[CQ-Contest] Sumarizing the SS Thread

[jpescatore at aol.com]

Summary of what we have learned so far:

1. The once per band QSO rule is one of the things that makes SS unique, but causes Sunday to be
 a grind *for those who choose to operate full time.*
2. There are new stations to work on Sunday (fresh meat) but not enough.
3. Club efforts to get more people on the air, through getting less serious 
contesters to get on or to spend more BIC time, or to do SOMS opping, 
do get more people on the air but not enough such that Sunday is exciting.

There are three classes of solutions:

1. Suck it up - Sunday is slower in all contests, the Sunday grind in SS is a tradition and often seperates 
win from place or show.
2. Changes the rules - this makes it more fun for those who were likely going to operate anyway and then complain after.
3. Change the incentives to operate on Sunday - this would make it more fun for stations that were *not* going to be on.

(1) and (2) have been discussed quite a bit, (3) not so much.

Line scores in QST was mentioned, a pet windmill of mine to tilt at but the QST editors and financial staff 
are hard to budge. Could we get equipment manufactures to sponsor enough ads to get the line scores in 
the May Sweepstakes results issue if we the contesting community lobbied them? Lots of little guns just 
like to see their call in QST (look at the FD results) and searching for it on the web is *not* same as 
getting QST in the mail and opening it up to see your call. It is like the difference between Googling your
name and seeing your name on a check that comes in the mail...

Or more focus in QST on the casual op, more detailed coverage of the winners and top ten strategies in NCJ? 

Club competition, a la PVRC vs. NCCC, gets more Sunday activity. How about some equivalent to the 
GOTA station at FD to add points to club scores for getting non-members on in SS?

The WPX has overlay categories that let casual ops see their score a bit higher than in the standard 
categories - another way to encourage casual ops. 

Personally, I think there are a lot of ways to increase the total of number of calls that appear in SS to
 make Sunday more fun vs. making SS look like most other contests look.

John K3TN