[CQ-Contest] NAQP Contest and Adding a Limited Antenna Category?

[jimk8mr at aol.com]

 I like it, qualifying for that category from the condo superstation in Sarasota:  an 80M OCF up maybe 50 feet in the trees at the highest.

January NAQP CW:    912 x 236     Total Score = 215,232

That score likely would have been higher if I had my 160 meter antenna from previous years: an inverted J, with two elevated radials running along the top of the fence separating the condo property from the outside world. That fence got wiped out in Hurricane Milton, so no top band antenna until the fence repairs are completed. That may be in time for the CQ 160 contest.

73  -  Jim   K8MR/4



    On Thursday, January 16, 2025 at 11:41:28 PM EST, Jeff Clarke <ku8e at ku8e.com> wrote:   

 I was just wondering if the sponsors of the NAQP would consider adding a 
Limited Antenna category like both the ARRL and CQ contests have? The 
top scores in both SO-Unassisted and SO-Assisted categories are always 
the same people who have large stations with big antennas. Many have 
touted the NAQP's as having a level the playing field because everyone 
(except the QRP guys) are running 100 watts. That's not really the case 
because you really have to look at ERP not output power. Someone running 
100 watts and yagis isn't equal to someone running 100 watts and a dipole.

I bet there would be a lot of entries in a limited antenna category.  
Many more than the QRP category which NAQP has. The looked at the last 
NAQP CW published results. That was August 2024. There were 850 entries 
in that contest. I counted only 55 QRP entries. That comes out to only 
6% on the submitted scores. I didn't check the SSB results but I bet it 
was even lower since the QRP guys tend to prefer CW.  Personally, being 
stuck with limited antennas I would like my score compared to someone 
who has a station similar to mine.

Maybe make the rules similar to the ARRL overlay :

Limited Antennas Overlay – Operation is limited to the use of 
single-element antennas such as a single vertical, end-fed wire, or a 
single dipole antenna no more than 50 feet above ground at its highest 
point. The antenna(s) may cover multiple bands, as in the case of 
multiband verticals and dipoles with fan or trap constructions.

Anyone else have any thoughts on this ?


Jeff