[CQ-Contest] Endurance UP-Date

[john at kk9a.com]

I agree, this list should not be used to attack the original poster.  It is
pretty easy to do you own research on the supplements and the claims.  There
are medicines for people with narcolepsy but I do not know if they would be
useful or even prescribed just for ham radio contesting.

Personally I believe operating 24 hour contests that have 6 hour rest
periods like Sweepstakes and Roundup is pretty easy.  Sure we have all
probably dozed off briefly with a finger on the CQ button during slow hours
but it is generally not difficult for a healthy person to stay awake and
mostly alert in those contests.

Staying awake for longer contests I believe is also easy however the problem
is cognitive ability starts to decline with the lack of sleep.  The CDC
claims going 24 hours with no sleep is like having a 0.10% blood alcohol
content.  As a reference, in the US it is illegal to drive with 0.08% blood
alcohol level.  When sleep deprived, the brain attempts to conserve energy.
It would be nice to hear how serious contesters manage this cognitive
decline, especially those doing something as difficult as 2BSIQ.   There
were many great ops in the recent CQWW CW contest that managed to put in
long hours making thousands of QSOs.  Please read N6MJ's post about Dan's
incredible effort:
http://lists.contesting.com/archives//html/3830/2023-11/msg08756.html .  

73
John KK9A



Ed W0YK wrote:

It would be great if people would channel their negative, attacking energy
into something useful.For example, maybe a seemingly "snake oil" chemical
concoction works psychologically for some people.  IOW it's a placebo and
the chemistry is irrelevant. I appreciate people sharing what works for
them.  I also appreciate conflicting reports, as long as they are objective
and not snarky.73,Ed W0YK