Tampa Bay Florida Area

Below are some photos from our unrated Swiss tournament on August 1.  We had 8 people, a smaller group than usual since several of our regulars were working or out of town.  We had a good time, and challenging games.  Congratulations to Neil C who won all 4 of his games, clear 1st place. Congrats also to John L for earning 2nd place with 3 points. Congrats also to Maverick and Chad for tying for 3rd with 2.5 points.  All 8 players appear in the photos except me.

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Colorful chicken roam throughout Ybor City.

are vaccinations a requirement or is it typical florida?

Hello local chess players, just a quick note to verify that we will meet as usual at Grassroots in Ybor this Sunday afternoon August 8 for casual chess (no tournament this time).  Meeting time is about 2-6pm.  We are a friendly group, and everyone, including beginners, is welcome to stop by.  We have extra chess sets to loan if needed.

Casual chess meeting at Grassroots,

August 8, 2021

It’s always fun to meet new players.

The intensity of Neil's gaze knocked his opponent out of his chair.

Ybor City’s wild chickens mingle with the visitors on the main strip.  The chickens don't always obey the traffic lights, so please drive slowly on 7th Avenue.

7th Avenue is just one block away from Grassroots. Bikers gathered in Ybor, in solidarity with the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in SD.

Why did the chicken cross the road?  He has things to do.

We will meet as usual for casual chess today (Aug 15) at Grassroots in Ybor.  Newcomers are always welcome.  So everyone please feel free to drop by if at all curious.  Grassroots has extra chess sets (tournament style) to loan to players -- on the bookshelf, self-service.

August 15 Grassroots Meeting

We meet a new player or two almost every week.  I would estimate that the average playing strength in our group is about 1500 USCF.

That's me playing black.  I always get a good challenge at our meetings (I'm about 1600 USCF).

I am very fond of Ybor's free-sprinted roaming chickens.

7th Avenue, the main strip in Ybor City, on a Sunday afternoon.  Many of the restaurants and bars are still open.  (Go on Saturday to see the other shops).  Plenty of interesting people about, even on a slow Sunday.

A mural on 7th Avenue illustrating some of the local culture.  University of Tampa in the background, a cigar factory in front, Cuban national hero Jose Marti at top right, and a Gasparilla pirate at bottom right.

Cigar rolling factories, staffed by many Cuban and other Latino immigrants, are a huge part of Ybor's City's history

Casual chess meeting

Grassroots Ybor, August 22, 2021

Several of our regulars were out of town, but we still managed to get 6 players.

In this view facing south on 20th Street, the parking lot is on the right, and Grassroots is in the white building in the background, on the other side of the railroad tracks.  Parking costs $1 per hour (cash or credit card).

Our chickens are glorious!

Another lazy Sunday afternoon on 7th Avenue in Ybor City.  Parking is easy to find.  Eateries and bars are open, but the crowd is sparse compared to Saturday.

Italian immigrants are very important in the founding history of Ybor City.

Sunday September 5 at Grassroots

We had about 10 chess players for a casual but lively meeting.

Outside wall of the Columbia restaurant in Ybor City.

@Iron-Toad, I keep seeing your posts and wanted to join. I hope you guys are playing in the coming weekend. I would like to join.

Hi @raghawaugh, we would be happy to meet you.  We will be there at Grassroots in Ybor next Sunday September 12 as usual.  We meet every Sunday, so please visit when you can.

Grassroots chess meeting, September 12, 2021

We had a great attendance at our casual chess meeting today.  During the course of the afternoon, about 12 players participated.  Some players arrive at 2-ish, and some a little later like 3-ish.  This works out fine since we have lots of players who show up regularly, and so it's usually easy to find an opponent to play with on any given Sunday afternoon (2-6pm).  No RSVP needed.

Come on down, we'd be glad to meet you and challenge you to some friendly chess.

We're at Grassroots in Ybor almost every Sunday.

The public chess meetings at Grassroots in Ybor are still going strong!  2-6pm Sundays.  Free to the public, all skill levels are welcome.  We have 6 loaner chess sets, so it’s okay if you don’t bring a set.  We have some serious players, but it’s a friendly atmosphere, good for casual players too.

Would anyone be interested in playing chess at carrollwood village park in Tampa?

@Iron-Toad is there a meetup or facebook group for Grassroots in Ybor meets? Would love to get updates instead of searching on this general thread.

There is no Facebook page or MeetUp group for the chess players that meet at Grassroots.  It’s more word-of-mouth.  We had a few organized chess tournaments, but most of the meetings are casual and unstructured.  No one is in charge of the chessic activities there, no officers or paperwork.  Feel free to stop by and join in the fun.

Will you be there tomorrow? I was hoping to play someone today, but it turns out the st pete club is closed so now idk what to do lol.

There will be chess players at Grassroots on Sunday.  Don’t know about finding chess there on other days.

I will be retiring from on-line chess soon, to focus on more urgent personal matters.  So I will no longer be the contact person for the Grassroots Chess Club that meets in person in Tampa at the Grassroots Kava House (Ybor location).  The club has been going strong, and there should be a decent number of players there on any given Sunday (2-6pm).  If anyone wants to ask the Grassroots staff how many chess players are present during a particular meeting, I suggest calling their phone number (which can be found on their website).