Dogs...

Hello All, some might have noticed that the "German Gunfighter Commercial temporarily went down for awhile. That is because some lowlife thought it was a good idea to tie some "dog" picture in with it, which is totally unacceptable to me. For a long time now, I have hated dogs.

All my life I have hated dogs. I consider them an unclean animal and lacking in sophistication. I guess it harks back to the time when a dog bit me for absolutely no reason many years ago. Fortunately,I didn't need shots. I guess the dog knew instinctively that I didn't like it. That dumb dog sealed the fate of all dogs right then because I have had nothing to do with them ever since. I don't date girls with dogs, and I have no friends with dogs. People who have dogs for pets find it very hard to get close to me and that's because I consider them to be little or no better than their canine on the evolutionary scale!

And so ever since then, I have disdained them and favored cats as the superior pet. In fact, my family has always had cats, and so perhaps that has had something to do with it.

However, I stop short of running dogs over. But that's only because I don't want blood, guts and entrails all over my tires! Yesterday, I came to a screeching halt in the road because some dog ran out in front of me. I respect other people's pets, but that is as far as it goes. The dog lived and was unharmed, but don't anyone begin to think falsely that I have turned over a new leaf concerning dogs and their well-being! Without doubt, there will come a day when my reflexes will slow down due to the aging process and I will hit a dog and feel absolutely no remorse at all! Of course, I will terribly regret the day I hit a cat.

My Favorite Submarine Movies...

Some time ago, I read Admiral Karl Doenitz's "Memoirs: Ten Years And Twenty Days" and ever since that time, I have been fascinated by U-Boats, as the Germans call them, but Submarines as its other name.

Admiral Karl Doenitz was a U-Boat Commander in World War I and Grand Admiral of the German High Seas Fleet in World War II. He was captured in World War I by the British. As a U-Boat commander, he realized that the new British tactic the "Convoy" were making the solitary U-Boat obsolete as most of the time, there was vast open sea and when a "Convoy" was spotted, it was too much for one solitary U-Boat and its crew, before the destroyer escorts "moved in" for the kill.

Knowing this, Admiral Karl Doenitz authored the antidote to the tactic known as the "Convoy System" and it was later dubbed the "Wolf Pack." No longer would a solitary U-Boat Commander be called upon as before, but the "Wolf Pack", or Hunter Groups would be much more efficient in crippling a Convoy and its escort. The new tactic was a success and it was the logical continuance of combat tactics in Naval Warfare. Unfortunately for Doenitz, the Germans were not able to build enough of them in time for World War II and thus did not have enough U-Boats to begin the war in 1939.

This excellent book by the U-Boat Commander Admiral Karl Doenitz is an excellent read and in my opinion could almost turn a civilian into a U-Boat Commander, so well is it written. I also recommend the book "Iron Coffins" by Herbert A. Werner.

But there have also been some excellent films where the U-Boat or Submarine and its unusual tactics have been a main feature. I've always enjoyed them, so long as they are good. Here are my favorite U-Boat or Submarine films:

1. The Hunt For Red October (1990)
2. U-571 (2000)
3. Crimson Tide (1995)
4. Run Silent, Run Deep (1958)
5. The Enemy Below (1957)
6. Das Boot (1981)
7.

Incidentally, Admiral Karl Doenitz took over after Adolf Hitler's death and negotiated the Peace soon afterwards, thus ending World War II. Like the excellent German Field Marshal Heinz Guderian, Admiral Karl Doenitz was not a Nazi, but was a man committed to duty and Country. As usual in times of War, there is genius on all sides of the conflict.

And so what has this to do with Chess? Not a thing really, but whenever someone prepares a line against you (the 'dreaded prepared variation'), and it coming from seemingly nowhere, one might be tempted to compare it with the unusual abilities and tactics of the U-Boat or Submarine.

Of course, if such a line fails, then obviously it met an unhappy end, probably in the form of Depth Charges from a nearby Destroyer.

Dark Knight Swiss: Round Four/Shoemaker Draws Fischer...

The fourth and I believe Last Round of the Dark Knight Swiss ended tonight in a Draw between George Fischer and myself. The game was my 8th game in a row without a loss, but I had to give the game up as Drawn, which takes my record to 7 1/2 out of 8. But at least I kept my unbeaten record going. Since missing out on qualifying for the Club Championship (by losing my last game), I have come back (after 10 days rest) much more focused and much more determined. Here is the Last Round Game of the Dark Knight Swiss between George Fischer and myself:

White: George Fischer 1905 Reti Opening/Nimzowitsch Attack
Black: Eric Shoemaker 1868

1. Nf3, Nf6 2. b3, d5 3. Bb2, e6 4. g3, Be7 5. Bg2, Nbd7 6. 0-0, 0-0 7. d3, c6 (a set-up that often gives Fischer problems, at least when I am on the Black side of things) 8. Nbd2, b6 9. c4, Bb7 10. Ne5, Nxe5 11. Bxe5, Nd7 12. Bc3, f6 13. Rc1? (this loses time), Ba3! 14. Rc2, Qe7 15. Nb1, Bd6 16. e4, dxe4 17. Bxe4, f5 (the move 17...e5 might be good also) 18. Bg2, e5 19. Re2, f4 20. Ree1, Rae8 21. Nd2, Qf7 22. Ne4, Bb8 23. Bb2! (trying to win the exchange on 'f8'), h6 24. Nd2, Bd6 25. Bc3, Nc5 26. Nf3, Nd7 27. Qa1, Qf5 28. Nh4, Qg5 29. Nf3, Qh5 30. Nd2, f3! (I thought this was near winning) 31. Bh1, c5 32. Qd1, g5 33. Re3, g4 34. Ne4, Bb8 35. h4! (the move I over-looked and it seems to save White's position, although his light-squared Bishop is a cause for concern), Rd8 36. Rfe1, Rf5 37. Qb1, Nf8 (37...a5 is probably better) 38. b4, cxb4 39. Qxb4, Ng6 40. c5, Nxh4!? 41. gxh4, Bxe4 42. Rxe4, Qxh4 (43. Rxg4 is winning according to "Frenez") 43. Bxd4!, Bxd4 44. Rxd4, Qg5 45. Rxf5, Qxf5 46. Qe4 (here Fischer offered the Draw, but I elected to play on even though somewhere I threw my advantage away), Qg5 47. Qe6+, Kf8 48. cxb6, axb6 49. Qe3, Qf6 50. Qe5 (another Draw offer, which I should take), Qxe5 51. Rxe5, Rxd3 52. Re6, Kg7 53. Rxb6, Rd1+ 54. Kh7, h5 55. Bxf3, gxf3 56. Kg3, Rg1+ 57. Kxf3, h4 58. Rb4, h3 59. Rh4, Ra1 60. Rxh3, Rxa2 (Drawn) 1/2:1/2

According to Euwe and Hooper, Black should be able to draw this Endgame by either blocking the Bishop-Pawn with the King as I am able to do or by keeping the King on the Short side of the pawn. Even with mistakes, I have an hour and 8 minutes to Fischer's 4 seconds (with a 5-second delay) in which to work out the Draw, therefore neither side has a reason to play on. I believe I hit upon the wrong Middlegame plan and should have opened lines since most of my pieces were pointing in the direction of White's King.

Anyway...I hope to be even stronger at the next tournament and to keep my unbeaten streak going.

Dark Knight Swiss: Round Three/Shoemaker Defeats Christensen...

I won my game tonight against Craig Christensen to take my record to 7-0! My readers will remember that in the Crystal Skull Swiss, I also had White and ended up with a tough game against Lasker's Defense in the Queen's Gambit Complex. I fully intended to test Christensen again in Lasker's Defense, but when I got to the Club, I decided against this course of action, even though I had a prepared variation in mind. The decision not to play the Queen's Gambit led to my playing the move 1. e4. Here is my Round Three game against Craig Christensen:

White: Eric Shoemaker 1876
Black: Craig Christensen 1560 Sicilian Defense/Classical Dragon

1. e4, c5 2. Nf3, g6 3. d4, cxd4 4. Nxd4, Nc6 5. Nc3, Nf6 6. Be2, Bg7 7. Be3, 0-0 8. 0-0, d6 9. Nb3, Be6 10. f4, Rc8!? (alternatives are 10...Na5 and 10...Qc8) 11. Qd2?! (11. Kh1 is the usual move), Ng4! 12. Bxg4, Bxg4 13. h3, Bd7 14. Rad1, Na5 15. Nxa5, Qxa5 16. Nd5! (a standard tactic with White), Qxd2?! (16...Qd8) 17. Nxe7+, Kh8 18. Rxd2, Rce8 19. Nd5, Rxe4 20. Bxa7, Ra4 21. Be3, Rxa2 22. c3!, Re8 23. Kf2, Bc6? (probably not so good as it loses a pawn) 24. Nb4!, Bxg2?? (this loses, but it wasn't easy to resign oneself to ...Ra8) 25. Kxg2, Rxb2 26. Rxb2, Bxc3 27. Rb3, Rxe3 28. Nd5, Re2+ 29. Rf2, Rxf2+ 30. Kxf2, Bd4+ 31. Kf3, b6 32. Nxb6, h6 33. Nd7!, g5 (Black could resign here, but instead allows a pretty finish) 34. Rd3, Bc5 35. Nxc5, dxc5 36. fxg5, hxg5 37. Rd5, c4 38. Rxg5, Resigns. 1-0

For a listing of 'Dragon Slayer' Results and 'Dragon Rider' Results, see the posting entitled "Sicilian Defense/The Dragon Variation..."

Dark Knight Swiss: Round Two/Shoemaker Defeats Filipas...

In the 2nd Round of the 'Dark Knight Swiss', I took my record to 6-0 as I defeated Milivoj Filipas in a long and difficult game, eventually outplaying him in the endgame. My latest unbeaten streak almost came to an end tonight though, as Filipas had one good last minute opportunity, but declined to play it. Here is my Round Two Game of the Dark Knight Swiss:

White: Milivoj Filipas 1541 Reti Opening/Double Fianchetto
Black: Eric Shoemaker 1878

1. Nf3, Nf6 2. g3, d5 3. d4, e6 4. Bg2, Nbd7 5. 0-0, Be7 6. b3, 0-0 7. Ba3, c6
8. Bxe7? (this helps to develop Black), Qxe7 9. Nbd2, Ne8 (I decided on a 'Dutch Attacking Motif', but it may not be correct as I didn't get much out the Opening)
10. c4, f5 11. e3, Nef6 12. cxd5 (12. Ne1 followed by 13. f4 was interesting), exd5 13. Qc2, Ne4 14. a3, Ndf6 15. b4, a6 16. Rac1, Be6 17. Nxe4, fxe4 18. Ne5, Nd7
19. Nxd7, Qxd7 20. Qd1, Rae8! 21. Rc3! (necessary as the 'e3' square is weak), Bg4 (21...Bh3!?) 22. f3, exf3 23. Bxf3, Bxf3 24. Rxf3, Rxf3, 25. Qxf3, Rf8! (Black has an advantage in pawn structure-three pawn islands as opposed to two, but it may not be enough) 26. Qe2, Qf5 27. Rc1, Qe4! (Black cannot now challenge the Rook on 'f8' without dropping material) 28. Re1, g6 29. a4, Kg7 30. b5, axb5 31. axb5, cxb5 (White has eliminated his extra pawn island, but at the cost of allowing Black a passed pawn) 32. Qxb5, Rf7 33. Qe2, h5 34. Qg2, Rf3 35. Qd2 (35. Qb2!? was better), g5 36. Re2, g4 37. Qc1, Rf7 38. Qd2! (White shows a willingness to repeat moves), Kg6 (the move 38...Rf1+ leads to a forced draw!) 39. Qc2, Qxc2 40. Rxc2, Re7 41. Kf2, Kf5 42. Ke2, Ke4 43. Rc3? (the move 43. Rc8! is hard to meet), h4 44. gxh4, Rh7 45. Kf2, Rxh4 46. Kg3, Rh3+ 47. Kxg4, Rxh2 48. Rb3, Rg2+ 49. Kh3, Re2 50. Rxb7, Rxe3+ 51. Kg4, Rd3 52. Re7+, Kxd4 53. Kf4, Rd1 54. Kf3, Kc3 55. Rc7+, Kd3 56. Rd7, d4 57. Kf2, Kc2 58. Rc7+, Kd2 59. Rd7, d3 60. Re7, Rh1 61. Kg2, Rh5 62. Kf3, Rh3+ 63. Kg2? (63. Kf2 was necessary), Re3 64. Ra7, Ke2 65. Ra2+, d2 66. White Resigns. 0-1

Since, 43. Rc8! would have been hard to meet, my best objective move was to force the draw earlier with 38...Rf1+ 39. Kxf1, Qh1+ 40. Kf2, Qf3+ and so forth...

There's always a danger when deciding to play on in even positions or positions where the win takes good technique.

In Search Of My Favorite Games By Anatoly Karpov...

I've gone through and played over many of Anatoly Karpov's games, but here I decide for the first time to sift out my favorites by this oustanding player. Incidentally, I met Anatoly Karpov in 1995 at the National Open. For those of us who were there, he shook our hands and autographed the books we brought for him to sign. He is a very amicable individual, has neat handwriting and a quick handshake. Perhaps his most unusual feature is his eyes, as they seem to be glassy and distant, maybe cold, but even that description pales to seeing them in person. Here is a list of my favorite Anatoly Karpov Games:

1. Karpov vs. Yusupov, Candidates Semi-Final Match (8), London, 1989.
2. Karpov vs. Kasparov, World Championship Match (5), London/Leningrad, 1986.
3. Ljubojevic vs. Karpov, Linares, 1981.
4. Karpov vs. Beliavsky, Linares, 1994.
5. Timman vs. Karpov, London, 1984.
6. Karpov vs. Polugayevsky, Biel 1990.
7.

I'll be adding more games soon, after I get some rest.

Outlaws Hold Up The Stage!

If the 'Robatsch Defense' was a Stagecoach, then I figure I must be one of the no-good outlaws that is holding it up on a regular basis these days!

Naturally, after I took the money, I made everyone walk across the damn desert as I also took the Stage and tied my horse to it.

I say this because I have beaten Simanis, Arteaga and now Amaya with it. George Fischer nearly lost, but managed to draw and only Sheryka won with it, but that's due largely to my playing an old line that I no longer play. I took a chance in the Club Championship and played that game (among others) very poorly. Had I played the line I use these days, the outcome would have been different.

I have to start paying more attention to the other strong players in the Club, as I think it would be interesting to see what "Stagecoaches" they are holding up!