[CQ-Contest] SS tempest in an out-of-state teapot

[W0MU Mike Fatchett]

There is no reason to bring in the ARRL people as we have not really 
come up with anything substantial other than attempting to shave some 
time off the contest which there is not even an agreement on how.

Most people take around 4 hours off in the middle of the night because 
the rate really falls off, at least in the west.  I usually try to save 
two hours off for those Sunday periods that are very slow.

The end of the contest usually picks up as there are many who like to 
get on at the end to be very fresh blood.

Can we tighten the times so that we don't have a middle of the night 
dead zone and Sunday afternoon?

Is going 24 hours straight a reasonable answer for us?  We are not 
getting any younger and I am not seeing much new young blood entering 
the hobby.

I never quite understood why the contest went so late into Sunday night 
or Monday AM UTC.

Once again I have no answers here.


Mike W0MU

On 2/8/2013 4:21 PM, Guy Olinger K2AV wrote:
> While it has been enlightening and to a degree entertaining to hear the
> discourse and various "takes" on changes related to SS Sunday afternoons, I
> hope that everyone understands that none of this discussion has taken place
> where it counts.
>
> While some reflectors are often read by those in a position to actually
> change things on an issue (e.g. Elecraft reflector), the CQ-Contest context
> is essentially missing the ARRL players needed for change.   So what we
> have is a "contained" discussion in a medium well away from those who can
> actually act on the subject in question.
>
> The members of the ARRL Contest Advisory Committee, plus a fuzzily-defined
> mix of ARRL directors and HQ personnel, are required to change rules.  One
> must lobby all of these to get anything done.  They MAY (or not) dig up
> reflector posts for some confirmation once lobbying has elevated SS Sunday
> afternoons as a possible subject for action, but they are not daily
> trolling the reflectors looking for clues on stuff to change.
>
> Posting on CQ-Contest reflector is easy, but it's guaranteed ineffective if
> hoping to actually affect change in the SS.  We will need old-fashioned
> snail mail, and phone calls, and knowing all the right names and call
> signs, plus all the textual discipline and diplomatic skills of "lobbying"
> to engage those right names and call signs, to actually make anything
> happen on our locally-posted-ideas, assuming that they agree.
>
> 73, Guy.
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