Rockford hosts Illinois K-8 Championship

The esteemed Rockford Clock Tower Inn will be the host to more than 500 young chess players this weekend for the K-8 state chess championship.

This correspondent will be serving as an official in "Chess Control" in hopes to better understand the dynamics of such a large scale event. This event typically rotates between downstate Illinois and Northern Illinois, and it is hoped that in the not too distant future, the NIU campus might be selected as a host location. 

Sadly, I do not believe ANY DeKalb County schools will be participating in this weekend's event. How can this be?

DeKalb Chess Club stands ready to assist with any schools wishing to develop chess programs. Further, we'll gladly donate chess sets to any school or public library which might need a chess set. 

11 Take Hyvee by Storm

In what may have been the final First Thursday event at Hyvee, 11 players enjoyed almost two hours of casual chess. Due to other obligations and failure to attract new players from this monthly outing, Coach Bill most likely not be hosting this event going forward. If someone wishes to take on that role, please step forward. Mondays at the church and Wednesdays at the library will continue. Happy chess!

March First Thursday Tonight at Hyvee

DeKalb area chess enthusiasts young and old will face off tonight at Hyvee, 2700 DeKalb Avenue, in Sycamore. We'll get going after 7pm in the food court.

Come on out and enjoy the fun... For those who have never played, search out Coach Bill and he'll get you started with an orientation to the board, the pieces and the all-important moves.

Hope to see you tonight to kick off March!

Huck Finn Classic honors anniversary

In honor of the 127th anniversary of the American publication of Mark Twain's classic novel, DeKalb Chess Club will be hosting two chess tournaments February 18th. Both events will be held in the spacious Fellowship Hall of the First Congregational Church, 615 N. First Street in DeKalb.

The Adventures of Huck Finn has gone down in history as a phenomenal telling of the tale of white and black framed on the Mississippi River. Saturday, the chess club and its visitors will be creating its own "tales of white and black"... atop a river of chess boards!

The USCF event will undertake registration beginning at 9am with the first of three rounds getting underway at 10am.

Registration for the junior event will take place starting around noon, just as the first round of the USCF event is concluding. The junior event will feature four rounds, wrapping up around 3pm, followed by a brief awards ceremony. Sections will be crafted based on the people who show up, but it may wind up being just one section. Anyway you cut it, it'll be a comfortable and educational setting for a first chess tournament.

The all-ages USCF event features G/65 plus a 5 second delay for time controls. Sections will be divided according to registrations received, but we hope to have an Under 2200 section, an Under 1600 section and an Under 1200 section. In addition, we hope to have prizes for Class B (1799-1600) in the Under 2200 group and Class D (1399-1200) in the Under 1600 group. But all this depends upon registrations and is subject to the tournament director's whim.

Hope to see you there, before 10am for the USCF event and around noon for the junior's event. USCF memberships are available at the tournament site, but is not required for the junior's event.

In the words of Huck: "I was a-trembling, because I'd got to decide, forever, betwixt two things, and I knowed it." Isn't this the very essence of chess?

2011 Wrapped Up, Event Profiled

DeKalb Chess Club brought the year to a close with a small but pleasant four-round tournament Saturday.

In the adult division, Nathan Kozinski and Don Reyes tied for top honors with 3.0 points out of a possible four.

The top upset prize of the day went to Cliff Adams with a shocking first round victory over Nathan. But Kozinksi kept his cool, and was perfect for the rest of the afternoon to gain a share of first place.

In the junior division, Kelbrant managed to go undefeated to take the first place gold medal. Siblings Brian and Lily took silver and bronze respectively.

The event was profiled on the Daily Chronicle's website here and here.

It was exciting to include a pair of four year olds in the junior field participating in their very first chess tournaments. Moose and Joey acquitted themselves well. At four, some of us were still trying to figure out how checker pieces work. These two not only had piece movement mastered but if you observed their games in just the right light, there were some gleanings of strategy going on. Keep up the good work, Moose and Joey!

Thanks to all those who participated in the club's unrated tournament, meaning results are not submitted to the US Chess Federation. Should you be interested in playing in similar events, please contact the club through this site. Otherwise, we hope to bring more USCF-events to the Northern Illinois area in 2012.

In addition to providing some mental stimulation to kick off the new year's eve celebrations, the event raised $75 for the host facility's building maintenance! Every little bit helps, I suppose! Thank you, First Congregational Church for being such a gracious host to our events.