Expanding in the Midst of Summer Heat
What makes us grow? How far can one push forward and up?
With tonight’s Rapid Tournament just hours away, let’s look at what makes us strong.
Three and a half years ago during the midst of the 2020 dilemma, as I call it these days, I started my first online chess game. Chess had clawed its way into fashion through ‘Queens Gambit’. I had played a handful of games in my youth and even beat my first adult at the age of eight (thanks to Sunday beers and lackluster resolve most likely). But when I started playing online, I realized immediately I did not know what I was doing with this mechanism. It took three months of losing in the 800 elo rage to break 1000, with daily doses of Gotham Chess and nothing better to do with my time I started the climb.
But climbing the ranks in chess is one of the most taxing and excruciating experiences one can find themselves in without that Grandmaster level spark some players find at the start. A year later and I was 1154. Some would say it’s a huge achievement to gain 350 points in a year, but I wanted to CLIMB! However, thanks to the beginning days of Bushwick Chess and more OTB halfway through 2021, I did start to see the change. By the same time two years in I was over 1200! I could feel my strength starting to grow but it was slow. With only online rapid and blitz, a tournament once every two weeks at Bushwick Chess and some light study I wasn’t going to climb higher than 100 points a year. That means I wouldn’t hit 2900 until I was at almost 50! Please do not do the math.
Cut to the rise of my classical chess career. I started playing 25|5 (roughly an hour) classical/rapid hybrids at Marshall Chess Club, New York’s esteemed, century old home for some of the best chess players alive today. I learned how to corral the King in a King and Rook endgame by International Master Yury Lapshun after he watched me floundering about against a seasoned 1750 (my biggest upset win to date). I learned how to lose (a little) less frequently, especially when I was winning. Pattern recognition started to set in after grueling hours of analyzing in long classical 90|30 (3+ hour long games) and learning what tiny positional inaccuracies can end up looking like down the line. I was growing.
By the end of 2023 I had hit 1500, and 1600 came this very May during my first big grind of spring season. The ability to slow down and calculate directly translated to rating gains in rapid and blitz. Will I hit 2900 before I turn 50? Probably not, but the very real goal of 2000 is just a couple hundred classical games away if I give myself the time, resources and energy to put in the work. How does a chess player get better? Slow down, take your time and find the win. You can do the hard thing.
Club Chess 7/19
Okay let’s have a little fun. Last Friday, Bushwick Chess and Club Foorest crossed paths at the monthly Le Bain outing hosted by the world-wide Club Chess for a night of play. The hot tub’s floating chess board kept players afloat while the rooftop sunset (a certified nyc must in summer) made for some stellar selfies. Check out some of our favorite shots of the night below.
Tonight!! Rapid Tournament!! Nook!!
With our monthly Rapid Tournament incoming, we find ourselves at the last chance to grind rating before the six-month evaluation reports come out. Have you been grinding and need a few more points to hit your goal? Come by tonight to get five games in before this quarter ends. Last week at Casual Club, we saw a healthy turnout of players so expect a good crowd of friends and newcomers to jump in the gladiator ring with. Remember, you can check your current standings in our rating system HERE!
Chess Chess Chess Chess Chess Chess Chess Chess Chess Chess Chess Chess Chess
Much love chess players and thanks for taking the time to read your weekly dose of chess. Can you find why white’s move is losing? Black to play and win! Comment your answer below or join the Discord to chat more!
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