|
If
there is anything foreigners living in Mexico learn to appreciate it’s a
universal language: food, music, painting, love…chess. And the best place
to appreciate the quiet, challenging, non-verbal, cross-cultural diversion/obsession
would be, or course, in a tower. A well, lighted, airy tower surrounded
by trees. Mazatlan has many charms, but is very short on parks. A pleasant
exception is the park on Zaragoza between Nelson and 5 de Mayo. Most downtown
buses go right by it. And the centerpiece of Zaragosa Park is the round
red tower, home of the Carlos Torre Repetto Chess Club. Any night after
six, you can walk up the stair and find a friendly game of chess in an atmosphere
that doesn’t discriminate between levels of play, social distinction, nationality,
or language barrier. The kiosko, or rotunda, was built in 1954, but the
park quickly fell into decline, eventually becoming a drug hangout and the
tower, meant for discussions, music, and games, became a notorious “shooting
gallery”. The city moved to rescue the park, placing the tower in the hands
of the club formed by revered enthusiast Dr. Alfonso Quiroz Luna, with free
lighting at night and a mandate that forbids drinking, dominos or cards,
and gambling on the premises. The club took its name from in honor of Carlos
Torre himself, the first Mexican to become a Grand Master. He put Mexico
on the world chess map for the first time, once even defeating Manuel Oscar,
the world champion during the Thirties. By now Mexico has several Grand
Masters and a widening group of chess aficionados and the Mazatlan club
has several National Masters and even one FIDE Master, David Jara Montes,
the secretary. But the big moments in Mazatlan chess might well be in the
future. David Jara notes that the younger players in town are much better
than the older ones, that the area is rapidly catching up to the world.
In fact, oddly in a club with almost no female players, one of the hot rising
stars is Alicia Gutierrez Mancias, an eleven year old. She was a darkhorse
top winner in the recent regionals in Hermosillo, thus qualifying for the
Pan-American Tournament this year in Argentina. This sort of |
|
contagion among youth is largely the result of shameless promotion and proselytizing
by Jara and another major name in Mazatlan, Tio Chico. Jara writes a column,
“Jaque Mate” every Thursday in the “Sol De Pacifico” newspaper. In addition
to chess news, gossip and instruction, each column has a problem for readers
to work out. Every four months a professional chess set and two books and
technique are given to the reader who solves the most problems. Interestingly,
Jara’s column, and all local chess coverage runs in the sports section.
Joel Carrasco Perez, known to everybody as Tio Chico, runs a chess school,
promotes the game in schools and provides a unique and humane service by
going to the jail every week to teach and run tournaments for the inmates.
Another major benefactor of Mazatlan chess is an American, Arnie Garcia,
who sponsors two tournaments a year when he’s in town. And whenever he shows
up, it’s with arms full of books, publications, timing clocks, boards and
chessmen for local fans. The kiosk, open and elevated among the surrounding
trees is a great place for a game, a sort of archetypal setting for friendly
games and the club invites anybody interested to come on by any night from
six until ten (or whenever the last game is fought out to it’s excruciatingly
logical conclusion.) On Sunday mornings at ten there are classes for kids.
In October of this year the club will throw a major open tournament with
a purse of $80,000 pesos. They also have a monthly tournament and give ratings.
But mostly it’s just about friendly competition and companionship in that
simpler, more comprehensible little world where everything is black and
white and luck is not a factor at all. There have been thoughts of forming
a Gringo Chess Team to compete with the local club, but chess is so ultimately
solitary there’s little point in that. Individuals meet mind to mind with
less regard for nationality or culture than for the tiny, arbitrary kingdoms
symbolized on the board. The rules are simple enough, the conventions are
few: play towards the middle, castle early, reserve your power, look before
you leap. And if somebody ignores the traditions, there’s no shame, no hurt
feelings, no room to argue: he either wins or he loses. |
 |
|
