In the past couple of semesters, I have taken the fencing class but have never actually hung out with anyone who does it seriously. I already knew from experience that there is a huge difference, as I took a couple archery classes and then proceeded to join the club. The culture change between those who signed up for the classes and those who have done it for years (some of them professionally) was complete. So, I decided that I would join the fencing club as my ethnography project.
We (Andrew Funderburgh and I) actually planned to go to their meeting on Monday, but ended up being there early. We found the room completely empty, so we went downstairs to ask the people at the front desk (ish, more of just a window where they look at your id before you can go in) where the fencing club was supposed to meet and where. We figured that maybe their website was simply outdated. However, when we talked to those at the front, they told us that fencing was never scheduled to be in that building at all. Thus, having no contacts, we were forced to drop it for the day.
The next day, in fencing class, I asked the teacher when they were supposed to meet. He told me that it was where and when we thought it was. One of the other people in the class, who also happens to be in the club, told me that they just happened to be running late Monday. Unlucky.
So, Wednesday comes around and we try for a second round. When we get there, there were only a couple of people waiting. We sat on the floor and waited for things to get running. When the club president came in, he promptly gave us forms to fill out for rec sports so that we could be allowed to fence, basically just a liability form. There hadn't been much conversation between the few people who were there or with us, but it wasn't precisely awkward.
Having fenced before, I was "allowed" to participate in the conditioning that happens before every practice. During this, the only thing I could get my mind to learn was the fact that I am terribly out of shape. At any rate, during drills people talked more or less amongst themselves, occasionally shouting across the room to someone in another conversation. The conversations were mostly banter, nothing about fencing or really anything in particular. They all seemed to know each other extremely well.
After conditioning, I went with a few people down to the "armory", which is where spare equipment is kept. I had no clue where everything was, so I had to keep asking questions. Except for my questions, we talked mostly about dancing of all things (we passed a dancing club on the way there).
During the actual fencing, everyone was serious and very much participating at the height of their prowess. This was highly unusual for me, for during the classes there's hardly ever 5 minutes without a joke cracked. The fact that everyone was giving their all was also somewhat unusual; during the classes, those who are better than others tend to hold back when fencing. It A) gets boring to those who are good and frustrating for those who are not, and B) doesn't give the other people a chance to learn. In the club, it was clear that I was somewhat on my own. They gave me advice on my techniques when we were done with our bout, but during it was all work and no play. The level at which these people were at also took me off guard; I've usually been somewhere near the top during the classes, but in the club I am definitely low-tier. Some of them moved so fast I literally did not see them in time to react.
In all, it was a fun first time. The people were very open and talkative. They were helpful and instructive (when not fencing). Doing an ethnography on these guys will be interesting, if tough. I am definitely bringing a gigantic water bottle next time.
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