The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

•T he IFP• H alton H ills, Thursday, M ay 23, 2013 25 15 MOUNTAINVIEW RD. N., GEORGETOWN 905-877-2296 www.georgetowntoyota.com THE ALL NEW 2013 VENZA Model #ZA3BBT-AA $29,460 + taxes Starting at 30,460 - 1,000 Rebate 0% financing up to 60 mos. OAC SPORTS "Quote/unquote" 'I call it playing chess at 200 kilometres an hour.'--Fencing coach Mike Kasunic... see story below Set to mark its second anniversary with an X in September, the Escarp- ment Fencing Club in Acton has at- tracted some curious beginners who aren't really familiar with the sport's origins. Practising twice a week on the sec- ond fl oor in the newly renovated Acton Town Hall on Willow St., the EFC has about a dozen regulars training at varying skill levels in each of fenc- ing's three disciplines-- foil, sa- bre and epee. Those aforementioned neo- phytes usually fi nd out fairly quickly that it's a physically demand- ing activity that is actually at lot harder than it looks in Hollywood fi lms. "We've had a bunch of people in and out. Sometimes they stay, and some- times they realize that it's an actual sport and not Pirates of the Caribbean or Star Wars or that kind of dramatic twirl," mused club founder Mike Kasunic. "But we do try to cater to the recreational people. We're also getting a few more who want to be competitive, from Guelph and Orangeville, and we're hoping it keeps growing." Fencing has long been perceived as being an elitist sport, Kasunic ac- knowledges, although the Mis- sissauga high school teacher points out that the cost of the required equip- ment, which includes about $200 for a decent sword, is much less than youth hockey expenses. He also scoffed at the violent stig- ma attached to fencing, as the Kevlar suits and easily bending swords are designed with safety in mind, adding that he saw an Insurance Bureau of Canada document stating that fencing had approximately the same number of injuries per year as lawn bowling. "I call it playing chess at 200 kilo- metres an hour," said Kasunic, refer- ring to the speed of an Olympic-level sabre fencer's sword tip. "People think that fencing is some- thing that rich kids or snooty adults do, but I did it in university because I wasn't good enough to make the varsity hock- ey or soccer teams. I was actually pretty good at it because I had the refl exes from playing goalie and it went from there." It just so happens that for- mer na- tional team coach and current Canadian Olym- pic Committee mem- ber John Makela is an instructor at the club. Kasunic said he'd ideally like to build up the organization to the point where the coaches are paid for their work, but at this stage, recruiting new members is the priority. Members of the Escarpment club were in Gatineau, Que. this past week- end for the Canadian Fencing Federa- tion Championships, where Kasunic upset the number-two-ranked compet- itor in the men's over-40 sabre in the quarterfi nals on the way to earning a bronze medal. Chris Rudolph placed 26th in the men's cadet (under-17) epee, while Ka- sunic's 14-year-old daughter Natasha fi nished sixth in the women's under-15 sabre. Fencing at the Canadian Interuni- versity Sport level has been popular for a long time, but it has undergone a revival amongst high schoolers as the fi rst OFSAA-sanctioned provincial championship in over two decades was recently held in Stratford. Three junior members of the EFC-- Natasha Kasunic, Kira Oliver and Landon McPhee-- representing Georgetown's Christ the King Second- ary School, participated in the Arc An- gels Fenc- ing Invitational and earned silver medals in the team category after be- ing edged out by St. Andrew's College of Aurora for the overall title. Finding a coach at the school is the biggest obstacle at this point as the teacher who oversaw this year's team, Megan Woods, will be away on maternity leave. "We fi nally got a team go- ing at CtK the year that I graduate," lamented 17- year-old Oliver. "I like the speed and fi nesse involved. I've seen movies like The Princess Bride and Pi- rates of the Caribbean and thought that would be so cool to do. I guess that's what attracted me to it. But when you get into it, you realize it's a lot of hard work." The club will show its theatrical side again this summer by teaming up with Guelph-based To Be Determined Theatre to present the second- annual Swords & Stage summer camp July 8-12 at Total Dance Innovations Studio in Acton. The camp is open to youths age 6-16 and will consist of a half day of basic fencing skill development by a certifi ed instructor and the other half learning about acting techniques on a theatre stage. Cost is $250 for the week and in- cludes all safety equipment and costumes. For more info, visit the website http://escarp- mentfencing.com By EAMONN MAHER Staff Writer Escarpment Fencing Club members (from left) Landon McPhee, Kira Oliver and Natasha Kasunic wear the silver medals they earned recently at the provincial high school championships in Stratford for Christ the King. Pictured above, Kasunic (left) fences with Tristan Toste in Acton. Photos by Eamonn Maher Fencing harder than Hollywood fi lms portray