[UK-CONTEST] 48 hour Contests

Thu Dec 2 06:39:04 EST 2004

I believe there is real benefit in having some sort of "contest within a 
contest" for UK amateurs, as a transition from local events such as the very 
successful Club Chamionships to the big league (ARRL, CQWW, etc.). But I do 
value the opportunity to participate in full-blown 48-hour contests. When I 
do all-bands, 24 hours simply isn't long enough to get a fair crack at all 
the propagation opportunities. This is especially true during the afternoon 
when (in a good year!) 10 and 15 are wide open both to the east (YB, DU, BY 
and all that stuff) and to the west (USA). It needs two days of propagation 
to work the QSOs and the mults. And it takes a 48-hour event to make it 
worthwhile setting up major stations in the Caribbean, 5U5, etc, etc.

Personally, although I rarely manage the full 48 nowadays, I can usually put 
in about 46 hours without problems. This year my first sleep after Friday 
morning was 0430-0630 Sunday morning, then nothing else until after the 
contest ended. I didn't even find myself hallucinating or falling asleep 
over the operating table as sometimes happens. My "best" was the year I 
operated from GJ and was awake from the ferry docking at some unearthly hour 
on the Friday until after the contest finished on the Sunday (I had to clear 
the operating area immediately after the contest, as this was GJ3YHU's work 
QTH), about 70 hours in all. That was rough! Sadly, when in GU in 1998, I 
almost managed the same thing, but fell asleep at the operating desk at 2200 
on the Sunday. That cost me a 2nd place Europe - G4BUO just pipped me (being 
a younger man than me, he obviously had more stamina!) and pushed me into 
third. But, to me, that's part of the game - this is a sport (radiosporting) 
and you need to be physically up to it (though I do worry, when I see some 
of the folk at rallies, etc!!!). Yes, there are domestic issues, but how 
many of these "marathons" do we do each year - for many of us only the one, 
or maybe two at most.

Don G3XTT

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Cooper, Stewart" <coopers at odl.co.uk>
To: "UK Contest Reflector" <uk-contest at contesting.com>
Sent: Thursday, December 02, 2004 11:17 AM
Subject: RE: [UK-CONTEST] 48 hour Contests

I sort of regret mentioning that it would be good to have a 24 hours section 
in CQ WW in my write-up. I don't want to start a thread about more sections, 
levelling the playing field, etc. In reality, the way I intend to deal with 
my inability to last 48 hours next year is to prepare better, because I want 
to enter the same section, and compete at the same level. If I fail to last 
the course again, I will persevere. I believe that the SOAB section is a 
good test of contesting ability. I don't have a problem with my score being 
categorised in a UK sub-section, if that's what someone wants to do. They 
could do that anyway, I suppose.
I certainly agree that SOAB for 48 hours wipes out a major part of a week, 
but that's what it takes.

Stewart
GM4AFF

-----Original Message-----
From: uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com
[mailto:uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com]On Behalf Of Chris Burbanks
Sent: 02 December 2004 10:20
To: UK Contest Reflector
Subject: [UK-CONTEST] 48 hour Contests

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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