Christmas Eve incident in a rock bar

[Andrew Zigmond]

This is too good not to share.

Last night I was enjoying a pre Christmas drink with a friend at my local rock bar when I noticed a young man who looked slightly familiar and I worked out who he reminded of. He looked like an older version of a lad who used to go to the junior chess club I run (and who had aptitude - it was a shame when he dropped out) and a quick calculation told me that the boy in question would now be old enough to drink. So when I caught his eye again later in the evening I decided it couldn't hurt to remember myself to him.

It turned out to be a case of mistaken identity. But I explained the chess connection ...

... and it turned out that he played chess online and even referenced the London System and the Caro Kann! Unfortunately he was only visiting family in Harrogate.

The chess players are out there! We just need to reel them into our clubs.

[Joey Stewart]

That's a new potential idea, instead of trying to pick up women in bars try and find intelligent looking potential chess players.

[Paul McKeown]

Intelligent looking chess players?

That would be a rarity...

[MSoszynski]

Intelligent looking chess players?

That would be a rarity...

You're thinking of well-dressed chess players.

[John Upham]

Intelligent looking chess players?

What are key factors to look out for?

[Stephen Westmoreland]

Intelligent looking chess players?

What are key factors to look out for?

Attendance at Rock Bars rather than some of the scruffier chess venues I have attended.

[John Upham]

Intelligent looking chess players?

What are key factors to look out for?

Attendance at Rock Bars rather than some of the scruffier chess venues I have attended.

That is a pre-requisite but how does one pick out intelligent chess players? This can be a huge challenge in a chess club or a tournament let alone a rock bar (whatever that is).

[Roger Lancaster]

That's a new potential idea, instead of trying to pick up women in bars try and find intelligent looking potential chess players.

There seems to be an assumption here that "women in bars" can't possibly be "intelligent looking potential chess players".

[John Upham]

That's a new potential idea, instead of trying to pick up women in bars try and find intelligent looking potential chess players.

There seems to be an assumption here that "women in bars" can't possibly be "intelligent looking potential chess players".

We are waiting for appearance factors that convey intelligence before we break things down further.

[Roger Lancaster]

That's a new potential idea, instead of trying to pick up women in bars try and find intelligent looking potential chess players.

There seems to be an assumption here that "women in bars" can't possibly be "intelligent looking potential chess players".

We are waiting for appearance factors that convey intelligence before we break things down further.

Fair enough although I had rather assumed that "appearance factors that convey intelligence" weren't unique to men. Or, for that matter, to women.

[Angus French]

Has this forum now lost its value?

[Christopher Kreuzer]

I was thinking the same thing as Angus. The whole tone of the thread seems a bit 'off' (in what way is this an 'incident'?). Not to mention the presumption that having a local "rock bar" is a thing. Live music venue, maybe, but specifically rock? That seems to be the case only in a few areas (though I do remember a karaoke craze at one point). In an attempt to widen the potential scope, what other cultural locations might you end up discussing chess with your fellow genteel clientele? Museums, art galleries, libraries, cafes, football matches, church services, Sunday fetes, local food markets, supermarkets, kebab vans, theatres, concert halls, antiques fairs, hairdressers, classic car meets, local parks (with chess tables)?

(The answer, of course, is on the bus and tube in London, where at any given moment, there seems to be a fairly high likelihood that you will at some point in the course of a week's worth of commuting see people playing chess on their phones... No idea if that is the case in other areas of the country.)

[Brendan O'Gorman]

Any chance we could find a few more chess players with a sense of humour?

[Matt Mackenzie]

Any chance we could find a few more chess players with a sense of humour?

Well yes, this is rather my reaction as well.

If anything is "rather chess player-y" it is the response to an obviously fairly light hearted opening post.

[Andrew Zigmond]

Picking up on some of the points raised;

A rock bar, loosely speaking, is a bar that plays rock music either primarily or exclusively as a musical backdrop and as a consequence attracts a clientele that enjoys it. It doesn't necessarily have to host live music although this particular venue does.

The point of my post was the relative coincidence that a random conversation with a stranger turned up a mutual interest in chess. The wider point is that chess has had a resurgence in popularity in recent years but those individuals playing online and learning about different openings are not joining their local chess club as a matter of course. And yet these are the players we need to sustain our clubs, our leagues and our congresses.

This particular incident happened in a rock bar because that's the kind of venue I choose to drink in. It was no more likely to happen there than two doors up in a venue that plays the "thump thud thump" dance music that has never appealed to me. And it has nothing to do with appearance.