[CQ-Contest] Is Self Spotting now allowed in ARRL tests?

[Lee Hiers]

How is that materially different from having a program that automatically
spots every S&P contact, clogging the cluster with spots of CQing stations?

73 de Lee, AA4GA

On Tue, Nov 22, 2022 at 7:19 PM Pete Smith N4ZR <pete.n4zr at gmail.com> wrote:

> It makes no sense to encourage stations to clog the clusters with spots
> of themselves, just because they can.
>
> 73, Pete N4ZR
> Check out the new Reverse Beacon Network
> web server at<https://reversebeacon.net>.
> For spots, please use your favorite
> "retail" DX cluster.
>
> On 11/22/2022 12:12 PM, Tim Shoppa wrote:
> > Bob W5OV of the ARRL has corrected me.
> >
> > He writes "Your reading of PROH.3 is not correct. That exclusion is
> > specifically about making schedules, soliciting contacts (i.e.; CQing),
> and
> > sending or receiving the required QSO exchange information via
> non-amateur
> > means. It says nothing about spotting."
> >
> > I myself fail to see any distinction between self-spotting on a Telnet
> > cluster, and soliciting i.e. CQing using non-amateur means, but that's
> > official from W5OV of ARRL.
> >
> > Tim N3QE
> >
> > On Tue, Nov 22, 2022 at 9:13 AM Tim Shoppa<tshoppa at gmail.com>  wrote:
> >
> >> First, make sure you have the latest rules. ARRL didn't update the
> >> November SS rules (to the latest, version 1.06) on their website until
> late
> >> August. Prior to that we just had a confusing tease about self-spotting
> >> from a Contest Update earlier in the year.
> >>
> >> Link to current SS rules:
> >> https://contests.arrl.org/ContestRules/SS-Rules.pdf
> >>
> >> My reading of SS rule PROH.3 in version 1.06 of the rules, is that
> >> self-spotting is a form of soliciting contacts by a non-amateur radio
> means
> >> (in this case Telnet cluster) and thus prohibited:
> >>
> >> "Examples of prohibited conduct [...]: PROH.3. Arranging, soliciting, or
> >> confirming any contacts during or after the contest by use of any
> >> non-amateur radio means."
> >>
> >> One clarification in 1.06 does explicitly allow a corner case of
> spotting,
> >> that was never previously mentioned in past contest rules. In the
> >> definition section you will find, "Generating spotting information for
> use
> >> by other stations is not considered to be spotting assistance." So for
> >> example you can be hooked up to a cluster and sending spots, as long as
> >> you've set all the filters such that nothing ever comes in to you from
> the
> >> cluster.
> >>
> >> Tim N3QE
> >>
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