[CQ-Contest] SEA DX perspective

Wed Mar 6 16:04:37 EST 2013

I don't know about boring.  I was LP assisted in the CW and worked  almost 
3000 stations.  Total mults were around 535.  34 were from  Asia, 29 from 
the Pacific.  Condx were good, but not great.  I  never ran out of stations to 
work and had a 60 hour the last hour of the  contest.  That's not really 
indicative of a low participation  contest.

You play the hand given you.  Not all contests are fun for me so I sit  
them out.  They are not supposed to have the same "fun level" for  everyone.  
It is more fun to do the ARRL from W1 than W6, so there are less  W6 stations 
that take the game seriously.

The contests that really aren't that much fun for a large amount of people, 
 die. Those that are fun continue.  The ARRL has large number of  
participants and I really don't know what can be done to increase participation  
short of a major overhaul of the rules.

The FL QSO Party is an very targeted contest, but yet many of the mobiles  
consistantly run QSO totals over 2K..with only 100 watts.  I ran almost 3K  
from my fixed station.  No one is going to win the high score for the FQP  
from Asia, but yet we get participation even in that one.  

Bill K4XS/KH7XS

In a message dated 3/6/2013 6:20:17 P.M. Coordinated Universal Time,  
hs0zcw at gmail.com writes:

I see Bill's point about all the "targeted" contests like ARRL, NAQP, and  
WAE, and I watch those from the sidelines mostly.  However, my point is  
that contests that allow working anyone one can hear are the most fun  for more 
geographically challenged operators.  During THESE  contests, there is 
almost always someone on that I can hear and work most  times of day/night.

So my point was not be applied to ANY contest, Bill, but targets  those 
"work anyone" really engaging and fun contests for folks all over the  world 
and not in just one geographical area.

And, I was explaining why Americans in the ARRL contests may not get much  
participation from other locations due to the boredom of waiting for NA to  
open up.

So, you are wrong, Bill, but only this time.  73,  Charly

On Wed, Mar 6, 2013 at 8:27 PM, <_Cqtestk4xs at aol.com_ 
(mailto:Cqtestk4xs at aol.com) > wrote:

Charley's post about the ARRL can be applied to any  contest.  When I  was
in KH6 the WAE kinda stunk since the  bands were only open a few hours to  
EU.

Most guys in KH6  don't operate the NAQP since they are not really
positioned well for that  one.

I don't do the All Asian since we on the east coast are not well  positioned
for that.

The bottom line is:  If you don't  like your location for certain  contests,
either go portable for  them, suck it up and operate from the  QTH you have
or push the off  switch on the rig.  No one made you move to  where you  
are.
Deal with it.  I'd like to be at KH6 again for the  ARRLDX  and CQWW, but I
made the choice to move back to the mainland.  I  either operate or I don't 
.

Bill  K4XS/KH7XS

In  a message dated 3/6/2013 1:19:27 P.M. Coordinated Universal Time,

_hs0zcw at gmail.com_ (mailto:hs0zcw at gmail.com)  writes:

You  think the ARRL DX contests are boring... then do not operate them  from
HS  because the typical openings to NA are a little over an  hour at  local
sunrise and local sunset.  You may see that is  about 5-6 hrs of  contest
operating total, Day One.  Add to  that the fact that all bands  are jammed,
mostly with signals I can  not hear even at the peak of the  openings;  I 
can
not get a  run going because I am very likely to be on  top of a NA  station
that I can not hear but who will block my signal entry  to  NA.

It takes both a big signal and antennas pointed my way to even  hear NA, so
I work the 8 or ten stations on 20 that I can hear; the  5 or 6  on 15; and
squeeze out the fun of, at least, being heard  those times,  usually with
comments on my good sig strength; NA ops  say they are  surprised to hear HS
so loud.  Then, with 15 to  20 QSOs in the log, I  have checked often and 
see
10 is dead and 40  will not be ok for another 2  to 3 hours into the night.
I worked 40  out when it opened with about 25  NA.  I have been at the  
radio
7-8  hours for about 50 contacts,  filling out buro cards  in between 
tuning,
and swinging my ants in the vain  hope of long  path.

Second day is worse because dups are more frequent  than  new ones.

Now extrapolate my experience to surrounding areas that  can include VU, 9N,
A5, Bangladesh, all of Indo-China, and some  degree 9M  and Phillipines and
maybe even Singapore, as well as  southern China.   You have to talk to the
VKs ZLs about their  situation, but I think it is  not much better.  Then 
you
may  see what boring really is and why even  during openings, few DX  from
this area are on at all.

I am not  complaining, really I  am not, because I know what is coming and
just plan  my daytimes to  do other things, but I miss the action of a
contest where  everyone  works everyone.  I have 5 el monobanders on these
bands and a  2el full size 40 quad and top of the line radios, so dont tell
me I  am not  trying hard.

These are just the facts:  ARRL is an  American club  and its contests are
mostly for Americans-- makes  sense to serve  members.  I used to love them
as  K4VUD.

Sign me as waiting for  March 30....  73,
--
Charly,  HS0ZCW

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-- 
Charly, HS0ZCW 