Prepare Now — Every student should spend a certain amount of time each week studying, exercising, and playing tournament-style chess. They should also be honing their specific chess-related mental skills: visualization, analysis, decision making … and practicing important procedures like clock usage and notation as well. Finally, after reviewing the round times for each event, they and their parents should develop a firm rest, nutrition and refreshment schedule to follow to maintain their energy levels! Those who do not properly prepare are likely to miss making the most of these important opportunities for personal and team success!

In the weeks leading up to these events, all three area clubs will be providing space and guidance for those ambitious local scholastic players wishing to play at slower speeds. The trainees who seize these opportunities should set their clocks to match their target event's time control in order to familiarize themselves with the appropriate game-pace. Also, trainees should practice time-management — a relevant aricle on the Activities Page gives one approach to learning this critical self-control technique.

We wish all of our local players "Good luck, and play well!" for these events! It is quite possible that our local players will bring the highest honors home to Austin!

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