President's Corner

Before getting to the topic at hand, I would like to congratulate Bob Keating on winning the Birds of Spring last weekend. There were 21 players and it was directed well by Wes Ferguson. Now to this week’s topic.Since the HB tournament is next week in Minnesota and we have several Iowa players going to it, I thought it would be a good idea to give some unsolicited advice.

I am reminded of the movie Hoosiers, where Gene Hackman takes his players on the court and they measure all the court dimensions to find tat they are the same as their own gym; ten feet from floor to rim, fifteen from free-throw line to basket. His point was that the game is still the same game that they have been playing all season. The previous analogy is true for this tournament: however you have prepared for a tournament in the past, do the same for HB. The only difference is the magnitude of the tournament. I have split my advice into 2 sections, “when playing” and “when not playing.”Game on:I am going to focus on what is different from a normal weekend tournament in Iowa. First, you will be playing 9 rounds over either 3 or 5 days. Imagine how tired you are after playing a weekend tournament, this will be worse. If you have a particularly grueling early round game, don’t let it affect your next game. There will be plenty of time to lament missed opportunities after the tournament. Once a game is completed, start preparing for the next round. You will first need to take a break to get your mind off the game (see Game off advice).The time control is considerably slower. Make sure to use your time. Unless you are in time pressure, I would recommend taking a minimum of 1 minute per move. This allows you time to focus on the game and consider some other options. Even if the move is forced or automatic, use the time to consider possible continuations from that point.

When playing your game, stay focused on your game. There are plenty of side activities going on, but save them for when you are not playing. If you get tired during a game or you are not able to calculate as you normally do, get up and walk around and see the other activities. This would be similar to having a brief conversation with a friend at a weekend tournament. The point is not to be distracted from your game, but to give you a mind a small break.

Game off:

You just completed your game, now what?

If not too timely, I highly recommend having the GMs/IMs go over your game. You might have to wait a while for them to get to your game, but see what they have to say about other games. I would not do this after each round, but at least do it once. The better GMs offer solid advice that can help your game for many years. You paid the high entry fee, you might as well enjoy the free lessons.

Eat. This is one that I am not good about, but make sure you eat between rounds. Even if not hungry, eat a healthy snack to tide you over.

Watch the GMs play their games. There should be a lot of exciting games to watch in the Open section. Notice the amount of energy they put into their games and you might even play guess the move (in silence, of course). If the game is too complicated, try to determine who is winning or if the game is going to be a draw.

A half hour before the next round starts, I usually take a walk around the site. This allows me time to start focusing on the next game and forget the last game. Of course, everyone has their own way of getting ready for the next round and you might have to experiment to see what works best for you.

If you ignore everything above, then take the following advice: ENJOY THE EXPERIENCE. They have many great things planned, so take in the atmosphere and environment. Good luck and I hope to see some games and stories in the next EP.

Priority – Membership dropMay 8, 2005 - Over the last 2 weeks, the board and I have been discussing what we think is important to be focusing on. One item that was identified was the membership drop. As mentioned in the last general meeting, membership has gone down from 230 to 180. We have started to put things in place to increase membership.

First, we have resurrected the web site. After sitting dormant for the last six months, Rusty Davis has stepped up to manage the web site. We really appreciate Rusty taking this on. This will allow the members to keep up to date on Iowa chess activity.

Second, the board has added a few more tournaments to the chess schedule and a few more are in the works. We are holding a tournament in Mt. Vernon in July. We are looking at resurrecting the Des Moines Open and are considering a border war with Minnesota.

Third, as a way to recognize players who are currently playing in Iowa events, we have started the Top 10 lists, which is for bragging rights only. It does not affect the Qualifying Points. As of now, the list is for games played, points scored and best percentages with a minimum number of games, which will increase during the year. We also hope that this will encourage more tournaments to be held. For example, Roger Gotschall holds a tournament every couple of months in Ames. It is on a Sunday afternoon with an entry fee of $5 and 3 rounds. In other words, it does not have to be a major tournament to be included.

We will continue to focus on this priority, but we can’t do it alone. We need your feedback and ideas. I will be adding a question in the bulletin board on this site. The question is ‘What do we need to do to increase membership?’ Please visit the bulletin board and give us your thoughts. I look at this as a brainstorming session. All ideas are welcome. As we start implementing these ideas, I will post those in the forum.Thanks for your help and see you next week.

Communication