[CQ-Contest] What is "the Maratimes (MAR) section of Radio Amateurs of Canada"

[ve9aa at nbnet.nb.ca]

Hank, 

You are almost right.  I understand folks outside Eastern Canada not realizing the intricacies.

The NAQP's are fine. Always Provinces. Check.
There are no ARRL SPRINTS. Check.

The ARRL SS uses "MAR" for a multiplier as that is our section.  Unfair,IMO but it is our section. They use sections as mults.  Fine.
I've agreed NOT to discuss publicly. End of that.

The SSB SPRINT (independants) uses the MAR SECTION+NL/LB (a made up area)
The NCJ CW/RTTY Sprints (different folks) use the same arbitrary "area"
The CaQP use the Same, but call us MR instead of MAR.....same issue.

If nothing else, the SSB SPRINT folks sure have got a lot of mileage and pretty good publicity out of these various threads so I really do hope lots get on and see what this wild 4 hr ride is all about and how
it differs from every single contest you've ever been in.

Mike VE9AA
---- Hank Greeb <n8xx at arrl.org> wrote: 
> See:
> 
> https://www.rac.ca/en/rac/public-service/section-managers/
> 
> Maybe this is whence the idea of "MAR" comes?
> 
> But, as others have said, the NCJ/ARRL Sprint uses Sections for 
> multipliers, while the NAQP uses states/provinces.  The question to ask, 
> really, is "Why the difference?"
> 
> 72/73 de n8xx Hg
> QRP >99.44% of the time
> 
> -------- Forwarded Message --------
> 
> Message: 3
> Date: Sun, 25 Jan 2015 16:49:02 -0400
> From: "Mike & Coreen Smith VE9AA" <ve9aa at nbnet.nb.ca>
> To: <cq-contest at contesting.com>
> Subject: Re: [CQ-Contest] How to change rules in a Contest - MAR
> Message-ID: <000e01d038e0$5ace3e80$106abb80$@nbnet.nb.ca>
> Content-Type: text/plain;	charset="us-ascii"
> 
> Hank, et al
> 
> My comments about "MAR" not being VE1, VE9, VY2, VO1 & VO2 were only wrt The
> New and Improved SSB Sprints, not towards the ARRL/RAC Sweepstakes. Let's be
> clear.  I am not petitioning ARRL or RAC on this forum.
> 
> I was presenting a fact that (VE9,VE1,VY2,VO1 & VO2) is not an "official"
> section by any countries official radio organization!  It is only a
> "grouping" by a select few contests based loosely on RAC's definition of
> this area of the world and then NL/LB tossed into the salad for good
> measure.  Although no official word has been etched in stone by the
> contesters who run the SSB SPRINT, it is hoped that the rules will be
> changed for the next session, so I need not say any more on that front.
> 
> This unofficial "grouping" shall I call it, would pertain to the new and
> improved SSB Sprints (run by independent contesters) and also the CW/RTTY
> Sprints, still run by NCJ. (NAQP uses Provinces, same as 98% of other
> contests)
> 
> It would also pertain to the California QSO Party who has conveniently
> grouped ONLY us all together out here.  If you ever had to explain "MAR" on
> the air to someone you would understand a lot of folks disdain for that
> term, at least as far as contesting goes.
> 
> I would reiterate that I do not officially speak for ALL the members of MCC
> (though most do agree) nor all contesters in my part of the country.  There
> are some outside MCC (VE9DX for example) who agrees with me however.
> 
> There is a minority who could care less what multiplier contests put them in
> or feel well enough should be left alone.  That's fine.  They are allowed
> their opinion.
> 
> It all started as I was being politely targeted to assist in creating
> activity from this part of Canada, multiple times by direct email,  and then
> I saw the CQ-CONTEST announcement, so I had to say something.  Someone that
> sits idly by is as much a part of the problem and not part of the solution.
> They wanted increased activity.  Fine, they are all good guys.  I like to
> help.
> 
> I suggested activity in their Fantastic Four Hour Frantic Fray would
> increase if they did not (imo) unfairly group VE1, VE9, VY2, VO1 & VO2 all
> together in some arbitrary multiplier section and just allow us the same
> rights and privileges as anyone else.
> 
> Whether they will put their stamp of approval on that is not officially
> known for certain.  The CW/RTTY sprint people have been contacted as have
> the CaQP folks.  I am just making my opinion known.  Often contest
> committees may wonder why their contest see less of us out here than maybe
> other contests.  I can only speak for myself and what I perceive others in
> my area to feel and what they have told me.  It's common sense.  If all W7's
> were grouped together and nobody else was, activity from W7 would drop,
> right?
> 
>   
> The ARRL SS is quite another matter and I agreed back some months ago to no
> longer debate that in open forum.  If it came up using them as an example
> and my intentions were unclear, make no mistake, this was and is about the
> SSB SPRINTS (and other Sprints and the CQP)
> 
> Mike VE9AA, who certainly does not represent every single ham in VE1, or
> snowy VE9, particularly VY2, nor VO1 or even frozen VO2
> 
> VE9 = NEW BRUNSWICK
> Mike, Coreen & Corey
> Keswick Ridge, NB
>