It is only a contest if you make it one.
Each local group can set its own goals and define its own aspirations
for Field Day. The ARRL offers up this definition.
ARRL Field Day is not a fully adjudicated
contest, which explains much of its popularity.
It is a time where many aspects of Amateur Radio
come together to highlight our many roles. While
some will treat it as a contest, most groups
use the opportunity to practice their emergency
response capabilities. It is an excellent
opportunity to demonstrate Amateur Radio to
local elected community leaders, key
individuals with the organizations that
Amateur Radio might serve in an emergency,
as well as the general public. For many clubs,
ARRL Field Day is one of the highlights of
their annual calendar.
Thus FIELD DAY IS MANY DIFFERENT THINGS TO MANY DIFFERENT PEOPLE.
Consequently, it is, in my opinion, misplaced and inappropriate for one
group to treat it as ONLY a contest and expect all other hams to follow
suit, accordingly. Equally, I think it is misplaced for the Em-Comm
crowd to treat it as only an emergency commo practice day.
It appears to be a MULTI PURPOSE outing that serves many functions -
including being a showcase of ham radio to the community. Therefore,
as a showcase, it should be open to all comers, including dweebs, geeks,
and fools - including the O F who unnecessarily repeats his message
trying to communicate effectively.
Remaking Field Day to fit one's personal image is, therefore,
inappropriate - we should take all contacts as we find them, as they may
be pursing an APPROPRIATE purpose other than winning the contest.
The ARRL says we should set up our stations and make as many contacts as
possible. But we should be mindful of the fact that some Field Day
outfits are small, while others are large, and some are new, old, or
just plain slow. My point is that Field Day is an open house for ALL
hams, and we should not try to remake them into our own image - any more
than they should do that to us.
Given your attitude, I pity the poor novice who makes it into your log.
Your post makes it sound like you will contact him later, and
castigate him for failing to be efficient and fast on the air. You will
certainly make his Field Day experience one to remember. But it will
not be an appropriate reaction.
I think the point scoring system can be seen as a measurement tool,
without having everyone competing to win. I am a Life Member of AMBUCS,
an organization dedicated to helping disabled persons gain greater
mobility and independence. We have an elaborate scoring system that
evaluates the health and performance of local Chapters -but it is not to
be considered a "contest" because some chapters are large, some are
small, and each has its own goals, resources, talent pool, etc. It
would be wrong to expect each set of volunteers to match what any other
set of volunteers might do.
Similarly for Field Day, we should encourage participation on every
level - using the point system as a measure of involvement, but not as a
measure of who is best. Two guys in a tent on a mountain top working
QRP with portable antennas ... versus sixteen guys with 8 stations,
multiple tower trailers, and big amps... versus whatever else you can
imagine. Maybe just an old timer in the shack making contacts as a
courtesy and hoping to help the Field Day crew make another contact.
Yeah... lets just make it a contest, and forget about the other VALID
and APPROPRIATE goals, functions and purposes the ARRL says Field Day is
for. I do not understand why you are so parochial and dogmatic about
this... why does every other Field Day outfit gotta mirror yours? Why
does every contest exchange have to be the same? Geeze, I like a little
variety, including a little chit chat along the way. Why do I need act
as an automaton, with the same exchange every time. The local guys know
I like to compete, because winning is way more fun than losing, but if
it ceases to be fun, I will quit.
Parenthetically, I disagree with your claim that ham radio is justified
solely because we might provide emergency communications. Too bad you
don't value rag chewing - because that is way more prevalent than doing
emergency communications.
Moreover, emergency communications is NOT the only purpose or reason for
ham radio - although it is a good and important purpose - because I
believe the Government does not, and should not, have full control over
the bands - at least not the power to totally exclude ham radio -
because I believe ANOTHER MAJOR PURPOSE OF HAM RADIOS IS TO PROMOTE AND
ENABLE OUR RIGHT TO FREE EXPRESSION UNDER THE FIRST AMENDMENT - and IT
IS WRONG TO FORGET THAT.
The ARRL seems to think emergency communication is the only real purpose
of ham radio - while I feel the right and freedom of expression is its
highest and best use, and my ability, willingness, and desire to help
others should come as a voluntary, free exchange - not the price I pay
to talk freely over the radio. Nope, the ARRL and many others seem to
have forgotten the importance of FREE SPEECH and the power and freedom
that entails. Free speech is essential to unimpeded exchange of
information and ideas - which is, in turn, essential to maintaining a
democratic free society.
Besides, ham radio does NOT really provide much emergency communication.
I asked the Em-Comm leaders in MY STATE when ham operators ACTUALLY
participated in an emergency event, i.e., when all else failed and ham
radio came to the rescue, and was told in the last ten years, they were
put on stand by once or twice, but never actually deployed. So, while I
recognize and acknowledge the value of being prepared... I also
acknowledge the FACT ham radio has done precious little in MY STATE to
actually help in any real emergency. Instead, around here, we are
called on to direct runners on the correct course during on the 10K road
race or to help manage crowds during the Tulip Time Parade, and the
like. The radios are only used to tell us when we can come back to the
starting point and have a soda and doughut. No one could recall being
deployed for an actual emergency. So while being prepared is a good
thing, you cannot justify ham radio on that basis in my town.
Besides, I prefer the notion that we have right to the air because we
have a basic First Amendment right to freedom of speech - and having a
means for doing that is essential to exercising that right - and once we
think the Government owns ALL the frequencies, and can sell it to
private parties, we will have allowed a terrible transformation of our
Constitutional system.
So, you may treat it as a contest... sure... but I seems a rather
parochial and dogmatic posture to castigate some poor fellow for not
making the exchange the way you want him to. We should not try to make
every contact we make on Field Day behave the way we do, ourselves.
Ther should be room for everybody. Heck... this all started because the
OF took too long to make the exchange - you never said you could not
understand him or that he said the wrong thing... the whole objection
was that he was verbose, or prolix or wordy or ... doing so... You have
spent way more time complaining about him than it took to suffer the
indignation of his slow fist. Your anger is showing.
Just MY take...
Happy trails and Good DX to ya.
===================== K8JHR =======================
On 6/27/2012 12:40 PM, Jim Brown wrote:
On 6/27/2012 5:05 AM, Richards wrote:
It is unfortunate the ARRL modeled its Field Day
assessment scheme in the style and fashion of a major
contest. That seems to have transformed Field Day
from a nationwide training exercise into more of
a contest.
The so-called "transformation" of which you speak occurred more than 56
years ago -- it was definitely a contest in 1956. And if it isn't a
contest, why are there double POINTS for CW contacts, why is there a 5X
POINT multiplier for QRP with emergency power, why are there bonus
POINTS for satellite contacts, POINTS for contact with the public,
POINTS for visits by public officials, and POINTS for press coverage?
If it's not a contest, why is there POINT credit for the GOTA station?
If it's not a contest, why is there a "free" VHF/UHF station whose
POINTS are also added to the score? Isn't it obvious that you
accumulate more POINTS if you have better antennas, a better location,
antennas separated from each other so that you can have multiple
transmitters on the air at once (and more guys operating at once), and
better operating skills?
The only things about these SCORING rules that have changed over the
years have been in some of the bonus points, the addition of the GOTA
station, and the free VHF/UHF station. These are all great changes --
they further the objectives of bringing new people into the hobby, they
encourage existing hams to learn more both operationally and
technically, and they encourage us to educate the public about what
we're doing.
May I remind one and all that bandwidth is bloody expensive, and we've
got a lot of prime real estate. The only real justifications for that
are our ability to contribute during emergencies and the extent to which
ham radio contributes to technical education and innovation. It damn
sure isn't about rag chewing or DX chasing -- we get to do those fun
things ONLY because lawmakers and the FCC believe that we do those
public service things. .
73, Jim K9YC
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