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About Us
Brief History of TBCC
In 2013 Tri-Bridges Chess Club began to meet in Malvern at the Aloha Mind Math Center from 7 to 9. I had a student whose parents owned the site and wanted a club for their kid to play in. We met at their site and checked it out and it was a good fit for the club and so we began that February. The club was named Tri-Bridges as we were next to three bridges and Harry Potter was quite popular and it made me think of the Tri-Wizards Cup story.
We began very slowly. Though club ran from 7 to 9, if no one showed up by 8 or 8:15, which did happen, then I would go home figuring that no one was coming. That summer I used the site to run the State Blitz championship and the State Championship (we didn’t even have a USChess affiliate yet, so we had to use another affiliates information.) This brought us a little bit of attention and we began to at least have 5 to 10 players each week. By the time we left the site a while later (the Math Center needed another night for classes and was no longer free), we would occasionally top 20 kids and routinely had attendance in the teens.
We had our own affiliate with US Chess by then and began a long-term arrangement where we would run events at one church and the free club at another church, both in Exton, PA. Over time we have run well over 100 events and have met almost every Tuesday night from 6:30 to 8:30. Recently, we have moved all of our meetings, which now regularly have 25 – 30 kids, and tournaments to 666 Exton Commons, Exton, PA. We have also expaded to included Friday nights as we get ready for the PA State Scholastic Championship in March, and have numerous former attendees who help run tournaments and teach small groups.
Why Tri-Bridges Chess Club?
Founded on the idea of the traditional community chess club (e.g. Marshall in New York City, Mechanics Institute in San Francisco), Tri-Bridges strives to be of use to all chess players in the community. For some, this means teaching how to move the pieces and getting kids excited about the game. For others this means teaching them about concepts like forks, pins, and skewers, so they can do better in tournaments. We have various guest lecturers and lectures on subjects ranging from attack to zugzwang. Finally, some need one on one lessons and we have space for people to take private lessons if the main area is being used.
For the serious and beginning tournament players, we run a variety of tournaments/matches, from the fun and frivolous (bughouse and blitz) to serious events for youngsters such as standard G/25, d5 tournament. We even have longer events for the adults and up and coming strong young players and do occasional team events of varying types ..
“In life, as in chess, forethought wins.”
Charles Buxton
Personal History
Just as we have various guest lecturuers, we will have other events such as simuls, when very strong players come and play games against a bunch of people at once. We host various other events through the year. Finally, we are the only organization in the area with significant library. We have over 1500 bound volumes and periodicals (lending privileges are available), and the books range from late 1800s to current (some volumes are not allowed to leave the building) with more puzzles than anyone can do in a lifetime and many books with various and original opening ideas.
All of these are great reason to come and visit the club, but here is another. While many clubs at states will put players in the section that is best for the club, we have always told players to play in the section that is best for them. In spite of doing this, we have tied for first in at least once section every year for the past 4 years. For the last 7 years our club has met to serve the community by teaching chess, running chess tournaments, and encouraging people to enjoy the game! We hope you come and join us.
John Doe
Coach
Queen Rose
Coach
Ryan Dunn
Coach
Just as our facility allows for almost every type of chess experience, my experience is varied:
Why Chess?
Teamwork
All the pieces must work together to accomplish the goal. Also, each piece has different skills, but they all need to come together to accomplish the goal.
Accountability
As World Champion Lasker noted, “At the chess board, lies and hypocrisy do not last long.” The person responsible for the result of the game is you, not outside forces.
Pattern Recognition
Once learned, chess patterns are often recognizable in similar positions.
Thinking ahead
As players begin to think about their opponents moves and how they will respond, they naturally begin to think about what lies and planning not just for the moment, but will happen in the future.
Evaluation
Players are forced to make complex decisions based on known, but not always easily understood information.
Strategic Thinking and Planning
Players begin to realize that different actions lead to different outcomes – if x then y, if a then b.
Resourcefulness
While guidelines, principles, and the practice of thinking ahead helps to narrow the number of possible options, no one can plan for all variables in the game of chess. The game teaches one to be aware that surprises will occur and to be able to respond to them by applying what they have learned.
Thinking in time
Players began to understand the relationship of cause and effect as well as develop an idea of how past (previous moves), present (current position), and future (how do I win x), all work together.
Transferability
The skills that are learned in chess are widely transferable to non-chess activities.