[UK-CONTEST] CQWW 2004

[Donald Field]

This gets raised every year, of course.

A few thoughts spring to mind:

1. The CW guys get a VERY good deal most of the year (40% of the "old" 40m -
a higher percentage than on ANY other mixed-mode band. And 100% of 30m. Do
you see the SSB guys complaining? No. And in the CQWW CW Contest, 40m
contest activity invariably extends close to 7.1MHz. Do the SSB guys
complain? Rarely. Any unhappy CW ops. can move to 80CWm 30m, or the CW
segments on ANY of the higher bands, and be undisturbed. Can't be bad!

2. Do the US SSB contest stations listen down around 14050 or 21050, say?
No. So it's not as though they are intent on breaking IARU guidelines.

3. So why do they do it? Presumably one very simple reason - the 40m SSB
allocation (60kHz) is even narrower than on 160m (which almost everyone
accepts has to flex, too, in Phone contests, although 1840-2000 is available
for SSB in many countries). 40m is simply too narrow to accommodate the
demands of a major contest like CQWW Phone. So, although one might not
condone what goes on, one can see why it hapens and be glad that it doesn't
happen on, say, 20m (which was also getting pretty hectic this last
weekend!)).

4. What to do? Well, surely it will resolve itself to a large extent over
the next few years as more and more countries get an allocation up to
7.2MHz. I cannot see the CW segment being extended (in view of (1) above -
but Colin PSM may know better?), so the 40m slot will increase from 60kHz to
160kHz. My guess is that everyone will then behave because, really, they're
not wicked, just trying to make the best of a bad job.

The good news is that contesting remains hugely popular - pity that iisn't
true of the bands during the week or even on non-contest weekends - dire
lack of activity much of the time.

My two penn'orth, anyway.

73 Don G3XTT

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Don Beattie" <g3ozf at btinternet.com>
To: "Bob Henderson" <bob at cytanet.com.cy>; "UK Contest Reflector"
<uk-contest at contesting.com>; <colin at g3psm.net>
Sent: Monday, November 01, 2004 1:53 PM
Subject: Re: [UK-CONTEST] CQWW 2004


> This is a difficult one. And I don't think 40m is the real case in point.
> 160 is a better example of flouting the bandpalns. I own up to doing it
> myself - I was on 1822.5 for about two hours on Saturday morning, and
worked
> about 300 stations. There was just no space anywhere else.
>
> So what is a contester to do in one of these big contests ?  Sit on top of
> someone else ?  Withdraw from the gentlemen's sport of contesting ?  Wait
> till a clear frequency becomes available ?
>
> It's a real issue, but one which comes up a very few times each year. I
> guess that it accounts for 3 weekends in a year - less than 2% of the
time.
> 98% adherence to IARU recopmmended band plans isn't bad in my book !
>
> There may be a case (to remove the emotion from this) for having a look at
> the wording of the IARU recommendation, to make clear that "force majeure"
> applies in the case of major international contests !
>
> An RSGB paper for Davos, Colin ?
>
>
> 73
>
> Don
>
> PS I was using G3BJ and not G5W at the weekend, so Bob's proposal doesn't
> apply !!!!!
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Bob Henderson" <bob at cytanet.com.cy>
> To: "UK Contest Reflector" <uk-contest at contesting.com>; <colin at g3psm.net>
> Sent: Monday, November 01, 2004 1:15 PM
> Subject: Re: [UK-CONTEST] CQWW 2004
>
>
> > Perhaps adherence to relevent band plans should be a condition attached
to
> > RSGB issued contest calls.  Withdrawal for non compliance or shot at
dawn?
> >
> > Bob
> >
> > Bob Henderson
> > Giolou, Pafos, Cyprus.
> > e-mail: bob at 5b4agn.net
> > http://www.5b4agn.net
> > ----- Original Message ----- 
> > From: <colin at g3psm.net>
> > To: "UK Contest Reflector" <uk-contest at contesting.com>
> > Sent: Monday, November 01, 2004 12:46 PM
> > Subject: [UK-CONTEST] CQWW 2004
> >
> >
> >>
> >> At the risk of raising a somewhat contentious issue (who me?), should
> >> the RSGB be seen to be actively encouraging the breaking of the agreed
> >> Region 1 Bandplan?.   While it generally agreed that the bandplans go
> >> out of the windows each time there is a CQWW Contest I find it somewhat
> >> embarrassing when I hear a GM station on 7003 kHz using a RSGB Contest
> >> callsign calling CQ Contest and listening this frequency AND 7022 !!
> >>
> >> Comments, flak etc.
> >>
> >> 73
> >>
> >> Colin, G3PSM
> >> _______________________________________________
> >> UK-Contest mailing list
> >> UK-Contest at contesting.com
> >> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/uk-contest
> >>
> >
> >
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>
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