BikingBrian: The Pedaling National Master of Chess
Meet BikingBrian, a National Master whose chess journey is as steady and relentless as a long-distance bike ride up a steep hill—exhausting, challenging, but ultimately rewarding. Ever since starting with a humble daily rating of 1200 in 2011, Brian has pedaled hard through thousands of blitz, bullet, and rapid games, hitting peak blitz ratings over 2400 and maintaining fierce competitive spirit over the years.
With a blitz career spanning from modest beginnings at 1366 in 2015 to dominating the board with a maximum rating of 2445, Brian has proven to be both resilient and adaptive. His bullet performance is equally impressive, reaching ratings above 2200, making him a speed demon who can think faster than most can blink. Don’t be fooled by the nickname — this isn’t just a cyclist who enjoys two wheels; this is a chess player gliding swiftly through complex positions with the finesse of a Tour de France competitor.
Brian's playing style features deep endgames, averaging over 70 moves per win, showing patience and stamina that few possess. In fact, his endgame frequency is 80.7%, revealing a master who loves the grind and isn't afraid to stay until the very last piece falls. His tactical awareness is no joke either, boasting an astonishing win rate of 99.13% after losing a piece, a testament to his never-say-die attitude — biking uphill with determination even when his position is compromised.
The stats speak volumes: over 8,000 wins in blitz alone, and a longest winning streak of 14 games. But Brian isn’t just about numbers—he brings a fun mix of bike-riding enthusiasm to the board, where each move is like pedaling another kilometer closer to victory. His love for the game is infectious, yet watch out opponents, because this cycling chess master does not easily pause for a breather.
Whether facing rivals in pulse-pounding bullet matches or grinding slower daily games, BikingBrian combines mental endurance with a tactical mind sharper than a chainring. Keep an eye on him — both on the leaderboard and the bike trails. Because when Brian pedals and plots his next move, you better believe he’s headed for greatness.
Hi BikingBrian – Personalised Coaching Feedback
1. Current snapshot
• Favourite systems: Trompowsky / London as White, Hyper-accelerated
Sicilians & King’s-Indian set-ups as Black.
• Recent form:
• Best blitz so far: 2445 (2020-04-03)
2. What’s working well
- Sharp tactical eye – 25. Qg6! in your win vs. Angelo Cuizon is a model of piece co-ordination and time-pressure management.
- Opening creativity – early Bg5/Bf4 lines regularly drag opponents out of book and into positions you understand better.
- Practical clock handling – many endgames were won because you kept 15–30 s in reserve while opponents panicked.
3. Recurring leaks
- Over-adventurous queen moves. In the loss to kjm241203 the sequence 6.Qb3?!–9.Nb5? walked into …Bb4+ and you never castled. Build the habit: “Before moving the queen, can …Nb4/Nc6-b4 fork a piece or check?”
- King safety during pawn storms. Against rajitha1367 you doubled rooks on the 7th while the back rank and dark squares were loose (see diagram after 31.Rxb7). Add a prophylactic move (h6/h3 or g6/g3) before the final invasion.
- Technical conversion. You resigned an opposite-colour bishop endgame vs. dubovsshadow that sprung from earlier imprecision (25…e5?!). Review typical rook + pawn vs rook and OC-bishop endings.
4. Homework menu
| Theme | Drill | Success goal |
|---|---|---|
| …Nb4 / knight-fork tactics | Solve 50 puzzles that feature a fork on b4/d3 | >80 % accuracy |
| Prophylactic thinking | Write down the opponent’s three threats every move for 20 rapid games | Spot ≥2 threats consistently |
| R+P vs R & OC-bishop endings | Chess.com/Lichess end-game trainer set | 90 % solve rate in 25 attempts |
5. Illustrative moment
Critical fragment from the East-Indian loss (Black to play after 24.Rc2):
Engine line: 24…e5! instead keeps the centre closed, holds the extra pawn and leaves White with no entry squares – a typical fix-the-centre principle you can apply in similar structures.
6. Opening tweaks
- Add one solid d4-response (e.g. Grünfeld) to avoid symmetrical English positions where your Dragon setup feels passive.
- Experiment with a main-line Catalan or Queen’s Gambit to strengthen long-term strategic skills and reduce reliance on early bishop hops.
7. Next steps
- After each loss, locate the first irreversible mistake – not the tactic that ended the game.
- Play two 10 | 0 games per day focused on castling & luft before pawn storms.
- Aim to surpass 2445 (2020-04-03) within six weeks; review this note to stay on track.
Good luck, enjoy the ride, and keep the pedals spinning!
🆚 Opponent Insights
| Most Played Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| Craig Clawitter | 83W / 61L / 3D | |
| Keaton Kiewra | 2W / 48L / 10D | |
| haridaskesavan | 11W / 13L / 6D | |
| raulov51 | 15W / 10L / 4D | |
| asztrik | 7W / 17L / 3D | |
Rating
| Year | Bullet | Blitz | Rapid | Daily |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2306 | |||
| 2024 | 2314 | |||
| 2023 | 1788 | |||
| 2022 | 1788 | |||
| 2021 | 2305 | 1787 | ||
| 2020 | 2233 | 2301 | ||
| 2019 | 2106 | 2311 | ||
| 2018 | 2036 | 2225 | ||
| 2017 | 2028 | 2085 | 2100 | 1787 |
| 2016 | 2012 | 2058 | ||
| 2015 | 1954 | 1901 | 1769 | |
| 2011 | 1200 |
Stats by Year
| Year | White | Black | Moves |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 0W / 0L / 0D | 0W / 1L / 0D | 75.0 |
| 2024 | 21W / 25L / 5D | 29W / 16L / 4D | 80.1 |
| 2023 | 1W / 0L / 0D | 0W / 0L / 0D | 64.0 |
| 2022 | 4W / 0L / 0D | 4W / 0L / 0D | 65.4 |
| 2021 | 41W / 29L / 10D | 33W / 41L / 6D | 81.1 |
| 2020 | 378W / 356L / 70D | 327W / 378L / 82D | 74.5 |
| 2019 | 235W / 211L / 31D | 213W / 224L / 41D | 81.8 |
| 2018 | 1043W / 949L / 246D | 995W / 1001L / 226D | 80.3 |
| 2017 | 1286W / 1142L / 257D | 1172W / 1222L / 274D | 78.7 |
| 2016 | 1334W / 1209L / 255D | 1133W / 1298L / 319D | 77.5 |
| 2015 | 669W / 669L / 111D | 661W / 654L / 126D | 74.8 |
| 2011 | 1W / 0L / 0D | 0W / 0L / 0D | 43.0 |
Openings: Most Played
| Blitz Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon Attack: Siberian Attack | 3066 | 1445 | 1314 | 307 | 47.1% |
| Modern Defense: Pterodactyl Variation | 1002 | 445 | 461 | 96 | 44.4% |
| Amazon Attack | 970 | 432 | 424 | 114 | 44.5% |
| Sicilian Defense: Closed | 668 | 295 | 309 | 64 | 44.2% |
| Sicilian Defense: Accelerated Dragon, Exchange Variation | 556 | 262 | 230 | 64 | 47.1% |
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation | 468 | 176 | 233 | 59 | 37.6% |
| Australian Defense | 444 | 218 | 192 | 34 | 49.1% |
| King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation | 441 | 196 | 204 | 41 | 44.4% |
| Sicilian Defense | 431 | 177 | 201 | 53 | 41.1% |
| Slav Defense | 428 | 195 | 180 | 53 | 45.6% |
| Daily Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amar Gambit | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Amazon Attack: Siberian Attack | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Sicilian Defense: Closed | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Barnes Opening: Walkerling | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| French Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Alekhine Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Bishop's Opening: 3.d3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Barnes Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| East Indian Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| QGD: 2...Bf5 3.cxd5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Bullet Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Defense | 239 | 139 | 88 | 12 | 58.2% |
| Amazon Attack: Siberian Attack | 171 | 89 | 71 | 11 | 52.0% |
| Modern | 145 | 72 | 67 | 6 | 49.7% |
| Slav Defense | 126 | 66 | 54 | 6 | 52.4% |
| Amar Gambit | 103 | 47 | 48 | 8 | 45.6% |
| East Indian Defense | 99 | 41 | 46 | 12 | 41.4% |
| King's Indian Defense: Four Pawns Attack | 97 | 49 | 41 | 7 | 50.5% |
| Amazon Attack | 91 | 43 | 43 | 5 | 47.2% |
| Sicilian Defense | 86 | 38 | 41 | 7 | 44.2% |
| Sicilian Defense: Closed | 80 | 24 | 47 | 9 | 30.0% |
| Rapid Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon Attack: Siberian Attack | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 50.0% |
| King's Indian Defense: Kazakh Variation | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0% |
🔥 Streaks
| Streak | Longest | Current |
|---|---|---|
| Winning | 14 | 0 |
| Losing | 14 | 2 |