[CQ-Contest] Leveling the palying field

[Tom Haavisto]

One thing I find interesting about this "Lets level the playing field"
discussion is that every serious contester works hard to make sure its
NOT a level playing field.  We try to gain the upper hand through
better/higher/more antennas, beams and anything else we can buy or
build that will "give us the edge we need" over the competition.  Same
thing in the shack - newer/better/quieter radios, magic boxes that we
think will help that little bit - all in an effort to win.

Sure - geography plays a part.  So does the operator skill, the
ionosphere and a hundred other variables - some under our control,
others not.  Add it all up, and even despite our best efforts -
sometimes we don't or can't win a certain competition.  Life's just
not fair sometimes.  What to do?  Well, we can give up, but that's too
easy!  A quitter can never win.

>From where I live, I know that no matter what I do, or how many
antennas I install, there are certain contests that I cannot win.
Instead, I choose to still get on, do my best and have fun.  At the
same time, I have built a station that CAN and HAS won other
competitions.  You win some  - you loose some, and I am sure I am not
alone in this regard..

Bottom line - compete on your own terms.  If winning is so darned
important, and geography is standing in your way, then I guess you
need to move.  If you don't want/need/can't move, then I guess winning
is not THAT important.  Changing the rules to hobble the competition
in order to "level the playing field" will not change that, and if it
did, I am not sure I would want to win that way.


If you want a level playing field - well - that is what the WRTC is
for, but first you need to level the playing field to get there :-)

Tom - VE3CX



> I applaud NQ4I for being vocal about this issue.  But, I think he is delusional
> like me!  It seems that Rick and I still think that if we put up a big enough
> station and continue to improve our operating abilities that someday we can win
> one of these big DX contests.  Granted my fanciful thinking has abated over the
> years and I've become accustomed to comparing my scores to others in my general
> geographic areas and sometimes getting lucky enough to nip at the heels of the
> big boys.  Unfortunately I think that the vast majority of participants have
> come to the same conclusion.... you have to be close to Europe to have a shot at
> competing or winning.  Distance based scoring will help to alleviate this
> notion.  It will motivate people to push harder that otherwise might not have
> spent the time to put in a full time effort.  This means that you might start
> seeing some new call signs popping into the top ten box that haven't shown up
> before.  Maybe some of the regulars get pushed out.  We don't have to be afraid
> of change.