[UK-CONTEST] Elitism ?

[David Barber]

More good points however I'm not sure anyone has used the term "Elitism" or
"Elitist" in connection with contesting or its participants.

There is a world of difference in meaning between these two words and the
use of the word "Elite" which I used on a couple of occasions.

Whilst "Elitist" and "Elitism" are commonly used as a disapproving term or
in a disapproving context, the word "Elite" generally refers to the best
educated or most highly trained / capable individuals operating within a
particular discipline.  Therefore I see no disrespect in referring to those
within the contest community with the greatest experience as being the
"Elite" from whom others can learn.

David


-----Original Message-----
From: uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com
[mailto:uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of Chris Tran GM3WOJ
Sent: 16 July 2008 17:30
To: uk-contest at contesting.com
Subject: [UK-CONTEST] Elitism ?

Hello all

Al G3XBV - you made me feel nostalgic with your mention of the R107 - also 
my first RX - I needed help to lift the thing but you certainly learned SSB 
tuning skills on this radio with its 1kc/s per minute drift rate !

I am always puzzled when contesters are described as 'elitist' - is it 
'elitism' to want to improve equipment, antennas and operating skills, thus 
making QSOs easier for everyone concerned ? Answer = no.  In New Zealand 
they have an expression "the tall poppy syndrome" - in other words if 
someone tries harder and becomes better than the crowd at something, they 
are cut down to size for their trouble - let's hope this does not apply in 
our hobby.

It is important to remember that many amateurs are not members of any club, 
either by choice or the fact that there are no clubs locally - they have to 
be self-motivating rather than rely on club motivation - these usually make 
the best contesters. Having said that, it is an essential part of learning 
contesting to join others for multi-op events and see how they do things (or

their bad habits which you don't copy). One common mistake is to have too 
many operators involved in an event - this is a waste of everyone's time and

results will inevitably be mediocre.

Advert - in IOTA 2008 please work GM7V Benbecula EU-010 (3 ops : GM3WOJ, 
GM0NAI, PE7T)

73   Chris   GM3WOJ

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