Sorry I’m late. Old friend Andy Marshall is in town. Andy, who lives in Maryland, is an old postal hobby guy who used to be active with the Potomac Tea and Knife Society. He doesn’t play much dip anymore, but he was the guy who organized and ran the two tournaments that really hooked me on the face-to-face hobby and inspired me to form our club — the 2003 North American Diplomacy Championship and the 2005 World Diplomacy Championship, both of which were hosted by the PTKSers at their signature event, Tempest in a Teapot. When we launched our tournaments in 2007, we modeled them after Andy’s events.
Anyway, he and I had a long dinner last night at Rosebud Prime, and tonight, he, Meghan and I went to Francesca’s on Taylor. So, I’ve been busy.
Wrapping up Season Nine
In this week’s issue, it’s all Pyle all the time. Let’s start with coverage of the big season-ending event in Wayne. We fielded three boards, including our club’s landmark 250th game. Check out the game reports, commentary from a couple of the players, and a recap of all the Pyle awards.
Want to know who captured the Season Nine best country awards? The Rookie of the Year title? The Weasel of the Year? It’s all right here. We also updated the Den or Records and even added a new informal honor that recognizes the player who captured the most board-tops in every season that we’ve tracked them. Check it out.
And the field is now set for our seventh annual Weasel Royale club championship game, which will be held Nov. 1 at Dan Burgess’ home in Downers Grove. The game will feature two former champions, one who has won everything but the Royale, two seeking redemption, and two first-timers.
But before we get to the Royale, we’ll settle the Bar Room Brawl. The second annual championship game has yet to be scheduled, but check out the field. Some of the players will also compete in the Royale, but not all of them.
Both of those games promise to be dramatic, but they’ll struggle to match the level of intrigue we saw in this year’s Sneak election. One candidate struck from the ballot, Two write-in campaigns, and an abdication. You really can’t make this stuff up.
And finally, we close with a sneak preview of a brand-new season of Windy City Weasels Diplomacy.
Important Dates
- November 1: The Weasel Royale and Undercard Game at Dan Burgess’ home in Downers Grove.
Dues
Finally, a big Weasel thank you to the 29 people who paid club dues for 2014. Their support makes so much of what we do possible: The Meetup site, the website, our annual club awards, the Royale, and the Bar Room Brawl. Thanks, Guys!
That’s all for this week.
Jim