Describe your chess beginning

Originally posted by caissad4
My oldest sister taught me and my older brother to play when I was 6 years old. I didn't get better til I was twelve. At 15 I discovered that there were chess books. My first book was Alekhine 1924-1936. At 21 I won my first of 6 city chess championships ( San Antonio).

That's great. I wish someone would have mentored me when I was a kid. I remember loving the game and it would have been a great, positive thing to focus on. I kind of grew up on the wild side.

Originally posted by USArmyParatrooper
That's great. I wish someone would have mentored me when I was a kid. I remember loving the game and it would have been a great, positive thing to focus on. I kind of grew up on the wild side.

my next door neighbour was a chess teacher at the local school, i remember him asking me if i was interested and telling me about one of his games when i was a teenager. I said i was not and had no interest, man i wish i had listened to him instead of spending weeks smoking copious amounts of weed and reading biographies of military dictators.

Originally posted by gtbiking4life
I lost in two moves to a very old computer chess program called Battle Chess. I'm thankful I have come a long way since that experience. I have been hooked on Chess ever since.

Very old!? Jeez... I'm only forty, and you're making me feel old. Battle Chess... When I first saw that clunker, even my dad realised that it was pretty, but not actually very good (mainly because the pretty took so much memory).

Anyone here remember Psion Chess on the QL, and Cyrus on the good, beloved old Speccy?

Richard

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
my next door neighbour was a chess teacher at the local school, i remember him asking me if i was interested and telling me about one of his games when i was a teenager. I said i was not and had no interest, man i wish i had listened to him instead of spending weeks smoking copious amounts of weed and reading biographies of military dictators.

LOL! Aside from smoking weed many teens have a fascination with military dictators. I don't know why.

Unfortunately I can't smoke weed while I'm in the military. I wonder what it's like to play chess while high, and how much your rating would be affected.

.... some of my games look like I'm high

A few years ago I got a copy of Chessmaster. I went through the Josh Waitzkin course and then I learned the game. I knew zero strategy before then.

Learned pins forks and skewers, central control and good bishops vs bad ones.

The course made me love chess and I developed a respect for it.

I cant wait to see what my score is.

I'm still beginning but what motivates me the most is to have a reason for each move. It's so much more fun that way. I remember when I started that I didn't know why I was moving where I was moving, and I hated that feeling.

Originally posted by USArmyParatrooper
LOL! Aside from smoking weed many teens have a fascination with military dictators. I don't know why.

Unfortunately I can't smoke weed while I'm in the military. I wonder what it's like to play chess while high, and how much your rating would be affected.

.... some of my games look like I'm high

its no good playing chess when you are stoned, one is liable to day dream and overlook some serious aspect. Strangely enough it does seem to increase ones creativity, i used to think of amazingly intricate plans, but they were never sound and i got whupped. 🙂

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
its no good playing chess when you are stoned, one is liable to day dream and overlook some serious aspect. Strangely enough it does seem to increase ones creativity, i used to think of amazingly intricate plans, but they were never sound and i got whupped. 🙂

Have you ever replayed your games after you were sober? If so, did you look at your plans like, "what the hell was I thinking"?

Originally posted by USArmyParatrooper
Have you ever replayed your games after you were sober? If so, did you look at your plans like, "what the hell was I thinking"?

Lol, yes, this happens all the time. I think it comes down to a number of factors. Firstly we examine too few moves as was highlighted by Varenka in his thread, think like a computer. I find the best is to look for a move and then say to oneself, ok, what is wrong with my move. What i have started to realise is that heaven forbid, our opponent has resources as well! so even though we have a cunning fox like plan which we want to execute, what if our opponent executes his as well? do i have a plan B in that case or can i simply ignore his plan because for I think its faulty. Its really a good habit trying to find plans! They may be very simple? i block his passed pawn, or I exchange his bishop with my knight because i want to dominate the dark squares which he shall find difficult to defend. Sometimes they are very very general, centre is closed, pawn storm the kingside, but of course they need to be checked and verified by looking at variations, i am of course not talking about seven or eight moves ahead, there is no need unless it a huge capturing sequence, just three or four moves suffice.

You have reached sixteen hundred my friend, the difference i have found is that between 1600 and 1800 the final outcome is usually decided with careful play, in the endgame, for our opponents dont give us free pieces like they used to when we were 1200 - 1400. Its an acquired taste the endgame but like a good single malt whiskey you can relish it with a little practice.

Although I learned the rules as a kid by looking up "chess" in the Merit Students Encyclopaedia. I really only made an effort to become better not long before joining this site in 2004. Before I had only really known how to move the pieces around and did not know anything about opening theory.

The highest rating I have achieved on this site is 1510 in 2007. I haven't been putting as much effort into the game lately but do intend to put in more serious study and beat that.

I haven't been able to break the 1500 barrier for quite a while though. 🙁

Originally posted by lausey
Although I learned the rules as a kid by looking up "chess" in the Merit Students Encyclopaedia. I really only made an effort to become better not long before joining this site in 2004. Before I had only really known how to move the pieces around and did not know anything about opening theory.

The highest rating I have achieved on this site is 1510 in 2007 nd beat that.

I haven't been able to break the 1500 barrier for quite a while though. 🙁

Do you have a smart phone? If so I highly recommend getting a chess tactics ap.

For my iPhone I have ChessQuest and I'm looking to get another one. It's awesome because when you're bored (like standing in line at a grociery store) you can whip it out of your pocket and kill time by working on tactics.

I only got mine a couple months ago and my rating has been climbing. I'm wondering if the two are related.

Originally posted by toeternitoe
"Always deploy so that the right oblique can be readily established in case the objective plane remains open or becomes permanently located on the centre or on the King's wing, or that the crochet aligned may readily be established if the objective plane becomes permanently located otherwise than at the extremity of the strategic front."

toet.

...in other words 1.e4 or 1.P-K4

Originally posted by USArmyParatrooper
Do you have a smart phone? If so I highly recommend getting a chess tactics ap.

For my iPhone I have ChessQuest and I'm looking to get another one. It's awesome because when you're bored (like standing in line at a grociery store) you can whip it out of your pocket and kill time by working on tactics.

I only got mine a couple months ago and my rating has been climbing. I'm wondering if the two are related.

I have an iPod Touch (similar to an iPhone, but not a phone). I will have to look up that ChessQuest app. Thanks. 🙂

EDIT: I have just downloaded it. It looks good. 😀

Originally posted by USArmyParatrooper
That's great. I wish someone would have mentored me when I was a kid. I remember loving the game and it would have been a great, positive thing to focus on. I kind of grew up on the wild side.

I really didn't have a mentor. My sister was a total beginner and I could beat her after a few months. My brother only played chess with me until I got better at age 12. We didn't play again til I was 24 and he wanted odds. So I played him blindfold with the condition that I had to identify where every piece remained at the end of the game. I did just that and he has refused to play me for over 30 years now.

Originally posted by USArmyParatrooper
LOL! Aside from smoking weed many teens have a fascination with military dictators. I don't know why.

Unfortunately I can't smoke weed while I'm in the military. I wonder what it's like to play chess while high, and how much your rating would be affected.

.... some of my games look like I'm high

I've done this experiment, I lose about 150 rating points. But the wins feel awesome 😉