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BGonline.org Forums
Cleveland ABT Official Invitation--about clocks and baffle boxes
Posted By: phil simborg In Response To: Cleveland ABT Official Invitation (Colin Owen)
Date: Tuesday, 23 February 2016, at 4:09 a.m.
I have a very strong preference towards clocks because they move tournaments along more quickly; because it is not fun to play someone who takes forever on his moves; and because it takes away pressure on myself to move quickly when I would like to take more time...when there is no clock I feel bad if I take a long time on a move, and with a clock, I can take as long as I wish on a particular move, at my own risk.
Most tournaments need a clock because they have so many people and so many events going at once. The nice thing about Cleveland is that they don't have a lot of events overlapping and there has never been a problem with having to start matches late early in the morning or not leaving at a reasonable time on Sunday, and also, Joe and his staff are careful to see that people who play too slow are nicely urged to play faster, and if they don't, they will use a clock. So this is one tournament where I have always had an enjoyable time even without clocks, and by the way, I will still use one any time my opponent agrees.
Baffle boxes the same way. In the US the baffle box is still not liked by many and tournament directors are not about to force them to use it. I don't have to tell you my thoughts about the baffle box, but again, because I make and sell them any time I offer my strong feelings toward them, people suspect it is only for personal gain. I am also very much in favor of the tube, which I don't make or sell by the way. Anything that stops the problems about people shaking and rolling properly, stops cocked dice and dice on the floor, is fine with me. I would even gladly accept electronic dice over the old fashioned method.
So it's not a perfect world. If I want to play my favorite game I can't always use a box; I can't always use a clock; I can't always play swiss movement; I can't see more places paid; I can't see free entry for novices and free lectures and a buddy system for novices; I can't see TD's enforce stricter rules about good sportsmanship....but I still go to the tournaments I love with directors I love and respect as much as I can because in spite of the above, it's a great game and it's worth it.
Cleveland has always been one of my favorites and I urge all to go EVEN IF they prefer clocks or baffle boxes. It truly is a "friendly" tournament...easy to get to, inexpensive, well-run, and fun.
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