Members of RVA Pieces gather to play chess in club president Spenser Kearns’ backyard.
Their gatherings might seem subdued, but the members of RVA Pieces: The Richmond Chess Club — who respect the tradition of quiet concentration while games are underway — are full of enthusiasm for the game and their time together.
“Friendships by way of chess are lifelong and will continue to be lifelong,” says Eugene Gateley, club treasurer, who lists easily the names of friends he has made, and kept, since he began attending chess meetups in 1992 at the Village Cafe on Grace Street.
RVA Pieces, founded in 2015, now meets multiple times a week at various locations. Monday nights are spent at GWARbar in Jackson Ward and, if weather permits, nearby Abner Clay Park. Thursdays are at Slingshot Social Game Club in Scott’s Addition. Saturdays, the group convenes at Monroe Park after a morning session at Richmond’s Main Library on Franklin Street, where children of all ages (and their parents) are invited to come for instruction in the ancient game.
“When people ask if they should come, they usually say, ‘I’m not very good,’ so it’s important for us to say they’re going to be fine,” says Spenser Kearns, the group’s president and a member since 2015, when he was a VCU student.
Kearns, who was a competitive chess player in elementary school, stepped away from the game in high school but resumed playing in college. He says he worked his way into a leadership position by organizing RVA Pieces’ first tournament, held years ago at Gallery5, where the group gathered pre-pandemic. Now, Kearns hosts monthly tournaments in his backyard, where his three chickens roam among the players.
The game’s origins can be traced to the 6th century and a game from India called chaturanga. The structure of chess evolved as it moved around the globe, becoming recognizable as the game we know now only in the 16th century. The rules players follow today weren’t solidified until the mid-to-late 19th century.
The game is enjoying a surge in popularity, RVA Pieces’ officers agree, due to the popularity of the Netflix series “The Queen’s Gambit” and more time available during the pandemic for people to learn the game and play online. But nothing beats a human connection.
When she came to a club meetup in late 2021, “I had been playing for three months,” says Hannah Hahn, club secretary. “I was nervous about coming because I was the only girl [that night]. But people are never condescending or mean. For the most part, people are eager to teach you. And you have people to hang out with.”
There’s much to learn from chess, Gateley notes.
“I think chess helps you control your emotions and think logically,” he says. “If you’ve got a problem with sitting still or concentrating, you have to focus [while playing] to concentrate on what you’re doing.”
Kearns notes that no matter the outcome, the game is a learning experience.
“Chess is a game that we understand losing is a necessary part [of the process] to get good,” he says. “If you are the kind of person who can’t stand losing, you’re not going to like it.”
Jack Barrow, described by Kearns as one of the club’s strongest players, is relatively new to the group but has been playing for more than 25 years. He says timed games, played against a clock, can be stressful, but every game has an opportunity for growth.
“You can go back and think about why you made mistakes,” he says, noting that online resources also give feedback. “An algorithm will spit out how well you’ve done and give you an idea of how well you played.”
Tournaments also help players gauge their progress, as they compete against people whom they don’t usually play. Ten RVA Pieces members traveled to Charlottesville in mid-July for a tournament, and the group is pursuing nonprofit 501(c)(3) status so it can host its own tournaments sanctioned by the U.S. Chess Federation.
One RVA Pieces member who routinely seeks out tournaments is Sean Beavers, a junior at Henrico’s Deep Run High School and the 2021 Virginia amateur champion.
Beavers began playing chess with the group not long after his parents taught him the game.
“I think I started taking Sean to Monroe Park on Saturdays, and leaving him there to play chess, when he was 12,” his mother, Bonnie, says. “He was physically small then, and I think some of the folks were surprised that such a little kid showed up alone and seemed to fit right in. For me, the other players have been opponents and coaches wrapped into one.”
Beavers says he doesn’t recall being worried about playing against adults.
“It’s always exciting to play people who are better because then you learn more,” he says. “I think I was more excited than nervous to go to Monroe Park.”
The appeal of the game is simple, he says. “Chess is simple to learn and play, but under the surface, it’s really complex. There’s a really high skill ceiling. You can play casually or competitively. There are so many different levels of players, you can always find what you’re looking for.”
At this year’s National High School Chess Championship, held in April in Memphis, Tennessee, Beavers was the only player to win a game against grandmaster Ben Finegold. In an interview after, Finegold said he tried too hard to win against the younger player. Beavers says a draw would have been more likely, but Finegold “overextended” himself, which created an opening. That’s part of learning, too.
“If you’re not easily winning, or you’re in a tough position, you start thinking a lot harder, and it makes you a better player,” he says.
Beavers agrees that the camaraderie of in-person competition is also appealing.
“It’s more fun to play with people because you have human interaction,” he says. “If there’s a cool tactic, you can share the moment with them. It’s a give and take.”
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