One of my golden rules is to only try to play when I'm hungry for chess. Going through the motions when feeling unmotivated is a sure-fire recipe for getting lacklustre results, mainly because you won't concentrate and fight as you should.
How do you recognize a lack of hunger? Basically you need to listen to your inner voice. Maybe you think that you hear it encouraging you because this is a rare opportunity, but are you really truly hungry?
I experienced this just recently when thinking about the Bolton Rapidplay. In theory I wanted to play to keep my hand in, but in reality I lacked the hunger. Just lately there have been some serious distractions, and these have completely overshadowed the importance of playing chess. I'm hoping that the distractions will recede into the background before very long, but until that time comes it seems better that I stay on the sidelines.
What are the most distracting things? I'd say that a potential house move is pretty high on the list, especially if you are caught in a chain of buyers and sellers. Problems at work (or school) will probably play havoc with your focus, as will anything to do with romance, illness or money.
Of course professional players may not have the luxury of sitting on the sidelines, and this may account for apparent swings of form. Amateurs have a different problem, they can play when they choose to but their lives outside chess might be a source of more distracting events!
Training Tournaments
This week's training tournaments feature openings from the Ding - Gukesh World Championshiip match, which happen to be included in several Tiger Chess Opening Repertoires. The first one is in the French Defence course while the second is in both the White 1.d4 Repertoire and the Building an Opening Repertoire courses:
Upcoming Events
Here's my schedule over the coming months, though it is subject to change. I often don't know until fairly late in the day.
December 7, 2024: Huddersfield Chess Club Seminar
I've run a number of seminars at this great club, this is the first since before COVID. Their website is here.
January 17-19: Huddersfield 4NCL Congress
I really enjoy the 4NCL Congresses as they're played under excellent conditions in nice hotels. This is the first one in Huddersfield, you can find details here.
January 27th: Stockport Rapidplay
I've played in this event with some regularity, so probably I'll go for it again. You can find details here.
February 16-27, 2025: World Senior Team Championship
I've accepted a place in the 50+ second team which means I'll play a much stronger field than on bottom board of the first team. Although this diminishes my chances of winning a medal I'm looking forward to the challenge.
July/August 2025: British Championships
Will these be held in Liverpool next year? There's a rumour on Tim Spanton's blog that they would be. I think I might go for the 50+ event if this is the case.
I'm still hopeful that I'll get to play in the European Senior Team Championships (Walbrzych, Poland, April 4-14) in which I've said I'll play in any team and on any board. It hopefully won't be long before the teams are picked.
Have a great weekend!
Nigel
