Watch Your Six

You may have heard the phrase “Watch Your Six” if you been in the military or even watched military movies or TV. You are even more likely to have heard something like “incoming twelve o’clock”. Of course that mean whatever is coming is directly ahead. Because on the clock face twelve O’clock is straight ahead or directly above.

Now this is very important in chess especially for very new players and very old players. They often time get tunnel vision and forget to watch that back line or anything else outside of their tunnel vision. Many players forget, So it would be very appropriate to say to any player "Watch your SIX."

RATIONALE FOR CLOCK USAGE

There is a very good rational for using the clock face for direction. The most prevalent one is that almost everybody knows the positions of the numbers on a clock face. You can probably ask any six year old where twelve O’clock on the clock face is or where is six o’clock on the clock face. You will probably get an answer immediately. Now compare that to if you ask a six years old which direction is zero degrees are better yet which direction is 180 degrees. For the most part it just an easy way to point out directions quickly. Just remember that back line is your Six.

I have a kind of trick question for everyone. Imagine three guys sitting at a table in a restaurant eating dinner and drinking beers then one guy say; guys three O’clock. What did he just see, What happen or what does he mean? Please answer in the replies below.

Final Test: Which Direction is Checkmate?

@rodrook

That's a gal entering the restaurant, and it might be 9 o'clock for the guy [opposite] to him (is what I wanted to write). How nice a way to remind us of different types of directional skills.

I once read that there are cultures who talk in cardinal direction even from early age. So in a restaurant when one asks another for the direction to the restrooms, he might not say, "On the left hand side of the buffet" but " Go into the back of the room and turn north". Has probably been on @hannelore's blog. Greet her, if you meet her there, please.

@tipu curate

Thanks for the reply @anli; I ask the most obvious question. I was wondering if anyone was going to reply; that's a gal and man she HOT!

I remember watching so many movies where the pilot would say I see him at 9 O’clock I got him hold on! I don’t know if anyone will answer differently but you got it.