Newsletter - 23 October 2020

From the President:

Three years ago John Donovan told me the story of the departing manager. He told his successor that he had left him 3 envelopes. He should open them in order when he encountered problems.
After some difficulty in the organisation, the new manager opened Envelope 1, containing a message which said ‘Remind them you are new to the job and still learning’.
Time passed and he opened Envelope 2, wherein the message said ‘Blame your predecessors’.
More time passed and he opened Envelope 3; the message was ‘Prepare 3 envelopes’.

I am now following the advice in Envelope 3…

I have thanked many people in this space. Now it is appropriate to thank the whole committee for their wide-ranging efforts this year. John Brockwell quietly resigned as Tournament Secretary in May; if you have several hours available I will start to describe his inimitable contribution to local, regional and Australian bridge (for the short version see the President’s report for the AGM). This year I thank especially Lyn Turner (Treasurer), Deb Milner (Secretary), and Ian Robinson (Vice-President and from May Tournament Secretary) for their contribution to CBC’s year of ‘interesting times’. We are luckier than almost any club anywhere but it took a lot of smart thinking and hard work from those three to create some of the good fortune that we have.

I look forward to seeing some of you at the CBC AGM on Monday 26 October at 5.30pm. No risks involved – all committee positions have been filled.

Thank you all for your support and friendship, particularly in the last three years.

Best wishes,

Pam

Working Bee

Last Saturday many jobs were completed at the club, from tidying up the roses to cleaning behind fridges to updating bridge software. For these things and more, we thank the cheerful band of Lesley Gunson, John Hempenstall, Julia Hoffman, Janet Kahler, George McLean, Keith Mitchell, Rick Nehmy, Peter Quach, Chris Quail, Ian Robinson, Jodi Tutty, Len van Der Hor, Liz van Der Hor, Brett Yeats and Jennifer Yeats. What a team!

Southern Cross Club Community Rewards Program

To earn these benefits for CBC you must be a member of the Canberra Southern Cross Club and register that the Canberra Bridge Club is your community club. The rest is painless – eat, drink and be merry and the bridge club will receive 7.5% of what you spend on food and beverages (but not at Snapper or on the boat).

In NOVEMBER the benefit will be increased to 15%. This is a very pleasant way of supporting two clubs at once.

Reopening the kitchen from Monday 12 Oct

The club reopened the downstairs kitchen on Monday 12 October 2020. This continues to be on a TRIAL week-by-week basis, testing whether we can operate in a COVID-safe way, as demonstrated by strong member compliance with the arrangements outlined in the Kitchen Reopening Document.

Volunteers are needed at every session to ensure the kitchen is left as it should be. This will only take a few minutes as members are required to place their own cups and glasses in the dishwasher. Please contact Tim Mather to let him know of your availability This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Next week at the Clubrooms

Have you read the latest versions of the CBC COVID-19 Safety Plan and Checklist for Members?

• COVID-19 Safety Plan & Checklist & Checklist (including how to buy vouchers and payment details)

For the week commencing Monday 26 October we have six sessions scheduled at the clubrooms

• Monday morning 10:00am                                                     Bruce Crossman
• Monday evening 7:00pm (walk-in) & &:15pm (event)            Christy Geromboux
• Tuesday afternoon 1:15pm                                                    Sally Barber
• Wednesday morning 10:00am                                               Ian Robinson
• Thursday morning 10:00am (MP and Imps)                          Jodi Tutty
• Friday afternoon 1:15pm                                                       Bruce Crossman

Red Masterpoint sessions at the Clubrooms

For the months of September to November, each face-to-face session will have one red pointed session per month. Red points will be awarded on:

• Monday Morning                    4th Monday of the month  - October 26
• Monday Evening                    4th Monday of the month  - October 26
• Tuesday Afternoon                 1st Tuesday of the month  - November 3*
• Wednesday morning              2nd Wednesday of the month - November 11
  
• Friday afternoon                     3rd Friday of the month  - November 20

*Please note that on Melbourne Cup Day, 3 November, bridge will be held as usual at 1.15pm

Bidding Boxes

Please remember:

• To place all call cards, including Pass, on the table
• Do not pick up or disturb the bidding cards until after the opening lead has been made

Next week on BBO

For the week commencing Monday 26 October, we have scheduled 5 tourneys on BBO.

• Monday Morning 10:15am                           Bruce Crossman
• Tuesday Evening 7:15pm (imps)                 Stephen Fisher
• Wednesday Morning Novice 10:15am         Barb Toohey
• Wednesday Evening 7:15pm                       John Donovan
• Thursday Morning 10:15am (matchpoint)    Jodi Tutty

BFACT Annual General Meeting

The Bridge Federation of the ACT (BFACT) is to hold its Annual General Meeting  commencing at 5PM Monday 16 November 2020. The AGM is to be held at the Canberra Bridge Club. Members will also be able to attend and vote on all matters via Zoom. Further information on Zoom attendance will be provided closer to the meeting.

If you are attending the BFACT AGM in-person, please read the COVID-19 Safety Plan for the BFACT AGM.

All information about the meeting (Agenda, Financial Statements, Nomination and Proxy Forms) are available on the BFACT web site (www.bfact.com.au) under Notices.

Upcoming Events

World Bridge Federation - Online Championship

The World Bridge Federation (WBF) is running an online international championship and all bridge players are able to enter.

• Qualifying  events are to be held from October 26 to October 29 2020.
• Players enter as individuals using their name and ABF number on their preferred platform and play with robots as partners.
• Please see the attached document from the WBF for additional information (PDF).

Jacaranda Online Teams Congress

The Jacaranda Online Teams Congress will start at 10.00am this Sunday 25th October, 2020 on RealBridge (you can see and talk to everyone at the table):

• Swiss Teams format, 6 x 8-board matches, with results converted to VPs. 
• FREE ENTRY 
• Players must be home club members of an NSWBA or BFACT affiliated club. (CBC is a BFACT-affiliated club)
• Register: https://www.nswba.com.au/tourn/eventDetails.asp?tid=3169&T=X
• Log-in instruction will be emailed to all entrants at about 9.00am on the day of play.
• RealBridge is a 21st Century program and is designed for up-to-date computers - please do the system and program checks at RealBridgeSetup.

This event is run by the NSW Bridge Association. For more information please view their Jacaranda Online Teams Congress webpage.

Griffith Ex-Servicemans Bridge Club Online Swiss Pairs

• Saturday November 14, 2020 10:00 AM - 60 tables
• This event will have two sessions with a 30 minute break for lunch, a 10 minute break for morning tea and a 10 minute break for afternoon tea.
• Cost: BB$10 per player
• All players must be registered users on Bridge Base Online www.bridgebase.com and have registered their BBO Username with the ABF www.abfevents.com.au/forms/signup

Any issues with entries should be directed to the organiser This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (02) 6965 1260.

Results

CBC Barry Turner Teams

1. Julia Hoffman, Chris Quail, Pam & Ross Crichton
2. Ian Robinson, George Kozakos, Elizabeth Havas & Peter Reynolds

CBC Olive Lott Pairs

1. Sunny Campbell & Gordon Henderson
2. Chris & Morag Lokan
3. Eric Glass & Elspeth Saxby

ABF Online Events

16 October - Restricted
2nd EW           Dan Danton & Odette Mayne  62.38%

18 October - Open
2nd NS           Julia Hoffman & Noelene Law   64.88%
3rd EW           Sean Mullamphy & Tony Bond   62.69%
5th NS            Peter Kahler & Adrienne Stephens  61.55%

Lighter Moments

When you answer the door at Halloween this year, the children are likely to ask Track or Trace?

Bridge players are striving more energetically than usual for a No-Trump contract.

Why don’t you serve beer at a maths party?
Because you can’t drink and derive.