The holiday season is upon us, and whatever holiday you celebrate, The Checker Maven wishes you the best of the season. May you enjoy family and friends, peace and contentment, not only during this special time but in every day to come.

Checkers can be a part of our celebrations, too, and we've selected a problem suitable for the longer leisure hours of the holidays. (That's another way of saying it isn't all that easy.)

Here's the setting, as published almost 90 years ago.

WHITE

BLACK
Black to Play and Win

B:W32,30,20,18,14,6:BK31,23,21,17,10,8,7.

Well, you say, what's so hard? Black is up a piece and has a king! Oh ... wait ... White is about to get a king, and that Black man on 10 is looking a little shaky ... maybe the Black win not so easy after all.

It will take quite some visualization skill to solve it, but we're certain you'll find the result pleasing.

When you've given it your holiday best, click on Read More to see the solution.

This week The Checker Maven reaches the unbelievable milestone of 10 years of continuous on-time weekly publication, with no missed issues and no missed deadlines.

Originally, we had planned to stop here; our business plan called for 10 years of publication and beyond that, we didn't know. But we're going to try for another five years, and G-d willing we'll be able to do it. If we get that far, it will truly be the end of the line.

The last several years have been a struggle, with eyesight difficulties placing greater and greater limits on what we can do, but happily we've been able to keep going.

We're also thankful that we've kept our core readership. We only have about half the readers that we did at our peak, but we still have thousands every week and we still can claim to be the most widely read "straight checkers" publication anywhere.

We also lay claim to having written more checker fiction than anyone else, ever, and though it's not a crowded field, we still think we've done pretty well.

Although we don't get a lot of correspondence--- checker players aren't big on that--- we are happy to have heard from nearly every corner of the world (we're still waiting for Antarctica and the Space Station to check in, but they're about all that's left).

It all comes down to our readers, though; without you, there would be no point and we wouldn't have lasted a year. We hope you'll keep coming back every Saturday morning, and we hope you'll find something that you like. It's been quite a journey, and we owe it all to you. Thanks for staying with us for so much longer than we ever would have expected.

Below, please find our 10th Anniversary problem offering. It's a lead-in to our next serialized story, due to begin some time next year.

One Thousand
BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Win

W:W32,30,27,26,24,22,21,18,14,10:B20,17,16,13,11,8,7,5,3,1.

When you're ready, click on Read More to reveal the action-packed solution.

We say it year after year, and we'll say it again. We love the Thanksgiving holiday, with its American spirit, its interdenominational theme, and its emphasis on family, gratitude, and peaceful celebration. We hope your Thanksgiving will be filled with happiness and become the source of great memories for the years ahead.

We won't break our habit of turning to great American problemist Tom Wiswell for our Thanksgiving week problem, either. Mr. Wiswell, in addition to being a great checkerist and problem composer, epitomized the best of what makes America what it is.

Mr. Wiswell called this problem "All's well that ends well" and that seems most fitting.

BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Draw

W:W15,18,23,26,27,29,31:B2,6,8,10,12,13,17.

Solve Mr. Wiswell's intriguing problem, then treat yourself to our usual Thanksgiving recommendation: a little more of that delicious pumpkin pie.

"Push 'Em Back" is a rallying cry urging your team of choice to defend the goal line in the game of American football. The Checker Maven staff are certainly not football fans, but we thought of this expression when reviewing the problem presented below.

BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Win

W:WK30,K28,27:BK20,18,K12.

It's definitely on the easier side, and the title provides a rather large hint. You're invited to tackle this one; don't punt on it. Find the solution and then click on Read More to check your answer.

"Make haste slowly" is a saying that comes from the original Greek σπεῦδε βραδέως (we hope your browser displays Greek characters properly) but is better known in the Latin translation, festina lente.

We've always found the concept of "making haste slowly" to be rather interesting. What does it mean, exactly? Does it admonish us to hedge our bets? To proceed directly but with caution? To hurry up and wait?

Adages are often like that; they can mean any number of things.

This month's speed problem may perhaps clarify "making haste slowly," at least from the point of view of the game of checkers. While you need to solve the problem within the time limit of 20 seconds, you will have to carefully visualize and work out the sequence of moves, and that will take the typical checkerist a little time (though certainly not all that much time).

Click below to display the problem and start the clock, then come back and click on Read More to verify your solution.

November Speed Problem (Not so hard; 20 seconds)

Yes, the photo is blurry. That's because the train is going at about 357 miles per hour, setting a record for the fastest ever. It's the French Train Grande Vitesse and it's a marvel of rail technology.

This month's speed problem is also the fastest ever; though very easy and far from a checker marvel, it's a test of checker intuition. The trick will be to spot the solution within the allowed time limit. This is a "solve at a glance" problem for a player with even moderate experience.

But if you're a newcomer to our game of checkers, you may take a little longer to see how it's done. That's fine, too; it's the process of looking for a solution that's important.

Here we go: click below and think fast! Then come back and click on Read More to see the easy answer to our "fastest" ever speed problem.

October Speed Problem (Very easy; 5 seconds)

The yoga position shown above, we must opine, looks like rather a difficult one, yet the person in the photo seems to have taken it on quite willingly.

In checkers, difficult positions are generally avoided rather than sought. In the diagram below, Black is definitely in such a situation, and may have to go through contortions to find the way to a draw. But, like the yoga position, there is a way to do it.

WHITE

BLACK
Black to Play and Draw

B:W30,27,24,23,22,19,5:B21,13,12,11,10,6,1.

Can you make the necessary twists and turns? If you're a knowledgeable "book" player, the position may indeed look familiar, and you'll likely know how to do it. If it's not familiar to you (yet), it is a good one to learn, so either way, give it a try. If you find yourself in knots, you can always click on Read More to see the run-up, solution, and notes. While you're at it, just for a little additional fun, you might also try to name the yoga position in the photo.

The Checker Maven has, we believe, has written and published more original checker fiction than anyone else has ever done. But we've produced very little checker poetry.

Checker poetry used to grace checker books and checker columns, and some of it was very good indeed. The poems often cleverly incorporated problem situations in their verses.

The poem below, kindly provided by Liam Stephens and John Reade, and originally penned by one William Brogan, has been edited slightly to remove an inappropriate ethnic reference and to correct an obvious printer's error.

BLACK (Stranger)

WHITE (Jake)
White to Play and Win

W:W30,25,13,6:BK31,24,17,15.

(Originally published in Wood’s Checker Player, Vol 6, No 3, October 1942.)

Labor Day 2014 will be on Monday, September 1, and each year The Checker Maven takes the opportunity to join in honoring American workers, the men and women who work hard day in and day out to make America the great nation that it is. Whether you're a business executive, police officer, gardener, nurse, construction worker, or belong to any of the thousands of other occupations that make up the American workforce, you're worthy of our salute. In America, all honest work is respected, and rightly so.

Checkers was once the mind sport of the working class and many of the great masters were American workers. One of them was steelworker Asa Long, and today we present a position taken from one of his games.

Forms the Whiltier opening.

Book play up to here, where the KingsRow engine now gives 31-27 instead.

BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Draw

W:W32,26,21,14,13:B20,19,18,6,5.

You definitely have your work cut out for you in this one. Can you labor hard enough to find the White draw? When you've completed the job, clock out by clicking on Read More to see the solution.

The small group crowded around the table in the rear of the saloon backed away a few steps, still watching, but now wary.

It had all started around an hour ago. Old Billy Matson came into the saloon around one in the afternoon, as he did nearly every day, and took his usual seat at his usual table, back to the wall, a clear view through the length of the saloon all the way to the swinging doors in the front. Not that there was generally much danger, but you never could tell, and Billy didn't get to be "Old Billy" by being careless.

He set up his checkerboard, again just like always. The folding board was getting a little tattered and the checker pieces were pretty grimy, but he didn't care and the few who said anything received the merest of shrugs by way of reply. Appearances and aesthetics weren't what it was all about.

It would surprise no one that the main concern was money: stakes won and, much less often, lost by Billy; wagers among the spectators as to who would win, although if you were going to bet against Billy you'd better get long odds, because Billy didn't lose that much. He dropped just enough games to keep the marks coming. It wouldn't have done to win every single game and make taking him on seem hopeless.

But today, things weren't going the way they usually did. A stranger had come into town, riding a Palomino and wearing a six-shooter low on his hip. The first thing he did after he hitched his horse was to ask one of the townsfolk where he could find Old Billy.

"Whatcha looking for Billy for? He don't never do nothin' but play checkers in the saloon," the townsman replied. It was Chet Johnson, the farrier.

The stranger gave Chet a look that made Chet step back involuntarily. "I ain't gotta give you no reason," the stranger said. "Answer my question. Where's Old Billy?"

"The ... the saloon, like I said," Chet replied, and then lit off as fast as he could.

The saloon was easy to spot; it was the biggest building along Main Street. The stranger went on over and pushed through the swinging doors, letting them flap behind him. The barkeep raised his head as if to say something, but one look at the stranger made him change his mind. "Old Billy. He here?" the stranger demanded.

"In the back," the barkeep said, and then tried to look really busy polishing glasses.

The stranger walked to the back, his spurs clicking against the wood floor. When he reached Billy's table, he leaned his arms on it and bent forward, his face mere inches from Billy's.

"You Billy Matson?" he asked.

"Yep, that's me." Billy had met swaggering challengers before and he knew enough to keep his cool and not get stared down or intimidated. "Who's askin'?"

The stranger leaned back, then pulled out a chair and sat down on the other side of the checkerboard. "I'm Danny Douglas, and I hear you're good at checkers."

"Some say that I am," Billy said.

"Well, you ain't as good as me and I'm gonna prove it. I'm the best. The best with a gun and the best with checkers."

"I figure you're here to show me your checker skill, not your gunfighting skill?"

Danny laughed. "You're a funny one, ain't cha. Either way, old man, I can take you either way."

"Then I suggest we stay with checkers."

"Sure," Danny said, "that suits me fine. A hundred a game?"

That was a really big stake, enough to make even Billy think twice, and besides, he wasn't sure if he could come up with the cash if he lost. But he'd been in this kind of situation before, and he hadn't ever backed down. Doggoned if he'd do it now, especially with a cocky gunslinger who thought he could play checkers.

"You're on," Billy said. "First one to win two games collects a hundred bucks."

Danny just nodded and, since the Black pieces were facing him, made the first move.

A few people had overheard the conversation and started to take an interest. A couple of side bets were made.

Half an hour passed, and Danny won the first game.

The buzz among the spectators increased. Someone ran outside and must have told some others, for a few minutes later he came back followed by at least a half a dozen townsfolk, all of whom went straight to the back of the saloon to watch the action.

Billy wasn't sure what had happened in that first game. Danny was good, real good; there was no denying it. Billy knew he'd have to buckle down. This was no easy mark.

Billy won the second game. The gunslinger swore a few times but then stopped himself. "All right, old man," he said. "You're as good as I heard you were. But you ain't gonna win the next game, and then I'll be livin' high on that hundred you'll owe me."

Billy didn't reply.

The crowd of onlookers was in a real state. They had never seen anything like this. No one had ever put up a real contest with Billy, not like this one. Money was changing hands and some large wagers were made on the third and final game.

Both players were very cautious, taking their time with their moves. Slowly but surely, it looked like Danny was getting a little bit of an advantage. He pressed hard, and though Billy fought back, Danny's advantage increased. Finally, the position was like this. Billy had White and it was his turn to move.

BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Draw

W:WK32,26,10,K7,6:BK31,K25,21,19,14.

It looked pretty bad. Billy was going to go a man down and there wasn't anything he could do about it. Danny knew it and was sitting back in his chair, his thumbs hooked in his gun belt, a smirk on his face.

Billy was looking for a way out, but in the back of his mind was the frightening thought that he'd end up owing a hundred bucks to this gunslinger, with no way to pay it. That wouldn't be good. Maybe the Sheriff could intervene; he'd get likely get word of the goings-on at the saloon and come to check up on things. Billy could only hope for something like that.

Unless ... suddenly, Billy saw a line of play that he hadn't considered before. Yes ... there was only one move that could save things ... if he moved there, Danny would have to choose between ... yes. That was it!

He raised his head from the board and looked over at the still-smirking Danny. Billy smiled at him, then let the smile vanish from his face, replaced by a serious, deadly look.

"Draw!" he said suddenly and loudly.

There was an explosion and Billy fell back in his chair, a bullet hole in the middle of his forehead, Danny's smoking gun pointed right at him, no more than a foot away.

"Drop it!" That was the Sheriff. He had come in just as the shot was fired. He was holding his gun in both hands, keeping it steady on Danny.

Danny knew better than to try anything. He slowly lowered his six-shooter and placed it gently on the table. He was careful not to disturb the checkerboard.

"You're under arrest for the murder of Billy Matson!" the Sheriff declared.

Still careful not to make a sudden move, Danny said, "Murder! What do you mean! He challenged me!"

"Ain't the way I saw it," said one of the braver bystanders. "You drew down on him an' plugged him, and he didn't do nothin' afore you killed 'im."

"Draw!" Danny said. "He said draw, so I did! He woulda killed me if I hadn't."

The bystander started to laugh. He probably felt safe with the Sheriff keeping his gun on Danny. "Ha ha! That's a good one! Billy don't even carry no gun! When he said 'draw' he meant the game was a draw. Cain't cha see that? I thought you was some kind a good player but I guess you ain't, and now you're gonna swing for it!"

Danny Douglas did hang for the murder of Old Billy Matson, but the town was never the same, and no one would play checkers again in the back of the saloon.

In the diagram above, White does have a draw but it will take a "star" move to make it happen. Can you do it? Solve the problem and then draw your mouse over to Read More to check your solution. Just be careful what you say and how you say it in a West Texas saloon!