Topband: ARRL LOTW and More

[Ashton Lee]

Let's not lose the fact that contests on 160 are events as much as contests… they are times when an otherwise barren band fills up. There's a lot of fun just in working all you can.

Those of us in deep valleys in Western Colorado have a hard time appreciating the extreme difficulties faced by Eastern stations located on Islands surrounded by salt water. 


On Dec 18, 2012, at 6:05 PM, "Joe Subich, W4TV" <lists at subich.com> wrote:

> 
> > Some may say this is poor sportsmanship....but I have tried to get
> > someone to recognize that changes are important to bring out a better
> > contest product.  I understand those in their ivy covered office
> > buildings and who call the shots, really don't care to even entertain
> > change for the better.
> 
> ARRL 160 Meter contest is essentially a 160 Sweepstakes that allows
> W/VE stations to work DX.  If you don't like the format of the contest,
> don't work it ... after all, there were no VE8, VY1, etc. stations on
> and haven't been for many years.  Change is not necessary and would
> only hurt a well established product - particularly a change that you
> advocate that would only benefit a handful of stations who already
> benefit immensely in other contests.
> 
> There are those who don't like CQ's format, those who don't like the
> new ARRL 10 Meter format with Mexican States (why Mexico and not
> Brazil or Argentina, or Chile, or Venezuela?) - the choice is to not
> participate and certainly demand changes that will benefit only *ONE*
> or at most a handful of stations.  If you go giving one or two sections
> a special scoring advantage, why limit it to KP2/KP4?  Certainly the
> scoring disadvantage is just as great in the case of NFL vs. C6 or SFL
> vs. CO.  Once you start making special accommodations where does it
> stop - GA, SC, NC AL MS?
> 
> Every set of contest rules gives some an advantage - it's far easier
> for VY2, VE1, VE9, W1 to work all the 5 point DX than others - and
> gives some a disadvantage - who wants to be W6/W7 for ARRL 160 -
> that's the breaks.  Other contests have advantages for another set
> of operators.  You don't screw up a contest with 40 years of history
> because one or two individuals don't like the format - there will
> always be boundary cases EA9 vs. ZB, IG9/IG9 vs. 9H, 9Y vs. J3,
> HP vs, HK ... the list can go on and on.
> 
> No matter what the rules are, *someone* will complain.
> 
> 73,
> 
>   ... Joe, W4TV
> 
> 
> On 12/18/2012 7:14 PM, Herb Schoenbohm wrote:
>> On 12/18/2012 7:11 PM, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote:
>>> You have bitched for years that DX
>>> thought the could not work you - I can find the references in the
>>> archives going back almost to be beginning of this list) but it
>>> would mean that you got to count each QSO with the rest of us on
>>> the mainland as 5 points instead of 2 points.  Now you want to be
>>> able to work DX but count all your QSOs as five points instead
>>> of two?
>> I may have "bitched" but who wouldn't after being told and scolded by DX
>> stations "no DX no DX QRZ W/VE only"  Many I guess were as confused as i
>> was in calling them in the first place.  Again I only want this contest
>> to show an element of fairness.  I guess if I do as you suggested then
>> next time stations will not only miss KP4 which did not show this time
>> but also KP2.  So about working ARRL sections and as some insist that it
>> is only a 160 meter version of Sweepstakes, then let it be so and like
>> in the much highly enshrined SS not permit *any* DX.  Working DX on 160,
>> not some archaic sections is what I am interest in.  If participants
>> were tuned into working DX you would not find the band covered by 100's
>> of incessant CQ machines every few hertz trying to hold on to there spot
>> and not working much of anything.  I think next time I will do what I
>> wanted to do this time, just work DX and have my phased Beverages on
>> Europe and Africa selected.
>> Some may say this is poor sportsmanship....but I have tried to get
>> someone to recognize that changes are important to bring out a better
>> contest product.  I understand those in their ivy covered office
>> buildings and who call the shots, really don't care to even entertain
>> change for the better.
>> 
>> 
>> Herb, KV4FZ
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> _______________________________________________
>> It is undesirable to believe a proposition when there is no ground
>> whatsoever for supposing it is true. - Bertrand Russell
>> 
> _______________________________________________
> It is undesirable to believe a proposition when there is no ground whatsoever for supposing it is true. - Bertrand Russell
>