I completely agree with Don on this. the incessant and utterly
meaningless "599" or "59" because it is programmed in and the operator
too lazy to think about a real signal report makes the minimal value
of contests sink to zero.
They have become nothing more than a vehicle to keep the ham radio
economy running and the "play" part, after consumer hams have done the
plugging.
73
Rob
K5UJ
<<<But that brings up a problem with most contesters these days, the fact that
your RST is likely to be "599" regardless, even when the other op can just
barely dig you out of the noise. Same with contests on other bands, both phone
and CW. That nonsensical practice has eliminated what was erstwhile perhaps
the most useful function of contesting, and IMHO, diminishes the worthiness of
contests altogether. Back when the signal report was a real part of the
exchange and contesters tended to exchange honest reports, a major contest
could be an opportunity to determine how well your station got out, and into
what localities you put the best and worst signal strength, providing some
insight to improvements you might wish make to your transmitter and antenna
system. >>>
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