The series started in May, with a wonderful inaugural event.
These events are strictly by invitation only, partly due to space restrictions and partly due to an appreciation of who will derive the most benefit from the sessions and also who will bring the most to the sessions with their unique and special personalities.
Social chess should always be fun, as proved by the fantastic Chess by the Tees day at the start of this month.
Costa Coffee in Yarm acted as perfect hosts again, despite the pressure of space (the upstairs is currently being refurbished).
The wonderful Jolita (pictured, above) made the whole group feel very welcome.
Our colourful chess sets and boards, together with an array of chess variants (including the debut of Three Way Chess), all added to the fun.
On a personal note, I have to report that Clair defeated my Maharaja Queen (something whole groups of people - including Grandmasters - have never managed to do over the course dozens of CSC training days all across the UK) and Dara beat me 3-1 at Three Check Chess (although, looking at his scores against other players, I did well to score a single victory).
Thank you to everyone who helped to make the session such a great success.
The next Open Thoughts event will be towards the end of the year and I am hoping the people who were away this time will be available again.
Today’s social chess event, Chess by the Tees, was a great success.
Organised by Stephen Ollis (who was one of my chess pupils at Stokesley Primary in 1989!) and San Seb Coffee, with support from CSC, the morning attracted a large amount of people.
There were at least 70 people of all ages and abilities fully engaged all of the time, with a rolling set of people throughout the two hours. It is therefore impossible to gauge exactly how many people were there in total.
Most local chess clubs were represented (they will now have an increased membership) and we had two of Marsh’s Angels, three current CSC Teesside tutors, two former CSC Teesside tutors and a whole range of happy people enjoying social chess games.
Enthusiasm is high on all sides to create more such events.
Thank you to Stephen, San Seb Coffee, Sam, Catherine and everyone else who helped to make the day such a wonderful success.
Here is a gallery from the very busy morning.
River Tees Academy Grangetown organised a Parents’ Day to help round off the school year - and chess was very much part of the activities on offer.
Catherine Lloyd has worked very hard, every week, for the last few years to build up chess at the school and to make it an important part of the school’s curriculum and entitlement sessions.
Grandparents, parents, aunties, uncles, brother and sisters all attended the six community sessions, making it a vibrant, happy and very successful day.
We were helped considerably by teacher Shaine Millward, who is a strong supporter of chess in the school and was further enabled by attending one of our CSC Training Days in June 2023, delivered by Catherine and me.
Shaine played Four Way Chess against the pupils and their families for six consecutive sessions, without a single break.
We have delivered similar days in other schools and they always work very well. This is something we would like to expand during the next school year.
Thank you, everyone, for making the day such a great success.
Here are some more photographs from Friday’s River Tees Academy Grangetown Parents’ Day today.
‘On Wednesdays, we wear pink…’
At least the one and only Mrs Hart got the memo, for a colour-coordinated last day of chess (until September) at Yarm Preparatory School today.
