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Epee fencing in Baltimore County

Back to School! Fencing at JHU’s Homewood campus returns for the 2022-23 season

Strictly speaking, we’re not returning—because we never left! But after a hot summer fencing in the air-conditioned comfort of Homewood Fencing Club’s six-strip Salle, we’re welcoming back active and inactive adult epee fencers, as well as the Hopkins fencing teams.

We’d like to extend our invitation to join our adult epee group every Tuesday and Friday at 7:00PM — especially JHU undergrads and graduate students who either did not try out for the team and/or just want to keep in shape doing the best sport that’s ever been invented!

Here are the answers to all your questions:

What if you’re not a JHU student? We won’t hold that against you — no matter if you drive down from Towson University, Goucher, Morgan State, Loyola or any other local college that doesn’t have a fencing program, you’ll find a second home with Homewood Fencing…

What if you don’t have a car? Pretend it’s Europe and take the Shuttle! (Here’s the schedule!)

What if the last time you fenced, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, or George Bush were in office? Doesn’t matter—it’s just like riding a bike! (Woodrow Wilson? Well, you’ll get used to electric scoring in a jiffy.)

What if you’ve never fenced before? Doesn’t matter, we’ll teach you the basics and you’ll be fencing in no time!

What if your gear “shrunk in storage”? Doesn’t matter, we’ll tide you over with a loaner jacket, plastron, mask, and glove!

What if you’re a “classical fencer”? We won’t hold that against you, either—show us just how well you hit without getting hit!

Do you have to be a member of USA Fencing? Yes. For insurance purposes, you have to be a member. That’s about $10/year for the non-competitive membership. We have all the proper forms handy.

What if you belong to another club? Again, you’re always welcome at Homewood Fencing Club.

What do we mean by “adult fencers”? Anyone 14 and older. If you can tie your own shoes and are able to put down your phone for as long as a bout takes, we consider you an adult. Okay, almost.

What does it cost? You pay Homewood Fencing Club $150 every 10 weeks and we’re good. Let me break that down for you: That’s $15 a week — so if you come fence on Tuesday AND Friday (like any reasonable person would do) that’s $7.50 a night. Can’t beat that! Plus, there may be discounts for college students.

Do you have a youth program? We sure do: JHU Coach Austin Young has a foil program for kids aged 8 and up.

How about private lessons? You can sign up with Coach Austin!

How do you get in touch with us? Call or text Coach Chris Amberger at 410-790-8033. Better save that number, because the JHU Newton White Athletic Center is about as secure as Fort Knox and we’ll have to let you in.

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(Cleverly recycled from a 2016 BFC adult epee Nite meme. Still captures Sean Connery’s pronounshiashon very accurately.)
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Happy New Epee Nomad Year!

We’re back online after two months or so of problems with this website. But what a time it’s been:

The Epee Nomads have joined forces with the newly re-constituted Homewood Fencing Club, and are now fencing twice a week at the Johns Hopkins University athletic center off San Martin Drive.

The club’s six metal strips accommodate our increased numbers nicely: We now regularly have 8 to 12 adult epee fencers bouting!

Times and days remain unchanged: Erry Tuesday and Friday @7:00PM.

If you plan joining us, give Coach Chris a call — while centrally located, the right entrance is somewhat non-intuitive to find!

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September Fencing and GREAT expectations for October!

First things first: Tuesday and Friday epee nights will continue throughout September at the established days and times:

Tuesdays at 6:00PM — Skills clinic

Tuesdays at 7:00 PM — Open bouting

Fridays at 7:00PM — Open bouting

Looking beyond September, we have some GREAT prospects we’re working on. Epee Nomads may be joining a brand-new fencing room with 6 grounded strips before you can say “Happy Halloween!”

Details to follow!

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August Fencing News

  • It’s final: Our now former host, Loyola-Blakefield, has canceled the fencing program. We will not return.

  • Open Bouting continues on Tuesdays and Fridays for our epee fencers, foil classes continue on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays under the guidance of Coach Austin.

  • The Olympic Games may be over, but we’re just getting started: We have an outdoor pop-up epee tournament on 8/14/2021 at 9:30AM at the Towson High School athletic field!

  • We’re looking for a venue to expand in the medium term.
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Epee Fencing July 2021

Remembering fencing in 90 degrees heat outdoors last year, with thunder clouds moving in, the setting sun in our face, and biting flies going to town on our ankles, we are still appreciating the relative cool of Salle Nomad at the Rotunda.

Due to the return to normalcy (including having to physically be at the office again for our professionals), we have compacted the schedule and moved up our open bouting to an hour later:

Monday: Novice class at 7:00PM

Tuesday: Improvement Society at 6:00PM

Tuesday: Open Bouting at 7:00PM

Friday: Open Bouting at 7:00PM

Walk-ons welcome! BYOE. (Epee, although we have plenty of those…)

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Fencing for June 2021

We are keeping a close eye on our 2020 Pandemic dueling grounds at Towson High School.

Currently, it looks like there’s a baseball game on almost every afternoon on the upper field, a small Wimbledon on the tennis courts, and either a lacrosse game or some track-and-field event on the football field every afternoon.

But as soon as the parking lot clears out and the weather forecast looks promising, we will move some of our fencing activities outside again, enjoying epee as it was initially meant be, as an outdoor sport!

Meanwhile, attendance at our Tuesday and Thursday epee “Duels at Dawn” has grown by leaps and bounds. Together with Coach Austin Young of Homewood Fencing Club, we’re about to put down a second strip at 733 W. 40th Street.

It’s gonna be tight, but we’re going to give it a try! (We’ve also started to scout for alternate locations for the fall, but don’t tell anyone.)

Like our Epee Nomads, Coach Austin’s youth and competitive foil groups have also grown. We have a steady stream of newbies signing up, some tearful reunions of old BFC/BMFA fencing buddies — and there are plans to move the introductory classes outside very soon.

Any questions about that, please call or text me at 410-790-8033.

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Any BFC fencers looking for a new home?

We heard that Baltimore Fencing Center‘s Cockeysville location’s doors have closed for good this month.

We take no joy in that — Larbi and I (and a large contingent of our own fencers) started out at BFC and have great memories of the place.

So we extend a cordial invitation to BFC fencers in search for a new competitive home in the northern Baltimore City/Baltimore County area. (BFC Columbia is slated to re-open in June, so there’s always that!)

Youth foil fencers are welcome to join Coach Austin’s foil program, and our Epee Nomads are always open to anyone interested to learn, continue, and compete!

Our venue at this point is still small, so please contact me at 410-790-8033 to co-ordinate!

(If you need weapons and body cords repaired, also give me a call. Coach Larbi regularly picks up non-functioning gear and returns it repaired to our site in a timely fashion!)

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Fencing February-March 2021

No news, in some cases, may be good news. In our case, it’s merely no news: We have not received any information from our hosts at Loyola-Blakefield if or when the school’s facilities may be available for restarting classes and private lessons…

Continue reading “Fencing February-March 2021” →
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