DC International and World Open

It still sounds a bit scary. I just registered for both the DC International and World Open chess tournaments in June/July. I'll be playing eighteen slow chess games over eleven days. If I feel really crazy I can even pop into one or two of the World Open side events.

I've looked at the preregistration for the FIDE-rated DC International, which runs from June 25th to June 30th. It seems like it is set up as a warm up for the World Open. I am currently the lowest rated player pre-registered for this tournament--the vast majority are strong 2000+ players. That will indeed make it a great warm-up for the big one, the World Open.

A chess friend of mine who just made Expert earlier this year said that playing in the World Open last summer was one of factors in getting him over the hump. I don't have that expectation for myself but I do expect playing this many slow games against tough competition can only make me a better player and give me lots of material to analyze.