Haywood is that you, again ?
What has happened to over-the-board chess these days?
Sort:
"I just wish people would stop caring so much about being social, having sex, getting girlfriends..."
Really?
Apr 20, 2012
0
#5
You are at the very age I began to learn chess. I can tell by your post that you are smart and educated....The beauty is that chess is a popular game (possibly the most popular worldwide) and you will never NEVER be without friends in chess whatever your local situation is. In the US there is an anti intellectual movement that is disturbing and chess is a victim along with a lot of other class acts. You will see that the pendulum swings back and forth and that you owe it to yourself to do what is worthwhile and fun... no matter what the rest of your crew dishes on. Rambling, I guess... sorry.
Cool story, Haywood.
Now I know this question may seem really odd because there are a lot of chess players on this site to disprove what I'm going to say. But really in reality it's true...
It is so disappointing that chess popularity has seriously deteriorated ever since Bobby Fischer's disappearance in 1992.
The reason this affects willing to playing chess players like me or just simply chess players is that there are almost no clubs to play in that have a decent time (not 7:00 to midnight) and are local. The closest one is at least a half hour away and I actually have it lucky. Places in the west are much worse! Montana only has like 4 chess clubs! I know 7:00 to midnight for some is very good timing but not for teenagers in middle/high school! How am I supposed to play without having to convince my dad to drive me a half hour just to play in a two-hour decent timing chess club? Pathetic!
It shouldn't be so hard to play chess! I know there is online but the experience there is NOTHING compared to over-the-board play. Online chess isn't that fun either... What's worse is that clubs are even starting to charge to attend. I'm sure at this rate, chess will be dead in 20-30 years or at least near dead at least for non-masters. I mean there will be serious tournaments of FIDE and all that, but I don't see any scope for any casual chess playing at least for right now...
I just wish people would stop caring so much about being social, having sex, getting girlfriends, doing drugs, and all that crap and actually devote their time into something useful! Because of this it's impossible for me to play chess without having my dad drive me for a half hour every week on a week day!
I'm trying to get a chess club started in a local library but that's going to be too casual. I don't think they are going anywhere! They have ONE SET, and they don't even know that if they can host a chess club there. They probably won't be able to because NO ONE will attend since NO ONE cares about chess in my school, and most don't even know how to play.
So you can really see my frustration with the deterioration of the popularity of chess... I've been wondering, what has happened to chess that all of a sudden, people are having DIFFICULTY playing?