on your opponent before he or she scores. Modern fencing is done with one of three weapons: the foil, the sabre, or the epee.

First, the similarities: All three weapons consist of a grip, guard, and blade. The blades are 36 inches long, and the guard protects the hand.

The foil is a lighter weapon, with a small guard and thin, flexible blade. Points must be scored with the tip of the weapon, and are awarded for touches on the torso or groin. Legs, arms and head are not target area. Foil is subject to Right of Way rules, and only one fencer can score a point at a time.

The sabre is the medium weight weapon, with a guard that covers the top and front of the hand, and a less flexible blade. Points can be scored with any part of the weapon, allowing for a cutting style in addition to thrusting. Target area is from the waist upwards, minus the hands. Sabre is also subject to Right of Way rules.

The epee is a heavy weapon, with a large bell guard, and a very stiff blade. Points must be scored with the tip of the weapon. In epee competition, the entire body is target area, there are no right of way rules, and fencers can score points simultaneously.

In foil and sabre fencing, points can only be scored by the competitor who has right of way. To establish right of way, a competitor must perform an offensive manuever, while forcing him opponent into a defensive manuever. The most basic form of right of way is that an advancing fencer has right of way over a retreating fencer. To capture right of way, a retreating fencer would have to perform a successful defensive manuever, such as parrying the advancing fencer's attack with his own blade.

Right of way is probably the most complex aspect of fencing, but with a small bit of instruction and study, it can be understood fairly quickly.

In fencing bouts, the winner is the fencer who reaches a specified point total first. Usually, this total is five or fifteen. For most competitive fencing, an electronic system has been devised to assist in scoring. A bout between fencers is overseen by a director. In all weapons, a light will be activated when a fencer scores a touch on his opponent, at which point the director will halt the bout, award a point, and reset the fencers before continuing. In epee, if both fencers record a touch simultaneously, both lights will come on, both fencers will receive a point (unless it is the final touch of a bout, where it is anulled until a single touch is scored) and the bout continues.

In foil and sabre, if both fencers register a touch, it is more complicated. The director must call the action and award a point to a single fencer, or declare the touches simultaneous and cancelling actions, rewarding a point to neither fencer. The rules for determining who scored a point is governed by the Right of Way rules above. For example, a director might call that an attack from the left valid, and that the right attacked without having Right of Way, or that the attack from the left was successfully defended (parried), and the right fencer made a successful riposte, or responsive attack after a defense.

No, the club is open to everyone regardless of fencing experience. Whether you are a seasoned fencer wishing to fine tune your skills or have never held a weapon before, you're welcome to come join us!

The club does not have a beginner's class per se, but the first couple weeks of every school year are devoted to teaching the basics and recruiting new members. The basics are covered in these first couple weeks, and progressively more information is covered thoughout the year.

Sure. If you're interested in fencing, we'll be glad to have you. Club members will spend some time with you individually, teaching the basics, and then you will be incorporated into drills with the rest of the club.

Not really. With proper techinque to protect your legs and knees, the worst injuries you will suffer are scrapes and bruises, and even then, they heal quickly.

The fencing club practices Monday through Thursday in the basement of IM West. Collegiate fencing tournamants are held mostly in the spring, from February to April. Check the schedule page for practice times.

Club dues are $50 per semester. This covers the cost to use all club equipment, weapon repair, and lessons and training with the club. There is also a co-pay for those that choose to compete on the travel team to help cover hotels, gas, and other travel expenses. We are currently in the process of finding fundraisers, which may lower the cost.

As a member of the Midwest Fencing Conference, the other conference schools are our main opposition. We also fence in collegiate invitationals in the area, against other schools with fencing clubs or varsity programs. At the end of the year, we also qualify for Club Fencing Championships, allowing us to fence schools from across the country.

Midwest Conference Members:

Ohio State	Northwestern	Notre Dame	Wayne State
Michigan	Michigan State	U. of Chicago	Cleveland State
Lawrence	Indiana	Wisconsin	Xavier
Detroit Mercy	Oberlin	Minnesota	Purdue
Bowling Green	Case Western	Iowa	Illinois

The only absolute essential for practice is a good pair of tennis shoes. Long pants are encouraged to prevent scrapes and bruises on the legs. The club has a supply of all fencing related equipment, including jackets, gloves, masks, weapons, knickers and electric equipment that can be used for practice and tournaments.

That heavily depends on your personal innate ability and work ethic. The best way to get good at fencing is to fence, a lot. Most of our fencers fence collegiately after their first year, depending on how many people fence the weapon you are interested in. Fencing individual USFA tournaments can greatly increase you skills faster.

Beginning fencers should use the club equipment, but if you see yourself pursuing fencing for a longer period of time, we highly recommend that you buy your own equipment. Practice equipment includes a jacket, mask, glove, and weapon. Tournament equipment would include the above, plus an electric weapon, body cord, knickers, knee-high socks, and a lame (for foil and sabre).

Several fencing supply companies have package deals that can get you your own practice gear. Also, every year, the club collects orders from members and sends out a lump order, to get a volume discount on all equipment.