[CQ-Contest] Unclaimed Assistance

[Doug Renwick]

Does unclaimed assistance for these QRP stations also mean that they
were running high power?

Doug

Seven DQ's As CQ WW Continues Tough Checks On Cheating; Top QRP Score By
DK8ZB Tossed Out

By Jamie Dupree NS3T  radio-sport.net  
Posted July 20, 2010 
A year after issuing a series of high profile disqualifications, the CQ
WW Contest Committee has continued its crackdown on cheating in log
checks on the 2009 CQ WW SSB contest, tossing out the top QRP score and
moving a top low power entrant to the Assisted category. 
The news of the first use of "Red" and "Yellow" cards for violations of
the rules came as results of the 2009 SSB contest were released in the
August 2010 issue of CQ Magazine. 
A year after disqualifying five major multi-ops in the 2008 contests,
the 2009 tests feature seven "Red Card" DQ's, along with four "Yellow
Card" warnings, the first use of that penalty structure since it was
unveiled just before the 2009 contests. 
The biggest Red Card went to QRP claimed score leader Barney Bandrack
DK8ZB, who was disqualified for "self-spotting and unverifiable
contacts" from KP4KE in Puerto Rico. 
Bandrack's claimed score of over 5 million points dwarfed all other
entries in the QRP category, none of which ended up with 500,000 points
after log checks. 
Other "Red Card" violators included: 
•  4L3A (LY4A op) for "unverifiable contacts" 
•  HA8JV - unclaimed assistance and unverifiable QSOs 
•  HG5A (HA1CW) - unclaimed assistance, unverifiable QSOs 
•  IZ4NIC - unclaimed assistance and unverifiable QSOs 
•  RK3ZZ - unclaimed assistance and unverifiable QSOs 
•  SN7C (SP7CHS) - unclaimed assistance, unverifiable QSOs 
The CQ WW DX Contest rules on "Red Card" violations state that an
"entrant or operator receiving a red card will be ineligible for any
CQ-sponsored contest award for a period of one year beginning with the
publication of the violation in CQ magazine." 
Four "Yellow Card" warnings were also handed out for "unclaimed
assistance" to RU6CQ, SO6X (SP6IXF), UR6IMF and YT7Z (YU7SK). 
A majority of those who were handed Red and Yellow cards submitted
single band entries. 
For example, Rolandas Jokubauskas LY4A, who was given a Red Card for his
operation as 4L3A, had the highest claimed score in the High Power 80
meter category. 
Adam Sobczak SP7CHS was given a Red Card for his entry as SN7C, where he
had the world's top 15 meter single band QRP score. 
One of the Yellow Cards knocked out Kirill UR6IMF, who had the world's
top claimed score in the 40 meter single band QRP category. 
What About Those CQ WW Red & Yellow Cards?
Is the CQ WW Contest Committee on the right track in terms of dealing
with cheating in ham radio's largest contest? 
What do you think of the Red and Yellow cards and the public listing of
stations who admitted they were really operating Assisted? 
Send your opinions to radio-sport.net 
29 Operators Admit Being Assisted Including WRTC Qualifier HI3TEJ
One very interesting part of the writeup for the 2009 CQ WW SSB Contest
includes a list of stations that submitted unassisted logs, but when
challenged, later admitted that they did use outside help during the
contest. 
"We sent out a QSO spotting inquiry to over 75 stations in the Top
Scores box," wrote CQ WW Chairman Bob Cox K3EST. 
"We asked them to confirm that they were really not assisted." 
In other words, they were told that contest log software checks had
shown that those stations most likely were using a QSO spotting network,
even though they had not entered the Assisted category. 
The stations cited in the CQ WW SSB writeup included the leader in the
radio-sport.net Single Operator World Standings, Teddy Jiminez HI3TEJ. 
Jiminez had originally submitted his entry in the Single Operator All
Band Low Power category as indicated by his log: 
CALLSIGN: HI3TEJ
CLUB: pup contest group
CONTEST: CQ-WW-SSB
CLAIMED-SCORE: 4639921
OPERATORS: HI3TEJ
NAME: Ted Jimenez
CREATED-BY: N1MM Logger V9.10.3
LOCATION: DX
CATEGORY-OPERATOR: SINGLE-OP
CATEGORY-TRANSMITTER: ONE
CATEGORY-ASSISTED: NON-ASSISTED
CATEGORY-BAND: ALL
CATEGORY-POWER: LOW
But in an email, Jiminez denied that he done anything wrong, saying he
had no "internet connection at all." 
"The following stations replied yes, they were assisted: 3V8SS, E73W,
EF1W, HA8BE, HI3TEJ, HK1X, IK4TVP, IT9RWB, IW7EBE, LX7I, LZ1NG, LZ2JA,
LZ9X, PU2LEP, PY2WC, RVØAL, SN3X, SP4XQN, SV2DCD, UA3BS, UT7MW, UW1M,
UX2X, UZØU, YO8WW, YO9HP, YT5C, YU2A, and YU7ZZ," said the CQ WW report.

That statement was a major change for the CQ WW Contest Committee, which
in the past has handled such category changes involving outside
assistance in a quiet manner.