IM-Elect Danny Rensch makes a new video on chess.com about Isolated Queen Pawns. You can check out the video on chess.com as well as clicking this link. You can check out more videos by Danny concerning Isolated Queen Pawns and other subjects in the future. You can also check out our own Arizona Scorpion blog at chess.com.

You can also check out more videos from USCL players such as GM Vinay Bhat, GM Josh Friedel, IM Sam Shankland, IM David Pruess, FM Todd Andrews, as well as our very own blog contributer FM Elliott Liu.

Week 2

We battled to a draw vs the Tennessee Estonians, 2-2.   Our team: Ramirez, Altounian (aka “Schlecter, the draw master”), Adamson, Adelberg.  We played on the University of Arizona campus in Tucson.

Here are some videos from the exciting match.

Week 2, Scorpions vs Tempo:

Another video from Week 2. Note the light-hearted goofing off of our staffers, a morale-builder?

Week 3

In Week 3 we lost a disappointing but hard-fought match to Seattle, 1 1/2 – 2 1/2.  Our team:  Barcenilla, Ginsburg, Rensch, Martinez.

This match we played in Mesa at Abstrax, Inc.

Week 3 Action:

More Week 3 Action:

And even more:

You can see Steve Farmer’s video analysis of the Week 2 games linked below at www.chessvideos.tv.

For Ehlvest-Ramirez click here

For Altounian-Burnett click here

For Andrews-Adamson click here

For Adelberg-Justice click here

So I was checking my email a couple days ago and Steve Farmer (an approximately 1900-2000 player from Tucson, AZ) had emailed me and told me that he had made some videos about the Scorpion Week 1 Games.  Since I had no idea that he was making these videos it was a pleasant surprise.  Anyways these videos are not directly related to the Scorpions site but they are separate videos…but they are relevant and instructive. Anyways in the future maybe I will post his videos directly on the site I thought I would at least link them to people that are interested.

The videos for each game are listed below:

For Ramirez – Mitkov click here

For Adamson – Pasalic click here

For Magness – Adelberg click here

The Scorpions Foray into “Film”

The first test film from the Commentary Room:

If you cannot view the Video portion and only hear the Audio, install the free H.264 codec ‘ffdshow’ on your PC.

This is a High Definition ‘film’ hahaha, that’s why the extra hoops.

And from the Playing Room

I also got a film from the playing room but since sssssh we had to be quiet there, you won’t get many audio jollies.  I only managed to hiss “Live…Chess”  at second 38 of this 39 second film!  It is of historical interest showing Amanda and Leo goofing around.  Once again, if you cannot see the video, download ‘ffdshow’ as above.  I think, but am not sure, that You Tube may change its format away from HD (AVCHD)  so viewers don’t need that codec.

Playing Room Redux

Here’s another longer “film” this time filmed by manager Leo Martinez and team amanuensis Amanda Mateer.  See the players’ expressions as they slog through the game.   Thrill to Levon Altounian almost equalizing and making a short draw.

For Film Nerds:

The good thing out of these ‘films’ is that I re-learned some basic operations of the Sony HD Cam.   It stores films in a weird *.mts format, but if you rename the file to *.mpg  *and* get the ffdshow H.264 codec to view it locally before You-Tubing, all is golden.