Ball State University Fencing Club

Recent changes that I have made to the web site on Thrusday, Jun 18, 2009 are as follows:

- I have changed the Flash page for the home so that it now includes the original text that was on the page before I changed it to an interactive Flash-based movie.  Also on the page are three new button that will link visitors to the Twitter, Wordpress, and Facebook accounts for the fencing club.

- Updated the members page to the current officer-elects for the fall 2009 semester as well as updated information about the club’s instructors and added a few cosmetic touches to the layout of the page that were causing issues in Firefox.

- Added the new Fall 2009 class schedule and outline as well as the club events and tournaments for the 2009/2010 school year.  These pages will be updated later on as more information is obtained (such as tournament dates and campus activities).

- Updated the equipment page so that visitors have more a choice to shops and ventors to obtain equipment information from, as well as promotional ads for Absolute Fencing Supply and Leon Paul USA, the two main companies that the Ball State Fencing Club uses for equipment purchases.

- Added more information to the FAQ page dealing with the different types of membership the club has to offer; competitive or social.  This should hopefully clear up any questions visitors to the site have about our different teaching methods.  This also goes along with the new class outline page I added under the Class Schedule.  It breaks down the times and lessons between social and competitive members and shows what they will be doing at certain times.

There are more updates to come once the school year starts.  Like last year we will have the online registration for anybody wishing to sign up for the welcome newsletter and information about the first class session which will begin following the first full week of classes.  Be sure to check the news feed and web site for any updates on class times as the current times are estimates based on the Spring 2009 semester times.

Brian Koby
BSUFC Webmaster

I’ve been working with techs at Ball State University during this last week and over the weekend to figure out the problems we have been having with the fencing club web site and I believe we have solved the issues.  As of this afternoon I have uploaded all the files back to Ball State’s servers and have been testing all day to ensure that the site is functional.  Everything seems to be working just fine, including the new Mobile Advantage site: http://bsufc.iweb.bsu.edu/mobile - a site designed for mobile devices such as the cell phones, PSPs, and other portable devices.

Also, I have integrated the new Twitter account with the Wordpress blog so that as I update the RSS feed with news events, I can also update the Twitter feed, which in turn updates the Facebook status of the club.  Next step is to list the most recent updates dynamically on the Flash intro to the main web site.  Eventually club events will be open to general discussion and comments using Google’s newest tool: Wave.  Keep checking back for future updates.

Look out fellow fencers and fencing clubs alike.  The Ball State University Fencing Club is taking new updates to the next level of World-Wide Web trends by supplying visitors to main club web site and Facebook pages with updates from Twitter.

Last year, Brian Koby, club webmaster, made the decision to create a RSS feed for the small-time fencing club located at Ball State University in Muncie, IN.  The purpose of the feed was to inform visitors and members of the club of new events, recent news, tournament results, and various other updates pertaining to the club itself.  Later in the year, Koby went forward with his radical push-style marketing campaign for the club by getting rid of the decrepit and abandoned bulletin board forums and created a fan page on the popular social networking site Facebook, where members and fellow fencers from other clubs could unite and discuss everything fencing.

With a redesign of the front page to the main club web site, Koby’s new vision is on-the-fly updates where he, and club officers, can inform the general public of updates from anywhere in the world.  The first step in this radical fresh idea was implementing another recently popular social site called Twitter.  As the new Flash-based homepage comes online at the start of the new fencing season and fall school semester at Ball State University, it will feature a Twitter feed which will inform visitors of recent updates which they can find in the RSS news feed.  Koby has already begun work on creating the Twitter feed as well as making it accessible from anywhere in the world by adding the Vista gadget to his desktop and mTweet to his Windows 6-enabled cell phone, helping make the club’s web site push forward even more as the University’s only fully mobile-functional site.

What does Koby have planned for the future?  Waves.  Developers from Googleare currently working on a new form of Interweb communication; Google Wave.  Koby plans to develop a module for the club’s web site that will (hopefully) integrate itself with the new Twitter feed as well as the Facebook fan page and allow anybody with access to the Wave to hold conversations, comment on recent events, or even add their own replies to news posts at a moments notice, in real time.

Be sure to subscribe to the club news feed to get all the recent updates regarding the Ball State University Fencing Club and check back on the status of the Twitter updates and Wave communication device.

On Wednesday, April 22 the Ball State Fencing Club held elections to choose the new group of officers that will lead the club during the Fall 2009 Semester.

Tyler Wolford - President
Dayna Colbert - Vice President/Treasurer
Caitlin Huston - Secretary

Brian Koby will retain his positions of club armorer and webmaster for the next semester.

Congratulations to those elected.  Their terms will start at the beginning of of the Fall 2009 Semester with the Activity Fair event and demonstration.

Private lessons are available during the summer months from club coach Brian Koby. For any club member, or community individual, wishing to learn more about fencing or start a new weapon, this is your chanceto get high-quality one-on-one instruction with a USFA-rated and winningest fencer in Ball State University’s fencing club.

Lessons are $25 for each 30-minute lesson. Please download and read the Private Lesson Agreement (click here) before registering. Registration can be done through the contact page (click here). Lessons are given in individual weapons base on what the student is willing and wishing to learn.

Ball State Fencing Club members are eligible for a discounted price if they are remaining on or around campus during the summer semesters. Please mention in the initial email if you qualify for this discount.

A large amount of fencers gathered in Fort Wayne on Saturday, March 28, to compete in the Summit City Spring Fling. Of that mass were several Ball State Fencing Club members competing in various weapons and placing rather well. Below are the results:

Sabre (15 total)
Brian Koby -5th Place
Andrew Koeling - 7th Place
Jason Povilaitis - 8th Place
Jeff Simpson - 11th Place (tie)
Caitlin Huston - 14th Place

Epee (16 total)
Brian Koby - 6th Place
Caitlin Huston - 16th Place

Foil (9 total)
Brian Koby - 3rd Place

Congratulations to Brian Koby for earning his D09 rating in Epee and former member Josh Williams for placing 3rd in Sabre and earning his E09 rating for that weapon.

As Spring Break for Ball State University comes to a close members of the fencing club traveled to Indianapolis to compete in the Ides of March Open, hosted by Bladepoint Fencing Academy.  Below are the results:

 Sabre:
Andrew Koeling - 3rd Place
Jason Povilaitis - 10th Place

Epee:
Caitlin Huston - 15th Place

Congratulations to all the fencers that traveled this weekend to compete. A special congratulations goes to Andrew, who earned his E2009 rating for Sabre.

Just a friendly little note to inform everybody that some updates were made to the web site on March 3. I went through and updated the member page with current information on instructors and new members as well as fixed a few errors with the images and icons.  Next was the tournament page, where I updated the results information as well as added more tournaments that will be happening this semester.

The biggest change I made was the dates for the club’s mock tournaments that will be held in March and April.  Due to the Great Lakes Sectional even being held on April 18 and 19, the original date for the mock sabre and epee tournaments had to be moved one week ahead; to April 11, 2009.

Club members need to get their picture taken for the member page during the week following Spring Break.  Any member who is competing in a tournament should also have their picture taken in full gear for the main page.  Any questions, please contact me as soon as possible.

Thank you,

Brian Koby
BSUFC Webmaster

It’s that time of the semester for our beginning members to face-off against each other in a mini mock tournament to show their skills and utilize what they have learned over the last 6 weeks. The Beginner Class Tournament is open to all BSUFC beginner members that started at any point during the second semester. It will be run as a “dry fencing” USFA tournament with club coach Brian Koby reffing the bouts and club president Caitlin Huston working the bout commity.

This year the pool bouts will be held Monday, March 2, starting promptly at 10:15 PM, and the direct elimination bouts (DEs) will be held on Wednesday, March 4, starting promptly at 10:15 PM. All beginner members who will be competing in this tournament must either pre-register with Brian or Caitlin before Monday, or they can register before 10:15 at practice on March 2.

Any questions about the tournament can be addressed to either Brian or Caitlin via email or in person at practice.

Saturday, February 21st was a very long, yet eventful day for the fencers of Ball State University.  Bladepoint Fencing Academy in Indianapolis hosted this year’s St. Valentine’s Day Massacre event (which also happened to be the Great Lakes Sectional Event), and the turnout was greater than anticipated.  The results of the the Ball State Fencing Club members are as follows:

 Epee Results (out of 40 fencers):
Brian Koby - 27th Place
Nathaniel Correll - 28th Place
Caitlin Huston - 40th Place

Sabre Results (out of 30 fencers):
Jason Povilaitis - 12th Place
Andrew Koeling - 17th Place
Jeff Simpson - 19th Place
Caitlin Huston - 30th Place

Foil Results (out of 21 fencers):
Brian Koby - 18th Place

Congratulations to all those who fenced over the weekend. This was Jeff and Jason’s first tournament, and Andrew’s triumphant return to the fencing world. Special thanks goes to Tyler Wolford and former member Megan Caylor for showing their support to those who were fencing.

Ball State University Fencing Club coach Brian Koby will be holding a club-wide skills workshop and clinic on Sunday afternoon on February 22 starting at 3:30 PM. Any member is welcome to come and gain more insight to the sport of fencing, work on particular skills such as footwork, blade control, and distance, and enjoy team-building exercises.

The workshop will last until 6:00 PM.  Any fencer wishing to participate in the workshop must let Caitlin or Brian know before Saturday, February 21 and are expected to stay for the entire time to gain the full benefits.  All skill levels are urged to attend.

This workshop will be free to BSUFC members.  Any fencers who are not members of the Ball State Fencing Club will be requested to pay a $5 floor fee at the start of the workshop.  If there are any questions, please email Brian at bsufc@bsu.edu.

Saturday was a big day at a big tournament for the Ball State University Fencing Club. Club members Brian Koby, Caitlin Huston, and Nathaniel Correll all competed in the Purdue Universitry Spring Open on January 31, an event that was much larger than any of them anticipated.

Epee Results (out of 37 total fencers):
Brian Koby - 18th place
Nathaniel Correll - 24th place
Caitlin Huston - 34th place

Sabre Results (out of 24 total fencers):
Brian Koby - 18th place

Foil Results (out of 41 total fencers):
Brian Koby - 27th place

A special congratualtions goes to former BSUFC member Josh Williams who finished 3rd in foil, earning his D2009 rating.

A special thank you goes to club members Tyler Wolford and Dave Izzo for making the drive with those who competed to give them support, take pictures, and help set up the tournament. Also to Purdue Fencing Club members Emersen Correll for housing the BSUFC members on Friday night and to Kendra McPheeters for running such an amazing tournament.

Next tournament is on Saturday, February 21 - St. Valentine’s Day Massacre Great Lakes Sectional Event in Indianapolis.