> Drowned out in much of the speculation and commentary on this reflector
> is the incredible amount of work put into the results by Randy and
the Contest
> Committee. They are the real heroes of contesting and deserve our
profound
> thanks for their volunteer efforts.
Amen. It makes my brain hurt just to think of the hours expended on
this. It's too easy to hit Send without considering all this is
volunteer-based and largely uncompensated work on our behalf. Thanks...
> ...why not "test drive" the [recording requirement] (as with the
original Observer program) and
> phase in the concept with the group arguably most affected: SOAB
Unassisted.
The suggestion has merit. Try it for a while and see what works and
what doesn't. As Scott observes, it costs around $50 and requires only
a Y-adapter to do a perfectly good job of recording the audio. This is
trivial - I spent more on chair pads for my butt. The audio file would
only be required on request from the committee - they are not trying to
make extra work for themselves. Not making a recording would have
minimal to no impact on the casual operators who are the lifeblood of
the contest. Eventually, word will trickle out and people will get used
to it just like submitting Cabrillo-formatted logs.
While I believe SOAB Unassisted will eventually fade away for a variety
of reasons, it is still a highly prized mode of competition by top
operators today. If something as simple and low-cost as an audio
recording preserves the ability to distinguish between SOABU and SOABA
by raising to an unacceptable level the risk of being detected at this
particular mode of cheating, I would support asking SOAB Unassisted
operators to record their operation. Put a five-year evaluation period
on it and assess in 2020, then renew, revise, or reject.
73, Ward N0AX
_______________________________________________
CQ-Contest mailing list
CQ-Contest@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/cq-contest
|