[UK-CONTEST] AFS - and 3570 - 3590

[Dave Sergeant]

On 14 Jan 2007 at 18:55, G3SVL wrote:

> That was fun.  Band in pretty good shape down on the Sussex 
> Coast.  Looks like 214 good QSO's - mostly G's, seemed to be fewer
> DL's this year.  Tnx to all who worked me.

145 QSOs here with my K2 at QRP 5W. Steady rate till the last half 
hour than ran out of new stations to work as is always the case.
 
> But can I pose a potentially controversial question - do we need to
> give up 25% of the contest space for the QRS area? It seemed
> relatively empty to me whenever I tuned around there.  Halving it and
> putting the extra 10KHz into the pot might make it easier for the bulk
> of the entrants.  BTW, I absolutely do not want to see the slow-speed
> area removed, but it just seems too wide.
> 
> Tin hat on
> 

No need for the tin hat. I ventured above 3570 on a few occasions 
expecting to find loads of beginners sending very slowly. There 
seemed to be very few of those and most of those sending slow were 
the big boys (judging from their serial nos at least...). 
Interspersed were quite a few well known stations sending at their 
normal QRQ. So I did not feel guilty about turning the speed up 
myself..

Having the QRS slot right up to 3590 is a mixed blessing. There was 
plenty of PSK activity just above 3570 and the area above 3580 was 
largely occupied by rtty and not really useable - I heard no AFS 
activity up there. I am not sure we should have a published cw 
contest frequency range which clashes with the data area, I should 
think they were a bit upset...

73 Dave G3YMC

http://www.davesergeant.com