Stuff Non-Chess Players Say

I HAZ INTERNETZ NAO. Before I didn't, but I'll share a few pics. Not terribly exciting but here it goes: 

I'm waiting.......

<3

Okay, here it goes, and sorry I couldn't update when all this really happened. There was no Internetz. Oh noez. :( But anyway, here are some pics (and commentary) from the Las Vegas National Open. Gonna be a lengthy post:

Camber, this one's for you. Saw this in the airport. Dropped everything and took a pic. (-;

We arrived!!!! Here's one of their banners. Pretty exciting to see in person. Then they had separate "ballrooms" open for chess activities: skittles, blitz matches, women's division, open tourneys, etc. Had to walk through the casino to get to the chess area here. 

Of course, they had a location where they sold chess merchandise. I bought a cute pair of chess socks :D Hurrahh! 

Some of the things in the store they had set up. Exciting!!!! Ahhhh! 

Just HAD to take a pic of this set. I'm sure there are better dragon sets out there but hey it was cool to see one displayed. Unexpected. >___>

Omg, these things are real... So tempting to buy. If I hadn't recently graduated from my university, I would've bought one and brought it back to the Chess Club (This Fall, I'll be seeking out the new Chess Club at my new graduate school!!) Anyway, yeah, sweet chess variation board. 

Cuuuute! Bought me a silver knight to put on my backpack for the Fall... :D

 My new chess socks  tehehehehehe they were a must-have for sure

There were a few more chess store pics but I'm realizing this post is gonna get too long and no one will read it. So, here's a cool shot of the women's open sign... 

The schedule! I know it's a small pic and hard to read here. 

The "smaller" room... looks big enough to me! lol And this is only showing less than half of this ballroom. 

Here's what the players used to keep notation throughout their game. You had to bring your own chess clock. They didn't have those around, or you could rent one if your opponent didn't bring one either. 

Freaking geniuses... recognize any big names? This was just the top of the list and also *not the final standings. I was most happy to see GM Kamsky in person. I was seated in the front row! He even looked at me a few times! OMGGGGG!!! Fan girl moment.... 

I LOVE YOU GATA KAMSKY!!!!!!!!! He's so damn cute! Not all of the Grandmaster games were displayed but most were. And see how they're roped off? You couldn't walk too close to their games for obvious reasons (distraction, etc.). 

One thing I really noticed is that the GM's would get up at anytime in the game and walk around the other tables. They'd pace back and forth, thinking about their own game. They'd also look at other GM games before returning to their chair to concentrate on their own. If it was their turn during their game, they still might decide to take a walk. Very interesting. There's GM Kamsky taking a walk 

LOL.... "beer"... get it? A bear and a deer. Chess players got humor. 

Hundreds and hundreds of chess boards. This was only half of the large ballroom. Camera couldn't capture all the action!

 Got this on a shirt

I know these pics aren't the best but I hope you liked them! 

WOW! I very much liked the planes . I could ID them all, but nobody would read it. Sounds like you had a great time! The dearth of Interwebnets must have been a bummer, but still sounds fun. Did you win all of your games?

Glad you liked it :) Well here's the lame part... I went along with 3 other club members. A 4th was a no show and he wasn't planning to play, so I thought both of us would not play. Turns out, I was the only one who didn't play. Hilarious! I still had a great time, as you can see, but it would've been even more fun to pay to play. Oh well. There's another National Open in the Fall, since there are 2 throughout the year, from my understanding. The good thing is that my friends did great. One won $500, and the other two won $167 each, and they'll get mailed their checks. Woo hoo! They performed the best in their (very small) bracket of unrated players. 

Hey, at least you can say you left without having lost or drawn 

Nice pics you've got there' sure you had lots of fun......' 

Thanks and thanks ^__^

@ dragon: You are a Chess groupy, aren't you (commenting on Kamsky)? And I know you had to *check* all of that stuff out. Now, if someone asks you where you got those cool socks, just say you got them from the *pawn* shop.

What was the entry fee, btw?

I just got back from the LV Chess Festival also! It was great. Las Vegas is such a different experience from what I'm used to.

I ended up with 5.0/6 and 2nd place in the U1400 section! I'm probably going back next year, since I enkpyed it immensely.

I didn't see dragonair there though :(

Kamsky is so fine. I was SO close to asking for a fan photo with him in the hallway!!! But I stopped myself cause I thought that celebrities hate when people ask for photos. Maybe he would've been happy to, but the moment didn't seem right to pounce at him. Sigh, though I would've loved a photo with him. hehe. 

The entry fee was quite pricey. I think between $200 or $300+, don't remember exactly. Plus the USCF membership of course. Then factor in your hotel room, food money, plane ticket, taxi, AHHHH... >__<

You probably saw me and didn't realize. lol. There were hardly any ladies walking around the big tourney room. I'm happy you got 2nd in the U1400... that's pretty badass! (-; If you wanna share any pics you took, even if not of you, feel free. Would love to see your perspective of the event, especially since you played and fought for 2nd. There's another Open in Vegas in December. Are you going to that, too? Just curious... 

I was a non-chess player for not playing in the tourney. LOL. Next tourney I will pay the USCF membership and the entry fee to play. But I had to see how a tourney was set up first!!! Never saw before this trip! (This is my excuse)

I haven't taken the photos off my camera yet. While I'm doing that, I'll post one of the best combinations I've ever played, which I did in round 2. I'm super proud of it:

^ Nicely played.

Wow, now I get bumped at a most odd time.

I'm back...lel

condude, your black bishop was quite the star in that game, after you planted it so white couldn't castle. I'm impressed by the amount of study you did with your commentary in that game! 

By any chance, at the tourney I noticed some people chose to analyze their game together in another room after a match. Did you analyze any game with an opponent? Like this one that's worth discussing? Just out of curiosity. 

Lol yeah tell me about it (;