Prize increased to $100!

In checkers we think of a "prize problem" as one that is so good it has won a prize of some sort, presumably in a problem composing contest. But today we have a prize problem that gives a prize rather than wins one--- although we think it's more than good enough to take the prize in many a contest.

Brian Hinkle offers $25 to the reader who is the first to correctly solve the following problem.

Is it difficult? You bet it is, and it will require much skill and board vision to work it out. Go ahead, give it your best. Set it up and move the pieces around.

We'll publish the solution on June 5 (Note: this has been delayed due to the increased prizes) and announce the winner (if there is one, and if the winner agrees to have his or her name and location published). The prize won't be awarded if no one solves the problem correctly.

Brian also asks you to help give a name to this problem. He's called it simply "Prize Problem" but wonders if there is a title that might be more thematic. Send your solutions and name ideas to Brian by emailing sbhinkle@charter.net.

Unfortunately in today's legal environment there are some additional terms and conditions. Please read them carefully.

Void where prohibited by law. Taxes, if any, are the responsibility of the winner. The composer, Brian Hinkle, is the sole judge of the correctness of submitted solutions and his decisions are final and without appeal. All correspondence and solution attempts must be sent to sbhinkle@charter.net. Do not send solutions or questions to The Checker Maven. All solutions and suggested problem names become the property of Brian Hinkle and The Checker Maven. If you submit a solution or correspond with Brian, you understand and agree that Brian will then have your email address and possibly your name. To receive the prize, the winner must provide Brian with a postal mailing address. Brian pledges that email and postal addresses will be used only for the purposes of the contest and will not be disclosed to any third party unless a legal obligation to do so arises.

Good luck to one and all!

It wasn't just an ordinary Saturday for Sal Westerman and the members of the Coffee and Cake Checker Club. Today, they wouldn't be gathering in the big booth at the back of the Beacon Cafe in Bismarck, North Dakota. Instead, a team of five club members would depart early in the morning, bound for Fargo, North Dakota, about 200 miles to the east.

It was the big day, the day that the Coffee and Cake Checker Club would contest a team match with Fargo's new Let's Have Another Cup of Coffee, Let's Have Another Piece of Pie Checker Club.

And it wasn't just an ordinary match. Bismarck club leader Sal Westerman had exchanged letters with Professor Don Steam, the leader of the Fargo club, and the Professor's tone had been rather aggressive. They challenged each other to solve checker problems with neither club gaining the advantage, and now the fight for supremacy would take place over the board--- or rather, five boards, with the five top players from each club facing off.

The match would take place at high noon at the coffee shop of the Powers Hotel, the Fargo club's home venue. Sal, as captain, would play against Professor Steam.

Fueled with coffee and some sweet rolls made by Deana, the proprietor of the Beacon Cafe and a baker without equal in a dozen counties or more, the "boys" (all of them over 50) got on the road at 7 am for the nearly four-hour trip on Highway 10 to Fargo. They were all in good spirits. The team consisted of Sal, Dan, Wayne, Delmer, and Louie, and they were all squeezed into Wayne's station wagon.

They arrived at the Powers Hotel right on time and were greeted by the Fargo club at the entrance to the coffee shop. While the Fargo "boys" (all of them over 50 as well) were mostly quite friendly, there was a definite coolness between Sal and Professor Steam.

The format of the match was simple. Each player would play two go-as-you-please games with his opponent, once with Black and once with White. Two team points for a win; one each for a draw. The Fargo team would stand lunch for everyone after the match ended. Stakes for the match were five dollars per point, a pretty steep amount.

Professor Steam had notified the media and there was a reporter and photographer on hand from the local paper, the Fargo Forum. It was rumored that Fargo Mayor Herschel Lashkowitz would make an appearance at lunch to congratulate the winning team, although some thought he just was looking for a free meal.

It was almost time to start.

"Welcome to the first Fargo-Bismarck club match," Professor Steam announced to the small but growing group of spectators. "It's likely to be the last match, too, as we expect the Bismarck club to slink off with their tails between their legs after we demolish them today."

"Let's find out over the board!" Sal said, "and let's do it politely, shall we?"

"Well, then, it's time to get down to business," Professor Steam replied.

The match began just a few minutes later. Wayne and Dan were calm, but Delmer and Louie were a bit nervous and fidgety.

Nearly two hours passed. Delmer lost to Kraanz, 2-0, and Louie lost to Krabz, 2-0. But on boards two and three, Wayne beat Kracz 2-0 and Dan beat Kradz 2-0. On board one, Sal and Don drew the first game and were well into the second game. The score so far was Bismarck 9 and Fargo 9.

But in the final game of the match it appeared Professor Steam had the upper hand against Sal. The position on the board was as follows, with Sal to move.

Sal knew he would have to fight for a draw, just to draw the match, and it didn't look easy. To make it worse, Professor Steam kept up a barrage of trash talk.

"Give it up and save us some time. The Mayor's here and you're holding up lunch. You haven't got what it takes to pull off a draw. Why don't you just admit it?"

Sal did not reply. The referee, Miss Kraetz, should have asked Professor Steam to quit disturbing Sal, but she was from Fargo and clearly biased.

But Sal closed his eyes and focused, picturing the position in his mind. There ... there ... and there.

"Let's just play it through," he said, looking squarely at Professor Steam, "and we'll see just what happens."

Sal reached out and prepared to make his move.

---

Facing a rival who has done everything possible to infuriate you, how would you do? Could you save the match for your team? Think it over and then click on Read More to see the solution and the rest of the story.

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The annual Spring Classic, the World Series of Checkers, was coming up soon for the National Checker League. But first there would be the Division Playoffs, and the Detroit Doublejumpers were facing the surprisingly good Kansas City Kingers for the American Conference title and the right to go on to the World Series.

The Doublejumpers had handily won their Division, but the Kingers had amassed nearly as high a winning percentage in their own Division of the American Conference. In a huge surprise that had oddsmakers scrambling for cover, the Kingers were leading 2 1/2 - 1 1/2 in the best of five playoff series. The Doublejumpers had to win the fifth match in order to force a sudden-death playoff. A tie wouldn't do.

And so the pressure was on as the match opened in the Kansas City Checkerdrome. The Doublejumpers fought valiantly on boards 2 through 5, but those games concluded with a 2-2 score. It was all down to first board, and that meant that the Doublejumper Captain, Marvin J. Mavin, would have to notch a win. Not a draw, but a win.

His opponent, the Captain of the Kingers, was a noted physician who left the University of Kelowna Teaching Hospital for the world of Major League Checkers. Everyone just called him Doctor Sharper because of his sharp wit, sharp play, sharp temper, and sharp elbows.

The game did not look good for Marvin, as he faced the following position.

"Resign now, my boy, or I'll even be generous and offer you a draw," said Doctor Sharper. "Save us both some time. The Kingers have outplayed your soon to be ex-champion team and you might as well just admit it and go drown yourself in beer afterwards."

"Oh, you think so, pill-pusher? Well Marvin J. Mavin ain't done 'til he's done."

"You're done! Ha ha! You have that part right at least!"

"Well I ain't one of your students and you ain't telling me nothing about who's better and who ain't."

"Taken a remedial English course lately?" the Doctor asked. "Sounds like you could use one. And for the record, I would never deal with a patient as non-compliant as you."

"You need a course in manners, sawbones. And maybe checkers, too." Watch this.

So saying, Marvin made his move.

---

Doctor Sharper seems quite sure of himself. Did Marvin find the winning move? Could you? Cast a sharp eye on the position and look for a sharp continuation, then click your mouse sharply on Read More to see the solution and the rest of the story.

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Rebound. With the literal meaning of "bouncing back" the term applies to a number of things. There's the rebound in basketball. Someone recovering from an injury or illness can be said to be "on the rebound." And of course there's always the "rebound romance."

"Rebound" is an apt title for today's Checker School column. You'll see why when you solve it.

This one is probably around medium in difficulty. You may not get it on the first try, but we're sure you'll "rebound" from any such small setbacks and find the solution. When you've either figured it out or bounced around enough, click on Read More to bound over all barriers and see how it's done.

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We've just completed a transfer of our website hosting to a new hosting company. The old company, one we've been with for nearly 20 years, regrettably has suffered a deterioration in reliability and responsiveness. These things, combined with ever-increasing costs, told us it was unfortunately time to move on.

The transition was both expensive and time-consuming, occupying several marathon days and nights. We're still not certain that everything is back to 100% operation, so if you notice anything that seems wrong, please let us know. However, we're hoping for smooth sailing from here on out.

April. For much of North America, winter is coming to an end. There's more daylight. Compared to the winter months, it's an easy month. Well, mostly. In both the US and Canada, income tax returns come due. Kind of spoils the "easy" theme, doesn't it?

On the checker front, though, we'd like to ease into April, even if April isn't completely easy. Here's a speed problem sent to us by regular contributors Lloyd and Josh Gordon of Toronto. It's very much on the easy side. An experienced player will solve it in a few seconds; a beginner might take a little longer, but not a lot. At the Checker Maven we try to provide something for everyone.

Okay, maybe too easy. So now try this one, also based on a position sent by Lloyd and Josh.

Black has just played 1-5, whereas 1-6 or a couple of other moves would have held a narrow draw. Yes, this certainly looks like a White win, but it's a good exercise in application of technique to work out how it's done. Not nearly as easy as our first problem, but straightforward enough.

An easy start to April, or a harder one? You be the judge. Solve the problems and then it's easy enough to click on Read More to check your solutions.

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Sal Westerman had gotten another letter from North Dakota State University Professor Don Steam, who was the leader of Fargo's Let's Have Another Cup of Coffee, Let's Have Another Piece of Pie Checker Club.

Recall that Sal's club, the Coffee and Cake Checker Club, which met at the Beacon Cafe in Bismarck, had exchanged checker problems with the Fargo club. Each club managed to solve the problem sent by the other club, and the score was even.

It was a Saturday afternoon in March, 1955, and Sal and the "boys"--- none younger than 50--- were having their regular weekly meeting. Once again Sal was indignantly waving Don's latest letter about.

"Read it to us, Sal," said Dan, who along with Mike, Louie, Wayne, Delmer, and Larry made up the day's contingent.

Sal cleared his throat. "Dear Mr. Westerman, frankly we're surprised you were able to solve the problem we sent you. Maybe you aren't quite as bad as we thought you were. Or maybe you are and just got lucky. Well, with the score even, we propose that you come to Fargo for a match. Five boards, two games per board, go-as-you-please. We're giving you a break there, as we doubt you can handle three-move ballot. Match to take place in April. Prize five dollars per point. The loser pays the difference in scores to the winner. Will you show up and play, or are you all a bunch of chickens? Sincerely yours, Dr. Donald Steam."

Deana, the proprietor of the Beacon Cafe and the best baker anyone had ever met, gave a low whistle. "Five bucks a point? These Fargo guys must be loaded!"

"What should we do, boys?" Sal said. "The weather's usually a little better in April and driving to Fargo might be okay. But do we want to?"

"We sure do," Wayne said. "And we need to clean their clocks. Arrogant bunch."

Everyone nodded in agreement, although Dan said, "Can we afford it? What if we lose and have to pay them? A shutout would cost us a hundred bucks."

"We'll get sponsorship," Sal said. "I'll talk to the Mayor. He'll put up a stake for us." Mayor Evan Lips was a good friend of Sal's and could be relied on for support. "He might even cover our gas and lodging." Sal paused a moment. "But we better start practicing. Let's begin with a problem Ed sent me." Ed was Sal's checker pen-pal in Pennsylvania.

With perfect timing, Deana called out, "You boys are going to need some refreshments. I've got peanut butter bars today, fresh and hot."

Everyone smiled. "I'll buy today," Wayne said. "Deana, we'll need a dozen bars at least, and a lot more coffee!"

The boys began work on the following position.

After an hour, Delmer said, "Gosh, if we can't get this one, how are we going to beat ..."

"Hey wow man, you gotta think positive," Louie interrupted. "Here, have another bar and get back to work." Louie passed Delmer the now nearly empty plate of peanut butter bars, and the boys continued to study the position.

---

How would you train for a big, important match? Certainly solving some problems would be part of the program. See how you do and then click on Read More to see the solution and the rest of the story.

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It was spring break, and according to longstanding tradition, the National Checker League observed a weeklong holiday.

Marvin J. Mavin, the superstar Captain of the Detroit Doublejumpers, wanted to do something with his long-time girlfriend, Priscilla Snelson. But Priscilla, as a C-level executive at Rust Belt Holdings, was to be the keynote speaker at a conference in Turkmenistan, and she would be away from home during Spring Break.

That left Marvin on his own, and he decided to go on a road trip in his trusty if aging Volkswagen. It was something he did every so often; head off with no particular destination in mind, stopping over at cheap motels and eating in roadside diners and truck stops. He said it cleared his head. Of course he always stopped somewhere close to a dive bar where he could enjoy a couple of his favorite brews.

Somewhere in southern Indiana, Marvin pulled in at the Chuckie Checkers Truck Stop. He had read about it in his automotive travel guide; it was said to be a place where truckers who were checker fans (and what red-blooded trucker wasn't) liked to stop for a couple of informal games along with good food and coffee. Marvin put on his sunglasses and pork-pie hat in an attempt to go incognito. Often, it worked. But not always.

As he expected, the place was filled with truckers, families on vacation, and a few businessmen. Quite a few of the truckers had skittles games going while they ate their dinners and drank their coffee.

Marvin found an open seat at the gleaming chrome wraparound counter. A friendly waitress suggested the Trucker Special, large slices of meat loaf served with mashed potatoes and gravy and peas and carrots. She brought him coffee right away; even Marvin knew better than to ask for beer in a roadside eatery.

While he sipped his coffee, Marvin took a look around. There was a large video display with a checker position shown on it. The position was titled "18 wheeler" and looked like the diagram below.

Sitting to the left of Marvin was a fellow who was obviously a trucker. He noticed Marvin's intent gaze at the display, and remarked, "Some guy Brian down in Missouri named that one for us. You know, 18-wheelers, the rigs we drive."

"You don't say, good buddy," Marvin replied. He knew about 18-wheelers and had learned some CB radio talk in a younger day. "Ten-four on that one!" Marvin grinned.

But the trucker didn't. "Hey, you makin' fun of me?" he asked.

Marvin couldn't miss the rather menacing look on the trucker's face. "Uh, no, I was just, like, trying to talk your lingo ..."

"That stuff went out thirty years ago, and you ain't even hardly that old," the trucker said. "What, you think all of us are hams? Hey, in high school I played for the school team. I was pretty good too. Ha! I know. You're one of them hams yourself. Probably couldn't even win two kings against one. Well, smart guy, hows about a little bet?"

Marvin swallowed hard. "What kind of bet?"

"You show how to win that 18-wheeler up there, I buy your dinner. You don't get it, you buy mine. And I won't make you apologize neither for gettin' my dander up if you be a sport and take my bet."

"And if I don't?" The moment he said it, Marvin regretted it.

"You don't wanna find out, 'good buddy.'" The trucker snorted. "Now what'll it be?"

Just then, the waitress brought Marvin his Trucker Special.

"Er ... you're on? After I eat?"

The trucker snatched away Marvin's plate and set it off to the side.

"Work before play. Hey, you shoulda ordered the Ham Special! Now get goin'. You got five minutes to solve it, just like anybody else."

---

We should point out to those readers not familiar with Willie Ryan's publications that "ham" is the name he gave to lesser players. We'd surely never call one of our readers a "ham"; we'd just prefer to say "improving player." But regardless of that, can you wheel out the solution? Truck right along and then click on Read More to see how it's done and read the conclusion of our story.

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Yosemite Sam, the arch-enemy of Bugs Bunny, is famously known to exclaim, "Jumpin' Jehoshaphat!" but it's not likely that the said toon character was aware of the origins of this expression.

Indeed, there isn't a lot known about the phrase, except that it first appeared in print in 1866 and is thought to be part of the 19th century predilection for "minced oaths" which embodied a strong expression of feeling without actually using potentially offensive words. Other efforts to relate the expression to the biblical Jehoshaphat seem to us to be somewhat forced.

In today's Checker School column, taken from Andrew J. Banks' unusual and instructive book, Checker Board Strategy, we meet a "Jumpin' Jehoshaphat" checker problem. You'll see what we mean when you solve it.

Jump to it! Solve the problem and then jump your mouse over to Read More to verify your solution.

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What's easy for some isn't quite so easy for others. The math above is quite simple if you happen to be a Ph.D. mathematician. If you struggle with high school algebra, you may not find it all that easy.

Regular contributors Lloyd and Josh Gordon sent us a checker problem which illustrates this concept rather well. Take a look at the diagram below.

Is this problem easy? For a player with a little experience, it's pretty straightforward. For a novice, it might be harder and take a little more effort. While we're calling it a "speed problem" we won't specify a time limit. Solve it as quickly as you can.

What's easy for anyone, though, is clicking on Read More to see the solution.

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