Spectrum Congress, Birmingham

Bristol scoop prizes (including the raffle!)

The Plough and Harrow, Edgbaston, was the venue once again for the Spectrum Congress in Birmingham. This is a popular place, and deservedly so, for it was offering dinner, bed and breakfast for £25. As Steve Boniface will tell you, this is a hotel with a very good restaurant and the dinner is worth at least £15 of that £25. In fact, I couln't get a room as I left my booking too late, so ended up paying £22 for B&B at a very grotty guest house. Note: must book early for the next one.

Spectrum got their biggest ever entry - 144 players - of which just four were from the Bristol League: Roy Phillips and Steve Boniface (both Grendel), Matthew Brown (Clevedon) and myself (Horfield). Considering there were so few of us, we did disproportionately well. Roy stormed away with the Premier, to be the clear winner, while I plodded along behind him and won the under-165 grading prize. Meanwhile in the Major, Steve clocked up two wins on the Saturday, took a half point bye in the evening so he could enjoy his dinner in the restuarant, and then won and drew to finish in a tie for first place with two others. Then, to cap it all, Steve won the raffle - the prize being free accommodation and entry to a future Spectrum Congress.

As this was the last Spectrum event of the season, we also had the results of the Spectrum Grand Prix. Paul Bloom and Colin Gardner tied for first and were presented with impressively large trophies.

The Spectrum team were delighted with the turn-out in Birmingham and have decided to have two congresses there each year. The next one will be the first weekend in January. Before that, though, there is the Spectrum in Clevedon, 22-23 November, and it's part of the Bristol Grand Prix. Don't forget to enter.
 
 

Premier (u-200)
1	Roy Phillips	4.5
2=	Russell James	4
	Ralph Allen
G.P. (u-165)	John Richards	3

Major (u-160)
1=	Geoffrey Thomas	4
	Steve Boniface
	Karl Forman
G.P. (u-126)	Merdan

Minor (u-120)
1	Steve Bartlett	4.5
2	Geoffrey Bishop	4
G.P.	M Monaghan	3.5

Novices (u-100)
1	Michael Brooks	4.5
2=	Sean Cooksey	4
	Nick Carter
G.P. (u-70)	David Dunn	3

Grand Prix
1=	Colin Gardner	53.5/72
	Paul Bloom
3	Geoffrey Thomas	44