Kim - Your point on conditions is pertinent. I think the discussion of the
impact that conditions have on contest scores is implicitly included in the
discussion of digital modes. FT8 and FT4 in particular are designed to make
contest QSOs under marginal sporadic Es conditions, and are a good equalizer
under flat to poor conditions. And, if one uses these modes, it is fairly
common to see short Es or tropo openings of a minute or two, long enough to
make a QSO, and then they are gone. Similarly, the use of MSK has made meteor
scatter QSOs available when meteor conditions are flat. So, I think when it
comes to the digital mode QSOs, conditions are a variable that is well
accounted for.
Where conditions come into play and drive scores is when propagation is
favoring the analog modes and ops tend to stick on the digital modes. Casual
contest operators on the digital modes do not adapt to changing conditions,
which is what these discussions are all about.
Now, heading into Es season, is the time of year to volunteer a talk at your
local radio club to promote VHF/UHF operating in general and the importance of
moving off of the digital modes when signal strengths are high. - Duffey KK6MC
James Duffey KK6MC
Cedar Crest NM
> On Mar 21, 2021, at 10:00, vhfcontesting-request@contesting.com wrote:
> How can we truly assess impacts, decreases, and/or increases?
>
> Are conditions the same for every contest? For every station?
>
> It's like banging your head against a concrete wall.
>
> Let's have this discussion, and ignore the elephant in the room.
>
> Conditions, conditions, conditions.
>
> End of my rant.
>
> 73, Kim - WG8S
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