To start fencing, find a club with a beginner class for your age, take one trial class, borrow the kit before you buy any, and train once or twice a week for the first months. At our club in Austin the first class is free, we lend the kit free for the whole first month, and after that it is $40 a month to rent or your own. If you continue, you pay the monthly price of your group plus a $500 annual membership. This guide goes through the first three months, for a child or for yourself.
Before the first class: pick a group
Groups at our club go by age, and every group starts with one free class:
| Ages | When | Price after the free class |
|---|---|---|
| 4–6 | Saturday, 9:00–10:00 AM | $120 a month, once a week |
| 7–11 | Monday and Wednesday, 6:00–7:30 PM | from $150 a month |
| 12–18 | Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, 6:30–8:30 PM | from $150 a month |
| 19+ | Wednesday, 8:00–9:15 PM | $120 a month for adult beginners |
You do not need to get this exactly right. Coach Pasha confirms the group and the day when he calls you back. Which group is right for my child? has the details for each age, and adults can read starting fencing as an adult.
The first class
Bring sneakers, athletic clothes, a towel and a water bottle. We lend the mask, jacket, glove and blade. Coach Pasha, an Olympian, runs every newcomer's first class himself, and parents are welcome to watch it. The only paper is the registration and waiver form, signed in person at the class, and there is nothing to pay for it.
In fencing, a first lesson usually covers the en garde stance, how to step forward and back along the strip, and how to hold the weapon. Your child's first fencing class, step by step walks through the day from the phone call on.
After the class, you decide. If you want to continue, you sign the membership agreement and pay at the next class.
Month one: lent kit, the basics
The first month starts at that next class. You pay the month's class price for your group and the $500 annual membership, which every member pays once a year on top of the monthly price. The kit stays free for the whole month, so you can find out whether fencing is your sport before spending anything on gear.
In fencing, beginners spend their first weeks on footwork, distance and the basic actions of the blade, simple attacks and parries, slowly at first. Every fencer at our club trains in full protective equipment from the first class on. If your child is very young, nervous or easily distracted, is fencing good for kids? covers what fencing asks of a child.
How often to train
For beginners aged 7 to 18, the monthly price depends on how many classes a week:
- once a week: $150 a month,
- twice a week: $190 a month,
- three times a week: $240 a month.
Children aged 4 to 6 come once a week, on Saturday morning, and adults once a week, on Wednesday evening. In the first months, coming every week matters more than coming often. Many beginners start with one or two classes a week and add more once they are hooked. How much fencing costs adds up a first year at one and at two classes a week.
Month two: rent the kit or buy your own
When the first month ends, you choose: rent the club's kit for $40 a month, or bring your own. For most beginners, and for growing children especially, renting is the sensible start. Talk to Coach Pasha before you buy anything, because sabre needs its own gear and he can tell you what is worth buying first. What a beginner needs, and what to buy later explains the kit item by item.
Month three: bouts and the question of competition
As a beginner gets the basics, bouts with a partner become a bigger part of practice. When that happens depends on the fencer, and the coach decides it.
Some fencers start to think about tournaments around this time. Nobody has to compete. To enter USA Fencing events, a fencer needs a USA Fencing membership, and each tournament has its own entry fee. How fencing ratings work, and your first tournament explains how a first tournament works.
Fencers aged 7 to 18 who want to compete can join Elite: competitive training four times a week, $275 a month. Elite is open to join, with no invitation needed. Ask Coach Pasha whether it fits where your child is.
What three months cost: two examples
Using only our own prices, with the kit rented after the free first month:
A beginner aged 7 to 11, once a week
- month one: $150 for classes + $500 annual membership = $650
- month two: $150 + $40 kit = $190
- month three: $150 + $40 kit = $190
- three months: $1,030
An adult beginner, 19 or older, Wednesday evenings
- month one: $120 for classes + $500 annual membership = $620
- month two: $120 + $40 kit = $160
- month three: $120 + $40 kit = $160
- three months: $940
The Saturday class for ages 4 to 6 is also $120 a month, so its three months add up the same way as the adult example: $940. With your own kit, take $80 off any of these three-month totals and add what the kit costs you. The free first class and the first month's kit cost nothing in either case.
Tips for the first months
- Arrive 10 minutes early. Putting on the kit takes time at first.
- Tie long hair back, so it fits under the mask, and leave jewellery at home.
- Bring water. Sabre is a lot of short, fast running.
- Tell the coach about injuries or health conditions before you start.
- Ask questions. About the group, the kit or how often to come, Coach Pasha is the person to ask.
Ready to start? Call Coach Pasha at (408) 592-1244. If he is on the strip, leave a voicemail: he calls back within 24 hours. Or leave your number and he calls you.
