CalNorth Youth Chess Information -- DECEMBER 2013

    The last of the three Fall Weibel Chess Quads-Grand Prix will take place this Saturday, December 14.  As has been the case for most of the 14 years I have been holding these Quad tournaments, the turnout has been phenomenal. The November Quads pulled 214 players.  Why the popularity?  I can only speculate.  I believe people show because I get large numbers and this whets their appetite to find out why. They soon learn that their children have a better chance to participate in an event where they can challenge their skills against individuals of near equal ability who are in or near the same grade.   They like the idea that in most cases their children will not have to play someone from their own club or team.  The atmosphere at the Elementary School is warm and friendly and seldom if ever crowded.  This differs dramatically from many tournaments where players are cramped together in a dull stuffy hotel conference room.  CalNorth Youth Chess also offers great equipment for playing with mouse pad like chessboards and regulation pieces(weighted pieces for the higher rated player) and chess clocks at every board.   We also have more than enough tournament directors to cover the number of players.  I am happy to write that our experienced TD’s take their roles seriously and are not outside the playing area if a conflict arises.

    On the school campus I scatter chess sets around for players and parents to use between games or to go over the games.  Large chess sets dot the campus for the kids to have some extra fun.  At many of the events I have experienced adult players willing to go over the games with the children to help them improve.  Sometimes we use a DGT board to send games that are being played over the internet.  When available we have someone analyze these games in public as they are being played.  We hope to have this ongoing analysis again this Saturday.

    Robert Chan, one of our parents and the PTO president, has been able to create free internet on the campus for the tournament days.  Parents set-up food and snack tables with all the profits going to provide financial aid through the Success Chess Scholarship fund.   And, perhaps best of all no one yells at you for bring you own food on the site because the hotel or the convention center forbids it.

     If your child is not already registered to play, why not give us a try.  For more information and a link to the online application, go to: http://www.calnorthyouthchess.org/Applications/FallQuads13-GP/

    The dates of the Spring CalNorth Youth Chess Quads have been set.  I will hold them on March 8, April 5 and May 17.  The first and the last will be at Weibel.  The second Quads will be at Tierra Linda in San Carlos.  I will soon post more information at:  http://www.calnorthyouthchess.org/SpringTournaments2014/

    In February, CalNorth Youth Quads will, for the seventh year, hold its Age Level event.  I would argue that no other youth chess event has received more praise for its family friendly environment than this unique annual championships.  This tournament has only been surpassed in the number of players by the Spring CalChess State Championships.   I created this event to celebrate my birthday and perhaps provide a legacy name event in the far future. Carl Moy, Weibel Chess’ parent coordinator, is this year’s organizer. The CalNorth Youth Chess Age Level in 2014 will not be held on Super Bowl Sunday as it was for the last two years.  I don’t know if that will mean more than the 584 chess kids that registered last year.  If it does and the tournament reaches 600 players we will have to stop registration.  The date is Sunday, FEBRUARY 9, at the Newark Pavilion. Please mark your calendars.  You can register right now at: http://www.calnorthyouthchess.org/AgeLevel2014/

    Many people have asked me as to what happened to the CalChess 2013 State Grade Level Championships that were suppose to be held this weekend.  Well there will not be a 2013 Grade Level.  A Grade Level event will be held on the second weekend in January 2014.  I do not know if that will mean there will be two State Grade Levels in 2014.  CalChess set a rule a few years ago that the Grade Level must be held in December.  CalChess, three years ago, pulled the Championships from the North Stockton Rotary Club that had been running the event since 1996 because they could not get the University of the Pacific site in December, but only in November.  The Stockton Grade Levels were extremely popular.  Admittedly there were a few complaints, but personally none that I think demanded that the Board take it from the organizers of the North Stockton Rotary and turn it over to one of their own.  This year CalChess opened bids until August and only received one bid.  That was from Dr. Salman Azhar.  For what it is worth, I know of two organizers that would have bid if they didn’t think it was a forgone conclusion as to who would obtain the event.  They based their skepticism on past experience.  A third potential organizer told me he hadn’t even seen the bid on the website.  I confirmed it had been there.   I learned that the bid that had been provided could not guarantee a date in December only a date that was possible.  I asked why CalChess failed to reopen bidding and do as most organizations would, contact people directly seeing if they could provide a site in December.  Initially, the President of CalChess, Tom Langland, indicated that it could not be in December because they could not get a site with a hotel attached.  I wrote back and remaindered him that for years it had been at sites without attached hotels.  He wrote he was in error and that it was the inability to get a site on the date that had been initially put out to bid—December 7 and 8.  I then noticed that Dr. Azhar will be holding a tournament, not the grade level in Stockton this very weekend.  Guess where?—yup, the University of the Pacific. Ahhhh!

    I am sure that some of you who know the hurt and harm done to my players and parents at the Grade Level three years back are wondering if Weibel will be attending the event in January.  I do not have an answer.  I, in all honesty, would like to have my players there as well as those from other schools who are boycotting the event.  I have been trying to discuss with Tom Langland, the President of CalChess, a way to make this happen. Right now there is a lull in communications.  Translation—I do not know at this writing.

Chess is Forever,
Alan