Death to Winter Novice Tournament

Indiana Jones, KPFC novice, took the Silver for foil and the bronze for saber in Anchorage. All of our fencers did well in this first-time competition for Indy, Leif and Colin Abel. 

Sa 4-13-24: Anchorage Fencing Club hosted this novice tournament. Many thanks to the efforts of the AFC's coaches, Seth, Jake, and Emily for showing our newest batch of "li'l stabbers" how quality bout directing is conducted and easing them into the rigors of competition. Results are on AskFRED and footage can be viewed on our YouTube Channel. Be sure to LIKE SHARE & SUBSCRIBE!

Alaska Open

Congratulations to Curtiss Heckert, our "Big Leftie," for taking the gold and earning a ranking!

Sa 3-11-23: Fairbanks is hosted the Alaska Open Tournament. Results on FRED

Sa-7-21-12: The Red Run Challenge was the Soldotna Chapter's first sanctioned event and went very smoothly thanks to Jennifer Beckmann for handling most of the details concerned with scoring with a lot of help from Jacquie Johnson who refereed and coached us through the process. A special thanks to Lance Briggs for his support and help. Although it was a small turn out, that made it easier to get used to the details and subtleties of running a competition. We only wound up running 2 of the four planned events due to lack of signups and the only regret was that our youth fencer, Jimmy Gao, got aced out of competing because no one else signed up for the Y10/12 foil.

Below is a couple of collages of the medalist for the foil and epee events:

       Congratulations to all the attendees and many thanks to our supportive parents who make the magic happen. 

Red Run Challenge results 

Th-3-1-12: The JO results are in and we're happy to say, Rachel Beckmann is our first Soldotna member to make it to a major, national competition! She competed in the Cadet and Junior female Epee category and we cant wait to hear her thoughts on participating in such a significant event.

Tu-1-17-12: Unknown KPFC member seen in Thailand

Mo-1-2-12: Our very own Ryder "Alaskquatch" Galic took a respectable 3rd place for foil in this weekend's Frozen Desert Dual at FCA. We thank him for keeping KPFC in top category for foil. For complete results check out FRED.

Sa-12-31-11: Happy New Year! I just ordered up my dagger fencing wire and dagger as well as joining the association, which is free right now. Looks like it could be very exciting except I'll be the only one with a dagger so if any of you can order up  a set, we could try it out.

See you all next year!

G

Fr-11-25-11: Congratulations to Joe, Rachel, and Julia for qualifying for the Junior Olympics.

Joe took first for U17 foil, Rachel qualified in both U17 & U20 epee. Although Julia qualified in U20 saber, she's not eligible to compete due to her current status as an exchange student...DANG!! Also, it's time for the new crew (novices) to get ready for their first tournament! Let's all support each other in positive ways to continue competitions. Although some of our members are more competitive than others, this activity is in fact, an "adversarial" pursuit.

Important news from the National committee!

On Nov 5, 2011 12:39 PM, "Tanya Brown" <t.brown@usfencing.org> wrote:

This season, the conductive bib in foil is only required on the National level for Cadet, Junior, Division I (Senior), Veteran and Wheelchair.

This does not apply to local tournaments, RYC, SYC, ROC or division qualifiers. 

Congratulations to the JO qualifiers and remember to get your bib on for nationals!

We-09-21-11:

Here's the links to the recent Clarion articles:

En Gardé

Fencing takes off on Kenai Peninsula

Mo-08-15-11:

(Reprinted from Jacob's Facebook KPFC page)

Congratulations to Logan Patrick for bringing home the gold in epee and foil and the silver in saber from this weekend's tournament and leaving KPFC to hold the State's epee and foil trophies until he returns next summer to defend the titles. Wes trained Logan and gave him a solid foundation to grow his skills on. Logan's dedication, focus, and persistence put him on top this year and he'll take a B2011 epee with him to Colorado. We're all proud of our champion and will miss our hardcore trainer this coming September when we start up again. So now the question is, which one of KPFC's fencers will step on to the strip to carry on the fine tradition of champions Coach Cannon started?

G

Capra took the silver in all three weapons for the Y-10/12 competition so now it's time for him to start in on "the big kids." Consider yourselves duly warned. We have champions in our midst. ALLEZ!!

Mo-04/04/11: Kennan moved to Homer this weekend. Many thanks to the members who showed up to help. Although he'll be missed by us here in Soldotna, the Homer chapter will get another fencer and that's good for keeping things interesting. Joey, Jake, and Will have their gear ordered and Mrs. Hansen at Skyview is the one to see with the money since Mr. Neill is going to float us the loan to get the stuff. We'll try to expidite the order so we can get ready for the next wave of tournaments. Thank you Skyview for supporting our club. It's time to train hard and serious and to get registered with the USFA to compete in the Division competitions that start with the Division Qualifiers on April 30th. Here's a chance to earn a letter if enough rated fencers show up. Remember these are not "novice" tournaments so be ready for full competition and all the rigors that are required. We'll talk more during practice about what's required and the all important "mind-set" for such competitions.

See you at practice!

G

FR-03/18/11: Those needing a ride are to meet at Freddy's parking lot today at 4. So far, there's only 4 of us driving up together. As of now, there are only 10 fencers signed up for the senior foil event on Saturday and 3 for senior epee on Sunday. Capra is holding the only entrant for saber in the y-10/12 class, so I told him to bring his foil gear in case he wants to fence on Saturday. It's the same for him on Sunday since no other y-10/12s have signed up for epee. Hopefully, there will be more fencers signing up today or at the meet. Remember, it's about having fun and being in the "flow" of the moment and enjoying our sport.

G

SA-03/12/11: We will be practicing this week on Tuesday and Thursday between 6 and 8pm. Because it's spring break, our custodial staff will be waxing floors so we need to respect any temporary barriers they will use to keep us of their fresh waxed sections.

    Joe Briggs and Axle Gillam signed up for FCA's OnPoint Series #4, which requires USFA membership, as does most tournaments. Joe and Axle are getting serious about their ratings, so depending on the tournament and how many fencers attend, one can earn a higher ability rating. See the USFA's Event Classification Chart to better understand the requirements. Axle and Joe will have an opportunity to fence a D rated fencer, depending on the pools and how they fare in the seeding for the DEs. Nicole Turina earned a D in 2010 according to the registrations on FRED, so this will be an opportunity to for them to get some great experience on the strip. The results should be available this evening after the tournament, so check the results on FRED if you want to see how our fencers did. A salute to all the fencers who are participating.

    It's time to get serious and geared up for sanctioned competitions. Here's the link to Upcoming Alaska Tournaments. This means two things: have full regulation gear and current USFA membership. Using club gear covers most needs, but if we don't have what you need, such as pants that fit, you need to get your own. Fencers who have acquired their own gear find it far more convenient and comfortable. It also helps your personal mindset because it's the first step in being independently prepared for any tournament. The second part, USFA membership, again supports the personal mindset of a fencer because it's a statement to the world that you've joined the ranks of America's fencers who can potentially earn their way to national and international events, especially the Olympics. You've heard my speech about "Wannabees and Willbees," so making the personal investment in these two things says not only to yourself, but to the world, that you are a fencer and will be a competitor. En guard? Ready? Allez!

SU-02/27/11: Time to get ready for the March tournament at FCA. Signup here: ASKFred .

SU-12/12/10: Congratulations to Kennan Archer for taking first place at the FCA Novice Tournament this past Saturday! This was Kennan's first tournament and he definitely caught the attention of the Alaskan fencing community as did the rest of the KPFC fencers who attended. "Wild" Will Cable set Judge Jacquie Johnson's new record for penalty cards in a semi-finals bout against our own "Jammin" Joe Briggs for his "unorthodox" style of attack and split 3rd overall with FCA's Nick Anderson. Joe won his first three pool bouts and placed 8th overall. Cody Whiteley, Jacob Malone, and Rachel Beckman, placed 14th, 17th, and 18th respectively. Many of the fencers our Y14/cadet fencers faced were college age and older so everyone who competed should feel real good about their performances.  Copra "the Cobra" Edwards-Smith, held fast for our Y10/12 group with 4th place then promptly jumped in and continued to cover the event as a student reporter by filling up Kennan's camera with close to 7GBs of photos and video! Be looking for these in future a posting.

    A special thanks goes out to all our parent supporters who really make these events possible by making sure our fencers get what they need to compete. Our club is blessed to have a core of dedicated parental support, which is already showing though by the successes of this past weekend. So fencers, the next time you make that salute to "the audience," know that it really goes out to the love and energy that makes this all possible.  

The overall results of the competition can be viewed here: FCA Novice Tournament Results

We will be taking a break for the holidays and reconvene in January. Next objective: USFA membership and gearing up for future competitions. Becoming a member of the USFA qualifies you to compete in all state and national competitions and to begin your climb in ratings and rankings.

The future tournaments are available here: Upcoming Alaska Tournaments  

Congratulations to all the participants for attending and competing. I applaud all of you and I'm honored to be coaching a talented team of fencers.

Allez!

Su-12/5/10: This weekend will be the FCA Novice Tournament and so far, KPFC is making a serious showing with 7 fencers signed up. This is a foil only competition, but FCA's Jacquie Johnson, says that the next Novice Tournament will be in all three weapons! How fun is that?

     In psyching up for a tournament, remember to get plenty of rest, drink lots of water, and eat well. One must be able to free their mind during a bout to only focus on the moment. When we practice and drill during the week, that's the time to analyze and improve our form and skill. On the piste, during a competition, is not the time to think, only fence. This week we will be getting ready for our first tournament, so the most important preparation is attitude. If one counts their victories "one touch at a time," they will always come away a winner. As with any sport, the only real losers are the one's who don't show up.

     One must wonder what mindset these people had to be known as "The world's greatest fencers."

Su-11/21/10: In checking out the upcoming local events for the Alaska Division of the USFA, there is a Novice Tournament being hosted by the Fencing Center of Alaska (FCA) in Anchorage this December 11th. USFA membership is not required, but all participants must register before the tournament. You can download the form here: FCA Registration. All Homer & Soldotna chapter participants are eligible if you've not participated in any tournaments. See this link for last year's qualifications. 2010 FCA Novice Tournament. Let's give it some serious thought and put together a plan to attend.

Su-11/07/10: On Saturday, November 6th, the Soldotna chapter put on a demonstration at a local community health and activity fair hosted by M.A.P.P. of the Central Kenai Peninsula at Soldotna High School. There were a lot of interesting activities and demonstrations that went on and our fencers caught a lot of attention.

We would like to thank our parent supporters for all their help in making the Soldotna chapter a viable club that is continuing to grow. Special thanks goes out to Glenn Beckman for customizing our equipment cabinets to maximize organization and to Jennifer Beckman for her helpful expertise with efforts to raise funds for continued growth. Lance Briggs saved the day by acquiring floor tape for our demonstration so fencers would know were the strip was during our bouts in the SoHi commons.

The Homer coaches will be coming up to Soldotna this Wednesday the 10th for an intermural meet that will give our novices  more experience with other fencers. 

 Mo-08/09/10: I hope all of you enjoyed the summer break and had some fun even though this summer's been more than a bit wet. The Soldotna chapter collectively decided to suspend fencing through the summer, but the Homer chapter continued to fence on Monday and Thursday. Dennis Christiansen has been showing up in Homer every couple of weeks this summer and has helped coach us in saber, which has been greatly appreciated. This coming year promises to be exciting and full of opportunities to fence with some changes in our curriculum and moving up our meeting time an hour to 4 pm. Hopefully this change will enable more youth participation in the evenings.

We-01/26/10: The Soldotna chapter would like to welcome all the new and seasoned participants who have joined in the fun this past week. As a clubs go, we are blessed to have more than our fair share of left handed fencers, which will be an asset for team bouts. Because we are a new club, we are seeking patrons to support our activities. Donations made to KPFC's Skyview Fencing Club are tax deductible. At present we are in desperate need of conventional (electric) equipment to begin training for competitions.