Virginia Scholastic Chess Association Newsletter

September 2, 2015

This newsletter is sent to families who participate in Virginia Scholastic Chess Association tournaments. The VSCA is a non-profit, all-volunteer organization dedicated to promoting scholastic chess in central and southeastern Virginia. Please email news@vschess.org to subscribe, unsubscribe or change your address.


Grafton Fall Scholastic and Quads (Grades K-12 and Adults)

Registration is now open for the Grafton Fall Scholastic and Quads tournament, to be held Saturday, September 19, 2015 at Grafton Middle School in York County. Advance registration is online only, and closes at 7:00 AM Thursday MORNING, September 17.

This tournament is open to students in kindergarten through 12th grade, and also adult players, and includes both rated and non-rated sections.

The K-5 Not-rated and K-12 Not-rated (grades 6-12) sections are designed for beginning tournament players (first, second or third chess tournament, with exceptions on a case-by-case basis). Games in these sections are NOT RATED by the U.S. Chess Federation (US Chess) and players do NOT need to be US Chess members.

The K-5 Open and K-12 Open (grades 6-12) sections are US Chess-rated sections. All players in these sections must be current US Chess members.

The Open Quads sections are US Chess-rated sections open to advanced scholastic players (US Chess rating 1000+) and adult players. Quad entries will be divided into groups of 4 (quads) by rating. Each quad will play a 3-round round robin with a time control of G/60.

The entry fee for the scholastic sections is $10 for advance (online) registrations, and $15 for onsite registrations. The entry fee for the Open Quads is $20 for all players, whether registered online or onsite. Please read our Tournament Check-in Policy.

Trophies will be awarded to the top 5 individuals and the top 3 school teams in each of the scholastic sections. There are cash prizes for the Open Quads, with no trophies or team competition.

Please visit the VSCA website at www.vschess.org for more tournament information and to register online.


Meadowdale Fall Scholastic and K-12 Quads (Grades K-12)

Registration is also open for the Meadowdale Fall Scholastic and K-12 Quads tournament, to be held Saturday, October 3, 2015 at Meadowdale Public Library in Chesterfield County. Advance registration is online only, and closes at 7:00 AM Thursday MORNING, October 1.

This tournament is open to students in kindergarten through 12th grade and includes both rated and non-rated sections.

The K-5 Not-rated and K-12 Not-rated (grades 6-12) sections are designed for beginning tournament players (first, second or third chess tournament, with exceptions on a case-by-case basis). Games in these sections are NOT RATED by the U.S. Chess Federation (US Chess) and players do NOT need to be US Chess members.

The K-5 Open and K-12 Open (grades 6-12) sections are US Chess-rated sections. All players in these sections must be current US Chess members.

The K-12 Quads sections are US Chess-rated sections open to advanced scholastic players only (US Chess rating 1000+). There are no adult quads at this event. Quad entries will be divided into groups of 4 (quads) by rating. Each quad will play a 3-round round robin with a time control of G/60.

The entry fee for the scholastic sections is $10 for advance (online) registrations, and $15 for onsite registrations. The entry fee for the Quads is $20 for all players, whether registered online or onsite. Please read our Tournament Check-in Policy.

Trophies will be awarded to the top 5 individuals and the top 3 school teams in each of the scholastic Swiss sections. There are cash prizes for the K-12 Quads, with no trophies or team competition.

Please visit the VSCA website at www.vschess.org for more tournament information and to register online.


Other Upcoming VSCA Tournaments

Two additional VSCA tournaments are tentatively scheduled in October, pending confirmation by the two schools.

The Maggie L. Walker Governor's School tournament is tentatively scheduled for October 17 in Richmond. This tournament will include K-3, K-5, K-8 and K-12 sections, all US Chess-rated.

The Kemps Landing/Old Donation School tournament is tentatively scheduled for October 31 in Virginia Beach. This tournament will include K-5 and K-12 Not-rated sections and K-5 and K-12 Open (rated) sections, as well as Open Quads for adults and advanced scholastic players.

A calendar of VSCA events as well as other scholastic events in Virginia is available at www.vschess.org/chess-calendar.


Eastern Shore Tournament Results

26 scholastic players participated in the Eastern Shore Back-to-School Tournament, held at Kiptopeke Elementary School in Northampton County on August 15, 2015.

The K-5 Not-rated section and the K-12 Not-rated section were combined with separate awards. There are no team awards at our summer tournaments.

In the K-5 Not-rated section, Chauncey Wells won the first place trophy with a score of 2.5 points in 4 rounds.

In the K-12 Not-rated section, Joey Frederich won the first-place trophy by tiebreaks over Zack Anderson. Joey and Zack each finished with 3.0 points in 4 rounds.

In the K-5 Open section, Logan Schaefer won the first-place trophy with a perfect score of 4.0 points in 4 rounds.

In the K-12 Open section, Trey Johnson won the first-place trophy with a perfect score of 4.0 points in 4 rounds.

Congratulations to all of these players and to all of our other tournament participants. Complete tournament results are available at www.vschess.org/results.


Virginia Beach National Chess Day Festival

The Virginia Beach National Chess Day Festival will be held outdoors at Virginia Beach Town Center on Saturday, October 10, 2015. The event is organized by the Hampton Roads Chess Club and the Hampton Roads Scholastic Chess Club, and will include US Chess-rated and Not-rated tournament sections for all ages and abilities, a simultaneous chess exhibition by Virginia State Champions Dan Miller and James Schuyler, free chess lessons for beginners, and a giant chess board. Spectators are welcome. The entry fee is $10 per player for the tournament and $5 for the simul. There is no charge for spectators. Advance registration for the tournament and the simul is now open at www.vschess.org.


Richmond Metropolitan Grand Prix Tournaments

The Richmond Chess Initiative (RCI) and the Richmond Public Library are hosting a series of Saturday tournaments for scholastic and adult players. The next tournaments are September 12 at the Richmond Main Library branch, September 19 at the Westover Hills Library branch, and September 26 at the North Avenue Library branch. Weekly training sessions, free and open to the public, are also scheduled every Monday evening 6:00-7:30 pm at the North Avenue branch and the Westover Hills branch, and every Wednesday evening 6:00-7:30 pm at the Main branch and the Belmont branch. The CEO and founder of RCI is VSCA secretary Mike Callaham. For more information, visit the RCI website at richmondchessinitiative.wordpress.com/busline-grand-prix-schedule/.


Hampton Roads Scholastic Chess Club

The Hampton Roads Scholastic Chess Club, organized by VSCA Board Member Christina Schweiss, has merged with the Hampton Roads Chess Club and the Virginia Beach Chess Club, and meets on Tuesday evenings at Eastminster Presbyterian Church in Virginia Beach. Scholastic players meet from 5:00 to 7:30 pm, and adults and advanced scholastic players meet from 7:00 to 10:30 pm. The club meets throughout the summer for training, and is currently accepting new members. The next meeting is Tuesday evening, August 4. For more information, visit the chess club's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/HRScholasticChessClub.


It's Your Move!

VSCA secretary and Class A player Mike Callaham has generously offered to analyze and comment on VSCA tournament games which players send him. If you have a game that you're proud of, or a game where you feel you could have played better, and would like Mr. Callaham to take a look at it, all you need to do is send him a copy of your complete and legible scoresheet (game notation). He will respond by email, and games which are especially interesting or instructive will be published on the VSCA website. For complete details, visit the VSCA website at www.vschess.org/chess-resources/games. Mr. Callaham has recently posted his analysis of three outstanding games from the Virginia Scholastic Championships in Charlottesville, and a very interesting game from the April 18 Fork Union Spring Scholastic.

Mr. Callaham is the CEO and founder of the Richmond Chess Initiative, the coordinator and head coach of the Richmond Middle School Chess League, and currently coaches chess clubs at Binford, Boushall, Lucille Brown, Thomas Henderson, Albert Hill, and Thompson Middle Schools in Richmond, J. B. Fisher Elementary School in Richmond, and Tuckahoe Elementary School in Henrico County. Coach Callaham has also met with chess clubs at many other Virginia schools, and he would like to visit as many other school chess clubs as possible on behalf of the VSCA. Parents and coaches, if you would like to have Mr. Callaham visit your school club for a free simul, chess clinic or lecture, please contact him at waterman2010kir@aol.com. Be sure to provide contact information for the school chess sponsor/coach. This is a wonderful opportunity for your school to benefit from the help of an experienced chess player and teacher.


Visit Us on Facebook

Check out the VSCA Facebook page at www.facebook.com/vascholasticchess, managed by parent and board member Christina Schweiss.


Junior Chess Coaches Needed

Championship Chess RVA is looking for junior chess coaches to help run instructional chess programs in the metro Richmond area. Requirements include: The pay rate is from $10 to $20 per hour, depending on class size. Most classes are on weekday afternoons.

To apply, please email your resume and a summary of your chess experience to Mr. Brian Garbera at CoachBrian@ChampionshipChessRVA.net.


Tournament Registration and Entry Fees

Advance registration for VSCA tournaments is ONLINE ONLY at www.vschess.org, and closes at 7:00 AM on the Thursday before the tournament. In order to accurately process entries, we cannot accept mail, phone or e-mail registrations. The scholastic advance registration entry fee of $10 may be paid online through PayPal (preferred) or at the tournament. Players who do not register before the 7:00 AM Thursday deadline can register at the tournament between 8:00 and 9:00 am on Saturday, but they will need to pay the late entry fee of $15. Players who register later than 8:30 am on Saturday may or may not be paired for the first round, depending on the number of late registrations.

The entry fee for Open Quads sections is $20 for both advance registrations and on-site registrations.

Please note that the above information applies only to Virginia Scholastic Chess Association tournaments, and does NOT apply to the Virginia Scholastic and Collegiate Championships or other Virginia Chess Federation events.


Tournament Check-in

To help start our tournaments on time, we recently implemented a new check-in policy. Players who pay online do not need to check in at the tournament, but must let us know if they are not coming. Please read the following brief instructions:

All Players: If you are registering and/or paying at the tournament: If you are paying online:

US Chess Membership

Current membership in the U.S. Chess Federation (US Chess) is REQUIRED in order to play in VSCA tournaments, except for sections specifically designated as not-rated. In order to avoid delays on Saturday, please join or renew directly with US Chess at www.uschess.org/webstore. Please do not mail a paper application form or check to US Chess, since this may cause delays in processing your membership. If you are unable to join or renew online, please plan to fill out a membership application at the tournament. You can check membership status at www.uschess.org/msa. The U.S. Chess Federation maintains a national database of ratings (relative playing strengths) for adult and scholastic players. In order to update the ratings following each tournament, all players in rated sections of a tournament must be current US Chess members.


Please visit our website at www.vschess.org for the latest news and information.