|
It is with great sadness that I report the premature death of
Edward Baliszewski. Edward was the founding father of the London
Clubs Backgammon League and one of the major reasons that
backgammon is so popular at the RAC. The London League trophy will
be renamed in his honour and as a tribute to all that he did for
the game in our capital city.
P.G. Wodehouse would have described him as a good egg. I knew him
as the most courteous of men whose passion for the game inspired
others. I spent many a fine evening as his guest at the RAC,
either playing or discussing the game, and he constantly surprised
me with his depth of knowledge not only of backgammon but of other
games as well. In a world of diminishing values the phrase ‘true
gentleman’ is often used out of context but it is precisely the
right way to describe Edward Baliszewski. He will be greatly
missed.
He was keen on quizzes so in his memory I present as a competition
one of the problems from last year’s RAC Backgammon dinner, the
last occasion on which I had the pleasure of his company.
Black is on the bar and on roll – how should he play his double
twos? I will give three copies of “Second Wind”, my most recent
book, as prizes. To make the problem as interesting as possible,
to win you not only have to identify the correct move but also
explain in no more than 150 words why it is the right move.
Entries should be sent to:
chris.bray@btconnect.com and must reach me by March 22nd.
|
