Happy New Year !

[Bob Armstrong]

Happy New Year to all from the Grassroots' Campaign !

New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are times to look back at what has been accomplished, and forward to what has still to be done.

In 2008, the Grassroots' Campaign formed, and in July, 2008, brought its platform to the CFC AGM. It maintained that the print Chess Canada, the retail business, and the CFC Office Unit, all had to go. This has now been done.

It also has a few items of its platform still outstanding. It wanted a full review of CFC staffing, with a view to cutting staff salary costs. This still needs to be done.

It also wanted some CFC fees changes ( such as elimination of the tournament playing fee [ = tournament memberhsip] ) and posted a draft brief of its proposals in December 2008 on the Canadian chess websites. We intend to continue to pursue the CFC Fees part of our platform in 2009, and look forward to the CFC doing a full CFC Fees Review early in the New Year, when we can submit our brief. The Governors changed the fees in July, 2008, at the AGM. Then in December, 2008 they reversed themselves and rescinded the changes. So now nothing has been accomplished. Time must not be allowed to drag on on this issue, given the CFC financial circumstances.

We hope we have shown that the CFC structure of governance is responsive to CFC ordinary member input, especially when organized, and hope that we encourage more ordinary member influence on the CFC in 2009.

Bob, Grassroots' Campaign Coordinator

[Gary Ruben]

Re: Happy New Year !

Happy New Year, Bob.

I think you're wasting your time. It makes more sense to start a new organization to represent chess in Canada.

Why should the weak players pay to help support the honourary members? This I don't understand.

Why should over 65 seniors not get a reduced rate? Every successful business caters to us seniors. Some stores I only go to on Seniors day to get my discount. :)

[Bob Armstrong]

Re: Happy New Year !

Happy New Year Gary.

You'll be pleased to know that Scarborough CC had 68 players in its first fall tournament last year, and 67 in the second. We'll see what numbers we get for the first tournament this year, starting January 8. As our motto says : " Friendly Chess since 1960 "!

And I think you're wasting your time plumping for " a new organization to represent chess in Canada ". Since the July 2008 CFC AGM, the CFC has been, and still is, restructuring itself to meet its new situation and finances. I think you'll soon hear that CFC is going to be run " out of a basement " ( your recommendation over the past year ). I think CFC will soon be a streamlined version of its former self, and will be up to the job of taking chess into 2009 ! There may be some hiccups along the way, but they are definitely moving in the right direction. I'll have more to say on this tomorrow.

Bob

[Gary Ruben]

Re: Happy New Year !

Hi Bob,

Yes, I'm very pleased to hear the number of players in the events at the Scarborough club are growing in participation.

I understand the Scarborough club started in my late friend, John Kohlfurst, back yard way back then. After I came to Toronto I didn't start playing again until after I got married. That was in 1966 and I didn't tell my wife I was a chess player until after we were married. I guess that tact worked out OK because we celebrated our 42nd only a few days ago.

When I did start playing at the Scarborough Club, Frank Tebbs was the President. I served as his vice president for several terms. His brother Ted was a decent player and I recall we sometimes played at my home in the summer when the club was closed. When Frank didn't want to do the President job anymore I did it for a couple of terms and then switched to correspondence chess.

The Toronto Chess club had the stronger playing strength membership but we had a large and enthusiatic membership.

As you can probably tell, I have a soft spot for the Scarborough club. Maybe I'll drop in and watch one day.

[Lucas Davies]

Re: Happy New Year !

At the end of the year, Calgary beat Edmonton 6-4. In one pool, Lucas gets 8 points from Cammalleri, and moves up to within 11 points of first. In another pool, Lucas gets 6 points from Iginla, 6.5 points from Cammelleri and 3 points from Conroy, increasing his lead up to 31 points. In another pool, Lucas gets 2 goals, 3 assists, +2 and 3 powerplay points from Iginla, 2 goals, 3 assists, +3 and 3 powerplay points from Cammelleri and 2 assists, -3 and 2 powerplay points from Langkow. Didn't move up any points in that pool because it's a weird rotisserie format, but needless to say, Lucas is in first place and has a sizeable lead.

[Gary Ruben]

Re: Happy New Year !

At the end of the year, Calgary beat Edmonton 6-4. In one pool, Lucas gets 8 points from Cammalleri, and moves up to within 11 points of first. In another pool, Lucas gets 6 points from Iginla, 6.5 points from Cammelleri and 3 points from Conroy, increasing his lead up to 31 points. In another pool, Lucas gets 2 goals, 3 assists, +2 and 3 powerplay points from Iginla, 2 goals, 3 assists, +3 and 3 powerplay points from Cammelleri and 2 assists, -3 and 2 powerplay points from Langkow. Didn't move up any points in that pool because it's a weird rotisserie format, but needless to say, Lucas is in first place and has a sizeable lead.

New Years Day and it sounds like you're puking stats into the porcelain Gawd.

Party on, Lucas. Gary understands...

[Caesar Posylek]

Re: Happy New Year !

Happy New 2009 Year to all of you. Thanx for your wishes.
:):):)

[Paul Bonham]

Re: Happy New Year !

At the end of the year, Calgary beat Edmonton 6-4. In one pool, Lucas gets 8 points from Cammalleri, and moves up to within 11 points of first. In another pool, Lucas gets 6 points from Iginla, 6.5 points from Cammelleri and 3 points from Conroy, increasing his lead up to 31 points. In another pool, Lucas gets 2 goals, 3 assists, +2 and 3 powerplay points from Iginla, 2 goals, 3 assists, +3 and 3 powerplay points from Cammelleri and 2 assists, -3 and 2 powerplay points from Langkow. Didn't move up any points in that pool because it's a weird rotisserie format, but needless to say, Lucas is in first place and has a sizeable lead.

Great, Lucas, I have you in my "Fantasy Chessplayers Who Play Fantasy Hockey" pool. I just checked the web site and your lead in your hockey pools is helping me out greatly. I also picked Bob Gillanders, but he went heavily with hockey players from Toronto, so nothing much happening there.

I wonder if anyone has me in the "Fantasy Software Programmers Who Play 'Fantasy Chessplayers Who Play Fantasy Hockey' " pool. I think Bill Gates also picked you, Lucas. Steve Jobs went with Bruce Harper and Ben Daswani, I wonder how that's working out.

Happy New Year To All!!!!

[Bob Armstrong]

Scarborough CC History

Hi Gary:

I can't remember when I joined the Scarborough CC. May have been as early as the late 60's when I first came to Toronto to attend U of T. Or it may have been as late as the mid-70's when I started working full time. I can't remember for sure, but I think John Kohlfurst may still have been playing at the club then. I can't remember whether you were still playing when I joined, but the timing appears such that you must have been ( I have a terrible time with remembering some details, while others , especially trivial, I seem to retain forever ).

But both Frank and Ted Tebbs were. I had many games against them. And Frank's son, Frank Jr. also was a member and I played him many times. The club was quite large when I joined ( may have been as many as 300 members at the time - not sure ). But as you say, it was really the average players' club - the Toronto Chess Club was where the top players hung out - I can remember the smoke haze there when it was busy.

Hope we'll see you sometime at the club for a visit - it is thriving, by today's standards.

Bob

[John Cordes]

Re: Scarborough CC History

Hi Bob, and Gary:

I played some at the Scarborough Chess Club during my three years in Toronto, from 1966 to 1969. A few years ago I came across some of my old score sheets from those days. Here are some of the names I played at the SCC (I was a C class player), in no particular order: Mueller, Parsons, J. Laviolette, Ilic (?), Myatt, Mager, Hirner, Fujimoto, Weller, E. Mucignat, Holden, B. Meakes, Hawke, R. Bennett, A. Strajens, D. Williams, H. Keller, Tochet, Mortson, O. Mankio, Love. I often brought along a couple of friends: D. Elias and P. O'Donnell.

I also found the score from a game I played in a Howard Ridout simultaneous in October 1968 - I got a draw. I was lucky enough to win the C class tournament for 1968-69; I still have the very nice trophy.

John

[Jason Lohner]

Re: Happy New Year !

Happy new year...

I see you are continuing your Toronto centric goal of reducing the amount of chess players in Canada... good luck with your endeavors in shrinking the size of the pie

[Bob Armstrong]

Re: Scarborough CC History

Hi John:

I know you played before my time. But I do recognize a few of those names. Howard Ridout was still there when I joined, I remember ( I think ).

In my time there, I won a few " B " Class trophies and kept them lovingly until I had to do some moving in the mid 90's and had to reduce my " attachments ". I do have now though, my tropy for winning the Scarborough CC Club Championship " Reserves " tournament in 2007 - sits prominently in my study ! This qualified me for the top section Club Championship round robin of 2008 ( the Championship Section was a 10-player round robin: the top 8 players in the club, plus the 2 top finishers in the prior year's Reserves Section ).

I had previously qualified for the 2006 Club Championship as well, by coming third in the Reserves of 2005. Only the first two from the Reserves qualify for the next year's Championship section, but in 2005, second place finisher Steve Karpik decided he didn't want to get beaten up for 9 rounds in the 2006 Championship. So as third place finisher, I got to go into the 2006 Championship section and get beaten up , which I looked forward to ( chess masochism?? ). I think my only point in that tournament came from defeating Bryan Lamb ( not sure if he was still a master then, or had temporarily dropped down to expert; this was the upset of the tournament, and opened up the race for the championship, with Bryan suffering this loss ).

Anyone else have any old SCC war stories to start off the New Year?

Bob

[Bob Armstrong]

The Tournament Playing Fee Problem

Hi Jason:

Happy New Year to you too.

You may have noticed that the Grassroots' Campaign recently, begrudgingly, introduced into its plaform as a secondary option to eliminating the tournament playing fee ( = " tournament membership " ), allowing the tournament membership to continue, but doubling the amount of the fee from $ 10 to $ 20 ( to try to reduce somewhat the unfairness of the tournament membership to annual paying full-time members ). But, yes, we still support eliminating the tournament membership as the first option.

Bob

[Hugh Brodie]

Re: Happy New Year !

Re: Scarborough CC:

I have some games played by Zoltan Sarosy from the "Scarborough CC Easter Open" of 1966.

Sarosy-Steen,T: 1-0
Kustudic-Sarosy: 0-1
Ridout,Howard-Sarosy: 1-0
Sarosy-Foot,Angela: 1-0
Sarosy-Carleton,Tom: 0-1
Jensen,P-Sarosy: 1/2

The 1964 Canadian Open was held in Scarborough. Was the club involved in its organization?

[Bob Armstrong]

Scarborough CC History

Hi Hugh:

1966 was before my time, so some of the earlier members may have to respond to you. I do remember a " Jensen " from my time though. But I think this tournament may have been a weekend open swiss, organized by the SCC, open to anyone ( including non-members ). I think they did this type of thing at the time, and so the tournament may not have been an in-house club tournament.

I don't know if SCC was involved in the 1964 Scarborough Can. Open. I know there was a Can. Open in Scarborough again somewhat later - believe it was in the atrium of the Scarborough Civic Centre ( late 70's or 80's I think ) and again I don't know if SCC was involved in the organizing.

Bob