gettin crazy with the tournaments
it’s the first of may. i am playing in the chicago open three freakin weeks from now, may 23-26th. i don’t think i’m ready for it, but fuck it, i’m playing, cause it’s chess, and that is what i do.
but wait! as if that isn’t enough, i just, nary moments ago, registered for the vegas chess orgy june 5 - 8. as if i’ll be ready for that, or even want to play chess after chicago.
what the fuck am i doing? i’m an addict. i’m a masochist. i have a disease.
i wanna be like the “real” chess slingers. i know that real chess players, the pros, they play in all the tournaments, on the road like rock stars, driving from tourny to tourny, leaving a trail of trashed hotel rooms, broken hearts, and poor suckers reeling from acute and massive rating loss in their wake. i wanna be like a chess tornado, leaving a trail of devastation across the country. because that is what they do. that is what i wanna do.
but i’m not a professional chessman. i’m just an enthusiast. and a sucky one at that. who am i to go to all these tournaments? i may be able to win the occasional game online against some drunk guy, or someone trying some new weird line, yeah, great. but in the tournament hall, at the board, when every heartbeat can be heard, when things are so on edge and you are so focused the bead of sweat running down your back feels like a stampede of horses and you can hear your opponent breathing, it’s different. every move matters, no time for fucking around, the shit is on the line. its real.
seriously, am i ready for that? sitting here in the comfort of my room the idea of playing in a chess tournament is amusing, interesting, sounds like fun. but i forget what it’s like sitting there. i forget the agony, the hellish pain of failure, the sheer stress of it all.
i feel like martin sheen in apocalypse now. when i’m there, i want to be home. when i’m home, all i can think about is getting back. i wanted a chess tournament, and for my sins, they gave me one. actually, now i have two i’ll be going to.
i should probably start getting ready for chicago now.
Ivan W. said,
May 1, 2008 at 7:39 am
I was using my current tournament as training for the Chicago Open, but have a 0-6 record going into the last round!
blunderprone said,
May 1, 2008 at 10:41 am
Don’t forget to register for the World Open in Philly for the first week in July! You might as well go all out.
Wahrheit said,
May 1, 2008 at 12:43 pm
My man, after the way you dough-popped the class DD’s for 4 wins out of 6 games in Reno they will be fearing you in Chicago, your reputation precedes you and you’re gonna need a clothespin to put over your nose when you sit down to play those suckas and their bowels let loose…God, I love your description of tournament play, it’s like running a marathon or something, it hurts so bad but after it’s all over admit it, your really glad you endured it.
drunknknite said,
May 1, 2008 at 1:36 pm
During college I would only be able to play tournaments in the summer. I am feeling like this summer will be a lot of tournaments too, I want to play the US Open. All the good tournaments are in the summer. I have felt recently like we’re entering ‘the season’ for chess tournaments. What all the hard work of the winter is supposed to add up to…. I’m going to play as many rated games this summer as I can.
The one year that I played the Chicago Open and the National Open the same year I won the National Open in my section. I honestly felt so much more comfortable playing back to back like that. You get a rhythm going. You’ll be fine just relax and let good moves come out…
wang said,
May 1, 2008 at 11:23 pm
You are ready. How much practice do you want or need? Writers write. Chessplayers play chess. Look, your rating is no longer provisional, so now in order to get that baby up you need to start winning some game. Here’s a secret for you. You can’t win games if you don’t play. So go out and play and most of all remember to have fun. You did so much better last time because you had fun, and that’s what’s important.
Blue Devil Knight said,
May 2, 2008 at 11:52 am
This will likely be great for your chess–playing slow games and going over them, you are sure to improve. Being around IMs and GMs makes your rating go up, it’s been proven by Fox Mulder.
I’m so jealous, have fun!
Chris Harrington said,
May 3, 2008 at 10:54 pm
Hey dude. You were referenced in my latest blog. Just thought you might want to check it out!
chessloser said,
May 5, 2008 at 8:26 am
ivan - thats good! you are getting all the losing out of the way and out of your system, so you will win all the games in chicago….
blunderprone - i would love to, thought about it, i dont’ know if i could swing it though. the killjoy twins of time and money are looming…
wahrheit - if i can do half as good in chicago i’ll be happy….
drunknknight - if i relax too much, more than just good moves will come out, and i’m not gonna be packing any extra underwear, so that might be a problem….
wang - writers write, chessplayers play, yeah, but i LOSE and i dont’ want to lose so much….i need way more practice….but you are right, i’m as ready as i’m gonna be for this….
BDK - i aint gonna argue with science or mulder…if you really knew me, you wouldn’t be jealous, you would think “whew, glad i’m not him!” thanks though….
chris - of course i wanna check it out, and i did….