18 Questions with Mr 2007-2008 IM Draks Boskovic of the Dallas Destiny

1. Quickie questions! What’s your favourite:
a. Fruit? strawbery
b. Vegetable? potatoes
c. Ethnic cuisine? Serbian
d. Breakfast food? omelette
e. Drink? Sweet tea
f. Dessert? Cheese cake
g. Classical composer? Mozart
h. Painter? Picasso
i. Novelist? Dan Harrington
j. Foreign Country? Czech Republic
k. Geographic land formation? seaside
l. Type of pie? Banana cream
m. Chess piece? rook
n. Color? blue
o. Musical instrument? keyboard
p. Word? Shipping
q. Person? Marina Lupik
r. Calendar Year? 2007
s. Piece of clothing? T-shirts
t. Holiday? New year
u. Day of the week? Friday
v. Quality in yourself? workoholic
w. Season? Summer
x. Saying? – lets bumble

2. Ilya Krasik of the Boston Blitz recently remarked, “I am only looking for motivational material, it isn’t easy to find these days, Dallas players are a reserved bunch.” Are you going to let Ilya insult your team like this? What do you have to say in response? Something really rude, perhaps?

Well, I don’t really know who this person is (Ilya Krasik). Larry Christiansen and Eugene Perelshteyn are great players, and that’s definitely their advantage over us. (Or could have been their advantage --EV) If four players like Ilya Krasik played against Dallas, they wouldn’t score more than ½ point. hahaha.

3. You will be playing Larry Christensen in the final. What do you think of him as a player? What do you see as his strengths and weaknesses? What opening do you expect? What would you guess will decide the result of the game? How do you estimate your chances?

He is amazing player, and I have the most respect for him. He was coaching UTD last year when we were preparing for the final four, and that was the only time I’ve met him. He’s a great player and knows so much about chess. I’ll be honoured to play against such a strong player. And he beat Karpov in 12 moves! I’m hoping not to lose the game, draw would be solid.

4. Describe your preparations for USCL games, including, but not limited to: opening preparation, pre-game superstitions, and interactions with teammates.

Sounds unbelievable for some people, but there wasn’t a game I’ve prepared this season. Usually I run or play racquetball before the game, that’s my only preparation. My teammates can vouch!

5. How much do you care about the result of your game? About the result of the match? Would you rather play a horrible, horrible game but Dallas wins or the best game of your life but Dallas loses?

Every chess game I play, I try to win, and I care about result. And, since it’s a team competition, of course I want my team to win every match. Like basketball players, if my team wins, and even if I play bad, I’ll be happy.

6. How do you envision the bottom three boards going?

I think we have advantage on board 3, where Jack Stopa has white, and we are hoping that he will win. Draws on boards 2 and 4 would be good for us, so I have to make a draw and we’ll win easily J

7. The last two finals have been won by teams who did not have a grandmaster on board one. Do you think this is a coincidence, or could it be that the small rating advantage conferred by having a player over 2590 is outweighed by the advantage of stronger lower boards?

The problem with having a GM is that it has to be compensated by playing weaker player on lower boards. Our team is solid on every board, and that’s our biggest advantage.

8. Let’s talk about your game with Becerra. Exactly how happy did you feel afterwards? How long did the euphoria last? Tell us about the game: how much was opening prep? What did you feel was your best move? What was his first mistake? Biggest mistake? How scared were you when you sacked the exchange? When did you know you were going to win?

I was so happy after I won the game, cause I lost 3 games before, so I needed to win to return my prominence before finals! The euphoria lasted next couple of hours, and when I saw that I won the game of the week, the euphoria returned again. It’s still on. As I said earlier, I don’t prepare for games ( I’ll have to do it for Larry). I think my best move was sacrificing exchange in the middle game for compensation, which lead to a very complicated position, and, at the end, victory which made me the happiest man in the world at that moment. I don’t think I’ve made any big mistake in the game. I wasn’t scared when I sacrificed the exchange, because you can’t be scared and expect to win. So, I saw it, and had a feeling it’s gonna be successful.

9. Who are your favorite and least favorite USCL opponents and why? (You may answer individuals and/or teams)

There are no favorite and least favorite opponents for me !! I like playing against strong players and trying to win against them!

10. If you had to play for/ manage a different USCL team, which would it be and why?

San Francisco, because there are some nice beaches over there

11. Are there any openings that give you special pleasure to either play or play against?

I enjoy playing accelerated dragon for black- that’s my favourite opening. I like playing against the English too.

12. If you had to pick name on type of ending that you are especially good at, what would it be?

Knight and bishop endings

13. Which are your top five chess-related websites and why?

I check www.fide.com , www.uschess.org, Jonkman’s tournament site, and www.serbiachess.net (Serbian chess federation). That’s all I can think of now.

14. Which chess player (living or dead) do you admire the most?

Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov

15. If Bill Gates gave you $500,000 to organize a chess tournament
a. where would you hold it, - Caribbean
b. what format would you choose, - round robin, 8-10 players
c. who would you invite, and – top 5 players in the world, close friends of mine, Viktoria Beinoraite, and myself
d. what, if any, special rules would you impose? – you can drink up to 6 drinks ( alcoholic ) during the game. Every next drink your opponent loses 5 minutes on clock- I bet games would be interesting.

16. How obsessed are you with chess? In an average week, how much do you study, play and think about chess? When you study, what exactly do you do? If you could choose to be more or less obsessed, would you choose either and to what extent?

I’m not really obsessed with chess, I haven’t been studying it lately. I probably should more, but there are just so many other thing on my mind these days…I usually look at openings I play, or just look at top GMs games. I prefer staying the same like now about my obsession with chess. I’m happy.

17. What are you studying at UTD? What do you hope to do with the degree when you finish? Are the classes what you expected them to be? Is American college life what you expected?

I’m a senior majoring in business administration. American college life is exactly like I thought it would be- no pressure- great! I had troubles just with couple of classes so far. I’m thinking about gong to grad school, and I’ll have to make my decision very soon. I’m still young lol

18. Do you think American girls are easy?

Noooo, no way. European girls ( primarily Czech and Russian) is where it’s at right now.

St. Pancras Train Station

It's really tragic that with the exception of Grand Central, America doesn't give much heed to aesthetics when thinking about public works. (The half-hearted art projects in the NYC subways are cute but don't count.)

My father took a detour to show me the new St. Pancras train station today... it opened last week and I say well done, whoever designed this one! In general, I feel like train stations create such room for imagination .... you could be going anywhere for any reason....

But this is especially lovely: the filtered light from the glass roof, the twice-life size sculpture of the couple saying goodbye to each other....

the Champagne bar on the departure platform, my 62- year -old father carefully wheeling his 90-odd-year-old mother in the wheelchair, every time turning her and stopping so she could read the poems etched into the stone floor ... sometimes it's just so touching and there's nothing to think except you wish you were getting on the next train ...

Thirteen Questions with the Unsuperstitious IM Davorin Kuljasevic of the Dallas Destiny

1. You have a truly incredible performance this season (also last). Why do you think you play so well in the USCL?

I think I'm doing so well this season because I've become a bit more mature and experienced, both in chess and life in general. A few years ago, a friend of mine told me that he's noticed a pattern of young chess players reaching their local peak performance at the age of 21. So I guess he was a good prophet! On the other hand, I'm also enjoying chess more than I used to a few years ago. And of course, I had some luck in a few games, but I'm not complaining! Mistakes are an inherent part of chess and you need to know how to take advantage of them.

2. I understand you felt unfairly passed over for the Game of the Week nomination. Which of your games do you feel most deserved to win, and why? Please describe both why it should have won and why it was of higher quality than the game that did win that week.

Yes, I believed I deserved a GOTW for my win against Tangborn. It was a really well played game on my part, both from strategical and tactical standpoint. However, judges didn't share my opinion and that's fine. It's a very subjective matter, despite some objective features to it, so I understand it's hard to make everyone happy.

3. How obsessed are you with chess? In an average week, how much do you study, play and think about chess? When you study, what exactly do you do? If you could choose to be more or less obsessed, would you choose either and to what extent?

I'm obsessed with chess and I can't help it :) Sometimes I find myself studying a certain position knowing that I'm supposed to do something else. It's like a mental drug. But if someone offered a cure, I would decline it :)
.

These days I'm mostly studying typical middlegame positions and trying to find new opening ideas. I already know a lot about chess so I don't have to bother with basic stuff. I also like to learn from 2700+ GM's games because they are dictating chess trends.

4. Describe your preparations for USCL games, including, but not limited to: opening preparation, pre-game superstitions, and interactions with teammates.

I start preparing for my opponent as soon as John informs me about the lineup. Fortunately, I got rid of pre-game superstitions, it's a really stupid habit. When I was younger I used to have a favorite pencil, favorite route to the game, and such useless routines. I doesn't make any sense if you think about it.

My preparation for USCL games is quite thorough since I have more time to prepare compared to regular tournaments. I'm trying to get as much data about my opponent as I can, and try to asses his overall playing abilities in order to know what kind of game I should expect. Then I decide on my opening and prepare accordingly.

5. How much are you playing chess outside the USCL? What’s your next big tournament? How ambitious are you in chess in general?

During the school year I hardly play any tournaments, but I make up for it by playing heavily during school breaks. I like it that way, because it allows me to fully concentrate on school when it's time to study, and on chess, when I play in tournaments. USCL comes nicely as a link between those two periods.

As far as my chess ambitions go, I'm not too ambitious about my chess career because I'm planning a career in business/finance. Hopefully, I will get as many opportunities to play chess as possible, because I just love it.

6. What are your thoughts on America in general, and Texas in particular? It must be something of a culture shock for you?

It is a bit of a culture shock, but I'm trying to fit in. Texans are friendly people in general and UTD community is very supportive of international students. What really impressed me about Americans is their appreciation of hard-work, which is lacking in the part of the world where I come from.

7. In recent years, a number of prose books about the chess world have been published. Have you read any of the following and, if so, what did you think: The Day Kasparov Quit (Dirk Jan ten Geuzendam), Chess Bitch (Jennifer Shahade), The Chess Artist (J. C. Hallman), Kings of New York (Michael Weinreb), The Art of Learning (Josh Waitzkin), King’s Gambit (Paul Hoffman), Engaging Pieces (Howard Goldowsky), How Life Imitates Chess (Gary Kasparov)?

I have to admit I haven't read any of these books. It seems they were created to spread awareness about chess in the general public, which is good because chess needs more financial support.

I'd like to note that Kotov's "Think like a Grandmaster" and Shereshevsky's "Endgame Strategy" are my favorite chess books.

8. Which are your top five chess-related websites and why?
.

Crochess.com-chess news from Croatia
Chessbase.com-interesting chess articles
The Week in Chess-TWIC download and news
Susan Polgar Chess Blog-covers a lot of chess stuff
USCL-I like to be informed about the league
.

9. Give us the inside scoop on the UTD chess team. How cohesive are the chess players there? Are you all close friends? Do you study together? How regimented is the chess training?

We're a pretty cohesive group both inside and outside of chess. I get along well with other team members, but I'm good friends with only a few of them. It's similar with others. I honestly don't know anything about other people's chess training. Like if you asked me how does Alejandro Ramirez work on chess I wouldn't have a clue. I think people like to keep those details to themselves, because, although we have to work as a team in collegiate tournaments, we want to beat each other in individual tournaments, such as the UTD GM Invitational.

10. What is the playing environment like at the Dallas site? Do you have spectators? Andrei Zaremba reported many distracting girls at his games. Has this been a problem for you also?
.

Yeah, it can get distracting with all those people dropping by, so each player needs to find his own way to concentrate on the game in the critical moments. But I don't mind the spectators because it's much more fun when they are around. The only thing I don't like is our internet connection. For some reason our supposedly stable campus connection breaks at least twice during the game.

I should also note that Keaton Kiewra is our most ardent supporter, we usually win when he is around (or on the team).

11. You will probably play board two in the upcoming final. Would you prefer to face Perelshteyn or Sammour-Hasbun? Why? Which do you expect to play? What predictions (opening, result, type of game) would you make for the encounter?

It's hard to predict anything, so I won't go into it. However, from what I've been able to conclude so far, Sammour-Hasbun will likely be the most challenging opponent this season. I'm looking forward to the game!

12. What you think Dallas’ chances against Boston are? How do you see the match, board by board?

I've believed we would win the league since the very beginning, so I see us winning the match on Wednesday :)

13. How much do you care about the result? Recently, in a video, Boston’s Ilya Krasik described not eating or sleeping after his team’s defeat last year by New York. Do you think you will share his experience if Dallas loses the Finals?

If we lose in the finals, I will probably quit chess. Just kidding ;) I played a few last round matches with even higher stakes before, so I'm used to the kind of psychological pressure Ilya had described. In any event, I'm delighted that Destiny has made it this far, so I already feel as we've accomplished something big, regardless of the final outcome.

Symmetrical Photos!

Just to cheer up your Sunday.

http://threequestionmarks.com/flickr/tag.php?tag=symmetry&total=67

(Just to be clear: I didn't take the photos or anything. I just think they're good. Also, this one kinda matches my blog, don't you think?)

Eleven Questions With NM Fransisco Guadalupe of the Dallas Destiny

1. You are a last minute replacement for Zorigt. The story of how that happened is available to read on the USCL website, but are there any behind-the-scenes explanations you can share? I have to say I’m surprised Dallas agreed to move the match when it means you will be facing an infinitely stronger Miami team.

From what I understand, Mr. Becerra and Mr. Lugo had already committed to play in another tournament here in Texas. The most likely reason why we agreed to move the date is that it would have been a lopsided match (rating-wise) with their top two players gone (then again, look at week 9 for Miami). In this process, Zorigt was unable to play so I have been chosen to step in.

2. You only played two matches in the regular season. Do you hate John Bartholomew for this?

No, I cannot say that I hate John in any way. Zorigt is a very solid Board 4 player, and with her in the lineup, we are able to play IMs on the other 3 boards. It just happens that I am slightly higher rated and cannot fit into that lineup.

3. You will be facing Luis Barredo next week. What are your expectations for this game? Any thoughts on Barredo as a player, strengths, weaknesses?

Even though I had lived in Florida for the majority of my life and first began chess there, I have never played Mr. Barredo before. My main goal is to come out of the opening in relatively equal game since that has been my main problem lately. From what I can tell from his past games, he is a sharp, tactical player. For this reason, I need to make sure that I do not make any serious tactical mistakes.

4. Any predictions for the top three boards of Miami - Dallas?

I think the most likely scenario would be us achieving 1.5/3 on the top three boards, needing my result to be at least a draw. I like our chances to win this match.

5. Boston won the Eastern finals. If Dallas takes the West, what line up would you expect Bartholomew would field against Boston? How do you estimate Dallas’s chances? Do you expect to be playing?

If we win the West, I would expect our lineup to consist of the usual: Drasko, Davorin, Jacek, and Bayaraa. I would not expect myself to play, especially because I am playing this week. Considering how well we have played during this year, I expect us to have a good chance of winning; although, Boston is a very good team.

6. Give us the inside scoop on the UTD chess team. How cohesive are the chess players there? Are you all close friends? Do you study together? How regimented is the chess training?

Since I just arrived at UTD as a freshman, I have not had the opportunity to get to know everyone very well. Many of the players room together so they are fairly close. As for the studying and training, well, we will just keep that a UTD secret.

7. Describe your preparations for USCL games, including, but not limited to: opening preparation, pre-game superstitions, and interactions with teammates.

For the most part, I usual just prepare for the opening and brush up on some tactics. I am not a very superstitious person, so I cannot say that I have any pre-game ritual.

8. Are there any openings that give you special pleasure to either play or play against?

Since I have been an e4 player my entire life, I enjoy common king pawn lines, such as the Ruy Lopez. Oddly enough, I usually do not have the opportunity to play this as white, but rather as black! It is probably the only opening that I play from both sides of the board.

9. If you had to pick name on type of ending that you are especially good at, what would it be?

Even though the ending is draw-ish, I consider myself to be a pretty good rook endgame player. I suppose an example of this would be from the recent UTD-Belgrade match where I was able to draw the ending down a pawn, after I won it back (although, and to his credit, he hung another pawn and was able to draw me!).

10. Do you dream about chess and if so, tell us a dream.

I cannot say that I truly dream of chess but more so daydream. I am still looking for my first win over an IM or a GM and that is a constant thought. Even though I am a master, I have yet to beat anyone over 2350, which is rather unusual.

11. How obsessed are you with chess? In an average week, how much do you study, play and think about chess? When you study, what exactly do you do? If you could choose to be more or less obsessed, would you choose either and to what extent?

For about the past year, I have not consistently studied chess. In general, I limit my chess time to playing online and playing in weekly tournaments (so maybe 6-7 hours a week?). Since I usually only study the week before a tournament, I focus mainly on tactics to keep myself somewhat sharp. I wish I could devote more time, but as a college freshman my education comes first.

Interview With Miami Shark FM Marcel Martinez

1. If you were trapped on a desert island for eternity with no possibility of rescue and could choose to have with you:
a. 5 books

Kasparov's Predeccessors books... they are the best books in the history of the game

b. 5 albums

I enjoy R&B music... soul and Jazz so I would say Lionel Richie stuff, Ray Charles,Kenny G, Andrea Boccelli etc

c. 1 chess player

Kasparov

d. 1 member of the USCF executive board and

Szuza Polgar..... I will support her in anything she does as I think she is trying very hard for chess to be recognized

e. 1 luxury item,

a laptop with a wireless card

What would you choose? (The island already contains a chessboard and clock)

2. Who are your favorite and least favorite USCL opponents and why? (You may answer individuals and/or teams)

I love playing against San Francisco as all the guys in the teams I consider to be good friends of mine and is nice to play nice people like them whether you win or lose. I hate playing against Tennessee Tempo's since we are always expected to win even in our worst year in the USCL's history and I really don't enjoy putting up with this kid Andrews comments whether he does well or bad... always talks some non-sense

3. If you had to play for a different USCL team, which would it be and why?

Miami again.... I am very much in love with my city!!... and we all get along great in the team

4. Describe your preparations for USCL games, including, but not limited to: opening preparation, pre-game superstitions, and interactions with teammates.

Well we don't do a whole lot of preparations since most of us or all of us work in different fields etc... so we don't get so much time... sometimes over the phone we discuss things (ex: Becerra, Blas and myself are in touch on the daily basis as we are like best friends) we all share Becerra's files which by the way when they go on ebay they should be kind of expensive!!) Gilberto Luna been the team manager is been great as he is also in charge of bringing us red bull and ice cream from the gas station next to the club while we play

5. If you could choose the next USCL expansion team, which city would you choose, which players would you draft, and why?

Los Angeles since I get along with armenians great... and they have GM's Akobian Kachiyan and former buddy of mine who was very interested on playing given the right time Harutyan Akopyan

6. Which are your top five chess-related websites and why?

chessbase.com chesscafe.com e3e5.com crestbook.com www.uschess.org

7. Are there any openings that give you special pleasure to either play or play against?

I guess pleasure comes to me thru any opening as long as I feel I played well whether I win or lose

8. If you had to pick name on type of ending that you are especially good at, what would it be?

None since I suck at chess period

9. Do you dream about chess, and if so, describe a dream you’ve had.

When I was young I always dreamed of representing my country (Cuba or USA later on) in the World Juniors Championships and even when I won the US Junior Championships in 1999 I was not allowed to do so which was the biggest dissapointment in my life overall uptodate

10. If Bill Gates gave you $500,000 to organize a chess tournament
a. where would you hold it,

Miami
b. what format would you choose,

Open
c. who would you invite, and

Kasparov
d. what, if any, special rules would you impose?

None.. leave chess the way it is!

11. How obsessed are you with chess? In an average week, how much do you study, play and think about chess? If you could choose to be more or less obsessed, would you choose either and to what extent?

I love chess.. I wish I could do it all day all night.... unluckily circumstances do not allow me to do so..... It is kind of difficult for me to talk about an average week since due to work it changes constantly... I am out on the street all day long... driving.. visiting stores (I am in charge of the Wine Division of my company Gold Coast Beverage Distributors in the county I live so I have a lot of responsabilities when it comes to sales) I don't get to play period.... if I play 3 tournaments in a year I can consider myself lucky since due to the vacation time I am allowed at work I can only dedicate to chess so much... ( I have a wife... family etc.. they also should get some of my time don't u think?) But I would definitly like to be more obsessed.

12. In recent years, a number of prose books about the chess world have been published. Have you read any of the following and, if so, what did you think: The Day Kasparov Quit (Dirk Jan ten Geuzendam), Chess Bitch (Jennifer Shahade), The Chess Artist (J. C. Hallman), Kings of New York (Michael Weinreb), The Art of Learning (Josh Waitzkin), King’s Gambit (Paul Hoffman), Engaging Pieces (Howard Goldowsky), How Life Imitates Chess (Gary Kasparov)?

The day Kasparov quit chess I enjoyed since all these interviews allow u to draw some conclusions about chess and chess players and the author is awesome.... I always look up to him.... his writing style is awesome.... a little bit short of the "dream team" (Jenn,Liz,Greg) but not bad at all

13. Of all your games this year, which are you proudest of?

vs Zilberstein last week since Becerra prepared me for it a week in advance as we knew he was going to go for this some time. It was all preparation till move 28!!

14. How did the members of the Miami team get chosen? How do you determine the line-up each week?

Gilberto Luna as team manager chooses the line-up checking on our availability but u know sometimes to do work issuess of different people we have to get penalized badly because of last minute changes

15. In your earlier match this season, Dallas beat Miami. What are your plans to make sure this does not happen again?

I don't really care about what happened earlier.... we are going to put up a fight and expect to be victorious.... I like this whole cinderella story idea.. coming from deep down under

16. Are there any lineups from Dallas you especially fear or want to see? They seem to play Boskovic and Kuljasevic pretty consistently; any special strategy for either of those two?

Not at all.... we will all try our best whether they line up Kasparov in the team

17. Were you surprised Dallas agreed to postpone your match?

It was nice from them but that also allowed them to make up a bit stronger team especially in board 4 where I think we have the edge regardless

18. If you make it to the playoffs, how do you see your chances against Boston? What line up do you expect they would use?

We will see then... now we care about Dallas...

Free Speech Time Is Over

I'm deleting all comments that are ridiculously offensive or totally insane.

some random thoughts .... actually from me....

so despite the manical pace of posting interviews, I haven't actually written anything in a while.....
The interviews are of course absolutely easy-- I don't do anything except write the questions and email them out.... people actually thank me for asking them to essentially write my blog for me.... ok, I called Becerra and actually exerted myself to type what he said, but he is playing in a tournament.

So I had a couple thoughts. .

The first was... wouldn't it be strange if suddenly you had a new name?

If everyone suddenly and simultaneously started calling you Harold, or Phoebe, or Fritz, or Elliot?
And what would be weirder is if you knew that there was one person who made this happen. That, let's say, Steve Immit, or Brenda Goichburg or that 1900 from your local club, the one who's always in time pressure, this person just randomly chooses one day and, not maliciously, absolutely not, in fact, this person feels warmly towards you without a doubt. But not unintentionally either. They just exert some power and change your name.

And then, presto! you are Carmen.

This is of course ridiculous in multiple ways, but it happened to me this summer.
Chris Bird changed my name to Liz.

Now total strangers call me Liz and I just gape at them in disbelief. You should understand, no one has really, ever in my life, called me Liz before. So it startles me. Of course, Chris Bird is a very nice guy, but I know him only in the most casual of ways. Friend of a friend. And then he calls me Liz that on one tournament website and boom. Liz. Liz. Always.

Ok, enough about me. Let's talk about Josh Friedel.
Do you know he just lost on time with a rook vs a knight* in a real tournament game???
Kinda makes you appreciate the USCF, no? At least the rules make sense.

Somehow, I've had this one same thought all the time, basically every day, for the last three or four years.
The thought is: "Are these people f*cking kidding me?"
I worry it's a sign of my disengagement from human society.

Anyway, other news in my life... work is killing me, making me want to be a zombie....I'm starting to have insane ideas like I can run errands before work, at 6:30, 7 am. I can't explain why I think that.
... in more exciting news I'm writing an article for Chessbase.com on the USCL. (Managers: if you have any photos of female team members in bikinis, I need them now.) No, but honestly I'm looking forward to writing the piece in a very breezy, magaziney kind of way. I just need to remember that I decided that exclamation marks make writing seem very girly.

*he had the rook!!

An Incredibly Long Interview With Boston Blitz Manager Matt Phelps

1. If you were trapped on a desert island for eternity with no possibility of rescue and could choose to have with you:
a. 5 books
b. 5 albums
c. 1 chess player
d. 1 member of the USCF executive board and
e. 1 luxury item,
What would you choose? (The island already contains a chessboard and clock)

Forgetting the personal tragedy of being away from my family and friends, I would concentrate on the amount of time I'd have to occupy myself:

a: · The Oxford English Dictionary - I can read dictionary entries for hours. Finding new words, etymology, etc. fascinates me.
· Laszlo Polgar's "Brick" (5334 Problems) - That should keep me busy for a while.
· Kasparov's "My Great Predecessors" series (does that count as 1?)
· Some random epic historical novel - Preferably 900+ pages
· "Basic Shipbuilding" - To get me off this damn island!

b: · "Revolver"
· Beethoven's 9th performed by the Berlin Orchestra conducted by Von Karajan
· "Solid Gold Hits of the 80's"
· "London Calling" by The Clash
· "The Best Damn Thing" by Avril Lavigne - I confess that I'm addicted to the song "Girlfriend"

c. Larry Christiansen - Great chess stories, and he's a regular guy who can talk about baseball and golf.

d. Sam Sloan - I know he's a former member, but I still want to hit him on the head with a coconut.

e. A yacht.

2. Who are your favorite and least favorite USCL opponents and why? (You may answer individuals and/or teams)

NY and Charbonneau for obvious reasons. Hasn't his visa run out yet?

3. If you had to play for/ manage a different USCL team, which would it be and why?

I guess SF. I like the city, and I know Friedel from his Blitz days. I also knew Wolff back in the day, though he won't remember me. We played about a billion tournaments at the Armenian Cultural and Educational Center in Watertown, Mass. He'll remember that site.

4. Describe your preparations for USCL games, including, but not limited to: opening preparation, pre-game superstitions, and interactions with teammates.

I do what every chess organizer does; I move tables and chairs around. The USCL adds the pleasure of setting up computers at each table too.

5. If you could choose the next USCL expansion team, which city would you choose, which players would you draft, and why?

Anything but another NY team! PLEASE!

6. If you could hand pick any seven people to serve on the USCF executive board, who would they be?

Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Envy, and Pride. Oh, did you mean NEW members?

7. If someone were to post on internet newsgroups as “The Fake You,” what kinds of things would they write to discredit you?

That I'm nothing but a middle-aged 1600 player with a paunch who is managing this team so he can hang around good players.

All true.

8. If you could change any one USCF or FIDE rule, which one would it be and why?
I would enact the "Sofia Rules" for every FIDE rated game. I don't mind draws; it's a natural result of a well played game, but the 12 movers completed in ten minutes, total, have got to stop.

9. Any thoughts on Kasparov’s recent appearances on Colbert or Maher?

I wish he still played chess.

10. Which are your top five chess-related websites and why?

http://reassembler.wordpress.com - Derek Slater's blog. Derek is an Mass. Expert, and my US Amateur Team East teammate. There's a lot of chess stuff, but mostly it has eclectic other stuff in it that I like a lot.
http://www.chessbase.com - For the babes
http://www.mterowestchess.org - My "home" chess club.
http://www.uschessleague.com - I like Greg's minimalist approach. No clutter!
http://www.boston-blitz.com - Of course! Chris Bird has done a great job on out team web site.

11. If Bill Gates gave you $500,000 to organize a chess tournament
a. where would you hold it,

In Boston, in an old theater. I love the pictures from the Soviet era with the games on stage in the Hall of Columns.

b. what format would you choose,

Quadruple round-robin

c. who would you invite

Kasparov, Kramnik, Anand, Ivanchuk, Morozevich, and Jorge Sammour-Hasbun.

d. what, if any, special rules would you impose?

"Sofia Rules", and no Petroff Defenses.

12. How obsessed are you with chess? In an average week, how much do you study, play and think about chess? If you could choose to be more or less obsessed, would you choose either and to what extent?

I don't study at all. When I'm not managing the Blitz, I play one night a week at the MetroWest Chess Club. I follow all the news sites, blogs, etc. fanatically though.

If I won the lottery, I would study chess 6-8 hours a day. Maybe then I'd get over 1800.

13. In recent years, a number of prose books about the chess world have been published. Have you read any of the following and, if so, what did you think: The Day Kasparov Quit (Dirk Jan ten Geuzendam), Chess Bitch (Jennifer Shahade), The Chess Artist (J. C. Hallman), Kings of New York (Michael Weinreb), The Art of Learning (Josh Waitzkin), King’s Gambit (Paul Hoffman), Engaging Pieces (Howard Goldowsky), How Life Imitates Chess (Gary Kasparov)?

I liked fellow MetroWest CC member Howard Goldowsky's book a lot. We need more like it! Just go out and buy it right now. I started Kasparov's latest, but it got really boring really quickly. Not enough chess stuff for me. It's autographed though!

14. So New York will be your opponent in the Eastern finals. How do you expect to do? Specifically, if they use the same line up as tonight (Nakamura, Krush, Bonin, Zenyuk), how would you expect to do on each board?

Well, we know it's Naka, Charbonneau, Bonin and Zenyuk now. I expect us to win the match of course! I think we match up well on every board.

15. If you could inflict a sudden food poisoning on any one NY player, so that this person would be replaced with their normal alternate (or that team replaced with the one that makes the most sense without the ill player)?

Charbonneau, no question. Day-old sushi Pascal?

16. If you could pick one normal, mainstream opening and force a New York player to play it, who would you pick, what would the opening be, and why?

As a chess fan, I'd love to see Sammour-Hasbun vs. Charbonneau be a Dragon/Yugoslav Attack.. What a fight that would be!

17. If you win the Eastern finals, who do you expect to see as your opponents in the championship? How do you rate your chances against them (board by board)? Are there any lineups you would hope to play against?

(In my best Bill Belichick monotonic drone) We're just taking it one match at a time. We're only thinking about NY on Wednesday.

18. The Chris Williams/ Ilya Krasik dichotomy has to be one of the funnier aspects of your team. How do you see your two fourth boards, in terms of chess strengths/ weaknesses, personality, and impact on the team? What’s your take on the Bournival / Krasik war?

No comment.

19. There are many strong players in the Boston area. How did you choose who would be on the Boston team? Specifically, I’m surprised by the absence of Vigorito, Macintyre, and Bournival.

It's tough! I've had many players ask me about joining the team. In fact, I lobbied the USCL officials (Greg) to increase the team rosters to ten, with two alternates to try and accommodate them; but it wasn't meant to be.

20. How many spectators do you get, on average?

We get about 5-10 people, not counting the Boston Blitz Dancers.

21. How cohesive is the Boston team? Do you guys regularly hang out after matches? Prepare together?

Not so much this year. Last year we closed John Harvard's Brew Pub most Wednesday nights.

22. What have you seen as this year’s strengths and weaknesses? Are their any players you would consider recruiting for next year to fix these weaknesses?

We don't have many weaknesses. We'll have to see where the ratings for the current team members fall for next year, and go from there.

23. Who would you nominate for MVP?

Everyone has played well, but I'll go with Jorge Sammour-Hasbun at 4.5-0.5 with the only nick by GM Nakamura. Denys Shmelov is a VERY close second. Both rookies have had an awesome year.

Ten Questions With New York Knight NM Iryna Zenyuk

1. If you were trapped on a desert island for eternity with no possibility of rescue and could choose to have with you:
a. 5 books
b. 5 albums
c. 1 chess player
d. 1 luxury item,

a. “A Hero of Our Time” by Lermontov, “The Brothers Karamazov” by Dostoevsky, “Les Miserables” by Hugo, Bible, “Confessions” by Augustine and “Zurich International Chess Tournament, 1953” by Bronstein

b. I would take Russian Rock band DDT, Kelly Clarkson’ albums, some classical music like Tchaikovsky “The Seasons”.

c. I will take two: Josh Friedel and Tatev Abrahamyan.

d. my laptop

2. Describe your preparations for USCL games, including, but not limited to: opening preparation, pre-game superstitions, and interactions with teammates.

I start thinking about my game Sunday night when the pairings are posted. But I usually don’t sit at the board preparing until Tuesday night or Wednesday after my classes. I have no superstitions; I listen to Russian rock, while walking to the club. Sometimes we go to dinner Tuesday night with Irina, it is fun, I find Irina to be very supportive of her teammates.

3. If you could choose the next USCL expansion team, which city would you choose, which players would you draft, and why?

I think Chicago because they have Shulman, Gurevich and many other strong players there or LA with Akobian and Khaciyan.

4. Are there any openings that give you special pleasure to either play or play against?

Kings Indian Defense has been my favorite opening for black for long time, but now I enjoy to play against it with white too, I also like to play Taimanov Sicilian.

5. Which are your top five chess-related websites and why?

Chesspro.ru – for their tournament reports and analyses;
Uschess.org – I visit it every day to keep up of what going on in US chess and to see rating updates;
uschessleague.com- I follow the league closely;
Chessbase.com – worldwide chess news;
chesscenter.com- to download TWIC.

6. How obsessed are you with chess? In an average week, how much do you study, play and think about chess? If you could choose to be more or less obsessed, would you choose either and to what extent?

I am pretty obsessed with chess. I used to study chess like 3-6 hours but now I would be happy to study for 2 hours a day. I play every other weekend in Marshall CC and played for the past seven Wednesdays for USCL. Thinking about chess positions comes randomly when I am in train, elevator, during classes, dinners. The positions are usually from the recent games I have played, I replay them in my head and try to find reasons why I made this move or that move etc. Because I don’t have courage to quit chess I would rather choose to be more obsessed with chess, I would love to be full time chess player.

7. You have an incredible record in the USCL (current performance rating: 2478!). Is there any special reason for this? Have you been studying a lot recently? Do you play better in the online format of the USCL? Is it because you can prepare for the games?

Today I saw my performance rating in USCL, it is rather good! I can guess that one of the reasons for my good play is that I went back to visit my relatives in Ukraine for August and September. I had a chance to study chess intensively for two weeks there with my past coach Kobylianskyi Igor. I mean like 7 hours per day, 2-3 hours personal training and 4-5 with the group. I was very happy to study so much chess. I also played two tournaments; I did well and got my second WIM norm. This prepared me well for the USCL, I really take seriously the league and want to do my best to help my team. I play better in online format, it is less emotional for me. Also, preparation helps, so far I could guess like 50% of the opponents’ openings.

8. You will almost certainly be playing Chris Williams in the upcoming match with Boston. What do you think of him as a player? Could you name specific strengths and weaknesses? Do you have any predictions for your individual game (result, opening, what the decisive factor will be)?

I think Chris is very dangerous opponent. Looking at his games I see great determination from his side, he is an aggressive player, calculates very well, he is not afraid to go into sharp, double-edged play where the price of tempo can cost you a point. The first game we played was very sharp, at some point I thought I lost the thread of a game, after 21.Nd6 I thought I was just worse, my attack didn’t work and my king was bad. Then, after 21…Nb6 I found nice rook maneuver, of course giving up his bishop was a mistake but we were both in time pressure, so it was hard to find the best moves. I hope for a hard fought game on Wednesday! And btw the song about Chris is great!

9. What’s your life like outside of chess? You are studying at Brooklyn Polytechnic to work in space type research? What exactly are you aiming to do? How long will that take? Do you also work? Do you have any other hobbies?

I will graduate in May 2008 from Polytechnic University with BS in Mechanical Engineering with Aerospace concentration. My dream job would be to work for NASA. So far I plan to go to a grad school, which will take two more years. Outside of chess I like to play volleyball. I played for highschool team and also two seasons for college varsity team. When it is warm outside we go to play to Central Park with my friend, we have a really great time there. I also like running, this is the time when my mind relaxes, I usually go running outside and late when it is dark and not many people around, I don’t like gyms, they are crowded and noisy. I also enjoy reading and playing guitar (beginner level).

10. What are your upcoming chess tournaments/ ambitions? Why didn’t you play in the US Women’s this summer? Do you study with anyone?

My short term goal is to get my third WIM, then in following two years WGM title that is why I am mostly aiming at 9 round Swiss or round robins. I plan to play in December in Marshall Club Championship and in February in Aeroflot Open. It is not that easy to fit chess tournaments during a school year, this semester I missed a month of school, it looks like summer is the best time to play chess. But it is not always so, for example this summer I did two months internship, working for professor in the field of spacecraft formation flying control and couldn’t play in US Women’s Championship. But I followed all the games live during work J . I have been studying chess with my coach Vladimir Lymar for the past six years.