[CQ-Contest] SS off time calculations (Attn: Possible Stupid Question!)

[Tree]

On Sun, Dec 17, 2006 at 02:48:18PM -0000, Paul J. Piercey wrote:

> Just a question as I don't know...
> 
> What is the purpose of off-time in contests? Why not just have a contest run
> from time A to time B and you can operate as much or as little of that as
> you want?

Hmmm - guess this is something that always was there when I started contesting
about 40 years ago.

There are easy answers - being able to be competitive without totally 
destroying yourself for returnning to work Monday morning.  Also - for 
some contests - when to take your off time becomes a very strategic
decision.

In some other contests - like the WPX, it can often help equalize the field
so that places that can be competitive for a smaller percentage of the contest
can compete against those who have an advantage for a longer period.  When 
there was only 30 hours off on-time in the WPX, it helped the west coast 
compete.  Now that it is 36 hours, the west coast can't keep it up long enough
to have a fair chance.

Tree