World Mini Games

checknraise · 02-07-2013 9:58pm #1

I just stumbled upon this upcoming Rapid/Blitz tournament in Cork and I will definitely be playing. There needs to be more Rapid & Blitz tournaments in Ireland!

I have a few questions tho so hopefully somebody might know...

It looks like everything is scheduled for the 1 weekend with loads of different things going on at the same time, is it envisioned that the chess wont clash at the same time as few of the other games i.e poker, dodgeball( has to be fun!)?

Have any decent rates of accommodation been sorted by the organisers?

How many rounds of each? and what time will the start and finish be each day?

http://www.worldminigames2013.com/index.shtml

http://www.icu.ie/events/list.php?type=irish

bigtoe7 · 02-07-2013 10:15pm

click on pdf file on icu site and you will see . 7 rounds of rapid on day one and 20 rounds of blitz on days 2 and it is fide rated

checknraise · 02-07-2013 10:26pm

Thanks

, doesnt look like there will be any time for dodgeball so :pac:

derekE222 · 03-07-2013 11:07pm

dodgeball is loads of fun, i would recommend giving it a try. you won't be disappointed:)

Sparks · 14-08-2013 2:40pm

From the ICU website:

World Mini Games Chess Tournaments - CANCELLED

The Rapid and Blitz tournaments planned for the 24th and 25th of August in Cork as part of the World Mini Games have been cancelled due to lack of numbers. Any fees paid already will be refunded (please contact Cork Chess Club). The organisers would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused.

brilliantboy · 14-08-2013 10:25pm

Sparks wrote: »

From the ICU website:

Disappointing really. I would have thought there would be plenty of players from that corner of the country able to support it.

I wonder did the association with the World Mini Games hurt this one?
Regular chess players being turned off by the prospect of having to play casuals
and casuals just not caring, or choosing to take part in other activities.

checknraise · 14-08-2013 11:21pm

It was going to be a fide rated rapid and blitz tournament I really doubt you would have had to many casual players and if so brilliant! I had intended on playing

I would guess that quite a few players were intending to play but didnt want to register early. I never understand how organisers can expect early entry when there is no online option to pay as very few people use a cheque books anymore and I wouldn't be comfortable posting cash.

bigtoe7 · 15-08-2013 12:56am

this tournament is a great idea but it was at wrong location , Dublin is where it would have worked beautifully with high population of chess players and not cork .here another example of good idea but wrong location: in ww2 germans tried blitzkrieg , it worked well in france but was a disaster in russia .

Sparks · 15-08-2013 1:22am

bigtoe7 wrote: »

here another example of good idea but wrong location: in ww2 germans tried blitzkrieg , it worked well in france but was a disaster in russia .

(a) that's not what happened;
(b) what on earth has that got to do with the price of bread in france?

eclipsechaser · 15-08-2013 2:41pm

My guess is that people were planning to register on the day. I'd say they would have got reasonable numbers if they hadn't cancelled it.

Sparks · 15-08-2013 3:21pm

Can't leave organisers hanging like that, not knowing if they're facing two people or two hundred, not when they have to hire venues and so forth.

bigtoe7 · 16-08-2013 12:33am

@ eclipchaser you are right , many chess players leave it til last minute to book a place , it was too early to cancel the event . organiser is at fault here , rent a hall in a school or somewhere , if numbers small hold it at your chess club but don't cancel , when you advertise you should cater for what ever number turns up , very bad form to cancel like that , bray rapid had 83 people attending it and it was not rated , this sort of event would be ideal for Dublin .

Sparks · 16-08-2013 12:50am

bigtoe7 wrote: »

very bad form to cancel like that

That's an incredibly unrealistic and self-centered attitude...

eclipsechaser · 16-08-2013 1:53am

Sparks wrote: »

Can't leave organisers hanging like that, not knowing if they're facing two people or two hundred, not when they have to hire venues and so forth.

It's not an easy position for organisers. I help run one of the annual Dublin tournaments. We always get more people signing up on the door than we do in advance. It does make planning and time-keeping difficult but it's just the nature of things.

2 years ago, we had so many entering on the day that we started around 45 minutes late. Having asked for advice, last year we made the draw a few days in advance and paired late players together. That helped a lot. We also increased the late surcharge to disincentivise late entries. This year we're hoping to have a Paypal option which will hopefully help things further.

Any other suggestions on how to help the problem?

Sparks · 16-08-2013 2:06am

eclipsechaser wrote: »

Any other suggestions on how to help the problem?

Change the behaviour of the entrants. Which sounds like "bell the cat" I know, but it can be done, other sports have done it in the past; you "just" have to broadly announce the new rule and then adhere to it mercilessly. So long as the new rule is reasonable and sensible, only a small degree of bloody-mindedness is needed.

For example, fix the maximum number of entrants at slightly less than what you expect based on past years (you've had between 50 and 60 entrants every year for the last decade? Set the limit at 50); then post the number of available places on the website and update it as it decreases -- that bit's important and you have to do it immediately so people see the number of available places decreasing; have a final registration date that's a week or so ahead of the event and double the entry fee for anyone registering between one minute past that date and the event itself; and double the fee again for anyone signing in on the day and make it first come first served for any places left.

And if you have 50 places and a 51st person tries to sign up on the day, show them to the spectators area or send them home - on no account let anyone bend the rule. After a few events run this way, people get the message and alter their behaviour, but bend the rule before that happens and you might as well give up and go back to barely directed chaos and cancelling events.

And if nobody signs up before the registration date, cancel the event.

Ciaran · 16-08-2013 11:43am

Turning people away is a bad idea. If I got turned away from a tournament, I'd never enter it again. A surcharge for entering on the day and an early draw for people who entered early so they don't get delayed sounds like enough to me.

Sparks · 16-08-2013 11:48am

Ciaran wrote: »

Turning people away is a bad idea. If I got turned away from a tournament, I'd never enter it again.

The problem now seems to be that an event has been cancelled because people wouldn't sign up on time; so without trying to be personally offensive, is it worse that one person who wouldn't sign up on time doesn't enter again or that the event doesn't run at all and nobody gets to enter at all, including those who did enter on time?

Is it really that hard to enter an event before the day itself?

bigtoe7 · 17-08-2013 12:08am

@ ciaran . you are absolutely right , late entrance fee & pairing is more than enough .don't mind sparky too much , poor guy can't differentiate between a gold medal and a cup made up of cheapest metal .

bigtoe7 · 17-08-2013 12:14am

Sparks wrote: »

Change the behaviour of the entrants. Which sounds like "bell the cat" I know, but it can be done, other sports have done it in the past; you "just" have to broadly announce the new rule and then adhere to it mercilessly. So long as the new rule is reasonable and sensible, only a small degree of bloody-mindedness is needed.

For example, fix the maximum number of entrants at slightly less than what you expect based on past years (you've had between 50 and 60 entrants every year for the last decade? Set the limit at 50); then post the number of available places on the website and update it as it decreases -- that bit's important and you have to do it immediately so people see the number of available places decreasing; have a final registration date that's a week or so ahead of the event and double the entry fee for anyone registering between one minute past that date and the event itself; and double the fee again for anyone signing in on the day and make it first come first served for any places left.

And if you have 50 places and a 51st person tries to sign up on the day, show them to the spectators area or send them home - on no account let anyone bend the rule. After a few events run this way, people get the message and alter their behaviour, but bend the rule before that happens and you might as well give up and go back to barely directed chaos and cancelling events.

And if nobody signs up before the registration date, cancel the event.

mind boggling statements you make sparky. any one reading this is going to be shocked by what you've said . people are entering chess tournaments not an exclusive night club in beverly hills and you can not treat them like trash . some players wait til last minute to register to see if they are in a mood physically and psychologically to spend hours playing chess , sometimes over 10 hours of chess in one day in competitions .

Sparks · 17-08-2013 12:44am

bigtoe7 wrote: »

people are entering chess tournaments not an exclusive night club in beverly hills and you can not treat them like trash

If simply being asked to register for an event before the event happens so that the organisers can confirm bookings for venues and the club running the event doesn't wind up saddled with a large bill because everyone wasn't in the mood to play and the deposit on the venue was lost (or worse, noone shows up on the day and the full cost has to be borne by the club), is something you consider being treated like trash, then you're probably going to be more work than you're worth for them anyways, and will be no real loss to them. You're basically arguing that the club should take a large financial hit purely because you think you should be able to decide whether to play or not on a whim on the day. It must be a load of fun for clubs to arrange league games where you're on a team and have to play in a set place on a set day...

some players wait til last minute to register to see if they are in a mood physically and psychologically to spend hours playing chess , sometimes over 10 hours of chess in one day in competitions .

So you mean they don't prepare for an event. Well then, no big deal for those turned away, is it? They only showed up on a whim according to you, so it's only a whim they've had go unfulfilled if the event runs out of places, not a long period of preparation. The serious players will have had the event on their calendar for some time and signing up for it will be a triviality to them, won't it?

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