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Show Page ID North Edition Lakeside Review Wednesday, October 26, 1983 is Dying in County m V BARRYKAWA Review Staff : Attheirpeak popularity period in America after the Bobby Spassky match in 1972, chess dubs were as com- mon as pep clubs in Davis County, Schools. Students would gather before school and after school for hours to play'the game, sitting in quiet concentration. But now, chess clubs no, longer exist in northern. county schools and face a cloudy future in south Davis.' ; Woods Cross and Bountiful high schools continue t9 field I teams to the state high school chess tournament each year but the game, has become extinct in schools in the northern part of the county. Once strong clubs at Layton, ; . , Davis and Clearfield high schools have been disbanded because of a lack of interest. Roy High has an active chess club and has played several Ogden schools in matches. Clubs at North Davis and Sunset Junior High no longer exist while small clubs continue at Millcreek, South Davis and Mueller Park Junior High. Chess has been a popular game among junior high and high school students because of the one; W one competition and .war-lik- e strategy tling. Leslie Foy, South Davis Junior Clearfield High players won the state high school championship in 1981 but those players are now gone and a club no longer exists' there. No one can explain the apparline of chess ent Mason-Dixo- n popularity in Davis County 4-- A schools. North of Kaysville, the game does not exist in schools anymore except for Roy High which can play Ogden area schools in competition. Salt Lakes; once strong chess club is now defunct. The Ogden Chess Club is facing tough times with almost no publicity and a shrinking membership. All advisers and students ad- mit another Fischer would get the game back to the popularity it enjoyed in the mid 70s. But no Fischers exist on the horizon of international chess competition. And what happens in the south end of the county when the current crop of players graduate? ' Advisers can continue to spark interest in the game but High chess club advisor since 960, thinks chess computers new ones are increasingly harder have increased the number and to find. And when one leaves a quality of the players in his club. school or retires, there is no one So the future of chess clubs to replace him. and teams in Davis County is an Chess is in need of a savior, uncertain one. Junior high clubs one that will win the World are the training ground for comChampionship title back from petitive high school' players and the Russians and create national the few that currently exist are interest in the medieval game. in the south end of the county. Where are you, Bobby Fischer? 1 that goes on. No. luck) is involved in the game flayed on a board with pawns, knights, bishops,, rooks, and a queen and king: .Fichers victory in 1972 created chess boom; in the country aind elevated the game ,td new heights of popularity. Robert fanner, tournament director of the Utah High; School Chess Championships,, said a dominant player is needed in a high school to have a successful i on the now concentrating schools computers. Kim Barney, former North Davis chess club adviser and now a teacher at Farmington Junior High, disagrees with the theory that computers .and video games have hurt student interest in chess. I really cant see how, he said. Chess is a game of the mind and people who are afraid to play against a machine can play against a human. Barney ran the NDJH Chess Club from 1970 to 1983 with an average membership of about 20 a year. He said the key to a sue- -', cessful and continuing club is to have an adviser who is interest- ed. You have to have somebody interested in sponsoring one, Barney said. I think they have to have an interest in' showing kids the game is a lot of fun and providing them a place to play. They also should teach the right rules and all the basics such as the en passant and cas- ,' CONCENTRATION and skill are the essentials of chess. re ciyb. ' Head for the Hills, and have a our at time uUylstiod fright! t main factor lithe is based on is a a chess club strong chess ; at the school, he said. , Dave Holbrook of Woods GndksUs an. example of this. In some cases, the momentum gained from, having a strong player continues on. V Holbrook, Woods Cross chess club president, is a United States , Chess Federation accredited tournament director which : lows him to organize and run tournaments in the area. He is I one of several experienced junior players at Woods Cross on a ; team that is favored to win the state high school chess tournament in April. We dont have many club activities but just compete in tour-- ; naments, Holbrook said. We nave about 25 players actively involved. Most are involved in other activities like band so we set up a lot of tournaments and matches with other schools. Holbrook said the future of the chess club is uncertain after the current crop of juniors graduates next year but it depends on the interest that the South Davis Ju-- 1 pior High School club can gener; ; fig-iU- re ! , al-- " v ate., ' Richard .v Butler, director of transportation for the Davis County School District, was chess club adviser at Layton . . High from 1971 to 1978. :He remembers students interest in chess was sparked after Fischer beat the Soviet Unions' Spassky in 1972 and became the first American to win the World Chess Champion title. ; It got a lot of press and was the thing to do at the time, recalls Butler. I made it a practice to get to school early to prepare for my chemistry classes. The kids knew I opened up my class-- . room early and they started to come, by and play chess.' At the time, it became very popular.,;: Butler said when the clubs membership was largest, around 1977, about 30 students would gather around his room each morning to play. He attributed the popularity of the game at Layton High to the large number of youths from Hill Air Force Base families who attend there. A very small number of ,LDS kids played, said Butler. The LDS kids have other activities such as Mutual. Hill Air Force Base kids didnt have that much to (jo. Most lived on base and one! would gd over to anothers house at night to play, Davis High Chess Club Advisor Jeff Hollist feels computers school killed interest in ;theigame. Hollist said he sees Students who in past years would be dedicated Chess players v -. ; , 6:30 pm , 3:00-3:3- 0 - Jack (Center Contest Judging m Court) Costume Contest Judging . i pm -- Childrens Parade . at-hi- r |