[UK-CONTEST] 48 hour Contests

[Chris Burbanks]

I have been giving some thought to comments from myself and others about
putting in the required time in big contests. Seems to me there are two main
area for consideration :

Impact of lifestyle.    I have long thought that 48 hour contests are at
least 4 day events for a single operator entry. In fact you really need to
be preparing during the week with early nights. Standard bedtime for me is
2300-2330. Just not sure how I can build a sleep reserve without
re-arranging my week. Friday comes and some last minute preparation plus
getting the weekly shop out of the way. Try and get some sleep late
afternoon but really the problem is starting a major hectic contest just at
the time when virtually every other night of the year I would be going to
bed. A big plus point here is if you work shifts or regularly travel abroad
and are used to changing your sleep patterns. I have never done either.
Again, after the contest if you have gone without sleep for 2 nights surely
you need to catch up, but I would not want the weekend's activities to
impinge on my plans for a busy Monday. I am sure many would-be entrants fit
this profile.

Recognition of Achievement.    Why do we enter contests. Technically
interesting, good fun etc, but in the end it is seeing our callsign listed
against our peers. In the past I have not been so interested in these events
because I would have to wait a year to find out what I had achieved and then
the listing is fragmented into countries with even G, GW etc being
separated. More recently there is the 3830 Reflector where you can get good
idea and after that it is down to error rates. In the UK we now have the
Contest Reflector which is great for getting a quick resume, but there still
isn't an official listing for say UK.

So?    Reading the various e-mails, I get the impression that whilst
Lifestyle has a major impact, it is probably the Recognition factor that is
more important. I think we are all questioning just why we are doing this.
Ok, NWG's and WVG's efforts will no doubt make the top listing, but what
will AAF, IIY, SJJ etc see for their efforts?

An Answer   Don G3BJ proposed a contest within a contest and I see this as a
big step forward. The final shape needs some thought and discussion, for
instance, how do the major entrants fit in here? If we can get it sorted
there would then be reason to put in a competitive entry and see it listed
sensibly.

Chris G3SJJ
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