Topband: RHR

[James Bennett]

Well, if I work 100 countries using a low antenna and QRP, I'm proud of hanging that DXCC certificate on my wall, and telling any guest in my shack how I got it. How about if ARRL just issues a DXCC certificate to every ham who has a license? How would that make you feel if your guest says "oh yeah, I got one of those DXCC thingys in the mail along with my first QST magazine." I don't have a problem with the big guys running gigantic antennas and KW stations - I say well done. But to live (for example) on the west coast and use a remote station in Maine, and then get your DXCC certificate based on those contacts ALONG WITH those made from the west coast - it just lowers the "quality" of the award.

If you live in an "antenna restricted" or prohibited QTH, well life is tough. I am in one of those areas and still manage to get stealth / invisible antennas put up. Do I have a 150 foot tower, five mile long Beverages, 2 KW amp? No. Can I work DX with my wire antennas? Sure. I won't ever be on the Honor Roll, and I'm OK with that - there are a lot of other ways to enjoy this hobby, and I mean A LOT.

My feeling is that this award should be governed by a rule similar to Worked All States - all contacts must be worked from a station or stations no more than 50 miles from each other.

Anyway, I've heard these arguments about RHR for months and am pretty sick of it all. Yes, I can hit the delete key and set up an email rule for deleting the messages, but it does get tiring, as the subject line morphs now and then. I also subscribe to the Elecraft reflector and I can tell you that threads like this would have been ended long ago by the moderators. 

It should be a place to exchange information related to equipment, propagation, antennas, etc. - not a continual gripe session about perceived cheating or not cheating. Good grief - give it a rest!!!!!!!!!

Jim Bennett / W6JHB
Folsom, CA

> I don't get it. WHY do you care?