Playing on the big board

The giant chess set as a tourist attraction is quite a common site these days. Sydney's Hyde Park Chess Set has long been a gathering place for lunchtime chess players and many other cities around the world have similar places.
Even Canberra has had a giant chess board for a number of years, but it has been rarely used. Unlike Hyde Park, where the park rangers are responsible for the set, the Canberra board requires members of the chess community to supervise the equipment. This is due to the fact that a number of years ago the (unsupervised) set proved too much of a temptation for a group of passers by, and a pair of knights disappeared. (I suspect they are being used as garden ornaments somewhere in the Canberra 'burbs).
But finally the use of the giant set in Canberra City is coming back, albeit on a limited basis. Each Friday lunchtime will see the pieces brought out for use by anyone who dares. There was a trial run today, and it was both popular, and informative. For if you are using big chess pieces in public there are a few things likely to happen

• Lots of people are happy to watch, but few are willing to play
• One common excuse for not playing is 'I don't have the time'
• The person giving that excuse will however stay watching until the end of the next game
• There will always be someone walking by who is happy to shout out advice
• The most popular (shouted) advice is either "Pawn to E 4" or "Checkmate"
• You will always find one spectator whose Uncle is either a "Master" or a former "State Champion"
• The spectators who say the least are the ones who can really play chess
• And finally, there will always be a 4 year old child who will crash tackle one of the pieces