[CQ-Contest] 2012 WPX SSB - category question

[K4RO Kirk Pickering]

On Tue, Apr 03, 2012 at 12:27:29AM -0700, gp wrote:
> Hello all, This is the first year that I'm going to actually submit my 
> logs after a contest. Normally I just hunt and peck during a contest and 
> I very rarely call CQ. I just pretty much dial around and answer CQ's..  
> Well this year I played around with a contest logger and decided to 
> submit my logs and see how I did..

Congratulations on jumping in there and submitting your log.
Submitting a log is easy, and there's nothing to be afraid of.

 
> (USA SO(A)AB LP)
> Does this mean US,  Single Operator, Assisted, All band, Low power...  ??

Yes, you have that right.


> If you check a DX cluster after a contact to verify a call sign you 
> think you might have gotten wrong  does that constitute assisted ??

That's actually not the way it's supposed to be done. You really want to
try your best to copy a call sign using your ears only, and enter what 
you copy with your ears into your log. Then the log checking software
will let you know if you made an error, after your submitted log has
been scored. Contests are a way to measure your own copying ability.


> do you actually have to use a DX cluster in a way that helps you find 
> frequencies of stations (multipliers ...)  you need for it to be 
> considered Assisted..

That is the typical mode of assisted operation. Essentially, others
are locating and identifying stations for you. Sometimes they will make
a mistake. Your responsibility is to determine if those spotted stations 
(if audible at your QTH) are identified correctly. So you still must 
listen yourself, and see if the call sign is correct before logging it. 
If you can't copy the call sign yourself, you should not log anything. 
Just try again later. Mark the frequency on a notepad or radio memory, 
and go work someone who you can copy. Then come back after a few minutes.
Maybe the pileup will have thinned out or propagation might have improved.

73, Kirk K4RO