Fellow Contesters
There has been some of discussion about the pre-contest
publicity and packet spotting activity for my recent ZF2MM
operation. After wading through the comments and input some of
you have provided, I feel terrible about the fact that some feel
I might have crossed the line. Had I known some would feel that way, I
wouldn't have bothered doing it.
Did I publicize my operation before hand? Of course I did. I
did the same thing that I've done for the past 10 years... in
every single contest, from Sprint and NAQP to CQWW and ARRL
DX... I went through old logs and emailed people that I've
worked before encouraging them to get on and make Qs. Did I ask people to
get on and only work me, and no one else? Of course not, the thought never
entered my mind... that would be
unethical. Did I ask anyone during the contest to spot me?
Absolutely not, that's specifically against the rules. Even though
there were no rules broken, this has become an unfortunate
situation that seems to have gotten a bit out of hand, and for that, I
apologize.
The bottom line is that I didn't mean to upset anyone! I'm
sorry if you're one of the ones that got upset. That certainly
wasn't my intent at all. The intent was to increase participation in this
contest for everyone, just as I have been doing for the past 10 years in all
contests. It's worked very well for the Sprints and NAQP as all kinds of
state records have been broken in both modes of both contests by everyone!
Activity in SS has gone way up as well and the club competition has gotten
very heated, which is great for everyone! This was the first time I tried
publicizing contest via email where I was gonig to be DX. Turns out it
wasn't such a good idea... I probably won't do it again.
As much as I hate learning experiences, I guess everyone has to
go through them now and then. I hope that, in the long run, this experience
will better the sport of contesting that we all love.
After talking to a few "serious contesters," I have decided to
submit my log in the category that I operated in...single op,
high power, and will do so with a clear conscience.
Thanks for reading
Paul K9PG
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