[CQ-Contest] "?" not equal to "QRL?"

[Eric Hilding]

My very good friend Jim, N6TJ, had written:

> please please please LISTEN LISTEN LISTEN before you try and impress the
> rest of us with your transmitting prowess.

Nick, UT2UZ, responded:

> There's no time in contests to listen. There's almost no place for CQ.
> So, if you listen too long time, somebody else will start with ?/QRL?/CQ
> on the frequency.

This raises an interesting question:  Are frequency "Squatter's Rights" established by transmitting, or also duration of receiving time for "intent" to use the frequency?

In Nick's example, if I have "listened" to what turns out to be an unsed frequency for 5 seconds, but before I send a planned "QRL?" at 10 seconds, someone whips out a "QRL?" after only listenin 2 seconds, haven't I already been "occupying" (from a receive standpoint) the frequency 3 seconds longer?

Methinks that if I've been there 5 seconds and a "new kid on the block" sends a "QRL?", I will most likely respond with "dit dah dit" ... based upon "RX Squatter's Rights" :-)

Of course, if a Big Dog SO2R station had been QRV on that freq for 2 hours and took a little bit longer away from it (maybe trying to copy a real weak QRP station), umh, I guess that would dictate a different course of action...like maybe QSYing.

73...

Rick, K6VVA