St. Louis Trip, Days 3 & 4, July 26-27, 2015
One part of the SPGI 2016 that I was most looking forward to was the bughouse championship. Susan Polgar had arranged so that I could play in all the side events, the family & friends section, and as a house player for the main tournament. I have over 10,000 bughouse games in on FICS, so I was hoping to do well.
Charity and I had planned on partnering for this event, but Charity didn't feel well, and ended up having to stay at our dorm. My youngest sister kindly consented to be my partner instead, since I really didn't want to be partnered with someone whose skills/style I would have no idea about.
I was surprised at how strong some of the other teams were. Of our opponents, Danitza Vasquez in particular played bughouse like a pro. Team Carson finished squarely in the middle of the field with 5 wins and 5 losses. The bughouse championship was won by team Arizona (Aiya Cancio and Rachael Eng).
The next day was the opening ceremony and the puzzle solving championship. The Webster University mascot came to greet everyone. Susan Polgar and others spoke, and she was presented with an award from the university. Members of the SPICE team who analysed games with the girls were recognized. T-shirts were given out to everyone, and a group photo was taken.
I'm not particularly gifted at chess-puzzle solving, so I finished with only 12 out of 20 correct. At 2 pm, the girls started Round 1. The family & friends section didn't start until the next day, so Papa and I headed out to tour the building across from the tournament location.
My sisters both lost their first games, which was sad, but understandable since they both played against much higher-rated opponents. After supper was the blitz championship. Refreshments were available at all times in case anyone ran out of energy mid-tournament.
Hello, Bethany! Sounds like a wonderful event for you. You had a great finish, 4 out 7.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your day!
You too, Eileen! 4 out of 7 isn't quite great, but it is decent. :)
DeleteAnother great day i love your trip to st louis
ReplyDeleteThanks Gosia! Glad you are enjoying this series.
DeleteHey, Bethany...4 out of 7 seems great to me...looks like everyone was having a fabulous time...such great memories being made.
ReplyDeleteHope the rest of it went well.....
I still have fond memories of going to the 2012 SPGI, so I'm sure everyone will treasure their memories from this event for years to come. It was a lot of fun.
DeleteWell done, to all Carson girls! Sounds like a very skilled field of players & a great experience!
ReplyDeleteThanks! Yes, there was a lot of tough competition.
DeleteGood job to you and your sisters! I love how all of the players have that same intense/focused look in the pictures. You can see they are really working their brains! ;)
ReplyDeleteChess is excellent mental exercise. :)
DeleteI never knew about Bughouse chess before your post. I went to look it up. It sounds like it's an exciting way to play chess. I can see how you would want a partner that you know. I'm glad that you had a fun time.
ReplyDeleteBughouse is a lot of fun, and usually more fast-paced than chess. I think it helps with learning to try to take the initiative in regular chess; initiative is a lot more important in bughouse games.
DeleteI've actually never heard of bughouse, sounds neat though
ReplyDeleteIt is neat--very crazy and fun!
DeleteThere is so much I don't know about chess and chess tournaments! It is fun to learn through your experiences, Bethany. Cheers for your family standings! xx
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by, Gracie! :)
DeleteLooks like great fun, my friend :) I truly wish I knew how to play chess, but alas, I do not and I'm not sure if I will ever learn.
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful Thursday! Hugs!
It was a lot of fun! Hope you have a great week, Stephanie!
DeleteEveryone looks so intent that I can almost feel their concentration. It's great that you have a hobby/activity that you all can enjoy together.
ReplyDeleteIt's pretty awesome to be able to spend time with family and pursue a favorite hobby at the same time!
DeleteSounds like you did a great job Bethany! And like it was a lot of fun. ;) I'm so poor at strategy games - so I admire your skills Girlie!! Blessings. xoxo
ReplyDeleteI would say a person is usually good at whatever game he or she practices, but I know that isn't necessarily true. Every New Year's Eve we have a family dominoes match, consisting of ten games. Last year I did not win a single game--and I played almost every game the way I figured was mathematically perfectly! It's not likely you will see any reports of me travelling to dominoes tournaments any time soon! We all have different strengths, and dominoes isn't one of mine. I'd much rather play chess. Win or lose, I can somewhat understand it. :) Blessings to you, Carrie!
DeleteHa! So true Bethany!! I play a mean game of cribbage. And I'm a pretty good partner for smear too. Guess card games are more my strength... ;)
Deletexoxo
I haven't played many card games. Dutch Blitz was fun, but I'm not sure I could even remember the rules! :)
DeleteWell, 4 out of 7 seems great to me! And, it also seems like you enjoyed the event.
ReplyDeleteIt was a decent score, though not great. I did enjoy playing. Thanks for stopping by, Michelle.
Deleteyou did well bethany!! you have a serious look of concentration, you need that to play chess. sounds like a great experience for everyone!!!!
ReplyDeleteIt was a very good experience indeed for all of us. :)
DeleteDoes look like a fun day. I read where you said 4/7 is not great but hey, it's not too shabby, eh?
ReplyDeleteIt was the performance that would have been expected from a person with my rating--not great, not bad, just average. :)
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