KI9A continued:
> I for one appreciate K1TTT's reports on dodgy spots.
So do I! Don't get confused with my post about power/cluster watching. I
appreciate Daves efforts to try & make a dent into cheating exposure, but,
I think
we, as a contest community, should be addressing the other cheat issues with
the enthusiasm that Dave chases the self spotters...
I may not be awake yet, but I don't think we're thinking too differently...
There are lots of ways to cheat. Dodgy spots in particular have the ability
to really get the rate going & is so easy to do. I often CQ to myself on what
I subsequently find to be a clear frequency & I'm easy copy, but all it takes
is one spot by somebody & the rate rockets.
A few extra dB from running gas will not have that same effect, IMHO. It
might help you get through a pile up or two faster, but it doesn't bring folks
out of the woodwork like a spot can. Gas is also relative - what is legal in
one place would be considered blatant mass gas elsewhere.
Watching the cluster will get one more multipliers, but will also tend to drag
you into piles that will waste your time. To minimize this, one needs to jump
on the spots before the masses do & that will stick out like a sore thumb.
All one needs for dodgy spotting is access to the Internet, there may be a
feeling that one will not get caught doing it & it has an immediate, tangible
benefit for anyone who can run & gives it a go. Thankfully, K1TTT has shown
us that it is pretty easy to detect.
The following is not meant to pour petrol on the fire, but I get the impression
that those who don't think dodgy spotting is a big deal are perhaps more
casual competitors - a quick search into the recent past shows one bloke to
have been part of an operation that held a CQ WW zone record for a year.
Another chap seems not to have done much of anything for a number of
years. If I turned in the odd casual score or joined a local M/S now & then, I
myself might think dodgy spotting is not such a big deal.
Likewise, if I were a N6TJ or CT1BOH, I might not give a hoot about dodgy
spotting, as dodgy spotters don't seem to be at their level & probably will
never get there. For those of us in between however, dodgy spotters should
matter as there is a clear benefit to those who are doing it - at least on the
DX side.
73, VR2BrettGraham
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