Hear Hear!

Brilliant Idea! And one that many a wandering chesser has dreamed of......

I support this idea whole heartedly!

Ok, let's see... There's the Santa Monica International Chess Club (North side of the boardwalk (On the promenade with a dozen solid Masters, at least), Chicago!, Ok, on the shore of lake Michigan?, in Chi-town there's a chess park, sacraficing pieces only excites the local Masters... Till they lose of course.... (I was raised by Masters... ) Washington Square park, NYC, (Searching for Bobby Fischer), Well there's three anyway...


Cheers!

Hey, come play me a game of chess at planetchess

upper left of home page is chess room link.

Planetchess.org is still in test mode... but the chess server is up.

It just so happens that there is a nice park in Cleveland, Ohio called Edgewater Park, where alot of players come during the summer to play. In fact, an associate and I throw a tournament there every Labor Day and have since 1992. Since that time, several prominent players have shown up there, including most recently Alexander Shabalov.

Here's an odd one: The Florida Renaissance Festival at Quiet Waters Park in Deerfield Beach, Florida has open chess play. They've got three giant boards (roughly 1 foot squares, I'd guesstimate), and people just walk up and play. There used to be a strong player who played there for money, but I think the faire got rid of him because they considered it gambling. The faire runs for 5 weekends every February-March. Next weekend is the final one for this year.

As a ren performer who doesn't have an act right now and has never worked that particular faire, I've actually been thinking of asking if I can take over as the resident chess expert next year. I'm thinking that if I give people prizes for beating me instead of money, then they might see it as just another faire game, not gambling.

--Fromper

Brilliant idea, thanks. I have stumbled across a few around the world but need to work on correct adresses!

I met Shabalov in Philly, 93' World Open. I saw him standing there with two tennis racquets. Being a not so bad tennis player, and considering I had the wherewithall to bring my racquets, I walked up to him and said; "You play tennis?" (Silly question in hindsight) He replied yes, so that was enough for me to invite him to tennis the next morning, he agreed. My friend, (A NM was hiding in the corner much mortified)

Now, the entire evening before our morning rendezvous, I considered how I would present this to friends back home, "I beat GM Shabalov!" er, at tennis.

Lo and behold, He beat my shorts off....

End of story...

Strange no one mentioned Union Square Park, in NYC 14th to 16th Street,
East & West.
Humphrey Bogart may have played in a NYC park probably in Midtown Manhattan. There is a park next to the Public Library.
I myself played a few thousand games in a Bronx Park, known as the Soundview area.
When I was in the US Army in Berlin, strange I never saw anyone playing chess in a park. They played in clubs. You could enter the club, and no one said anything. You just played. I gave lessons to a younger player.
In Zurich, the same thing. I saw the club of the 1934 famous tournament.
But I never saw anyone playing in a park.
There must be a park in Boston, where chess is played. But the only time I was there was in Winter.
However, as above, Union Square Park, chess is played when it is not raining or snowing. There is also a park near NYU in Manhattan, and chess is definitely played.
You have to relate where ever there is a college, and a nearby park, you probably could find chess.
Although at CCNY in the 60's chess was played indoors.

I looked through the threads and thought it remarkable that three sites I was familiar with are not yet listed.

1. Harvard Square, Boston, the coffee shop (or cafe, formerly Au Bon Pain, may be a Starbucks now). This is a huge one, usually at least 20 players in the al fresco area plus maybe 3 tables going inside. There are 6-8 stone tables with the 64 squares etched in (people often just put a vinyl tourney board over it. Usually going until the cafe closes, around 2 am. Occasionally I found bridge players here, too (no one in my age groups know how to play bridge! They are usually my grandmother's age!). Variable strengths from Master on down. People will play at all hours into the night/morning. Rain or shine, you'll always find a game going. Most anyone you ask in Boston about this will know about Harvard Square's chess 'park', even if they don't play chess. BTW, there is an excellent 7 day/wk chess club in Boston, the Boylston Chess Club.

2. JFK square, downtown Philadelphia (aka Center City), just north of the City Hall on Market St. At least there was one during the mid-1980s. People would play on the benches & steps of the fountain there. Usually going during the day; inadequate lighting & safety issues (Philly cops are not to be messed with. Period.) This one has hustlers, so beware. At the time, the funny thing was that often times I was the only white guy there (the funny anecdote is when I was playing one of the stronger players, money was changing hands behind me, and one said "I'm betting on the white guy!")

3. The KFC on Canal Street, Vieux Carre (Bourbon St. area, old New Orleans). Not so much a park but on the sidewalk under the canopy--usually about 2-3 games going on those fold-up conference tables that can fit two boards. Definitely hustlers there! If you beat them (when I was last there, I'd put them around 1600-1700 strength), some will throw their money down on the board in disgust and not play you anymore. I haven't been down there since 1998, but the three times I was there for conferences at the Riverwalk there was something going.

I live in North Carolina--I know of several chess clubs, but no outdoor venues I'm aware of.

Someone may be able to verify the last two venues. The Harvard Square site is an institution.

-d nemo

P.S. I'm looking for parts or repair for my BHB Turnier analog clock. Does anyone know of anything like this?

Nice. BTW, I hope you won that game in Philly!

nice idea

idk if this counts, but in a little area near the mall at Wollongong, Australia, there are often some old guys who come to play...probably not at the same level as American players would though lol