A "smaller pond that supports weekends, holidays, and vacation" will certainly take only few days. I'd suggest to run it with only two or three people and I'm quite sure it won't be boring.
(hide) If you want to play a game with an opponent of a similar level, you can define a required BKR range for a new game invitation. Then nobody with a BKR outside this range will be able to see/accept it. (Katechka) (show all tips)