17th - 18th March 2012

Introduction

This will be the second Isle of Skye Go Tournament. Our club has been meeting since 2006, some of us have been travelling to tournaments since 2008, and our first tournament was in 2010. We hope to hold one every second year, alternating with the Isle of Man Go Week.

The dates are just before the tourist season begins, just before everyone here gets busy again, and before pressure on accommodation develops. The weather can be ‘interesting’ in March. Huge waves may be crashing on the rocks at Neist Point, but we’ll be playing Go in a comfortable hotel’s function room, in the centre of Portree, the island’s only town; experiencing the weather will be an optional extra.

Dates and Times

Saturday 17th March

09:00   Registration
10:00   Round One   
13:30   Round Two
16:00   Round Three

Sunday 18th March

10:00   Round Four
13:30   Round Five
16:00   Round Six
18:15   Results and prizes 

Format

The main tournament will be run on the McMahon system. Each player will get 60 minutes per game. There will be some, ’accelerated’, byo-yomi, details nearer the time.

We have not yet decided whether to have a small board competition, perhaps on the Friday evening. If we do then details will be posted here in due course.

Cost

Participants can take part in the main tournament on one day or on both.

One day £7.50 (£5.00 unwaged)
Both days £12.00 (£8.00 unwaged)

There is a surcharge of £1.50 per day in the main tournament for anyone who is not a member of the BGA. This helps cover the costs the BGA (British Go Association) has in laying on, insuring and advertising the tournament; these would otherwise have to be met from the members’ subscriptions alone (currently £18.00 per year). In effect, this surcharge buys temporary membership of the BGA. Players from abroad, and the unwaged, are exempt from this surcharge.

Venue

The venue will be the Tongadale Hotel, in Wentworth Street, Portree, IV51 9EJ. Wentworth Street is short, and runs from Somerled Square, which is where the buses from Glasgow and Inverness stop, to the top of Quay Brae, the way down to the harbour. There is a clear (google) map in the Tongadale’s website.

In mid-March there is no parking problem in Portree. Free, long-stay, parking is at Bayfield, 300 metres from the Tongadale. The google map in the Bayfield Backpackers website shows where that is. Or park initially at the door of the Tongadale and one of us will show you where Bayfield is.

Travel

There are several City Link buses a day between Glasgow and Skye, departing from Buchanan Street Bus Station; some of these go via Glasgow Airport, some do not.

There are frequent shuttle buses from Glasgow Airport to Buchanan Street Bus Station, from where the Skye buses depart. Glasgow Airport is served from many destinations, including Easyjet flights from Stansted and Flybe from Birmingham. Note that Glasgow Prestwick (serve by Ryanair) is a different airport; from there frequent trains, quite cheap, go to Glasgow Central, which is about a mile across the city centre from Buchanan Street Bus Station. There are frequent buses from Edinburgh airport to Buchanan Street Bus Station in Glasgow; the journey time is about an hour. Glasgow Central is also where trains from England arrive.

We do not recommend using the train service from Glasgow to Mallaig to link with a ferry to Skye in March. If a storm forces ferry cancellations it could take a day to get round to Skye by train and bus.

Inverness Airport has flights to and from London and Birmingham. There are shuttle services to Inverness bus station, and several buses a day from there to Skye; these are also Citylink services. There are also trains, on a very scenic line, from Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh, and buses from there to Portree.

Driving from Glasgow to Skye, a five or more hour journey, is best done along the A82. This goes up the west side of Loch Lomond, and through Fort William; turn left onto the A87 at Invergarry, and cross the Skye Bridge at Kyle of Lochalsh.

From further south the best route is possibly M6, A74(M)/M74, M73, A80/M80 and A9, following signs for, but bypassing, Glasgow, Stirling and Perth. About 70 miles north of Perth turn off the A9 at Dalwhinnie, and cut across for a few miles on the A889 to join the A86, the Fort William road. At Spean Bridge turn right onto the A82, and at Invergarry (about 20 miles north of Spean Bridge) turn left onto the A87, the road to the Skye Bridge.

A9/A889/A86/A82/A87/Skye Bridge is also the simplest route to Skye from the southeast of Scotland.

Accommodation in Portree

B&B will available at the Tongadale for sure; it’s not decided yet if that early in the season they will already be offering full board.

The owner of Givendale Guest House will be playing in the tournament and several of the participants in 2010 stayed there. Givendale is in Heron Place, under half a mile from Wentworth Street. There is a map on the Givendale website.

There are two very similar, equally priced, bunkhouses in the centre of Portree. We thought it would be more fun for those participants who want this type of accommodation if they all went to the same one, so on the toss of a coin we’re recommending Bayfield Backpackers. If you book with them through that site please let them know in their “other information” box that you will be at the Go tournament.

Even pre-season there are many other places to stay, see Skye or Visit Highlands websites.

Food

The Tongadale Hotel will serve us with tea, coffee and soft drinks, and access to where we will be playing is through the hotel bar.

The Arriba Café, about 50 metres from the Tongadale, will be ready for us at lunch time, between 11:30 an 13:30, and will take orders then for evening meals, which will be served from 18:00 onwards.

Even pre-season there are quite a few other places to eat, from good restaurants to fish and chip shops. Bayfield Backpackers has a kitchen for guests who want to cater for themselves.

More Information and Pre-registration

For more information contact Carel Goodheir or John Macdonald, details below.

Please use the online entry form below: it will help us a lot if all or most of those intending to come to this tournament pre-register.

Alternatively, email us at carelgoodheir“at” gmail.com or write, if possible with the information asked for in the online entry form, to:

John MacDonald
6 Raasay Court
Portree
Isle of Skye
IV51 9TG

Or phone John MacDonald on 01478 611207 or Carel Goodheir on 01478 612909

Do not send money now, please, that will be collected on the day.

Entry Form