[CQ-Contest] WPX Wonderings

[Edward Sawyer]

I agree with much of Jeff's comments below.

However, in this particular year, I won the High Power US AB Category and operated unassisted.  I never operate assisted.  Don't like it and won't start just because people decide to force me too.  I was extremely appreciative of the unassisted challenge as a way to have a chance to compete anyway.  As it turned out, this year. Unassisted still won.  That won't be the case when DXpedition travel returns, but it was this year...

Ed  N1UR/AC1U

Message: 5
Date: Mon, 3 May 2021 15:37:25 -0400
From: Jeff Clarke <ku8e at ku8e.com<mailto:ku8e at ku8e.com>>
To: cq-contest at contesting.com<mailto:cq-contest at contesting.com>
Subject: Re: [CQ-Contest] WPX Wonderings
Message-ID: <dc0712a8-f4b9-56bc-6424-8c9a12749f0d at ku8e.com<mailto:dc0712a8-f4b9-56bc-6424-8c9a12749f0d at ku8e.com>>
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"Everyone makes their own choice about how to operate the contest and whether to submit a log or not."

That's a pretty arrogant statement. You operate the way we want for you to be competitive and if you don't want to then don't send in your log.
The fact is there's now only one SO category - SO Assisted. Take it or leave it. Sure you can operate SO without assistance but with the current rules you couldn't be competitive in that category unless you used assistance. I think the solution to the problem would be to expand the classic category from 24 to 36 hours. Allow unlimited band changes ( Like the current SO category) so you can still do SO2R if you want.
Problem solved.... but if you think about it that's going back to the old rules. It's pretty clear that many of the top single operators want the old rules to come back based on the popularity of Unassisted Challenge N6MJ and friends put together for CQ WPX.

I also question the statement that the CQ contests - both CQWW and CQ WPX are really competitive around the whole world. Stations on the continental boundaries with EU and NA have a huge advantage to these high population areas. The winners from as far back as I remember are either in North Africa or the northern part of South America. (i.e the ABC islands)? The distance from north Africa to the center of Europe is probably the same as it is from my QTH to New England.? They get 6 points per low band QSO and 3 points for the higher bands. I took a look at a log (public information) for a big gun northern Africa station from CQWW out of curiosity. It was basically a EU rate fest for them with a spattering of NA stations thrown in. What about the poor JA's? They have to work stations pretty far way on a far away continent to get more than one measly point on the higher bands and 2 points on the lower bands.?
So if I'm in CN8 and work an EA just across the Strait of Gibraltar (maybe 50 miles away or less?) I get 6 points on 160,80, 40 and 3 points on 20, 15 and 10 meters. In contrast if I'm in JA and work a 5B4 in Cyprus (5500 miles away and still is Asia) I get one point on 20/15/10 and two points on 160/80/40. This makes no sense to me.

Jeff