I don't know that I'd call it using loopholes. It is a contest after all, with clearly defined settings you had to play under. Aside from using exploits or cheats, not doing everything you could to maximize your score would be kinda pointless.
On a separate note, (mini-rant on) using finite resources is really a totally different game - of course the scores are different! It's not a very well designed option either, imho. Look at Stars! for how finite resources should be handled. If your source is infinite, I can see why they'd want to limit excess to what you could store, but in a finite game? If you can't just keep the resources laying on the planet, you should at least be able to turn off some of your facilities for a turn or two without scrapping them. Value Improvements act odd as well, IMHO. Oh well, mini-rant off.
It doesn't make sense to compare the contest games to those of other types though, as I'm sure you quickly realized.
