[UK-CONTEST] 80m Sprint Contests

[Dave Lawley]

The growth and popularity in the 80m Club Championship reflects a strong 
interest in domestic contesting, and the mid week evening short contest 
format is convenient for a lot of operators. After the final sessions of 
the Club Championship in July, there were comments that the start of the 
2008 Championship in February seemed very far away.

Another comment that has arisen due to the increased participation in 
the events is that winning scores can now be produced by only calling 
CQ. In the very beginning it was necessary to search as well as call in 
order to maximise your score. Competition to find a frequency to call on 
is increasing, especially on SSB.  To secure a spot to call on, some 
entrants begin occupying frequencies a long time before the contest begins.

To address both remarks, the Contest Committee has decided to run two 
Sprint style contests this October. These are 90 minute long, 10 or 100 
watt, mid-week events, one on CW and one on SSB, in a similar format to 
the existing 80m Club Championship.  The Sprint format requires stations 
to QSY if a contact was solicited on a frequency, and means that 
different skills and operating style are needed compared with a 
traditional contest.

Full rules can be found on the web site  www.rsgbhfcc.org  and we hope 
you will participate in these contests in October, and let us have 
plenty of feedback.

Dave G4BUO
RSGB Contests Committee