As far as pacing goes, think of it like time of possession in football. You have that time, you might as well use it.
On the topic of resigning, make them prove to you that they can win their position. This is, of course, subjective, but if I get down against a strong player I'm much more likely to resign than against a weak one. My own personal rule is that if they're up by more than the biggest piece left on the board, or if they have a tactic that they clearly can see and I can't prevent it, I resign. Don't turn tail and run at the first sign of trouble, but don't be that guy that doesn't resign, either. No one likes that guy.
How to prepare for a chess tournament?
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Time management.
Probably the biggest issue you will face once you get started. If you are White be prepared to play an opening you know well. Move quickly but carefully until you are out of the mainline. Get into a rhythm, Move piece, press clock, write down move, look back at board, burst into tears. Ok, maybe not the tears bit. The moment you have to think, pause, analyse, go through your checklist if you have one. Its pointless getting mated in 30 moves & having an hour left on your clock, time is there to be used, it will take a bit to work out what works best for you but that comes with more match play so start early & save yourself a lot of pain. Trust me you don't want to be fighting for a draw with 10 moves in 2 min to reach time control, even worse if the guy on the board next to you goes Postal & gets thrown out of the tournament like happened to me once.
Some ppl like a time checklist, ie, break the time up into 4 segments, check your number of moves at the end of each, but don't sweat over it too much just use it to keep yourself roughly in the correct timeframe to make time control
If you get stuck & your mind gets muddled with all the possibilities don't be afraid to leave the board & get a coffee & then refocus. Playing black is a little more tricky but unless your opponent is playing something weird or unfamiliar use the same tactics as for white.
You should have a basic plan for openings, that way you may get up to 10 moves done in a minute or 2 & that can make a huge difference when you have to start thinking & using up your time.
I started using 3 openings, 1 as White & 2 as black depending on what white opened with. As I got more experienced I expanded my repetoire.
Dealing with distractions.
This takes experience but be aware that it will happen. Whether it be the guy going beserk at his opponent next to you or the hot chick in miniskirt & tanktop that pauses to watch your game it happens to everyone so a strategy to refocus can really help.
manspider29 wrote:
I can tell you how to prepare:
Drink 8 pints of beer 15 minutes before a game
Park your bike at the board and play like its a drive through maccas
Kill the opponents (you may actually want to keep this one in mind)
Pick up the opponents king and chainsaw it in half (yes, you need the chainsaw, just for the effect)
Throw the board across the room if your given black
Do drugs
Do u know chess
hItHeShFaNoFcArLsEn wrote:
manspider29 wrote:
I can tell you how to prepare:
Drink 8 pints of beer 15 minutes before a game
Park your bike at the board and play like its a drive through maccas
Kill the opponents (you may actually want to keep this one in mind)
Pick up the opponents king and chainsaw it in half (yes, you need the chainsaw, just for the effect)
Throw the board across the room if your given black
Do drugs
Do u know chess
UR Missing something......
Do i do this before the game or during the game if in a lost postiion.
Or just do it in game for kicks.
ICU 
I like your B.A.M.N. variation!
royalbishop wrote:
hItHeShFaNoFcArLsEn wrote:
manspider29 wrote:
I can tell you how to prepare:
Drink 8 pints of beer 15 minutes before a game
Park your bike at the board and play like its a drive through maccas
Kill the opponents (you may actually want to keep this one in mind)
Pick up the opponents king and chainsaw it in half (yes, you need the chainsaw, just for the effect)
Throw the board across the room if your given black
Do drugs
Do u know chess
UR Missing something......
Do i do this before the game or during the game if in a lost postiion.
Or just do it in game for kicks.
ICU
whenever you want Mr. Royalbishop ;P
oh, and to whatever the hell your name is , yes I do know chess.
IT'S CALLED A JOKE
so how did you do in the tournament i know it has been a year and this forum is a bit dead but you never mentioned how you did
royalbishop escribió:
Rest! You can be ready mentally. But without rest your will blunder against a rested opponent. Your ability to analyze a situation will take a lit bit longer .... tic tic tic. A couple seconds could prove vital early in the game or later. Get that early lead in time and you put some pressure on your opponent vs you being in the hot seat. With rest it will be easier to recall what comes natural.
Relax. This varies with different people. Some say getting hyper helps them relax. Some say music and etc and etc. Whatever keeps you loose/fluid do it as long as it is with the rules. (No performance enhancing substance - lol).
Stress - stay away from anything that looks like it is leading to stress 48hrs before a game. I lost a championship because of this. My girlfriend did not tell me her Mom birthday was on say day i was playing and she wanted me to stay with her when she visit her mom. She already kwew i was playing and not just any game. Bottom line .... if anybody that does not strongly support you playing dodge them 48hrs before playing in the tournament. I have pre game routines that i like so i had to rush back and took me out my routine. Plus my mind was on ....... her and etc during the game.
Out of skills, that is just basic, great post.
Cool!
#21 and #23 are excellent.
vhin-1983 wrote:
Warm up first. Don't drink beer or alcohol weeks before the tournament. Physical exercise is good. Play lots of 90 minutes with 30 seconds increment games weeks before the tournament against humans or computer. During the tournament, play it safe and be healthy.
Good advice, but the tournament was played nearly 5 years ago
Don't focus primarily on achieving a good result. Instead focus on enjoying the tournament.
Everyone has their own way of managing time. Some seem to play better when they have little or no time available. That is no good for me so I tend to move quite quickly in the opening - as long as nothing seriously unusual happens - and then I am willing to spend twenty or thirty minutes on one or two moves going into the middle game trying to make some good plans and getting some sort of grip on what the main ideas for both sides are going to be. Then I work out how much time I have to reach the first time control and divide that by the moves to make and try to keep roughly to that timetable - typically two to three minutes for each move.
Between games by all means analyse with your opponent, that can be one of the fun parts, but otherwise get away from chess if you can.
Copy the tennis players and eat a banana from time to time. If you don't like bananas snack on whatever you do like. Drink water.
Play lots of chess in the run up to the tournament but with 24 or 48 hours to go drop everything chess related and do just exactly what you like to do best other than play chess.
Hope you have a ball. :)