[UK-CONTEST] Individual Short Contest Callsigns

[Ed - GW3SQX]

There have been a few questions on the reflector about individual SCCs.  As
the Contest Committee Chairman, I can answer some of them, and I have asked
Ofcom for clarification on the ones that I'm not sure about.  The reason
that the Committee is involved at all is that Ofcom have asked us to "vet"
applications for SCCs, particularly now that there are bound to be more of
them.

(1)  Why is there a "qualification" -- there wasn't before?

Ofcom were concerned that clubs have been obtaining SCCs and not (or hardly
ever) using them.  They wanted a simple measure of the fact that SCC holders
had at least got on the air and achieved something.  This is easier said
than done, but they were concerned that if individual SCCs became available,
they might also sit on the shelf gathering dust.  After all, there are only
520 available, and they thought it was time that some of them were recycled.

(2)  Why is number of QSOs the qualifying factor, not score?

It's very hard to work out a simple rule that depends on final score, and
Ofcom didn't want a huge application form.  If a contest has multipliers,
the final score is generally inflated by the fact that the winners will
have a lot more multipliers.  In a contest such as WPX, where 70%
(sometimes more) of your QSOs will also be multipliers, the score will
be increased by a large factor as a result.  So you can do extremely
well, but still not achieve a huge score.  Then you have VHF
and UHF contests, where at higher frequencies, 20 QSOs might be a big
deal, but the distance factor can inflate the leaders' scores.  If the
qualification criteria don't work, we can go back to Ofcom and say things
are not operating fairly, and they'll probably be open to change.

(3)  What am I comparing with in a multi-section contest?

Generally, on HF it would be position in your country, power level, and
band(s) entered.  IOTA is slightly different, but it would be the section
you entered.  At VHF/UHF, the section is usually determined by factors such
as power level and whether portable or not, but your section is whatever the
results table shows.  Ofcom's idea seemed to be that the qualification level
was not supposed to exclude people, but to include those who have made an
effort.  We'll see whether this idea is working after they've received at a
few applications.

(4)  Why do all SCCs expire at the end of this year, even those just issued?

This was Ofcom's idea, and they wouldn't be shifted.  I suppose they think
it makes administration easier.  I would have thought that it was easier if
the SCCs expired at random, and it would certainly make the Committee's job
easier if they did.

(5)  Our club has just received a SCC under the old rules.  How can we
possibly qualify by the end of this year?

We've asked Ofcom to allow recently-issued SCC holders to be able to qualify
pro-rata.  Then a club would only have to qualify in 1.2 contests by the end
of this year (please don't ask!).  I suspect they will also extend this to
clubs who complain about the fact that they didn't have sufficient notice
that their long-issued SCC was about to require qualification, and they
would have to enter a few contests soon.  I'm not very sympathetic to the
latter case, but I suspect Ofcom's lawyers will tell them that they should
opt for the easy option.

(6)  Why aren't NFD and SSB Region 1 Field Day included?

These are not contests where SCCs can be used, and the qualifying list
currently only includes those for which SCCs are available.  This might be
the subject for a later change by Ofcom, and we may suggest it later.
As far as SCC usage in "local" contests is concerned, there is quite a
lot of opposition to this, from casual as well as seasoned contesters.  We
can try to canvass opinion.

(6)  If I use my club's SCC as a single operator, does this qualify?

The answer ought to be "yes", but Ofcom are a bit resistant.  After all, if
I go to GW8GT and operate single-operator, I am using a shortish club call,
but it is a genuine single-op entry, and will count in my SCC application.
Ofcom are happier about usage of foreign calls -- we have pointed out the
inconsistency, and will let you know.

(7)  If a Contest Committee member applies for an individual SCC, presumably
it will be automatically approved?

To avoid suggestions of favouritism, the vetting will be done by a sub-group
from another RSGB Committee.  I had to veto a suggestion from a Contest
Committee member that we should all get SCCs as a perk of Committee
membership (shame!)

73,

Ed, GW3SQX
Chairman, RSGB Contest Committee