I have been reading the comments posted and I would like to add my $.03
(inflation).worth.
1. The organizers of this year's WRTC did a fantastic job of leveling the
playing field. At my QTH, every signal sounded identitcal in signal strength.
This is a marked
improvement over the previous WRTC competeitions.
2. The level of skill by the operators was certainly as high as one could ever
hope for. Each country should be extremely proud of their representatives.
3. Contesting is a sport,much akin to the Olympics. Over the years even the
Olympics have also been plagued by accusations of cheating. Everything from
using
professional athletes to the use of performance enhancing substances has
been addressed. As a result, each succeeding Olympics has focused on "leveling
the
playing field" in order to keep the emhasis on the skils of the
participants. I have the same confidence in future WRTC sponsors.
4. As for ways to acomplish this fact, suggestions have been proposed to
eliminate the "recognition factor" with the use of technology. ( pre-recorded
.wav files, the
mandatory use of F-1 - F-12 keys, etc. ) I contend that such impositions
will be counter-productive to the basic premise of WRTC; i.e., the emphasis on
operating
skills.
"Cheerleading" is always a factor in competion. The Super Bowl, the World
Series, the World Cup etc. are prime examples of its' influence. Even the
so-called "home venue" may have some effect on the outcome of an event.
Cheerleading has become an accepted practice. It spurs the competitors to
achieve at their highest levels, but does it really influence the outcome? No
more than a referee missing a crucial call, or a player fumbling the ball, or a
player missing an easy goal.The ultimate difference between victory or defeat
lies with the competetors themselves. WRTC is a competition that requires many
levels of skills. So what if one station is spotted more than another. Each
WRTC station never lacks for callers, whether they are spotted or not. Winning
comes down to working more stations than everyone else, acquiring more
multipliers than anyone else, and knowing how to use the propagation better
than anyone else.
Let's remain focused on the reason WRTC exists. It is a measure of the
operating skills of each team. Packet spotting is not the problem as some would
believe. What happened in the previous competition was the "possible" use of
calls that were not in the contest.
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