Perpetual Chess returns for the second edition of what will be an occasional series, Perpetual Tournament Reports. (First edition here). For this episode, two guests join me to share their experiences at ALTO (“At Least Twenty One”), which was a tournament that took place in early September and was hosted by the Charlotte Chess Center. ALTO is a semi-annual tournament that has quickly gained a loyal roster of attendees due to the unique opportunity it presents to compete against and socialize with other adult chess players. My guests are 1) Returning guest, data scientist, blogger and Chessable Author, FM Nate Solon. Nate hasn’t been competing OTB much lately, in part due to having his first baby at home, but somehow won the open section of the tournament! Despite this incredible success, Nate feels he has plenty of chess to work on, and he shares his reflections from his games and away-from-the-board experiences in Charlotte. 2) James Braindmair got into chess via the Queen’s Gambit and is already quite active in his chess community in Columbia, South Carolina. In addition to a busy work and family life, James is President of the Columbia Chess Club. With so many responsibilities, James doesn’t get a ton of time to study, but he and some local chess friends all made the trip to play and compete. James reflects on the chess and non-chess lessons he has recently learned. Timestamps of guests and topics discussed can be found below.
Prior tournament report podcast-
https://www.perpetualchesspod.com/new-blog/2023/6/30/f82nnc8zc3crw6pxaprlkd5rgil5a7
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2Hmf19bVCz3WiwqFTmuHAE?si=8eedbfe0a6154989
If are rated below 1300 Chess.com or lower (Approximately) and would like to send me games for my forthcoming Chessable course please email Ben at perpetualchesspod.com
4:45- FM Nate Solon joins the pod! Was he surprised that he won the tournament? What were the key moments?
Mentioned:
https://www.chessable.com/100-repertoires-reti-1nf3/course/170854/
Episode 346 with NM Todd Bryant
LiChess study with most of Nate’s games
Episode 307 with IM Dean Ippolito
Nate’s post on Time Management-
https://zwischenzug.substack.com/p/time-management
16:00- Nate describes his mindset going in to his final round game against IM Dina Belenkaya.
Mentioned: GM Eugene Perelshteyn
21:00- Nate just hit a new rating high at age 38- how is he able to defy chess gravity?
23:00- What was ALTO like away from the board?
26:00- How is the 1. Nf3 repertoire from Nate’s Chessable course working out?
30:00- How did Nate’s new openings as Black work out?
Mentioned: King’s Kalashnikov Sicilian, Shankland’s Semi-Slav
38:00- What are Nate’s chess takeaways from the tournament?
Mentioned: Check Nate’s video recap of his White games here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fd6niI6KllI
45:00- James Brandmair joins the pod! He begins by discussing how he recently got into tournament chess.
Mentioned: Paul Copeland, NM Sam Copeland’s YouTube Channel
48:00- What were James’ goals going into the tournament?
Mentioned: Hanlon-Brandmair 2023, IM Dina Belenkaya, JJ Lang, IM David Vigorito
54:00- What has James learned from reviewing the games?
Mentioned: GM John Shaw’s King’s Gambit, Godly Gambit
1:00:00- What are the goals for the Columbia Chess Club?
Mentioned: Is James’ wife supportive of chess weekends?
1:05:00- Did the tournament feel differently without kids competing?
Thanks to James for joining! You can email him at Jamesbrandmair at gmail dot com
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EP 304- Neal Bruce- What We Can Learn from the Studying Classic Game Compilation Books
EP 303- Adult Improver Kyle Boddy- A Pioneer in Sports Analytics and Peak Performance on His Approach to Chess Improvement
EP 302- Chess Improvement Q & A with IM Andras Toth- One of YouTube's Best Chess Teachers
Bonus Pod- GM Hans Niemann is suing Magnus, Chess.com and Hikaru Nakamura! Law Professor David Franklin joins to Assess What Might Happen From Here
EP 301- Computer Science Professor and IM, Dr. Kenneth Regan on the Carlsen/Niemann controversy and the Current State of Cheating in OTB Chess
EP 300- Swedish Chess Legend, GM Ulf Andersson on his Encounters with Kasparov, Karpov and Fischer and How he Keeps up With Chess Today.
Bonus Pod- FM Nate Solon joins to Discuss Chess.Com's Report about the Carlsen/Niemann Controversy
EP 299- Chess Blogger and Trainer FM Dennis Monokroussos on Lessons from Tal and Petrosian, how 'Toiletgate' compared to the Current Chess Scandal, and the Importance of Playing with Different Styles
Book Recap #29- Discussing The Longest Game by GM Jan Timman a Great Book which Tells the Story of the Kasparov-Karpov matches
Bonus Pod- GM Jonathan Rowson and GM David Smerdon discuss the Carlsen/Niemann Saga
EP 298- Adult Improver Hans Henning on Why he Loves Studying Openings, and How Chess Helps Give Him Purpose
Bonus Pod- GM Alex Fishbein and IM Greg Shahade share their thoughts on the latest developments in the Carlsen/Niemann Sinquefield Cup Controversy
EP 297- IM Carissa Yip on her love for the King’s Indian Defense, Why Levon Aronian is her favorite player and the ups and downs of her first Chess Olympiad.
Bonus Pod- GM Jacob Aagaard joins for an update on the Sinquefield Cup Controversy
EP 296- Award Winning Author/Trainer, GM Jacob Aagaard on Endgame "Rules of Thumb", the Wave of Young Phenoms, and the World Championship Format
Bonus Pod- Chess World in Turmoil as Magnus Carlsen Suddenly withdraws from Sinquefield Cup Amid Speculation that GM Hans Niemann used Engine Assistance
Episode 295- GM Gregory Kaidanov- One of the US’ top players and trainers on Maintaining Motivation, Imparting Lessons to Students, and his Long Journey from the USSR to the US.
Bonus Pod- How to Chess Podcast- GM Johan Hellsten on How to Analyze Your Own Chess Games
EP 294- GM Fabiano Caruana on Engines, The Evolution of Chess, the Candidates Tournament, and the World Championship Cycle.
EP 293- Olympiad Trip reports with Lula Roberts aka "LulaRobs" and Team USA captain, IM John Donaldson
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