[CQ-Contest] Run rates back in the day

[Jack/W6NF]

On 2/24/2012 7:45 AM, Ktfrog007 at aol.com wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I have a question for old time contesters.  Before the Internet,  packet
> radio, DX clusters and skimmers, what were typical CW and SSB contest  running
> rates?  I imagine they must have been much less than current  ones.
>
> 73,
> Kermit, AB1J
> _______________________________________________
> CQ-Contest mailing list
> CQ-Contest at contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/cq-contest
>
Can't say about the run rates "back in the day" but I am looking at the 
SS results from 1964 and find these top scores:

CW: W4KFC, 155,955 points, 846 Qs, 74 mults (a sweep), 24 hours, power 
category "A"

PHONE: K6EVR (W9WNV, op), 159, 980 points, 757 Qs, 74 mults, 24 hours, 
power category "A"

That's and average of just over 35 Qs per hour for Vic and about 31.5 
per hour for Don. One can't really infer max rates from just those 
numbers but I would be surprised at anything much over 60 at the start 
of the SS and slowing *way* down later. Maybe someone has old logs from 
which real numbers could be derived.

One thing I forgot is the multiplier for low power (150 watts or less) 
operation: 1.25 for CW and 1.5 for Phone. Very few stations running high 
power with a vast majority of section winners at the "A" level. I sure 
wish that scoring system would come back!

One thing that was very strange was looking at the list of winners and 
the gear they used. For example, one station (K3DVS/3) took the EPA 
Phone award running a Galaxy 300 and VE2AUV took QC Phone running a 
NCX-3!!! Quite a mix of equipment in use and not as many S-lines as I 
thought I remembered.

In looking at the list of winners I see a few calls you'll still run 
into in contests, including K4BAI, W2VJN and K6VVA, to name a few.

I'm glad I kept a few of my old QST's!

-- 
Jack, W6NF
Silver Springs, NV
DM09ji