Playing Chess in Russia - The Agony of Victory
Russians have a thing for chess and, frankly, are very good at it. Being from San Diego, I thought chess was something you put photo albums in. Playing Chess Playing chess requires thinking ten or twelve steps ahead. If I wanted to understand the Russian mind, I had to learn to play chess. If nothing else, it would be a good way to pass the time. This I was told by Robert, an American living in the same town as me. I wasn’t particularly excited about learning, but gave in one day after growing tired of staring out the window. I had seen the movie, "Searching for Bobby Fisher". What more could I possibly need? How hard could it be? After beginning the game, Robert took pity on me after I apparently made some moves that were questionable. He explained why he was making particular moves and the resulting implications for my king. The game proceeded slowly while he explained strategies to his inattentive student. Then the magic moment occurred. I imagine every teacher suffers from the occasional embarrassment of being outdone by a student. I like to call it beginner’s luck and invoke the empirical evidence at horse racing tracks and Las Vegas casinos. If you’re a first timer, you will always win. It doesn’t matter if you're betting on a horse because of the color scheme or hitting on black jack while already holding 19 in your hand. It just happens. With our chess game, Robert had made a particular move and was in the process of explaining it. I sat staring at the board and thinking deep thoughts, which is to say I was wondering what was for dinner, etc. Just then, I noticed something on the board, moved my rook and declared, "Checkmate!" Robert stared at the board. Then he started laughing. Then he wanted to play again. Being a good sport, I immediately announced my retirement as a chess player. Unfortunately, I couldn’t leave my victory alone and gloated to a few people about it. Make no mistake, Robert would beat me a million times if we played a million games, but you have to live in the moment! Within a few days, karma struck and I began to pay for my gloating. People would start showing up at my apartment with chessboards and, of course, vodka. The games were so laughably one-sided it was ridiculous. Typically, I would make two moves and then hear "Sah!" which I believe meant "check!" in Russian. My humiliation occurred more or less every day for roughly a month. Some of the victorious would even come back for a second pounding. Finally, I had to take the dramatic step of refusing to answer the door. In the end, I set the game of chess back a few hundred years and Robert had his vengeance.
Other Horse Racing Tips Articles
Guide to Betting Horse Racing Anyone who says horse racing isn't exciting hasn't been to a good racetrack yet. Once you understand the terms and processes in racing horses, betting becomes an intoxicating event. While horse racing has been called the sports of kings, it doesn't take a pile of gold to play and win good money at it. Today, I am going to run over the basic term ...Early Comments on the 2006 Kentucky Derby We are only weeks away from the 132nd running of the 2006 Kentucky Derby on May 6th. While the final field is yet to be determined, there are some interesting contenders that warrant a few comments. Leading up to the Florida Derby on the April 1 is Barbaro, the favorite in the Florida Derby and a leading contender to become the favorite in the ...Securing Risk-free Arbitrages on Betting Exchanges Most people have now become familiar with the concept of arbitrages, and the opportunities which betting exchanges create in order to secure an arbitrage.As a very brief explanation to those who may be unfamiliar to the term, an arbitrage is the practice of taking advantage of a state of imbalance between two or more markets. A combinatio ...It's Spring and the Horses are Running When spring returns to Kentucky, so do the Thoroughbreds (I’m talking horses). Native Kentuckians say that Kentucky is the home of beautiful horses and fast women and great Bourbon. Anyone who has ever lived in Kentucky knows that spring is Kentucky’s best time of the year. The forsythias, azaleas and dog woods are in bloom, the temperature i ...Stag Weekend in Budapest - the Thrill of Horse Racing Budapest, with its perfect blend of eastern and western cultures, is the best locale for a stag weekend. Referred to as the “Paris of the East”, this stag weekend venue will provide you with all that you can ask for - beautiful landscapes and undulating hills on one side, and shops, restaurants, markets and exciting nightlife on the other. The P ...Quick Gambling Tips Today, I thought I would share some quick gambling tips with you. These tips can be used with any gambling game(s) you enjoy. Many people are losing gamblers, because they simply play a game without any thought and hope luck comes along. Luck is what you make of it. By following some simple tips, you can get more out of your gambling experie ...Motorcycle Helmets Almost 3,000 motorcyclists are killed each year in accidents, with head injuries being a major cause of death. Safety helmets successfully reduce the chances of head injury to a great extent. They are a must for all motorcyclists.Helmets are of different types, sizes, colors, and designs. They may be full-face or open-face, but have to co ...Horses - Whirlaway Before the great horse Citation, who was trained by Ben Jones and ridden by jockey Eddie Arcaro to victory for the 1948 triple crown, there was another horse that they had the distinction of also taking to triple crown glory, one of the most wild horses in all of racing history. His name, Whirlaway.There is no question about it, Whirlawa ...Sports in Great Britain The English are great lovers of competitive sports. They like to play games, to watch competitions or at least to talk about them.Britain was the home of many of the modern world’s most popular sports. Football is the best example, but among the others is tennis, horse-racing, and rowing. The game peculiarly associated with England is cri ...How to Bet on Horse Racing So you’ve decided to get in on the exciting world of horse racing. But before you can throw down some money on the ponies, you’re going to need to know what kind of bets are available and what each one means. Read on, and all will be explained.First, let’s look at the three most common types of bets. They are to win, to place, and to s ...A Horse Racing Certainty - Beware They Don't All Win I have been gambling since around the age of sixteen. I see it as a bit of a hobby and really enjoy playing poker and bragg. I go to the casino as often as I can and also love to go to the horse racing and to the greyhounds. This article is a story about when I lost a lot of money on a horse which was supposed to be a racing certainty.As ...Animals, Fitness and Us “Do you ever hear of animals gratifying their desire or need for artificial exercising at a gymnasium?” asks Joseph H. Pilates, developer of the Pilates Method, in his book “Your Health”.When I first read this I imagined my dog Wendy saying, “Of course not! How boring! Why would anyone want to spend hours on a treadmill or lifting weight ...A Preview of May's UK Horse Racing May ushers in the first Classics of the current turf Flat season, beginning with the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket on May 6. All eyes will be upon the short-priced favourite George Washington as he bids to bring trainer Aidan O’Brien back-to-back victories in the colts’ Classic following Footstepsinthesands smart success twelve months ago.In ...Great British Sporting Events In this article I write about some of the most famous British sporting events which take place on a yearly basis. My name is Steve Hill from Birmingham and I love to watch most sports especially football, tennis, snooker, horse racing and cricket.I am currently looking forward to the Fifa World Cup and the winter cricket Ashes tour to Aus ...About Tijuana Tijuana is many things: a sprawling city approaching two million in population, a vibrant and prosperous business center with many foreign-owned factories, the main entry to the entire Baja California peninsula, and much more.Only 18 miles from San Diego, Tijuana is a shopper's paradise. It's in a duty-free zone, so you can buy not only M ...Horse Betting Tips Most apprentices are capable of breaking a horse fast, which is great in sprint races, and the majority of their wins are usually accomplished under such circumstances. However, in route races (distance of longer than 1-1/8 miles) they usually do not perform as well. This is not necessarily because they are lacking in basic ability but because t ...Horses - Secretariat's Maiden Races In this article we're going to take a brief look at Secretariat's early races in his career that led up to a triple crown winner.Secretariat was a winner, but he didn't start out that way. His very first maiden race was on the 4th of July in 1972. There was a lot of fanfare surrounding this race. The big bad red racehorse was supposed ...SEO: How to Rank Number 1 in Google Starting your own web based business can be a great money making idea and lots of fun, but if you want people to visit your site you really need to know what you are doing. There is a ton of materials on the internet about how to bring web traffic to your site, but starting off with a good foundation makes it all much easier. 1) D ...Manfred Goes to the Country In nineteen forty five, World War II was declared officially over. Displaced German soldiers were being rounded up and homeless families had to find new places to live. Marianne, ten, and her brother Manfred, two and a half, were sent along with their newly widowed mother to a farm on the outskirts of Munich.The large dairy farm, one th ...The Dubious Immorality of Online Gambling The recent back-door legislation which outlawed online gambling in the USA has been championed as a moral cause. This is in direct opposition to a Gallup Poll taken earlier this year which found that 60 percent of adults believe gambling is morally acceptable.Chief sponsor Jim Leach (R-Iowa) has called it one of the most important pieces ...A Trip to San Diego, California If you are considering heading to San Diego for a vacation, you are probably planning on sitting on the beach all day long. Well, there are a few other things you should know about.A Trip to San Diego, CaliforniaWhen most people think of San Diego, they think of beaches and sitting out in the sun. Obviously, that is what our city i ...How To Increase Your Horse Racing Wagering Cash Flow If You have a horse racing system that produces at least 33% Wins Or better than 66% in-the-money finishes, then You can Increase Your Horse Racing Wagering Cash Flow©. And You can realize this by simply betting 4% of Your total bank (Multiply Your Total Bank by 0.04.) on each race that was successfully processed by an effective handicapping pr ...A Look At Some Of The More Common Mountain Bike Designs Mountain bikes are designed for off-road riding. Whether made for racing or the more leisurely rider, there are four basic frame designs for mountain bikes: rigid, hard-tail, soft-tail, and full suspension.The rigid (also commonly known as fully rigid) mountain bikes resemble a conventional sort of bike as you would imagine it. A rigid m ...September's UK Horse Racing Action Punters are in for a busy time of it in September as the Flat racing season moves swiftly into its autumn phase starting with the William Hill Sprint Cup, a Group1 contest over six furlongs at Haydock on Saturday September 2.Class has traditionally been the defining factor in this well-contested sprint course and it’s therefore no surpris ...Horses - Affirmed In the crazy world of horse racing the one thing we had yet to see going into the 1978 horse racing year was back to back triple crown winners. That was about to all change because of a horse by the name of Affirmed.Not only had there never been back to back triple crown winners but no horse ever had to beat the same rival in all three l ...A Guide to Buying Pet Products Facts about petsAustralian families who share their homes with pets number among the highest in the world, with 64% of households including pets. In those 7.5 million households, fish top the pet population at over 12 million, followed by birds, at 9 million. At almost 4 million, there are more dogs than either boys or girls under the age ...What You Need To Know About Running Running today is an energetic form of exercise and a very popular sport. Many run because they enjoy it or as part of a fitness plan. It’s come a long way from being the fastest way of getting from Point A to Point B on foot. From a means of transport, to a means to good health or fame and glory!How many kinds of running are there? Jogg ...Travel to Ireland Ireland is an island in the northwest of Europe with an area of 32,595 sq miles. About 370 km (230 miles) long by 225 km (140 miles) wide, Ireland comprises the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The population of the island of Ireland is approximately 5.8 million people, 4.1 million in the Republic of Ireland and 1.7 million in Northern ...Lottery a Mugs Game - Mugged by the Fat Cats Winning the National lottery has to be every ones dream, who says money can't buy happiness? I am afraid I beg to differ. The odds are against the few who states otherwise. Taking responsibility of new found status of being a millionaire is enough to put a smile on the face of any rags to riches punter.Is there any proven Pick 3 method t ...Archery -Three Noted Histories Archery is a sport or practice of using a bow to shoot arrows. Throughout history archery was used for many purposes including hunting and combat. It now has mainly become a sport of precision. Some history on archery is that it was said to have begun around 15,000 years ago, but the earliest that proven evidence was reported on archery was b ...Public Relations for Horse Racetracks Sports betting is an issue, which some residents near racetracks feel brings in a bad element. With alcohol sales also some say it is just asking for problems and that it brings in crime. However, on the flip side it brings in money and folks from other areas to spend money on food, services and products. Horse Racetracks also bring in revenues ...Eastern Idaho State Fair Blackfoot, Idaho’s 10,600 population swells to four times that number Labor Day Weekend when the Eastern Idaho State Fair opens. It runs another eight days delighting thousands of visitors. This fair, set in a town that boasts of being the potato capital of the world, features horse racing with Para mutual betting.An historic Indian Relay ...The Dish: 'Sheed Defends Predictions Detroit Piston power forward Rasheed Wallace, fresh off his team's 74-72 loss in Cleveland Monday night, defended his record of prognostication. Despite the fact that 'Sheed ruffled a few feathers by guaranteeing a Detroit win in Game 4---a prediction that fell flat, as did Wallace, who sprained his ankle in the second quarter and was ineffectiv ...The Belmont Stakes – The Third Jewel in Horse Racing's Triple Crown With both Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro and Preakness winner Bernardini out of the race, the 138th Belmont Stakes, horse racing’s final leg of the Triple Crown, appears to be up for grabs.This year’s best prospect for the Triple Crown, Barbaro, is recovering from a life threating injury sustained in the Preakness. In 131 years of horse r ...
|
