[UK-CONTEST] Clusters again

[Clive Whelan]

VE3ZI wrote


Am I alone in feeling that 'Super check partial' is
just as much outside help (or if self-generated,
outside-contest-time help) as the cluster?

Am I also alone in feeling that neither of them
actually give much assistance to a really serious
operation?

So do either of them really matter either way?

Hi Roger

As Don has pointed out CQ WPX is a no brainer contest ( it
must be, even I can get in the Eu top 5- well on 40m
anyway!), the QSO:mult ratio is always about 3:1, no matter
what you do. The more QSOs you make the more mults you get.
Clusters will assist not at all.


In 2005 CQWW SSB, OE4A submitted the highest claimed score
in SOAB by a considerable margin, but was DQ'd for illegal
use of clusters. I think that answers that aspect of the
question. I am not a fan of IOTA, but its mult value is
possibly the highest of any major event, so it is
predictable that clusters would assist substantially, for
the reasons Don has outlined. Don has also advised that the
adjudicators have invited several entrants to reclassify
their entry as assisted. Again, fairly clear I think. WAE
will probably be somewhere in between the two previous
examples. In ARRL DX, if you are loud ( and if you're not,
you won't win anyway!) the significant majority of
states/provinces will call you, so clusters will be of
relatively little assistance. Henry Ford once said "think
you can, think you can't; either way you'll be right" In
this case also, whatever you think could be right!

SCP is zero assistance to competent CW ops ( I know nothing
of SSB), but significant help to those who are not. Those
who are not, will not win in any event, so the bottom line
is that it makes no difference at all; thus it's just a flim
flam!


73


Clive