so ive been doing contests on and off for a few years now, mostly phone, some CW. usually just do single op single radio search and pounce, maybe mix in some running when the rate is there. did okay in last years sweepstakes, nothing crazy but respectable score for my station.

been reading a lot about SO2R lately and honestly im not sure if its something i should even bother with or if its just for the guys with giant contest stations and dedicated setups. my current station is an IC-7610 which technically can do some of that with the dual receivers but its not the same as two completely separate radios and antennas obviously. the interference between the two radios when both are transmitting is what i keep reading is the real pain to sort out.

my main question is really about the rate side of things — like at what point does running vs S&P actually make sense? i know the conventional wisdom is if you can hold a run frequency and get more than like 2-3 qsos per minute consistently then run, but i feel like in the middle of a contest when rates are fluctuating that math changes constantly. anyone have a practical feel for when to switch strategies mid contest?

the 7610 dual watch is actually pretty useful for a quasi-SO2R lite approach even without full SO2R, i use mine to monitor a second band passively while running on the main VFO. you wont be transmitting on two radios obviously but you can at least be watching for openings or lining up a mult on the second band before you actually QSY. it saved me a bunch of time in the last CQWW finding EU on 10 when i was mostly running NA on 15.

on your running vs S&P question — honestly i think a lot of people overthink the exact rate threshold. the way i approach it is if i call CQ three or four times and get nothing, or the rate drops below like 60/hr sustained, i go hunting. but if im in a good run i try to ride it way longer than feels comfortable because the instinct to go chase mults will kill a run that maybe had another hour left in it. the mults will still be there. a hot run frequency might not be.

full SO2R is genuinely a pain to set up right and imo not worth it unless your really committed to competitive single op. the bandpass filter situation alone took me months to get dialed in, was running a pair of K3s and the intermod when both were txing on adjacent bands was just brutal until i got a proper 6-pack filter setup sorted. even then you have to be thoughtful about band combinations.

for most casual contesters i think learning to really optimize your single radio operation gets you further faster. stuff like keeping your fingers on the keyboard shortcuts, having N1MM set up the way you actually like it, knowing when to spot vs not in assisted. the SO2R multiplier guys at the top of the boards are impressive but they've also been doing it for 20 years and have stations purpose built for it.