[UK-CONTEST] CC 2006

Mon Mar 13 04:48:53 EST 2006

I tend to agree Don. Where as most contests have two elements, this one 
has a weird third one. To the outsider it's a bit like asking an Italian 
if he understands cricket! You can imagine people putting on their 
jodhpurs and pith helmets, and settling down with the nice cup of tea to 
work a few Pats and ex-Pats. Reminds me of Michael Caine in Zulu, "I 
only said blow the bloody doors orf" (Oh, sorry that was The Italian 
Job). As I was waiting to call someone on 80m, ZL6A I think, I listened 
to the long QSO, the UK guy needed to give his serial number 20 times!! 
There was so much contact bounce on his bug key that the 5 just didn't 
contain any power. It was only 8-10 years ago someone wrote me as HFCC 
Chair complaining a G must have been using a "Tape Loop" to send 
multiple CQs!! I would reckon most of us observe Remembrance Day in some 
form, it seems to me that, for some, CC is a way of saluting the old 
Empire. Once that element disappears we can probably move forward a bit.

The top end guys are well catered for. It was most interesting listening 
to Andy G3AB, alternatively CQing on two different bands. Dave BUO and 
Don BJ have also got good setups. What is really needed is something for 
the mid-range contest fraternity to encourage them to participate or 
even just to retain interest.

CC could be good, if only ....

Chris G3SJJ

Donald Field wrote:

>I rather suspect that participation from VK, ZS, maybe even VE, will
>continue to decline rapidly. Who saw the news report from VK last night
>asking Aussies on the beach "who is visiting this Australia this week?"
>Most guessed "Kelly Holmes" and similar but not spotted that it was the
>Queen. Unless you are an ex-G, BERU probably has less and less resonance
>nowadays. I once asked ZS6EZ whether he would ever contemplate
>participating in BERU and got a very rude answer (as far as he is
>concerned, as an Afrikaaner, the xxxx English drove the Dutch settlers
>inland from the coast (remember the Voortrekkers?) and are to be treated
>with contempt) :-) Even Canadians seem to have less and less interest in
>the motherland (and French Canadians probably not at all).
>
>So, much as it's a shame, because this is an interesting contesting
>event, I suspect it will rely increasingly on being supported by ex-G's
>(just look at 5B4AGC, P3J, 5B/G4ODV, G3PJT on his annual travels, etc.)
>and a few would-be colonials (ZF2NT, alias N6NT, still penitent from
>1776 :-)). Whether this number will hold steady or decline depends, I
>imagine, on the continuing propensity of G's to buy retirement
>properties on the remaining "pink bits" or to jump on planes mid-March
>each year. Please tell me I'm wrong!
>
>Don G3XTT 
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com
>[mailto:uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of Dave Lawley
>Sent: 12 March 2006 21:35
>To: UK Contest Reflector
>Subject: [UK-CONTEST] Beru 2006 - G4BUO
>
>Commiserations to Don with his snow static problem. It was a tough fight
>
>with him and Andy G3AB. Murphy also visited with a noise problem on 80m 
>and very bad mutual interference between 40 and 80, which resolved 
>itself somehow in the early hours of the morning. This is going to make 
>it extra hard to track down the root cause of the problem. Nice to get a
>
>couple of VKs and 9M2 on 15m in the last 15 minutes.
>
>There are plenty of events for those who like wham-bam rate contests, I 
>believe there will be yet another one along next weekend. It would be a 
>shame if there was not room in the calendar for a different sort of 
>event in which you have to keep thinking, moving, probing all the time.
>
>Even at the bottom of the cycle the activity level seemed generally good
>
>and varied but I am concerned at the steep decline in participation from
>
>VK. Unfortunately the effect multiplies: the fewer VKs that participate,
>
>the harder it is for the others to turn in good results but only a few 
>years ago VK4XA, VK4EMM and VK2BJ all put in top scores. My perception 
>is that VK is not as prominent as ZL in other major contests as well so 
>I don't think the problem is unique to Beru, though its effects may be.
>
>With the default 10 minute off time threshold in Win-Test it reckons I 
>was off for 9 hours, but apart from three trips down the garden to 
>fiddle with the beverage termination, I was in the chair just about the 
>whole time:
>
>BAND   QSO DUP DXC  HQ  POINTS BONUS   AVG
>--------------------------------------------
>    80    43   0  17   5     215   640 19.88
>
>    40    85   0  29   6     425  1260 19.82
>
>    20   122   1  35   8     610  1380 16.31
>
>    15    37   0  21   3     185   640 22.30
>
>    10     5   0   4   1      25   100 25.00
>--------------------------------------------
>TOTAL   292   1 106  23    1460  4020 18.77
>============================================
>             TOTAL SCORE : 5480
>
>
>Ten-Tec Omni D + Ten-Tec Titan
>FT1000MP + Dentron MLA2500
>Homebrew SO2R box (soon to be replaced!)
>Win-Test 2.28
>10m 4el up 78ft
>15m 4el up 83ft, delta loop
>20m 4el up 73ft, 4el up 38ft fixed NW
>40m 4-square
>80m delta loop
>220ft beverage
>
>
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