Rediscovering Chess – Part 1.

I discovered chess around 1974. I was eleven years old. I can’t recall the exact moment that it got my attention, but I can safely assume that my dad had a lot to do with the introduction. I suppose there was also enough fallout from the Fischer/Spassky event floating in the air for some of it to land on me.
I played in middle school in the chess club, and also picked up a few games in high school, but never felt proficient enough to chase the tournaments. Also, playing chess in high school, at least at my school, did not endear a kid to the rest of the class. Peer pressure was a strong force that began to pull me away from the game.
Of course there were other interests – the usual ones that develop during those years – that compete for a teenagers time. Parental divorce, as well as a long distance (to me) relocation also played a part in my on again, off again interest in the immortal game.
I was familiar with the names Kasparov and Karpov during the mid-eighties, but I really didn’t follow along with the battles that were waged (Interestingly, I found a clipping from a local newspaper one morning, tucked into one of my Best of Chess Life and Review books, that described one of the games from the 85 match. I don’t remember cutting it out, but obviously I must have put it there, and so I must have tried to follow along, despite all the other things competing for my time during those years).
Around 1990, I joined the USCF. Paid my dues, anxiously awaited each issue of Chess Life. I picked up a few books, and studied openings (should have studied endgame and tactics instead – 20/20 hindsight). I was intrigued by the fact that I could now play against a computer that would give me a real challenge. I had one chess program – EdChess – a DOS program that ran pretty good on a clunky old Tandy 1000 compatible. I could watch as it plyed through its moves as it thought ahead. Being somewhat of a programmer, I was fascinated by the whole thing, and spent hour upon hour studying. I played a few matches, and did pretty fair. But in Kentucky there was not a tremendous amount of chess activity, much less any USCF events to attend within a reasonable distance. After a few years, other life events took priority, and once again, my interest waned.
Chess was pretty much off my radar from 1993 until November of 2006. I saw the great IBM vs. Kasparov battles come and go. They got my attention, but I was not glued to every move. And I can’t with any confidence tell you anything about the other players. I know names – Joel Benjamin, Nigel Short, Pandolfini, and many others – but not many details of their exploits.
So I’m sort of in a “catch up” mode right now. I rejoined USCF in January of 2007. I’ve dug out the books, picked up new ones, I’m reading the website content. Fritz is beating my socks off, and taunting me while it does so. There are many things that have changed.

But what was the spark that rekindled my interest in the grand game? More on that in part 2… Rich

Read Part2