[CQ-Contest] Contests/Magazine Subs

[Pete Smith]

At 02:44 PM 3/23/97 +0400, Alan Leith wrote:
>Like Chris, G3VBL, I, too, have taken stock of finding out what the results
>of the CQ and ARRL Contests cost.
>
>In Canadian dollars, a two-year subscription to CQ is now almost $100, and
>membership in ARRL is now almost $120. for the same two years.  Membership
>in my national radio organization costs a mere $40. and includes full QSL
>Bureau privileges.  Is there any question about where I'll spend my money?
>
>I, for one, can no longer afford to spend that $220 on magazines that offer
>me nothing more than, in CQ's case, year-old contest results and little more
>(as Chris so aptly describes), and QST's only moderately more interesting
>fare and an opportunity to submit a card or two every few years for DXCC
credit.


I'm VERY sympathetic with both Chris and Alan.  Even at the domestic US
prices, I found I didn't wish to continue my CQ subscription any longer,
given the deterioration in content - and I was a 20+ year subscriber.  I
miss the contest results slightly, but I can always pick up 2-3 issues a
year at a newsstand.  Regrettably, I also concluded after a year that CQ
Contest wasn't worth it, given the watery mix of articles.  I continue to
belong to the ARRL and receive QST, even though its technical content
(except for the much-improved product reviews) has dwindled tremendously in
the last 10 years or so -- but that's mainly because I want to support
ARRL's lobbying efforts in Washington.  The only mag I still consistently
enjoy is NCJ, and even it is uneven these days -- plus the bi-monthly
publication cycle limits its timeliness.

With the coming upswing in the solar cycle and [potential]  improvement in
the financial straits of ham manufacturers, I suspect that there is an
opportunity for an Internet magazine aimed at performance-oriented hams --
contesters and DXers, HF and VHF.  Can it work financially?  Who'll be the
one to invest the sweat equity and capital to find out?







73, Pete Smith N4ZR
n4zr at contesting.com 


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