My Edinburgh Chess Club Mug and Mouse Mat has arrived.
I sent off the picture to E-Bay and within a few days...Yippee!
My tea tastes sweeter and my mouse glides like a hovercraft.
Remember a couple of blogs when we covered streets named
after famous chess players. Well this has happened to me!
and a letter from the Edinburgh council proving it is named after me.
The above letter enlarged to make it more readable.
Actually I have never run a marathon, but I did once play a 26 moves simultaneous
display.(spot the link - there are 26 miles in a marathon..gedditt?). My charity work?
I spend (donate) £100’s a year in charity shops buying up naff 2nd hand chess books.
So if ever you come to Edinburgh, please walk down my street.
I have found a game by the Red Hot Pawn player HalfMarathonRunner.
(I have never run a half marathon either, my speciality was the sac(k) race!)
HalfMarathonRunner - Stach Logan RHP 2017
1. e4 d5 2. Nc3 dxe4 {2....d4 and Whites traditional opening plus has gone.} 3. Nxe4 Bf5 4. Nc3 Nc6 5. Nf3 Nb4 {5....Nf6 (development) was a move. This threat is easily handled.} 6. d3 Nf6 7. Bf4 e6 8. Ne5 {No need for this. 8.Be2 and 0-0 and then start poking about for a weakness or a blunder.} 8... Nh5 {A one move trick but it is a blunder.} 9. Qxh5 {Now Black saw the intended 9...Nxc2+ and Nxa1 idea fails because of the mate on f7.} 9... g6 10. Qf3 {10.Qd1 looks sounder but White is attack mode.} 10... Nxc2+ 11. Kd2 Nxa1 12. Qxb7 Rb8 {OOPS! Black had to move the f8 Bishop to give the King some running room.} 13. Qc6+ Ke7 14. b3 {To stop Rxb2+. Black now makes a run for it with their King.} 14... Kf6 {With possible Bb4 ideas but now White has 15.Bg5+ Kxg5 16.Nxf7+ winning the Black Queen.} 15. Nd7+ {White went this way instead to win the exchange.} 15... Kg7 16. Nxb8 Qxb8 17. Be2 Nxb3+ {The Knight was doomed, Black sells it's life to get the Queen active.} 18. axb3 Qxb3 19. Be5+ f6 {But all it has done is to allow the White Queen to start seriously attacking the Black King.} 20. Qxc7+ Kg8 21. Rb1 Bh6+ 22. f4 Qa2+ {A bad mistake but the Black is lost here no matter what they do.} 23. Nxa2 fxe5 24. Rb7 Bf8 25. Qf7
Do you also remember this:
I hope so, it was posted on the last blog.
Well it got me thinking. (that happens sometimes). How about an RHP game
with an h-pawn saccing itself to open the h-file and checkmate with a Knight.
I started looking for this well known theoretical position from the Yugoslav Attack.
White has just played 12.h4. There are 350+ Red Hot Pawn games with this position,
but I found only one with a Knight checkmate, but the one I did find is well worth it.
Nallapuh - procyk RHP 2013
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 6. Bc4 Bg7 7. f3 O-O 8. Be3 Nc6 9. Qd2 Bd7 10. O-O-O Rc8 11. Bb3 Ne5 12. h4 {One of the key and therefore heavily analysed positions in the Yugoslav Attack.} 12... h5 {This very popular reply halts our friend the h-pawn. But not for long.} 13. Kb1 {A customary move in this opening and indeed any opening where one has 0-0-0.} 13... Nc4 14. Bxc4 Rxc4 15. g4 {This way White blasts open the files leading to the Black Dragon King.} 15... hxg4 16. h5 {There goes our brave h-pawn opening the h-file just like he said he would.} 16... Nxh5 17. fxg4 Bxg4 18. Rdg1 {18...Qd7 is a move here. Vacating c8 for the f8 Rook to line up exchange sacs on c3.} 18... Nf6 {White should now go for 18.Nd5 to get rid of the f6 Knight which is the chief defender.} 19. Qh2 {This move threatens nothing with the Knight on f6.} 19... Bh5 {A good looking alternative is 19...Rxc3 first. This is a standard exchange sac in any Dragon.} 20. Nf5 {WOW! here comes the Knight. 20....gxf5 21.Bh6 is 1-0.} 20... Qa5 {Too slow. 20...Rxc3 had to be tried.} 21. Nd5 {Now 21...Re8 takes some pressure off e7 giving the Black King some air is an idea.} 21... Nxd5 22. Qxh5 {Another WOW! 22...gxf5 23.Rxg7+ etc. and 22....Qe1+ 23.Rxe1 gxh5 24.Reg1 is also winning.} 22... Nf6 {There was no way of saving the game and this move gives us....} 23. Nxe7 {....Checkmate with a Knight v the Dragon.}
I was going through this book a few days ago.
Don’t worry if the cover of your copy differs from mine.
I tend to decorate all my books with stickers and things.
Trap No.62 has a good track record. In OTB games I have 187 Black wins
against 38 White wins. On Red Hot Pawn it is 18 - 1 in favour of Black.
This is good because it is pointless studying all the diversifications in
an opening trap when the chances of you ever meeting it are very rare.
Actually it is not a genuine trap because if White does fall into then
Black is OK. It is better to call this variation not a ‘trap’ but a ‘pitfall.’
It all revolves around this position with White to play their 9th move.
White would like to move the d4 Knight but it exposes the e3 Bishop and 9.Nf5 Qxb2.
So White protects the e3 Bishop 9.Qd2 not worrying too much about 9...Qxb2. Read on.
Hertz van Rental - goodwill RHP 2012
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 g6 {The pitfall is set from the accelerated Dragon.} 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Be3 Nf6 6. f3 Bg7 7. Nc3 O-O 8. Bc4 Qb6 {Now a very common move here, see the above stats, is the natural looking.} 9. Qd2 {This is a mistake, the refutation is....} 9... Nxe4 {It wins a juicy central pawn due to the triple attack on the d4 Knight.} 10. Qd3 Qxb2 {White resigned here. It could have gone on.} 11. Nxc6 Qxa1+ 12. Nd1 dxc6 13. fxe4 Bg4 14. O-O Rad8 {Black is coasting to a no risk win.}
Another RHP game to show how another player react to 9...Nxe4.
myteamtrulystinks - exigentsky RHP 2006
FEN
r1b2rk1/pp1pppbp/1qn2np1/8/2BNP3/2N1BP2/PPP3PP/R2QK2R w KQ - 0 9
[FEN "r1b2rk1/pp1pppbp/1qn2np1/8/2BNP3/2N1BP2/PPP3PP/R2QK2R w KQ - 0 9"]
9. Qd2 Nxe4 10. Nxe4 Nxd4 {If here 11.0-0 Qxb2 and Black is two pawns up.} 11. c3 Nc2+ {This trick is possible because of the unprotected e3 Bishop.} 12. Ke2 Nxe3 13. Qxe3 Qxb2+ {White does not want the Queens off or drop the c3 pawn so....} 14. Kd3 d5 15. Bxd5 Rd8 16. c4 b5 17. Qc5 e6 {White resigned.}
Remember you must do some work yourself by studying and squeezing the position dry
of all the tactics you may meet in this variation. Instead of falling into the hole White has
9.Bb3 moving the undefended piece and covering the b2 pawn. Black can still take on e4.
Analysis.
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 g6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Bg7 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. f3 Nf6 7. Be3 O-O 8. Bc4 Qb6 9. Bb3 Nxe4 {This is still playable and may be the best try here.} 10. Nd5 {Tempting is 10.Nf5 Nxc3 and Black comes out of O.K. But do check this yourself.} 10... Qa5+ 11. c3 Nc5 {Nabbing the Bishop. It gives the pawn back but I am skinny dipping to see if anything turns up.} 12. Nxc6 dxc6 13. Nxe7+ Kh8 14. Nxc8 {If not now then this Knight could end up trapped.} 14... Nxb3 15. axb3 Qe5 {A lot of play in any opening can be made on an e3 Bishop if f3 has been played.} 16. Qd2 {But here it appears to lead to an even position.} 16... Bh6 17. Qd4 {That has killed it.} 17... Re8 {17...Bxe3 works in all lines except 18.Qxe4+} 18. Qxe5+ Rxe5 19. Nd6 Rxe3+ 20. Kf2 Re7 {Enough. Not gospel analysis, some study work in there will repay the keen players.}
Now a White to play and mate in three moves puzzle. from C. S. Kipping 1928
White to play and mate in 3. Solution hidden below.
It is rather cute. 1. Bc4 Bxc4 2. Nf5 and Ng3 mate next move.
And how about something chess wise to keep you occupied during the lock down.
Draw and colour in the shapes on a stiff piece of cardboard. Cut them out and
you have a chessboard jig-saw. The solution how to put it together is below.
