Chess is the gymnasium of the mind. … Chess teaches foresight, by having to plan ahead; vigilance, by having to keep watch over the whole chess board; caution, by having to restrain ourselves from making hasty moves; and finally, we learn from chess the greatest maxim in life – that even when everything seems to be going badly for us we should not lose heart, but always hoping for a change for the better, steadfastly continue searching for the solutions to our problems. (― Blaise Pascal and Benjamin Franklin)
Welcome to the Ithaca Chess Club! … This is club founder and President, National Master Mike Pastore. The Ithaca Chess Club is free and open to everyone, all ages and all skill levels.
We are open every Sunday from 12 noon to 4 pm.
The club is Located which is in downtown Ithaca, at the Dewitt Office Complex, in the Dewitt building, on the first floor, one level above the shops.
Everyone is welcome, Ithaca Residents, Tompkins County residents, … and even if you are visiting Ithaca from anywhere in the USA and worldwide, come and join us — you are welcome here.
The club is very informal and relaxed — the kids say the club is “chill” … Leo Tolstoy started a school for children, and the motto written on a sign about the door said: Enter and Leave freely… Chess players come any time between 12 noon and 4, and when you arrive, just sit down at a table with an old friend or a new stranger, and start playing.
We have the widest possible skill range of players, from masters to absolute beginners … and for beginners and intermediate there is a free chess lesson every week (almost every week at 3 pm) so you can improve your skills. For advanced players there is a “Master Class”. … And for speed chess lovers, there is a beer and blitz night, approximately once a month at another location.
We have a website ithacachessclub.com … and a weekly email newsletter.
Here is a question for you watching this video:
What do these people in common: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Humphrey Bogart (a strong player who became a chess tournament director!), basketball superstar Luka Doncic, Albert Einstein, Stephen Fry, Benjamin Franklin, Marcel Duchamp, Isaac Bashevis Singer, Ray Charles, Thomas Jefferson, Christopher Columbus, Ben Affleck, Marlon Brando, Howard Stern, Nicolas Cage, Alan, Alda, Woody Harrelson, Napoleon and Julia Roberts. … of course the answer is: “They all played chess!”
When you play at the club you will often hear what I now call,
“the unofficial mottos of the club”
1. One … Oh no, my Queen !
2. Two … Chess is hard.
3. And three, my favorite, a saying by Grandmaster Susan Polgar’s: Win with grace, lose with dignity.
How the club started … It was pure accident. I had not played chess in many decades. And then in the spring of 2022, there was a leak in my kitchen sink. About a 10-minute job for a plumber — but the plumbers I called were charging $ 120 per hour, with a 3-hour minimum ! … No way … As I complained about this situation, a friend called me and said: “I know a guy who will fix your sink for no charge, but you will have to play him a game of chess.” … Well, he wanted to play a chess master, and a number of other friends wanted to play, and I just didn’t have time to play everybody. So I thought: “Let’s start a chess club, and play one day a week.”
So I bought 6 folding tables, and six tournament size chess sets, I borrowed some chairs, and we played outdoors for a months in the summer and fall of 2022.
As the weather grew colder, the club was saved, and really became a thing thanks to the generosity of Jack Goldman and Jason Shank — who have given us this perfect place to play. … Jack Goldman, and his wife the extraordinary artist Barbara Mink, who have done so much to enrich the culture of Ithaca — he couldn’t stop there: Jack had to do one more great thing: Jack spoke with his friend Jason to grant us the playing space.
The chess club’s mission statement has evolved … it started as [in a Star-Trek voice] … “To boldly go where no chess club has gone before ‘ … and fortunately the motto improved to:
The Ithaca Chess Club (ICC) seeks to promote the love of chess in an environment where players of all skill levels are welcome, regardless of age, race, sex, gender, religion or ability. Staffed entirely by volunteers, the ICC was founded in Ithaca in 2022 by National Master Mike Pastore. The club is free and will remain free for all to enjoy.
The club runs thanks to the generosity of Volunteers … The administrative team: Eric Gervais (Vice President), Life Master Miro Reverby (Chess Education Director), and co-treasurers Gary Williams and Avi Baumgold… Thanks go to another Avi (Avi Appel) our tournament director, and to Kimmy Liu, charismatic president of the Cornell Chess Club … And when the Ithaca Chess Club first started in summer 2022 we were playing outdoors at Thomson park, Tom Clavel was indispensable in helping me to transport tables and the chairs. Also indispensable for starting the club was Dr. Ann Warde, who took time from her scholarly academic work at Zorba Editing, to help in every possible way.
There was French essayist named Saint Beuve, who started his most famous literary essay this way:
What is a classic? A difficult question!
A question I am always asked — and a question that is an easy question — is:
How can I improve my chess?
It is so easy to improve your chess skills …books, courses, websites such as Chess.com and Lichess.org … YouTube videos (including my new chess channel, called “Chess Tonight”) … To improve you need what is called “dedicated practice”, a plan and a regular amount of study time every week. … If you go away hungry it’s your own fault.
The very best way to improve your chess is to write down your moves of the game, and then study that game afterwords. So if you see some players at the club writing their moves into a notebook or a chess scorebook, you will know that these are the players most serious about their chess improvement.
When I was 8 years old, my father taught me how to play chess. He was not a good chess player, but he was a great Dad, who took me to tournaments and provided funding and encouragement. After years of studying (thousands of hours with chess books and the periodical “Chess Informant”), I earned a Master rating from the US Chess federation. Back in those prehistoric days, when you became a master — the US Chess federation sent you a certificate in the mail.
I won the city High School Championship with a perfect score of 5 wins to zero losses and draws. I played in the US Junior Championship, an invitational tournament, where the top 10 rated junior players are invited. … I lost that tournament to the great Grandmaster Larry Christiansen, and Larry — get ready — after decades I am coming for my revenge!
I left chess because I fell in love with philosophy and literature, and then spent many summers as a Camp Director for summer camps for children ages 6 through 17. … Occasionally that experience helps at the chess club. …
We have many children playing chess at the club, and every child here is remarkable — they are fearless as they sit across the chess table to face opponents much larger and much older and much more experienced … Occasionally there is an incident that makes me rely on my summer camp director skills …
A few months ago, one crying child rushed then shouted: “He called me a pizza head !”
and then when we heard the other side of the story, it was all good because the other child explained:
“I didn’t say he was a pizza head … I said he was “a piece ahead.” …
Of course, if you are a piece ahead in your chess game, you are usually winning.
There are a pair of difficult questions I have been asked recently, and here is the first one:
What role does the Chess Club serve in the Ithaca community ?
My gut reaction is to reply like Dr. McCoy from the original Star Trek:
Dammit, Jim, I’m a chess master, not a professor of sociology! …
But OK, it is an important question so here are some thoughts:
A chess club is a perfect fit for the city of Ithaca … This a counterculture kind of town … we have smart people here, compassionate people here, we are trying to be environmentally conscious, politically savvy, and stay on the cutting edge of everything … A town that wants to be known for its progressive thinking and new discoveries, has to have a place for the game that represents intellectual acumen and beautiful creativity.
Another way the chess club serves Ithaca: the club is a place we can get together — all kinds of people — and get to know one another. Here we break down the barriers of trust and communication — which are caused by the two tremendous monsters that have plagued humanity: ignorance and fear.
And finally: Chess keeps the mind sharp, and Chess makes you smarter — and that affects the Ithaca community … I could quote research studies showing that chess improves your intelligence and your memory; and kids who play chess do better in their schoolwork.
Another important yet difficult philosophic-type question that I have been asked is:
What is the culture and community of chess, and how does it shape relationships and conversations ?
Chess has become wildly popular and cool. … There has been a resurgence and a renaissance in chess around the world and in the USA … Thanks to some dynamic chess personalities and heroes … Two great world champions: Vishy Anand … Magnus Carlsen … American grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura … chess YouTubers Gotham Chess … Anna Cramling … Daniel Naroditsky … Dina Belankaya … and Nemsko (who grew up in Ithaca, I was told) …
The popularity of chess skyrocketed after the covid pandemic started, and with the debut of the movie
The Queen’s Gambit.
My goals for the club are the same as my hopes for our city, our country and our planet …
To create a place without cutthroat competition and selfishness,
a place that glows with respect, mutual aid, and friendly cooperation.
Looking ahead … I foresee that our Chess Club will be sponsoring and running more chess tournaments; …
I would love to start a chess-themed summer camp for kids, …
and my chess dream is to find a permanent space for the club where players could come 7 days a week, from let’s say 8 a.m. to 12 midnight.
Chess is a passion. There is a quote from by Walter Tevis, author of the Queen’s Gambit:
“There had been a few times over the past year when she felt like this, with her mind not only dizzied but nearly terrified by the endlessness of chess.”
And finally, some thanks to thanks to Andie Kim for making this video.
And special thanks to all the members of the Ithaca Chess Club — all the ladies and gentleman, the boys and girls who come play every week — or whenever they can.
Our club members are the heart and soul of the chess club.
And to our esteemed club members, and to all chess players, I want to give you some advice, wise words by Grandmaster Paul Keres:
“As long as you have a Knight on the board, you should never resign!”
And in your life, always look inside your soul to find resilience, to hear your great voice that whispers:
“Never despair, never lose heart, never give up.”
— Mike Pastore, National Master, 2024 March 4
Ithaca, New York