GM Ashley says:
He was very intelligent but he didn't' do well in school. He didn't get straight A's, had a tendency to fail because he wasn't very motivated. But I think chess players tend to have a quick mind, the kind of people who figure things out quickly. Whether you'd call that intelligent or just a skill. I've met lots of chess players I didn't think were very bright people or very nice people.

Host Chris-MSNBC says:
Do you think chess is gaining popularity?

GM Ashley says: Definitely. The Chess Federation documents say there have been a 70% gain in the last 10 years, and I think that number will continue to skyrocket because movies like "Searching for Bobby Fischer" and the chess in the schools foundation pushing chess constantly to create a real base for chess fans all around the country. These things can only continue to help.

sss says:
I saw the enthusiasm in the group on TV. How many years did it take to create that level of excitement?

GM Ashley says:
The kids were always excited. I think it was just a question of tv catching up with reality. Dateline decided to do a piece on us, but remember we'd already won two national championships in 94 and 95, we dropped to second in 96, and were trying to get back to our championship status in the piece Dateline did.

GM Ashley says:
So we've been like this for years. It didn't take much for the kids to be excited about it.

ChessWise says:
Is there any chance for chess to get on TV again? The Fischer vs. Spassky TV coverage got me started in chess.

GM Ashley says:
This all depends on one thing - and that is if America gets a major chess star. I think this is really the way that chess will end up on television. If someone gets so good they can topple Kasparov or challenge Deep Blue, and capture the public imagination as Bobby Fischer did 25 years ago.

GM Ashley says:
I don't think people care if the champions are from Russia or England or wherever, we need a star from the US to perk interest.

sss says:
Is timed competition chess more firm than the untimed?

GM Ashley says:
In competitive chess the games are always timed. The reason being people may take way too long when it's not timed. There are different time controls you can play at that make it speed chess or classic chess, but history has instances when people have literally sat at the board for 6 hours and not made a move.

GM Ashley says:
And when that happened they realized it was time to put a clock on people and stop that nonsense. But with a clock that has drastically changed, our games last a maximum of 6 hours. You're given a certain amount of total time to make a number of moves. You can use your time as you wish, you may use I minute for I move or 10 minutes for one move. The standard is 40 moves in 2 hours which breaks down to 3 minutes a move, but you can manage that however you wish.

BOSTONairbear says:
Dear guest where the game of chess originate?

GM Ashley savs:
As far as we can tell, chiss originated somewhere in India and it moved from India to Persia. The Arabs picked it up and the region of North Africa where the Moors came from it went into Europe. It spread through Spain all around Europe and the game also changed in name. It became more royal, more regal, kings and queens substituted for the older names.

Host Chris-MSNBC says: closing...

GM Ashley says:
Thanks. I do want to push it, always be patient with your children when you teach them because it's very easy to turn them off to wanting to play. It's a fantastic way of spending time with your kids. Good night!

GM Ashley has left the conversation.