CQWW WPX - SSB
Call: KY4AA
Operator(s): K4AT, K4IU, K4WW, K9GX, KC4CQT, N4GN, W4OKY
Station: N4GN
Class: M/S HP
QTH: KY
Operating Time (hrs): 48
Summary:
Band QSOs Prefixes
-------------------------------
160: 13
80: 131
40: 152
20: 651
15: 634
10: 731
-------------------------------
Total: 2312 x 945 = 5,013,225
Club: Dawson Hill Contest Club
Comments:
This was the debut of the new club call. It seems to work!
Unfortunately, the N4GN station is not really competitive in this category, and
ESPECIALLY not after the latest rule change. Frankly, I think the move to make
the WPX M/S category just like the one in that other CQ-sponsored contest is a
bad idea. Why the need to mimic another contest's M/S category? Why can't we
simply celebrate the differences here?
Who or what was the driving force behind the rule change? Who does it benefit?
A few years ago, KB4SRE and I made the top ten in this category with a single
tribander, some wires, a single TS-430S, and a whopping 500 W amp. We just
took turns operating the radio. Those days are gone--that category no longer
exists!
The biggest frustration is that now we are supposed to somehow hand out a
single stream of sequential numbers from two different radios. This causes me
to wonder if anyone took five minutes to think about the implications of this
rule change. This kind of M/S makes sense (and is a lot of fun) in CQ WW. But
in WPX, it is simply impossible to comply with this rule and make any
reasonable number of QSOs on the second radio. Imagine trying to do this with
paper logging--it can't be done! It's not much better with computers. The
problem is that if the other station logs a QSO while you are in the process of
working someone, you will hand out the wrong number. In some cases, the guy on
the other end of the QSO will be penalized for logging the wrong number, when
he in fact logged what you sent him!
If both stations log a QSO simultaneously (within the latency time of the
computer network), it's even possible to give the same serial number to two
different stations. Then what are we supposed to do? "Oh, hey, wait a minute,
I know I told you '59 1724' but the other station logged someone at the same
time, so I guess you're '59 1725' now."
I will admit to such errors being in our log. We tried to do the right thing,
but I'm sorry, this ill-conceived rule change makes for all kinds of headaches
like this.
I know some will claim that the new rules give the operators something to do
when they aren't operating the main radio--now they can run the second radio.
So now a competitive entry has to staff two radios for 48 hours. And how much
fun is it to be tuning 75 for new mults in the middle of the second night, when
the "run" radio is on 40 in the phone contest?! Thank God we had 20 meters at
night this year, but how much fun will the second radio be in 2005, day or
night, especially on phone?
I guess that's the key for me. The old category was simply much more
enjoyable. The new category is such a headache that I'm not sure I ever want
to attempt it again.
PLEASE, can't we just call this a failed experiment, and go back to the old WPX
M/S rules?
73,
Tim Totten, N4GN
n4gn@n4gn.com
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.hornucopia.com/3830score/
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