[CQ-Contest] (Final Reformat) NCJ Call for Inputs - Contesting on a Budget

[PaulKB8N at aol.com]

(Note:  I had formatting problems between my word processor and AOL,  sorry 
for the inconvenience)
 
Topic for the upcoming NCJ issue:  Station Sharing, More Fun  Per Buck?   

There are many challenges that are  changing the face of Ham Radio contesting 
today.  Some are sociological  challenges, such as the  urbanization of  
America, along with many  covenants and restrictions, that have forced the 
most competitive  of us to relocate to the country. Other challenges are 
related 
to  the pace of life that we lead, such as our  hectic work schedules  in the 
competitive 
marketplace, which have eaten into our   precious free time.  Other  
challenges are  
economic, many of  us face finances that are stretched to the  point  that 
our 
ham  radio dreams take a back burner to family expenses, not  to  mention  
college 
expenses for our kids. 

This all seems to be a  growing vortex of issues that may drive fundamental 
changes in 
the  way we operate contests.  If you’ve been following  the reflectors 
lately, 
you’ve probably seen a lot of talk  about “leveling  the playing field”  and 
having categories for the  48 hour contests that may include shorter  
operating periods, such  as 24 or 36 hour entries. 

With your help, this upcoming NCJ   issue’s Contesting on a Budget column 
will explore what I refer to  “station  sharing”.  This is  something like   
multioping, except under separate callsigns.  For  example, the 30  hours of 
Sweepstakes  could be divided into two 12 (or  even 15)  hour contests, each 
under a separate  callsign.  The   advantage is that new callsigns generate 
more 
activity, allow internal   competition on a truly level  playing field (from 
the same  
station),  and afford the overall contest a  faster-paced  competition that 
demands  less of our individual precious time  and  resources.   

There are some very interesting   combinations and permutations of  this 
concept.  In CQWW, for  example, a multi-multi  station could  host two 
competing teams  under different callsigns, each operating  24  hours.  
Fresh callsign, fresh blood, fresh contest, fun and  friendly  competition! 

A crazy idea?  Not so, says Tom, K5RC, who has hosted  a station-sharing 
effort for Sweepstakes over the past three  years.  According to Tom, this 
has breathed new  life into  the contest scene from his station, and has 
proven 
to be  great fun.  This has also  been a topic of  discussion  recently 
within NCCC. 
They call it  HMO, Highly Motivated Operators.  

I see this concept as a possible  way of increasing activity and  perhaps a 
more productive use of resources, but  I’d like  your thoughts, please: 

Is this a viable concept from a  practical and  economic  standpoint?  

Would you support rule changes in   major contests to  facilitate this type 
of 
operation? 

Would you be more likely to   participate if you could operate a  portion of 
a 
contest either under  your  callsign, or with a group under  a separate 
callsign?  

What contests might be the best candidates for station  sharing competition? 

Any other thoughts and ideas  are appreciated.  

I’d appreciate your inputs by  Friday,  the 20th.  Thanks in advance!  
 
Paul, K5AF  





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