How many Chess Players?

John Ummel · From: Arlington, WA.

I guess if its not too far off topic to ask "How many bikers?" it'll be ok to ask how many chess players? I took up chess to better help my son who has turned out to be quite a talented player. (At age 11, he has USCF rating of 1610) I've read that solving chess puzzles is a very healthy mental exercise that may help as we age. Maybe it'll help me in remembering the tab arrangement of "Milk Cow Blues" I've also been working on! Any other Steel/Chess
players out there?
Johnny

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johnny
GFI Ultra S-10 3&4, G&L ASAT, Jackson Dinky Hardtail, homemade solid body electric violin w/ Zeta pickup, homemade 100W amp w/ 12" Jensen. As Bill Monroe once told me: "Don't never give up"

Dave Mudgett · From: Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee

I grew up playing chess a lot, but I don't seem to have enough time these days. I agree, it's great mental training. These days, with free time, it's usually a choice between playing music and playing games. Music wins most of the time.

Donny Hinson · From: Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.

Yes, I'm a "hacker" chess player (just like I'm a "hacker" steel player).

Jody Cameron · From: Angleton, TX,, USA

My chess pal Bobby Flores and I played a many a chess game on the ol' David Kersh tour bus(es) in the late '90's. I beat him once out of I don't know how many hundreds of games! Actually, I think he let me beat him that one time....

. I don't play much anymore because I don't have a good chess partner.

Walter Stettner · From: Vienna, Austria

I really enjoy playing it, but my chess playing is even worse than my steel playing...

One of my favorite jokes:

Grand Master tournament, two grand masters are on stage, right in the middle of a game, hundreds of people watching in the audience, commenting etc.

After a while, one master looks at the other and says: "Who's next?"

Couldn't resist....!

Kind Regards, Walter

www.lloydgreentribute.com
www.austriansteelguitar.at.tf

David Mason · From: Cambridge, MD, USA

I'm like the "Other Dave M.", I used to play chess when I was young but there's not really any reason to anymore, when I've got a guitar right here. Maybe if I was trapped in a cave, on a bus, in prison etc. I'd take it back up, it's still got to better for you than "Gilligan's Island" reruns.

Michael Barone · From: Downingtown, Pennsylvania

Twice a year, I tell my students that a good technician knows how to play chess. You don't have to be good at it, just know how the pieces move. We have mini-tournaments before Christmas and Easter. I know how to play, but I just supervise. I like to see my students have fun while exercising their brains.

Part of my teaching philosophy is that the game of chess enhances your spatial thinking ability.

Mike

Michael Haselman · From: St. Paul

I love chess, play a lot on the internet. Once you get into it beyond the surface it's fascinating and addicting. Bobby Fischer is my favorite whacko genius of the 20th century, though lately he's seriously gone off the deep end.

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Marrs D-10, Webb 6-14E

Travis Bernhardt · From: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Played in a handful of tournaments, but never achieved much. Best result was an even score (5.5/11) and a tie for third among the under 1600 crowd (lowest ratings category) at a Canadian Open a few years back (2000, maybe...).

Don't really play these days, but in the summer I'll hang out at the local chess spot (by the Vancouver Art Gallery) and play a little bit.

-Travis

Bobby Flores · From: Blanco, Texas, U.S.A. (deceased)

Wow Jody, you remembered our chess matches! Way cool! If I remember right, when I left the band (Kersh's) we had turned the entire bus on to chess. Even the driver couldn't wait to stop to play! I think we had three boards going at once there for awhile. Too much fun. What a game. And as a going away gift, David & the band gave me this huge, beautiful marble chess set which I have on proud display in my library. Too cool.

I'm not that good but I do love to play!

My chess hero was Blondie Calderon. He had a magnetic set that we used on the bus, every road trip. Almost immediately after I got in that band, and I saw the chess board, it was on. Little did I know that Blondie was a chess wizard. I found out quickly when he beat me twice in a row on our first two games. I had never played anyone of his caliber before. We would play for hours, through states, locked in very intense games. He was brilliant and at one time all he did was play in the parks of New York City.

We played 117 games total of which I only won 16. It took all I was made of to beat him in a game and then I was totally spent for the rest of the day. I personally witnessed him completely devour many an unsuspecting chess champ.

He gave me his personal chess set off the bar at his restaurant (Memo's in Del Rio) as an incredible gift and high honor. It had been there on the bar for years. He won it on a bet from an area champ that walked in the restaurant one day and told him he could have his chess set if he could beat him in a game. In true Blondie fashion, Blondie told him "Make it TEN" and then he proceeded to methodically beat the guy ten games in a row! After the champ lost the last game, he sent all the chess pieces flying off the board with a swing of his arm, in total frustration. Some of the knight's noses got broken off, some of the tops of the rooks were severely chipped, etc. But Blondie won and retained the set. After he gave me that set I repaired the pieces here at home.

After they lost everything they owned in a very bad flood, people were giving them back things they had once given out and I returned it to him and it sits back on the bar at Memo's today. He was the best chess player I have ever been up against and I deeply miss my dear friend and chess mentor.

Bobby

John Ummel · From: Arlington, WA.

That's such a great story Bobby! While I'll never be the world's greatest steel player, I am probably among the world's worst chess players. Sure is fascinating though.

[This message was edited by John Ummel on 30 November 2005 at 08:24 PM.]

David Higginbotham · From: Lake Charles, Louisiana, USA

Count me in! I am a "Harley riding chess player."

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GFI D-10 8&7, Roland GP-100, Peavey PX-300

basilh · From: United Kingdom

If you "~Google" Basil Henrick chess, you'll find :-

ICU Ratings

[ Home | Index | ICU | FIDE ]

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
Henrick, Basil 1193 1208 1208 1208 1208 1208

or look me up on this page :- http://www.markorr.net/tica/ratings/icu.html

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CrowBear Schmitt · From: Ariege, - PairO'knees, - France

yep ! i'm a chess player too
& backgammon too

Tony Prior · From: Charlotte NC

does real BAD Chess count ?

jim milewski · From: stowe, vermont

I got into chess just a little years ago, playing on the computer, it was fun, but better than that I noticed it sharpened my thinking, logic, etc., it was humbling and daunting, now this post got me thinking, I live alone, so is there a download chess game out there so I can do that again

John Ummel · From: Arlington, WA.

Jim,
there's freeware & shareware here: http://www.chesscorner.com/reviews/software.htm
"Chesterfield" is one I've used, and it worked ok.
Johnny

John Ummel · From: Arlington, WA.

For nice software that'll cost ya a couple a bucks check out Chessmaster or Fritz 8 (Chessbase). Fritz is highly regarded among serious players, but is also configurable to play really badly for us "patzers"!

jim milewski · From: stowe, vermont

Thanks John, hope they have a tuturiol.....lol

Roger Edgington · From: San Antonio, Texas USA

I'm not a serious player but I enjoy the game. I played steel for three years at the Blue Bonnet Palace in San Antonio. We often had long breaks so four or five of us would play chess. I had an MSA then. Maybe it helped my game. Ha

Jim Meiring · From: Highlands, North Carolina, USA

I love chess. I play my mac computer chess alot. It really whips me, but i can stay on the board for a long while sometimes. I still have a wooden set I bought In Spain in 1967. A great game.

Jim Phelps · From: Mexico City, Mexico

I love chess, have played it since I was a kid, used to play it with my sis when we were kids.

When I had my Novice class ham radio license when I was 13, (novice class was a beginner class that only allowed you to transmit morse code) I used to play chess on the air by morse code (called CW by hams) with other hams using chess notation. When I got my first computer, a chess program was one of the first things I got, besides flight simulator.

I still love chess but haven't played in years. Bought a chess game to teach my wife and we never even got around to it. Sold it in a yard sale along with just about everything else we didn't absolutely have to have, before the move here. There's an old one here in the house, but the pieces are in bad shape, I can't tell one from the other.

You've given me the bug again, thanks. Gotta get another set.

[This message was edited by Jim Phelps on 01 December 2005 at 08:42 PM.]

HowardR · From: N.Y.C.-Fire Island-Asheville

Michael Haselman · From: St. Paul

Anybody that wants to play some low stress chess go to www.chessworld.net. It's kind of like playing postal chess online. I'm in a tournament there now where you get 10 days per move.

Jim Phelps · From: Mexico City, Mexico

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