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chess

Checkmate.

March 13, 2022 by NCAC STEM

The Marriott Scout Service Center was proud to host the annual Akela Chess Classic this February, as Cubs, SBSA and STEM Scouts took on the fun and challenge of chess in great stride! At the SBSA event alone, over 11 Districts and 22 registered – a great representation of NCAC.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The youth demonstrated incredible sportsmanship, perseverance, and chess knowledge. For the SBSA youth working on the Chess Merit Badge, Mr. Roger Claff, Tournament Director even offered chess notation sheets. A number of SBSA youth took him up on it, and we surely may see some chess aficionados go on to earn the Designed to Crunch Nova.

 

The tournament has become a banner event for NCAC STEM, with its success owed to the dedication of Powhatan STEM Leader Mr. Roger Claff. For over 2 decades, Mr. Claff has perfected the tournament to a point where even his inspiring scoutmaster minute about winners with a journey is requested by many youth after the tournament!  Last year the tournament was not held owing to covid, but scouts benefited from the return of this annual tradition of fun and challenge.

Special thanks to:

  • Roger Claff, Tournament Director, for conceptualizing the Chess Belt Loop decades ago, developing a tournament nearly 2 decades ago, and evangelizing it into a Council Classic.
  • Ellen Claff, for her steadfast support and stepping in as Tournament Director whenever needed for double proctoring!
  • Michael Hanson, who drove from Powhatan to NCAC to serve as the proctor of both events! He represented STEM Scouts with the double uniform of a Class A + lab coat.
  • Jim Boyce from Potomac and Bill Wacek from Powhatan, who also served as proctors throughout the SBSA tournament, to help ensure double proctoring of the event.
  • Susan Plano-Faber from the NCAC STEM Committee for educating waiting parents about the many STEM opportunities across NCAC!
  • Peter Snow of Snow’s Chess Academy, for loaning all of the chess sets/boards to make this tournament a reality for so many consecutive years.

Above all, congratulations go to all of the scouts who showed up and participated! Each one earned a Chess Patch, and tournament winners also received trophies.

In between tournament rounds, youth played friendly chess games, practicing, sharing tips, having fun, and making friends. Waiting parents also were able to explore the MSSC HQ and learn about STEM activities across NCAC. Parents flipped thru the DC STEM Trek Guide, learned about the Council PWD and STEM Scouts. For more information about STEM events, please visit our STEM Page and Facebook page.

Filed Under: Scouting Programs Tagged With: chess

Akela Chess Classic – Join the Tournament!

January 7, 2022 by NCAC STEM

Take on the fun and challenge of playing chess!

After a brief hiatus in 2020, the NCAC BSA Chess Tournaments are back.

The tournaments will be held on Feb 5 & 12, 2022 at the Marriott Scout Service Center in Bethesda, MD.

Brackets

The Feb 5th Akela Chess Classic is a five-round chess tournament open to all Cub Scouts from Lions through Arrow of Light and STEM Scouts in Junior Labs.  Tournament play is in two brackets: Lions/Tigers/Wolves and Bears/Webelos/Arrow of Light/Junior STEM.

The Feb 12th Akela Chess Classic is a five-round chess tournament open to all Scouts BSA, Venturers, STEM Scouts in Technology Labs, and Sea Scouts from age 10 to 20. Tournament play is in three brackets: age 10-12, age 13-15, and age 16 and up.

Registrations

Cub Scout Tournament on Feb 5, 2022: https://scoutingevent.com/082-ChessCubs

SBSA Tournament on Feb 12, 2022: https://scoutingevent.com/082-ChessClassic

Background

In this video, NCAC BSA Tournament Director Roger Claff talks about the origin of the tournament in a broadcast with BSA’s Scouting Magazine! Life Scout KL also shares his tips for a game of chess – be sure to check it out!

Prior to the pandemic, the Chess tournament has been held at Trinity Church in Herndon, VA and at the Microsoft Technology Center in Reston, VA. Photos are from February 2020, pre-pandemic tournament. This year’s tournament will look different – following county guidelines, participants will be wearing masks.

To see more STEM events check out the NCAC STEM page.

Filed Under: Scouting Programs Tagged With: chess, STEM

2019 Akela Chess Classic

February 25, 2019 by Roger Claff

On Saturday, February 2 and Saturday, February 9 scouts from all over the National Capital Area Council competed in the Council’s five-round chess tournament, the Akela Chess Classic. The February 2nd event, held at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Herndon, VA, was the Scouts BSA tournament, open to all scouts in troops, crews and ships. Seventeen scouts competed in two brackets: age 10-12 and age 13 and up. In the younger-scout bracket, one scout took first-place honors, with one scout finishing second, and three scouts finishing third. In the older-scout bracket one scout took first-place honors, with three scouts finishing second and three scouts finishing third. The first-place winner in each bracket finished with a perfect 5-0 score.

The February 9th event, held at St. Raphael School in Rockville, MD, was the Cub Scout tournament, open to all scouts in Cub Scout packs. Twenty-seven scouts competed in two brackets: Lion/Tiger/Wolf and Bear/Webelos/Arrow of Light, with awards given for first, second, or third by rank. One Tiger took part, winning first place for his rank. There were one first-place, two second-place, and one third-place finishers in the Wolf rank. For the Bear rank, one scout finished first, one finished second, and two finished third. The Webelos rank had five first-place finishers, three second-place finishers, and one in third place. Rounding out the tournament were one first-place Arrow of Light scout, one in second place, and three in third place. The first-place Wolf and Bear each had a perfect 5-0 score.

Each round of the Akela Chess Classic is limited to one hour, with touch-move rules in effect; under these rules if a player touches a piece he is obligated to move it. All participating scouts must know, in advance of the tournament, the rules of chess and how to play. The 2019 Cub Scout tournament was the 14th annual tournament, and the 2019 Scouts BSA tournament was the 8th annual tournament.

A fun and exciting time was had by all participating scouts. All are looking forward to the Akela Chess Classic next year!

Filed Under: Scouting Programs Tagged With: Akela Chess Classic, chess, Cub Scouts, Exploring, Scouts BSA, Sea Scouts, STEM, Venturing

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