[CQ-Contest] Announcing the North America SSB Sprint-boycott from "MAR"

[Mike & Coreen Smith VE9AA]

Ron, 

 

You can throw that "administrative decision of RAC" line at me time after
time, but it does not hold water.  It makes your statement sound like it

it was presumably derived from some legal document and quite honestly I find
your attitude poor and condescending. (do you know how many private emails I
will

get saying something nice in SUPPORT of our stance vs,. your always
poo-pooing it?) I will be busy for days replying.   I know many will also
comment on the

w3wn stance.  It won't be nice things they say, I assure you.  Sure there
will always be a few nay-sayers, but most intelligent folks see us for what
we are.

Separate Provinces or States, just like any other.  On the nightly news here
@ 5 it does not say "Welcome to the MAR News"

 

Contests are contests.  They are not legal in nature and its rules are
usually made up by committees of ham radio guys, some of whom are hopefully
contesters.

  If someone thinks the rules of some contest need changing for whatever
reason they present a case to the committee or contest membership group at
large and see where it goes. 

 They (contests) have nothing to do with some section that RAC has decided
we're in.

 

Fact is Ron, the ARRL itself allows "NB, NS, and PEI" for almost every
single contest they sponsor (that States/Provinces are the mults), 

(what's up with that huh? Are they even allowed to do that?) Sure, it's only
a contest.we're not entering into some sort of ARRL/RAC partnership here.

 

The most notable exception being The Sweepstakes.  Why, nobody can tell us.
RAC points the finger south of the border.  The (CT) guys South dare not

change the rules for fear of what? RAC?  RAC might attack with a canoe, 2
guys wearing toques and a 2-4 of Moosehead beer, eh!.

RAC does not concern itself with ARRL contesting rules.  The ARRL can and
does make its own rules.  Any contesting body can make its own rules and
change them if reasons warrant.

 

Sections are added all the time. WCF, ONN, ONE..sections disappear.
Cuba/Georgia/whatever that old section was called.

 

Even our very own RAC contests, of which we have two.RAC Winter and the RAC
Canada Day contest do not put us in some fictitious MAR contesting section.

We send our provinces.  We are legal entities after all.  We have borders
and governments same as any other.  The same as RI, DE and ME...(is this the
new RIDE ME section? - I think not)

 

Fact is Ron, 98% of ALL OTHER worldwide contests, where States/Provinces are
mults, NB, NS and PEI are separate mults.(and so they should be)

 

The holdouts there are the California QSO Party (they have us send MR) and
the SPRINTS, which is why this post got started.  Even the NAQP's allow
Provinces.

 

For you to keep throwing that unrelated pseudo factoid in my face with your
poor attitude shows your lack of specific contest knowledge.  When was the
last time you entered

a contest Ron?  I note with much interest 4 contests you did in the last 8
years.(2007-2011) of which you posted the results to 3830.  If you did more,
I do not know about it.

  I have 250+ under my belt the last 4 yrs or so.  I think I know my contest
rules pretty well and what I have been sending for an exchange (NB in most
cases for a Province)

I've sent MAR enough and will not send it again for the foreseeable
future...if we get invaded by New England forces, then perhaps I'll send
NEWMAR..I'll wait to see what

happens there.

 

I also note Ron,  you like to post derogatory comments on a number of
subjects of which you seem to know little about, thus this will be my last
communique directly to you.

I would've bet my paycheck that your comment to me would be one of the
first.  I was right.  Everyone deserves a response and mine to you Ron is
LAY OFF. 

 

All (most of) us VE1, VE9's and VY2's want is to be able to "play for the
home team" same as ALL the rest of you guys.  A very few select contests
deny us Eastern

Canada folks the glory, what little of it there may be, of representing our
own Province.  It's a holdout from the times of old.  I've been a VE9 since
1993..and a ham (VE1) from 1978-1993..Maybe this whole MAR business made
sense a quarter of a century ago, but not anymore.  I am done with
explaining MAR on the air whether it's CW, RTTY or SSB.  Most everyone now
knows a VE9 is NB , a VE1 is NS and a VY2 is PEI.

If they don't, their contesting software sure does.

All those blank stares when I send MAR are over.  I am not alone in my
quest.  Longtime DXer and contester VE9DX, Andy (ex VE1ASJ/VE1DX) has had
enough too, as have had many others in my region.

 

There are no other North American States/Provinces arbitrarily grouped
together to form a single contesting section . NONE.  In fact, many have
multiple sections.  Nobody in Maine is lumped in with MASS.

Nobody in WA is lumped in with OR.  Will never happen.

 

Contests committees can and do decide to change rules all the time.

 

All we are asking for is fairness across the board.   I will miss the
Sprints. I love them. They are the most fun you can have in 4 hours with
your clothes on.  Really, if you have

never done one, you should.  Even if you just work 10 guys an hour, it's
worth it . I won't be on, but I fully support this very unique and exciting
format.

 

There are now hopeful words from the wise folks of the (new and improved
with 50% less calories) "SSB Sprints" (now independent from NCJ) that they
are at least considering our request.

  These are reasonable guys, all contesters and they know what's what and
aren't held to some sort of RAC MAR section that has nothing at all to do
with contesting.

 

Wise folks.

 

Mike VE9AA, proudly in NB..

 

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=======================================================

 

 

 

C'mon Mike, not this again.

 

Look, if you feel that there shouldn't be a Maritime Section in the RAC, and

can convince them of that, I'm all for it!  

 

But this is an administrative decision of RAC.

 

If a contest uses ARRL/RAC Sections as Multipliers, as many traditionally

have done so for decades... that is the way to get things changed.

 

In other words, I'm not saying you're wrong.  I'm saying that you're barking

up the wrong tree!

 

73, ron w3wn

 

Mike, Coreen & Corey

Keswick Ridge, NB