Quote for the day: "Looking forward to my visit. I will be one of the lucky few who have visited the Chess Hall of Fame at all 4 locations (New Windsor, NY; Washington, DC; Miami, FL; & St. Louis, MO)... Don't know if Steve Doyle and Al Lawrence could have imagined back in '86 what it would be like 25 years down the road." 
There's no place like home. A few thoughts while on the road again...
Flew home to Idaho yesterday to pick up the car. Can't survive a winter in Ithaca without a vehicle. The
bus system and
Carshare service are good back-ups for two people with one car, but we have decided that we must have our car... Celebrated my birthday with the in-laws in Meridian ID last evening. We had a good time, but Tash's physical presence was definitely missed.
Lunch with Jeff Roland tomorrow. Speaking of Jeff, here's his
"spread" on the Meridian Invitational held at my house August 20, 2011.
Good job, as always, Jeff!
My tentative travel plans will bring my to Pocatello ID this weekend, Laramie WY on Sunday, Lincoln NE Monday,
St. Louis MO to see the new Chess Hall of Fame on Tuesday or Wednesday,
then to Crossville TN to see if my "key to the city" still opens any doors, and back to Ithaca NY from there... A half dozen Red Sox games to keep me company along the way.
On the right is the new three-story Chess Hall of Fame building in St. Louis. --> Looking forward to my visit. I will be one of the lucky few who have visited the Chess Hall of Fame at all 4 locations (New Windsor, NY; Washington, DC; Miami, FL; & St. Louis, MO)... Don't know if Steve Doyle and Al Lawrence could have imagined back in '86 what it would be like 25 years down the road. I appreciate their foresight...
Please come back for an update. I'll take lots of photos.
Chess in my kitchen, literally: 2011 Meridian Invitational. In this photo,
Corey Longhurst (White) versus Frank Niro III (Black). Hugh Myers looking down on the game, Caleb Kircher in the "Boise State" shirt, Tash Niro in the background, and Jamie Lang pouring himself a drink. Photo by Jeff Roland, courtesy of the Idaho Chess Association.The travel plan (updated as of 9/22/11, will revise en route):Sun Sep 25
Pocatello ID to
Laramie WY - 453.68 mi, 6 hrs 57 mins
Mon Sep 26 Laramie WY to
Lincoln NE - 493.20 mi, 6 hrs 55 mins
Tue Sep 27 Lincoln, NE to
St. Louis MO - 442.94 mi, 7 hrs 1 min
Wed Sep 28 St. Louis MO to
Crossville TN - 419.55 mi, 6 hrs 35 mins (visit HoF Wednesday morning)
Thu Sep 29 Crossville TN to
Strasburg VA - 476.26 mi, 7 hrs 26 mins (visit USCF Thursday morning)
Fri Sep 30 Strasburg VA to
West Chester PA - 214.20 mi, 3 hrs 37 mins (lunch w/FM?)
Sat/Sun Oct 1/Oct 2 West Chester PA to
Ithaca NY - time & route to be determined...
Thank you
Mapquest.
The World Chess Hall of Fame (above) recently reopened in St. Louis. It includes the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame, which I have now visited in all four locations (New Windsor NY, Washington D.C. and Miami previously). The centerpiece of the new display is the Morphy Silver, a coin silver beverage set presented to Paul Morphy for winning the American Chess Congress in 1857, and originally donated to the HOF by Steve Doyle in 1986.
I was very pleased to see that the memory of Sidney Samole (his bust shown here) was still prominent in the newly relocated Chess Hall of Fame. 
