Playing in a big tourney last night. Started with 20k and chips. BB ante that started at 50/100. I didnt get a playable hand for 4 hours. Blinded off half my stack. In the last level (20mins) I went from a 20k stack to a 140k stack.

I think we tend to press too much in tournaments. A few good hands and you can go from being short to chip leader. Patience.

True but, if you don't ever move, no one will call your moves with the good hands.

Agree! I am just saying there is more time than most think. Its not a very in depth statement but I was hoping to spur on some chat.

Pretty similar. 5-6 hour tournament play last weekend (20 min levels, 20k starting stack, started at 50/100). Pretty card dead the whole time. AA once, JJ once (lost those), I think the next best was 33 which I used to call down a 3 barrel bluff from a total LAG.
No AK, AQ or AJ in sight. No suited connectors or even on-gappers in sight. The most premium made hand was trips which I hit once on the flop...
...and still managed to stay about 1.5-2 time average stacks until the bubble. The table was just that good for most of the time.
(Busted out mincash. My own fault for playing a hand I shouldn't have)
If you don't move for a while you can bluff like hell for a while. One guy actually said to my face "I'm not gonna call that with your range"...showing JJ before mucking on an unthreatening A-high board after a double barrel bluff with 52s (my favorite hand)

My experience also, though the starting stack might be e.g. 75 bb also. Then suddenly one is back in the game more often than one might have expected. Although you could lose that/those hands also but getting back happens also at least as easily, depending on the competition.