I’ve have spent the best part of last week wondering what
Eskimo’s talk about whilst they are sitting about in their igloos.
Surely their language is limited to just a few words or phrases:
“It’s Snowing again.”, “I’m cold.” and “Polar Bear!”
They have no electricity so no TV or radio, no internet……….No Facebook.
There are no roads so you cannot talk about the traffic, the weather is always the
same so we can rule out that as a topic of conversation. No neighbours to talk to.
But let us not tarry on the Eskimo problem. Here at Red Hot Pawn all we have been
talking since the 28th October 2005 is when will Zorro the Fox make his millionth
move. Well infact it happened today at 13:45 hrs on the 23rd September 2014.
Zorro The Fox - gumboilfred RHP 2014
Game 10656124 move 38.
Zorro making his millionth on Red Hot Pawn. (having made approx 312 moves per day).
[FEN "1k2r3/p7/1pp2b2/6p1/1P1p1p2/P7/3QqPP1/3R2K1 w - - 0 38"]
38. Qxe2
did you miss it…I’ll show it again.
[FEN "1k2r3/p7/1pp2b2/6p1/1P1p1p2/P7/3QqPP1/3R2K1 w - - 0 38"]
38. Qxe2
The bosses awarded Zorro with his own unique star.
It looks more like a badge than a star. (I want one!)
So in the way of a wee tribute I’d thought I’d show some of Zorro’s games.
Of course moving at such a speed he is bound to have a disaster or two.
But there are also quite a few good moves to see. A nice mixture coming up.
A fox is cunning. Watch the cunning fox wriggle out of this one.
jose sureda - ZorroTheFox RHP 2007
[FEN "7r/8/1pR5/pP1p4/Pb1P1PPk/3RK2P/8/8 w - - 0 45"]
45. Kf2 {White is winning this easily but....} 45... Be1+ {See the idea?} 46. Kxe1 Re8+ {Now the only move to win is for White to now play 3.Re3 lifting the stalemate on the Black King.} 47. Kf2 {I'll let the keen student see for himself the stalemates if 3.Kd2 or Kd1.} 47... Re2+ {White took the offending Rook - Stalemate - but he had no choice. } 48. Kf1 Rf2+ 49. Kg1 Rg2+ 50. Kf1 Rf2+ 51. Ke1 Re2+ 52. Kd1 Re1+ 53. Kc2 Rc1+ 54. Kb3 Rc3+ {That is a cracker. Three White pieces can take the suicidal Rook but all three stalemate Black.} 55. Kb2 Rc2+ 56. Ka3 Rc3+ 57. Ka2 Ra3+ 58. Kb2 Rb3+ 59. Kc2 Rc3+ 60. Kd2 Rc2+ 61. Kd1 Rc1+ 62. Ke2 Re1+ 63. Kf3 Rf1+ 64. Kg2 Rf2+ 65. Kg1 Rf1+ 66. Kg2 Rf2+ {Convinced.}
Same idea, watch the fox save this one.
joeboy69 - ZorroTheFox RHP 2011
[FEN "8/6k1/R7/7P/2P4K/8/B2r4/8 w - - 0 55"]
55. c5 Rd4+ 56. Kg5 Rd1 57. Ra7+ {Playing into Zorro's plans. Cutting off the Black King's flight squares.} 57... Kh8 58. Kg6 Rg1+ 59. Kh6 {No more annoying checks.} 59... Rg6+ {Except that one. 6.hxg6 or what was played....} 60. Kxg6 {....Stalemate.}
However he was not so crafty and cunning like a fox in these next two examples.
ZorroTheFox - fogie RHP 2011
White played 50.Kxg3 Stalemate. 50.f7 wins.
ZorroTheFox - BK54 RHP 2010
The move f7 won last game. Here White played 60 f7 Stalemating the Black King.
gav gav - ZorroTheFox RHP 2008
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. Nxe5 {It's a legal move and infact was the chief reason why the monk Ruy Lopez thought so highly of 3.Bb5. It was the threat of Bxc6 leaving the Black e-pawn undefended.} 5... Qd4 {This or 4....Qg5 win back the right away.} 6. Ng4 Qxe4+ 7. Ne3 Nf6 8. d3 Qg6 9. Qe2 Be6 10. Nc3 O-O-O 11. Bd2 Nd5 12. Ncxd5 Bxd5 13. O-O-O {White tempts the fox into nicking the g2 pawn which would be a lemon because 13...Bxg2 14.Rg1 and the pinned Bishop on g2 is in trouble.} 13... Bxa2 {But what is this? Did Bobby Fischer not grab such a pawn in the 72' match against Spassky and lose.} 14. b3 {The Bishop is trapped.} 14... Ba3 {So is the White King.}
Zorro likes that nicking a-pawn mating trick.
ZorroTheFox - IBeatScurvey RHP 2012
[FEN "2kr1bnr/pppb2pp/3p1p2/8/3BP3/2N5/PPP1BPPP/R4RK1 w - - 0 11"]
11. Bxa7 b6 12. Ba6
ZorroTheFox - roma45 RHP 2011
[FEN "r3k2r/pppbbppp/3p1n2/8/3BP3/2N5/PPP1BPPP/R4RK1 w kq - 0 11"]
11. f3 O-O-O 12. Bxa7 b6 13. Ba6
Of course these quick mates would have broken Zorro’s heart.
Chasing a million moves means a new game must be started.
And chasing a million moves meant Zorro was bound to fall for a back ranker…
prajwal - ZorroTheFox 2010
[FEN "6k1/ppp2ppp/2p2r2/2P5/4b1P1/1P6/P2rNP1P/4R1KR w - - 0 29"]
29. g5 Rg6 30. Nf4 {Now Rxg5+ looks very good.} 30... Bxh1 {OOPS!} 31. Re8
This next one will known as Zorro’s Lucky Legacy.
wim b - ZorroTheFox RHP 2010
[FEN "4qrk1/pp2r1pp/2pRb3/5p2/6nQ/6P1/PPPBB1PP/5RK1 w - - 0 1"]
1. Bb4 b6 {White now had an idea. It has the makings of being a good idea and well spotted, but do re-check your good ideas and try to look just that little bit deeper. There is such a thing as Chess Luck...Trust me on this.} 2. Rd8 {Can you see the idea? 2.Bxg4 first looks good.} 2... Qxd8 3. Bxe7 {This ends White's analysis. Black analysis is 500 years old. It was first noted in 1497. Why do we call it Philidor's Legacy - I've no idea. Ask an Eskimo, it will give them something to talk about.} 3... Qd4+ 4. Kh1 Nf2+ 5. Kg1 Nh3+ 6. Kh1 Qg1+ 7. Rxg1 Nf2
This one is good fun. Watch Black try and trap Zorro’s Bishop.
ZorroTheFox - jb70 RHP .2011
[FEN "1rb2rk1/p1p2ppp/1p3q2/3Q4/8/N1P2B2/PP3PPP/R3R1K1 w - - 0 16"]
16. Rad1 Bb7 {Zorro is a piece up so exchanges his Queen for a Bishop and Rook.} 17. Qxb7 Rxb7 18. Bxb7 c6 {Black tries to trap the wayward Bishop.} 19. Ba6 b5 20. Bb7 g6 21. Nc2 Rb8 22. Ba6 Rb6 23. Re8+ Kg7 24. Bc8 Rb8 25. Rdd8 Qg5 26. Ne3 a5 27. Rg8+ Kh6 28. Rd6 {Pinning the g6 pawn thus threatening Nf5+} 28... Qe5 {OOPS! but Black was toiling to find a move that holds it all together.} 29. Ng4+ {Wins back the Queen. 1-0.}
With all those games going on at once (they numbered in the hundreds) the two move trick ruled.
.
ZorroTheFox - ChrisVicAU RHP 2012
Where we see Zorro falling for a two-mover and Black repaying the compliment.
[FEN "r3r1k1/1pp2ppp/p1n1b3/3N3q/3pPP2/3B4/PPP2QPP/R2R2K1 w - - 0 18"]
18. Be2 Bg4 19. Bxg4 Qxg4 {White should now just take on c7 and then pick up the exchange.} 20. Re1 {Instead he saves the e-pawn and with his next move his losses it...} 20... Rac8 21. Rad1 {That move just overloaded the e1 Rook.} 21... Rxe4 {There goes the e-pawn} 22. Rxe4 Qxd1+ 23. Re1 Qh5 24. f5 Qg4 25. h3 Qg5 26. g4 h5 27. Qf3 hxg4 28. hxg4 {We are now about to see the Black RHP player have an idea that turns out to be faulty.} 28... Rd8 {I'd go along with this. saccing back the pawn to activate the Rook and placing it behind the d-pawn.} 29. Nxc7 Kf8 {But this is wrong. The idea is to keep the c7 Knight bottled up and maybe trapped. Qd2 was better hitting the e1 Rook and the c2 pawn. If the c2 pawn drops off the board then the Rook backed up d-pawn is a passer} 30. Qe4 {White spots the shot - Will Black?} 30... Qh4 {No. He is too busy contemplating Qg3+} 31. Qe8+ {Inviting the Knight to c7 with Kf8 was a dodgy idea.} 31... Rxe8 32. Rxe8 {Checkmate.}
And the lad learned things. Here he falls for a Knight Fork.
ZorroTheFox - Checkov RHP 2009
[FEN "r2qkbnr/ppp2ppp/2np4/4p3/2B1P1b1/5N2/PPPP1PPP/RNBQ1RK1 w kq - 0 5"]
5. h3 Bxf3 6. Qxf3 Qf6 7. Qg3 {Qb3 was better. This move sets himself up for a blunder.} 7... Nd4 {Hold the c2 pawn with Na3 and kick the d4 Knight with c3.} 8. Bb3 {OOPS!} 8... Ne2+ 9. Kh2 Nxg3 {White does not even have any play with fxg3 and Bxf7+. If fxg3 Qxf1. White ends the misery.} 10. Kxg3 Qf4# {That's a checkmate.}
Two years later we see Zorro pulling off the same trick.
mossiegrinder - ZorroTheFox RHP 2011
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. d3 Nf6 5. Ng5 O-O 6. Qf3 d6 7. Nc3 Bg4 8. Qg3 Nd4 9. O-O {The c2 pawn is up for grabs. Zorro declines it and sets a wee trap.} 9... Bb4 10. Bd2 {White misses it. He is more worried about getting a doubled pawn on c3 than he his about his King and Queen being lined up for a Knight fork.} 10... Bxc3 11. Bxc3 Ne2+ {White resigned.}
For a while it looked like Marko Krale was going to be first to reach the Million Moves.
Here is game between these two. As expected it has few bad errors and missed chances.
ZorroTheFox - Marko Krale RHP 2007
[FEN "r3kb1r/3qnp1p/p1p3p1/3pP3/Q7/2N1B3/PPP3PP/3R1RK1 w kq - 0 16"]
16. Bc5 Bg7 17. Bxe7 Kxe7 {White now has the move Nxd5+ as cxd5 drops the Black Queen to Rxf7+.} 18. Qb4+ Ke8 19. Rfe1 Bf8 20. Qf4 Bg7 21. Na4 Qe7 22. Qd4 Rd8 23. Nc5 a5 24. Qa4 {Black can now pick up the c5 Knight with a check. But Black missed Qxc5+.} 24... Bxe5 25. Qxc6+ Kf8 26. Nd3 f6 27. c3 Kg7 28. Nxe5 fxe5 29. Rxd5 Rxd5 30. Qxd5 Qa7+ 31. Kh1 Re8 32. Rxe5 Rxe5 33. Qxe5+ Kf7 34. Qd5+ {If Black wants to play on, and why not? Queen endings are notorious for game spinning tricks when one side is losing. Then Ke7 was a move.} 34... Ke8 {This ends it.} 35. Qg8+ {Followed by Qxh7+ and Qxa7. Black resigned.}
We end with a good game by Zorro. I suspect it was played when Zorro’s game
load was low and he not chasing the millionth move. It’s quite a good game.
ZorroTheFox - procyk RHP 2006
White plays a double piece sac to mate the Black King.
1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 e6 4. Nf3 Bb4 5. Bd3 dxe4 6. Bxe4 Nf6 7. Bg5 {7.Bd3 appears sounder. This move drops a pawn though the resulting position is not too clear.} 7... Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 Qa5 9. Bxf6 Qxc3+ 10. Ke2 gxf6 11. Re1 {White rushes to castle by hand.} 11... b6 {We can see the idea. (Ba6+) but the e4 Bishop hitting the c6 pawn restricts Black's developing options. 11...f5 first was a possible move.} 12. Kf1 {The King sneaks into cubby-hole.} 12... Ba6+ 13. Kg1 {Now we see the Black developing problem I mentioned in a previous note. 13...f5 to get that Bishop off the c6 pawn cannot be played now because the e6 pawn is pinned. So.....} 13... O-O {Black unpins the e6 pawn so he can play f5 and develop the b8 Knight connecting his Rooks.} 14. Re3 {The Rook gains a lift to the 3rd rank with a tempo.} 14... Qa5 15. Bxh7+ {The King's meagre pawn cover is dismantled.} 15... Kxh7 16. Ne5 {Excellent. A line clearing sacrifice. The Queen and Rook will mate the naked Black King. Black resigned, this finish is.....} 16... fxe5 17. Qh5+ Kg7 18. Qg5+ Kh7 19. Rh3
The thread accompanying this blog is
Thread 158315. It was started quite a while ago.
Pages 9 and 10 is where Zorro appears to thank all who cheered him on.
