I got my first board on Christmas day 1989 (was 11 at the time). I insisted that my parents let me open my game early in the am. I was up all morning playing and cared little about my other gifts.

Because my 16 Tudor teams didn't arrive for another 3 weeks, I had to play with plain red and white figures.

My cousin taught me how to construct a league with 16 teams and that Spring I had my first ever solitare season. I remember twitching with excitment during last period as I couldn't wait to get home and get my game for the day played. I continued that tradition through 10 seasons.

That winter, I went to work on my old IBM PS2 computer and began to construct a system of stat tracking, graphing, and data storage so I could keep my stats. Home computers were in less than 5% of American homes in 1990, so I am certain that I was the first person ever to do this.

I was only 11 at the time but fast-forward 18 years and little has changed. I still have an great love for this hobby and the innovations that will take it to the next level.