This weekend was the Governor's Cup, aka the Chess State Championship. There were 3 student's from Noah's school who qualified, so we were allowed a wild card player for a full team of four players. It was a two day tournament with 9 rounds, no elimination, which means Noah played ALL 9 rounds! Two LONG days of chess for Noah, and time passing for the rest of the fam.
So many stories I don't know where to begin. First off, when I went to sign him up, there was no option for his bracket (K-3, under 600). The only K-3 option was the CHAMP division. These are serious chess players....from chess families....not related to Eric and I. :) All I could think was that Noah is not ready for this. He is an average player in the under 600 section, I can't even imagine him winning one round at the State Championship. But he did it...he won ONE round. WOO-HOO!!!
It started Saturday morning at 9:00 a.m., and Eric and I were running late, as usual. Eric dropped us off near the gates and Noah, Caleb, and I went running in. We found the pairings, Noah's color and board number, headed into the hall and began searching for the board. Holy chaos. The countdown had begun...kids screaming the numbers at the top of their lungs, 25.....24....23......22. Parents scrambling everywhere. And I'm screaming at the top of my lungs, "NOAH! OVER HERE. HERE IS YOUR BOARD." He comes running with his big puppy dog eyes like they are ready to swell with tears at any second. 3.....2........1! He sits down, and they begin. Good start. Calm, cool, and collected. Not so much.
Somewhere in the scrambling we had communicated a meeting point near the basketball goals. Apparently his match was over so quickly, Eric and I had yet to get settled when he first came out and missed him. After about an hour of play, we started to get concerned. I did some laps around the basketball area, Eric went to look in the playing hall. No luck. After several rounds around the campus, and a few trips out to the car, I was on the verge of a major panic attack, tears now swelling in my eyes. I went for one last round around the campus after Eric went back into the hall, and I heard a familiar voice yelling behind me. Eric had found him in the chess hall where the kids whose parents were missing had gathered. And when I say kids, I mean Noah and one other boy. By the way, he lost that round. He lost the second, "tied" the third, lost the fourth, and won by forfeit in the last. Five rounds down, 1.5 points. Good enough for me. Even with the forfeit...a win is a win right?
Eric and I had a great time. Don't get me wrong, it was a long day. But, we had fun reconnecting with some chess families we had met earlier in the season. Caleb also had fun riding his "new" bike, ALL DAY...which used to be Wil's.
On Sunday, Noah had four rounds of chess. First match of the day...A LEGIT WINNER!!! So awesome! He lost the next three. Whatever. It is frustrating. I wish I could do more to help him win. But really, how proud our Eric and I? Noah just picked up chess, this year, and is a decent competitor. He made it to the state championship! I mean, really?!? How awesome is that? He is such a good kid and continues to amaze me by getting thrown into situations, where I would crumble, and he takes them like a champ. Noah, you are a stud! Way to go, on your first ever state championship competition! You have officially competed in more state championships than your mom.....and you are 6!
I'll update with rankings, pictures, and videos tomorrow.
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