3 Swords Region 5 RYC, Junior and Cadet Epee

3 Swords RYC is one of the possible qualification paths for Youth 10 and Youth 12 events at both the March NAC (North American Cup) and the Y10, Y12, and Y14 USA Fencing National Championships for the 2015-2016 USA Fencing season. Y10 and Y12 fencers must participate in at least one RYC or SYC tournament prior to the regular registration deadline for the March/April Youth NAC in order to be considered eligible to compete. See: http://www.usfencing.org/rycresources . Cadet and Junior Events are USFA sanctioned but are NOT part of the Summer Nationals or Junior Olympics qualifying path. These events give a great opportunity for practice before the RYC Y14 event and could allow a fencer to earn or increase their rating. VENUE: Northwest Arkansas Fencing Center 1100 SE 14th Street Suite 16 Bentonville, AR 72712 479-696-7776 Fencers are responsible for checking this site for any venue changes that may occur due to number of registrants. AIRPORT: Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (XNA), 12 miles from venue. Headquarters Hotel: Best Western Castlerock is our event hotel. Rates at the all-suite hotel are $60/night plus tax. Go to http://www.BestWesternArkansas.com or call 479-845-7707 Use the code NWAF. The hotel has free breakfast, complimentary high speed wireless internet, microwave, refrig., 32" flat screen TV’s, indoor pool, 24 hour fitness center, and laundry facilities. Looking for things to do before or after you fence (both of these museums are less than 10 minutes from the fencing club)- Looking for things to do before or after you fence - Scott Family Amazeum, Bentonville's newest attraction, opened Wednesday, July 15, 2015 to a very enthusiastic crowd. This interactive learning museum features 50,000 square feet of exhibit, meeting, and learning spaces that enhance family involvement while evoking a sense of curiosity and discovery through hands-on-activities. Exhibits include the Hershey's Lab, the Market, Art Studio, Canopy Climber, Lift-Load-Haul, Cloud Theater, Water Amazement, Homestead Cabin and Farm, Cave, Nickelodeon Play Lab and much more. No admission for kids two and under. Admission for adults and kids is $9.50. Hours of operation Thursday - Saturday 10a.m.-5p.m., Sunday 1p.m.-5p.m. For more information visit www.amazeum.org. Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art is open Friday 11 a.m. – 9 p.m, Saturday 11 a.m. – 6 p.m, and, Sunday 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. There is no cost to view the Museum's permanent collection, which is on view year-round. For more information on the exhibits and the walking trails go to www.crystalbridges.org Daisy Airgun Museum is celebrating their 75th anniversary! Located in historic downtown Rogers since 1960 the museum houses an impressive airgun collection. In 1999, the company decided to utilize that collection to create a first class and entertaining museum which would serve as a tourism attraction. In March, 2000, the refurbished, expanded museum opened its doors. Today, the museum resides in the brick-paved historic sector of downtown Rogers in a building which, itself, dates to 1896. It attracts over 1700 visitors a year from almost every state in the continental U.S and several foreign countries. Gun and history enthusiasts come to see the collection of antique dating to the 1600s. www.daisymuseum.com/ TOURNAMENT CHECK-IN PROCEDURES: This is a National Qualifier for Youth 10, 12. Cadet and Junior Events are USFA sanctioned but are NOT part of the Summer Nationals or Junior Olympics qualifying process. Fencers must show proof they are COMPETITIVE members of the USFA. Please be aware that athletes that do not check in on time for their event will be scratched. Be at the venue 1/2 hour to 1 hour before your close of registration. IN ORDER TO COMPETE, THE FENCER MUST CHECK IN AT THE BOUT COMMITTEE DESK BEFORE THE LISTED DEADLINE WITH THE FOLLOWING IN HAND: 1) Valid, current membership card AND 2) A fully completed WAIVER FORM that has been signed by a parent or legal guardian AND 3) Government issued identification showing a date of birth UNLESS THE MEMBERSHIP CARD INDICATES THE BIRTH YEAR IS VALIDATED*. To help us speed up registration, please download the waiver form, print it, read it, sign it and bring it with you. No fencer will be allowed to fence without a signed waiver form. USFA PROOF OF MEMBERSHIP is required. Current membership and good standing is required and MUST BE SHOWN at registration. Fencers are required to be present at registration. Athletes without proof of membership must fill out all appropriate forms to pay for membership. Payment will be returned if membership can be verified. Foreign fencers must hold ONE of the following: Proof of current season USFA Membership, or Current FIE license, OR Current federation membership. We suggest current memberships be processed prior to the event. Be sure that your membership is current. If you join the USFA at the venue, and are not listed on their official list, YOU WILL COMPETE AS AN “UNRATED” FENCER TO AVOID THE RISK OF INVALIDATING YOUR EVENT. FEES: Regular online registration period runs through October 1, 2015 $30 Registration plus $25 per event Fencers not registered by September 26 will pay late fees. There will be no exceptions for any reason. Preregistration without payment does not constitute valid registration. If registering on askfred, registration is not complete until payment is made. Registrations not paid on askfred by 11:59 PM October 10, 2015 will be deleted from the askfred fencer list for this tournament. You may still register at the door. From October 2, 2015 through October 10, 2015 DOUBLE FEES $60 registration plus $50 per event From October 11, 2015 through October 14, 2015 TRIPLE FEES $90 registration plus $75 per event Final Pre-registration will close at midnight October 14. We are not responsible for any inability to register on askfred. After October 14, 2015, no registration will be accepted through AskFRED. Walk-ins are permitted at the triple fee rate ($90 + $75) AND are subject to a $200 surcharge, per the US Fencing RYC guidelines. Events WILL be mixed if less than 5 competitors in M/W events (i.e., Y10 M/W foil may be mixed). Mixed events will only occur within age category. Event times are approximate; they could change depending on number of entries. Important tournament information, including any close of check-in time changes and possible venue changes will be communicated through the FRED e-mail system. Be sure your e-mail address is up-to-date. Visit askfred.net then go to "My FRED" to verify your current e-mail address. REFUND POLICY No-shows are not entitled to refunds. Registration fee and any ASKFred surcharges are non-refundable. The last day to request a refund of entry fees is October 1, 2015. Submit all refund requests to laura@nwaff.org . Please be sure to include your preferred mailing address. Refunds will be processed within FOUR weeks after the tournament. PAPER ENTRY: A paper entry form is available to download and mail with a check to: NWAFC Attn: RYC Committee 1100 SE 14th Street Suite 16 Bentonville, AR 72712 AGE VERIFICATION: NOTE: BIRTH YEAR ELIGIBILITY for events is determined by the 2015-2016 age eligibility schedule, NOT your age at the time of the event. Youth 10 event 2005-2008 Youth 12 event 2003-2006 or on Youth 10 NRP List Youth 14 event 2001-2004 or on Youth 12 NRP List USA Fencing requires age verification for ALL participants (domestic and foreign). USA Fencing is working towards an age verification process. We suggest PRIOR TO THIS EVENT, that if the membership card does not indicate “Birth Year Verified –Y” that you submit a copy of the fencer’s birth certificate or passport to the USA Fencing National Office via mail, in a timely manner so they may verify the Date of Birth (DOB) and provide an updated membership card (“Birth Year Verified – Y”) This season, parents should come prepared with ONE of the following in case the fencer’s age needs verification for eligibility purposes: 1. A government issued photo ID with date of birth included 2. A copy of birth certificate 3. Passport You will not be allowed to fence, no matter what events you participated in last season, without proof of USFA competitive membership and age verification. At this time, askfred will not let you register and pay for an event for which you are not age eligible. If you are eligible to fence in an event by virtue of being on the NRPS in a lower age category, please register for an additional event in a different category that you ARE age eligible to participate in, and then email the organizers with the name of the athlete, and the events that need to be switched around. Please verify your eligibility via NRPS BEFORE doing this! No refunds will be given for ineligible fencers who mistakenly enter. WAIVER OF LIABILITY: A completed waiver form signed by a parent or legal guardian is required. To help speed up the registration process, please DOWNLOAD the waiver form, print it, read it, sign it, and bring it to the table with you. This is extremely important if the fencer does not have a parent/guardian at check in. NO ONE WILL BE ALLOWED TO FENCE WITHOUT A SIGNED WAIVER/Acknowledgement FORM. Click “Download Waiver”. PHOTOGRAPHY, FILMING, RECORDING or any other form of media of the athletes during the tournament can be used by the organizer (NWAFC/NWAFF and Oklahoma Division) and the USFA. EQUIPMENT GUIDELINES: Standard fencing uniforms; cannot have any rips, tears, or holes. Warm-up pants are not allowed. Fencing glove must cover half of the forearm. Names on uniforms are not required per SYC guidelines. Standard fencing plastron; required with every uniform; women must wear chest protector. Mask: 12K punch test. Sewn-in or channel (Leon Paul X-change style) bib. Conductive Bib in foil is required. Elastic strap at back of mask is required. The maximum blade length permitted for Y10 competitions is 32.5 inches. This requirement shall be strictly enforced. Y12, Y14, Cadet and Junior competitions, standard blade length of 30-35” permitted. Any attachment to a weapon's handle must fix the hand in one position such that the top of the thumb is no more than 2 cm from the inner surface of the guard. Epee wiring must meet the current standards in effect as of August 1, 2013. For more information, please see http://www.fencingofficials.org/blog/2013/05/wiring-epees/ Equipment check will be open at 2:00 pm on October 16, 7:30 am on October 17 and 18. Equipment check will test the mask, lame jacket and foil mask bib, gloves, and body cords. Masks that do not pass the 12-kg punch test will be impounded or given a visible mark to signify that the mask is "not approved for use." SEEDING: Seeding for Youth Events shall be based on the following order: 1. Current national rolling point standings according to age group and weapon. This filters down the entire list, not just the top 32 as done in a NAC. 2. Letter ranking with year classification 3. Athletes with neither of the above are seeded on a random basis after the athletes who are seeded by the preceding factors. Seeding for Regional Cadet Events will be posted when the Tournament Committee designates how these events will be seeded. TOURNAMENT FORMAT: All RYC events will be one round of pools with 100% promotion to direct eliminations. Pools of 6 or 7 (whenever possible; however, equal pools sizes should be used per RYC guidelines) with 100% of the fencers promoted to a DE tableau. Events with fewer than 11 participants may be two rounds of pools to direct eliminations. No fence off for 3rd place. For Y10 direct elimination bouts are 10 touch bouts (2 three minute periods with 1 minute break in between). During the 1 minute break, ONE person, designated by the fencer (a teammate, coach, or parent), may be on the strip with the fencer. For Y12, Y14, Cadet, Junior events, DE bouts are 15 touch bouts (3 three minute periods with a 1 minute break between). During the 1 minute breaks, ONE person, designated by the fencer (a teammate, coach, or parent), may be on the strip with the fencer. All events serve as qualifying paths to national tournaments; therefore, no events may be combined regardless of number of entrants. POINTS AND CLASSIFICATION EARNINGS: Please see the Athlete Handbook for the latest details on points for Regional Youth Circuit events, as well as qualifications to National Events. Classifications may be awarded only at tournaments at which electrical apparatus for the scoring of touches is used. The competition must meet or exceed criteria in Group C1 or higher to award changes in classification. Please refer to the Classification Chart for more information. Points, classifications and qualification are not finalized until complete results, membership forms and program service fee are received by the National Office. Fencers who earn a new classification on Saturday or Sunday of the tournament may not use that classification for subsequent events on Sunday or Monday of this tournament. Events Scheduled: Y10 Women's Epee Y10 Women's Foil Y10 Women's Saber Y10 Men's Epee Y10 Men's Foil Y10 Men's Saber Y12 Women's Foil Y12 Women's Saber Y12 Men's Epee Y12 Men's Epee Y12 Men's Foil Y12 Men's Saber Y14 Women's Foil Y14 Women's Saber Y14 Men's Epee Y14 Men's Epee Y14 Men's Foil Y14 Men's Saber Cadet (U17) Women's Epee Cadet (U17) Men's Epee Junior (U20) Women's Epee Junior (U20) Men's Epee Preregistration opens on 06/15/2015. Preregistration closes on 10/15/2015.