Tuesday, November 25, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

R-JENERATION: EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES: Marching to Their Own Beat

From Taiko drums to fencing, many valley students pursue hobbies out of the mainstream

Members of the Taiko Drum Club at Silverado High School practice their skills. Photo by RJ GIORGIONE / R-JENERATION Tenisun Kronmiller, left, and Georgia Ranes work out at the Las Vegas Fencing Club. Photo by JOHNNY DRIGGS / R-JENERATION

On the corner of Maryland Parkway and Fremont Street, in a nondescript blue building above Jesus is the Answer Church, up an outdoor, metal-grate staircase, and past an abandoned boxing center lies, the Las Vegas Fencing Club.

Fencing, modeled after the sword fighting of Old Europe, seems out of place in the shadows of the modern casinos of Las Vegas.

But Las Vegas Valley high school students still find a hobby in this gentleman's sport and many other nontraditional extracurricular activities.

One such person is Nathan Winemiller, an Advanced Technologies Academy freshman who has been fencing for two years, lured into the sport by a friend.

"It's easy to pick up," Winemiller said. "But the only way you get better is fencing against better people."

Winemiller fences using the foil, one of three weapons offered in modern fencing, the other two being epee and saber. Based on 18th-century short swords, foil duelists score points by stabbing the opponent in the torso, though scoring is handled electronically in the modern sport.

For peers who might play football or basketball, Winemiller sometimes needs to correct some misconceptions about his hobby of choice.

"Some people hear about `first blood from the torso,' " he explains. Images of swashbuckling heroes loom prominently in the minds of many, something the sport does not reflect. In fact, Winemiller helps instruct classes for 6- to 12-year-olds, so anything involving sharp points is out of the question.

One sport increasing in popularity is lacrosse. The game has been a staple of East Coast schools, and has only recently penetrated the established sports lexicon in the West. Like fencing, it is too fringe to be a school sport, but is still organized based on school boundaries.

Coronado High School junior Jacob Green found his niche in the surprisingly demanding sport.

"I signed up as a defender because I was lazy, and figured it would be the easiest," Green said.

He soon found out that was not the case -- defense required the most running. However, that's what keeps him playing.

"It's like hockey," he said. "It's continuous, it takes a lot of skill."

Penalties in lacrosse are not called until the ball is dead, letting a play carry out its life span before the game is interrupted.

Green has sampled a variety of sports, from baseball to volleyball to football, and finds he enjoys lacrosse the most.

"Football is a slow sport," he said. "(Lacrosse) is fast paced."

Like lacrosse, several alternative activities and clubs exist within the schools. Southern Nevada Vocational Technical Center has a rodeo club, and Centennial High School has an equestrian club. Clubs from Classic Rock at Green Valley High School to Amnesty International at Clark High School enable students with special interests to get together.

Perhaps the most unusual of these clubs is the Taiko Drum Club at Silverado High School. Effectively taking the place of a standard Japanese club, this club has its members take part in performances mirroring those performed in Japan. Junior John Murtaugh has performed in the club since his freshman year.

"We try to fit in a few performances each year," Murtaugh said. "Once a year, we'll have a separate performance at night."

The rest of the performances are with other groups or as part of Silverado's biannual multicultural fair.

Performers practice for an hour each week at school, though it doesn't end there.

"You don't necessarily need a drum to practice," Murtaugh said, noting students can practice keeping the beat of songs at home and are encouraged to do so.

When it comes to shows, the act is a group effort.

"Everyone has a role that is important," Murtaugh said.

Even students not actually playing the drums are vital to the routine. Sticks used to beat the drums often break, and those on the sidelines need to rush performers a new pair.

"You'll break (the sticks) a few times if you're playing as hard as you should," said Murtaugh, who broke five during a show last year.

Murtaugh, Green and Winemiller all plan to continue pursuing their activities beyond high school. Murtaugh is considering colleges in the Pacific Northwest, where Taiko clubs are more common. Green plans to attend the Air Force Academy, where he hopes to find a place on its lacrosse team.

Winemiller plans to major in electrical engineering in college, but hopes to fence wherever he goes.

"I think more people should try it," Winemiller said. "I mean, you get to fence with swords. What's not to like about that?"