Here are some Frequently Asked Questions (and their answers)--we will be adding to them regularly, so if you have any comments, or anything you want to add, e-mail us!

 1)  Nice website...why isn't it working for me?

This website was constructed using joomla, an open source program that allows many different people (in this case, the whole NC Board) to manage content, thus preventing the Chair and the Webmaster from going (more) insane.  It is best viewed on Internet Explorer, but can be seen on all other browsers.  If strange things are happening, such as pictures intruding on text, and layout looking odd, it is probably due to the browser you're using.  Sorry!  

2)  I'd like to add a tournament to the Division schedule, but missed the Organizational Meeting.  What do I do?

The Tournament Adding Guidelines are in the Forms and Documents section of this website, under "other form"--follow the guidelines, and it should be smooth sailing!

3)How old do my fencers have to be to fence in an Open, a Junior (Y20), a Cadet (Y17), Y14, a Y12, and a Y10?

To fence in an Open, E & Under, or any other tournament not clearly labelled as Youth, a fencer must be born in 1993 or earlier.   The cutoffs for youth events are by birth year--to fence in the given event, your fencer must be born in the years indicated.

Junior 1987-1993

Cadet 1990-1993

Y14 1992-1995

 Y12 1994-1997

 Y10 1996-1999. 

4)  We want to do an unsanctioned youth or club event just for fun, but would like fencers from other clubs to know about it.  Can we still post it on the Division schedule?

Absolutely!  Just e-mail any member of the board, and they'll take care of it for you.

5)  My club is not on the USFA website under North Carolina clubs?  Why not?

We're not sure.  If your club joined the USFA, you should probably contact them.  If your club did not join the USFA, it will not be published on their website.

6)  Can my fencer fence in baseball pants?

Not at a Division-sanctioned tournament.  They don't pass the USFA's safety code.

7)  What is the role of the Division Observing Officer?

The Division Observing Officer must be present at a tournament for it to be sanctioned by the Division, and hence the USFA.  The Observing Officer must be a member of the Board.  Your Observer is responsible for ensuring that USFA rules are followed at your tournament.  In order to help with this, the Observer will arrive at the tournament with a copy of the most recent membership database and will, if necessary, help your registration table check cards and USFA memberships.  If someone joined recently but has not yet been added to the database, and does not have a receipt, the Observer will make sure a Duplicate USFA membership form is filled out, and will hold it until the person is added to the database, when the Duplicate form will be torn up, or until a reasonable amount of time has passed, when the form will be sent in.  The Observer may direct at a tournament, but may NOT coach or fence.  The Observing Officer is the head of the Bout Committee, but has full discretion to delegate responsibilities to the head of the Tournament Committee or to other members of the Bout Committee, as he or she feels necessary. 

8)  What if the Observing Officer pulls the Division's Sanction?

This has never happened yet.  If, however, the Observer sees a violation of the USFA rulebook at a tournament, draws it to the attention of the rest of the Bout Committee and the Head of the Tournament Committee, and nothing is done in a reasonable period of time to fix the violation, the Observer may provisionally withdraw Sanctioning.  The Observer must then notify the Division Board of the situation, and the Board must approve or disapprove the action.   

9)  Why do Junior and Cadet events become Y16 and Y19 for Divisionals and Summer Nationals?

The official end of the season for Junior and Cadet events is the Junior Olympics, which takes place in the spring.  So, all national events and their qualifiers taking place after the JOs begin to the next junior and cadet season.  For the Summer Nationals and qualifying events for the Summer Nationals, such as Divisionals, the age cutoffs are therefore as follows:

Junior:  1988-1994

Cadet:  1991-1994.

This change does NOT take place for Y14, Y12, or Y10 events.  It also only takes place for Summer Nationals and its qualifying events.  All other Junior and Cadet events are still fenced under the year cutoffs for the 2006-7 fencing season.  Yes, it's confusing.

10)  What is the term of office for Division Officers?

August 1-July 31.  However, people elected to Congress representative positions in Spring of 2007 will fulfill their duties as NC USFA Congress Representatives at 2007 Summer Nationals, and then join the board for a regular term of August 1-July 31.