[CQ-Contest] Operating IOTA Contest Remotely

[Paul O'Kane]

On 26/07/2023 07:00, Jim Brown K9YC wrote:
> That's a problem with some contest sponsors -- it's what THEY want, 
> not necessarily what contesters want.

This is an issue for all contesters, not just those with remote facilities.

> Those of us in touch with reality may have noticed a few things. 
> First, our ham community is getting older, and not so many younger 
> folks are coming in to replace us, and to replace the guys that 
> traveled to islands when they were a lot younger.

I apologise for not being in touch with K9YC's reality.  Try applying 
that argument to other competitive activities that can involve travel 
and where age becomes a problem.

> Second, there's this thing called COVID, which has thinned out the 
> herd here on Mother Earth, and which is far more likely to be serious 
> or even fatal for we old farts. Spending time in indoor public spaces 
> and on mass transit is a great way to get COVID. Several ham events in 
> the past few years have turned out to be super-spreaders.

It's time to get off the COVID bandwagon - get your jabs and take your 
chances like the rest of us.

> What I'm getting at is that the world is continuously changing, and 
> ham radio changes with it.

Can't argue with that :-)

> Given today's conditions and resources, if remote operation puts new 
> multipliers on the air without giving the operator an unfair 
> advantage, I'm all for it! Ham radio is about radio, NOT about 
> spending money or risking health to go to an island. And remote 
> operation isn't going to activate a rare island, only those with an 
> existing fixed station, like the one that Jeff and John operate!

Ham radio is about people communicating via ham radio.  If they can't do 
it without simultaneously communicating over the internet, then their 
activity is something other than ham radio. If Jeff and John would like 
to activate a rare island, they should go there - that's what 
self-respecting ham-radio contesters and DXers do.

73,
Paul EI5DI

ps - "Hunting in Africa" - https://ei5di.com/hunting1.html