Welcome to another season. We have a lot of exciting things planned for the first half of the season. There are a number of tournaments on the schedule, for a wide variety of ages and skill levels, and a couple of exciting clinics.
Charlie Washburn is an internationally-rated foil and épée referee. He is coming down from Philadelphia in October to give a referee clinic be emphasizing skills. This will be an excellent opportunity to ask questions about interpretations and actions, although the exam will not be offered. I am hoping to add a similar clinic for saber in the spring. In November, Dr. Brenna Chirby will be giving a sports psychology clinic, to help improve the mental game for those who are interested.
I would like to take a moment to congratulate a few local folks who represented us at the World Championships this summer. DCFC members Kristin Foellmer Suchorski and Jeff Snider represented the United States at the Senior World Championships, as did former DCFC fencer Julia Leszko. Capitol Division was also well represented at the Veteran World Championships, with CCFC’s Bettie Graham, and DCFC’s Kaz Campe and new Division Vice-Chair Jim Adams representing our nation and division. Lisa Dobloug, who fences at DCFC, also competed at the Veteran Worlds, representing her home country of Norway. Congratulations to all of you for making it to that level, and thank you for sharing your fencing with us!
As this year’s chair, I challenge each of you to step forward and help make our division successful for all of us. Success here is measured in a number of ways, not just in the number of competitions. I challenge you to speak up if you have ideas, to volunteer if you have skills, and to be an active participant. If you want to volunteer, but don’t know where to start or are afraid you lack skills, speak up; we’ll be happy to teach and mentor you. We always need folks willing willing to help set up, clean up, learn to meet manage, armour, or referee. Every little bit counts.
Please feel free to drop me an e-mail or give me a call if you want to volunteer, if you have ideas, or if you just have questions, and I will do my best to respond. After all, this is your division....
Good luck and have fun.
Mary Anne Walker, Capitol Division Chairperson