[UK-CONTEST] UK-Contest Digest, Vol 67, Issue 22

[Geoffg4afj at aol.com]

In a message dated 15-Jul-08 09:24:57 PM GMT Daylight Time,  
uk-contest-request at contesting.com writes:

For  example last year we put on what we thought was a competitive attempt in 
 the  CQWW Phone contest from a friends farm in West Wales. None of us had  
ever done this in a group of this size before, and we certainly had not put 6  
HF stations running legal limit on before. We had some new guys who had never  
entered a contest before, and even though we spoke to each other some of us  
had never met face to face. This did not stop us having fun and committing  
ourselves to having another go this year. But when we submitted the write up  
and photos for inclusion in any of the magazines it is not used.  

If I remember right someone mentioned encouraging  people to take part in 
contests, and even trying to get new blood into the  hobby (whether contesting, 
VHF, or construction) it is getting hard. Maybe  this is because of what I say 
is true, it is still looked upon as slightly  "elitist" to use a word that has 
been used somewhere on here before.  




Chris et al,
 
I think I would be inclined even at this late stage to contact the  
respective Editors of the magazines to find out why they did not publish  it. I'm not 
sure whether you are a member of CDXC but that might be an  interesting article 
for their Mag.
 
I would have thought that the approach of an inexperienced group to this  
challenge would have been of interest to a wider interest than just the elite  
contesters who read this group. Therein lies the rub. We are preaching to the  
converted here.
 
How did we all start? Probably down at the local club and we just had a bit  
of a go in a contest and liked it.  How many of us are now members of a  local 
club which caters for all interests or attempts to rather than a  specialist 
contest group? And hasn't it got a bit harder to just have a bit  of a go in a 
contest because you have to have computer logging and all the  complications 
that go with that and rig control and and .....!!  Bit  daunting for a 
newcomer.
 
One of the critics of contesting who has written at least twice to Last  Word 
about the takeover of the bands at weekends is a member of the work my pal  
in VK LP on 20m on Saturday morning club and thus feels he has nowhere else to  
go if an ssb contest takes over in "his" part of the band!  He's probably  
not got aerials for another band that might be open around the same time, nor a  
linear and probably doesn't operate cw!
 
The word tolerance spring to mind!
 
 
73, Geoff, G4AFJ