[UK-CONTEST] The contest "exchange"....

[Andy P Hewitt]

OR GRID SQUARES?
73
Andy G3SVD


-----Original Message-----
From: uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com
[mailto:uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of Nigel G3TXF
Sent: 06 October 2010 22:37
To: uk-contest at contesting.com
Subject: [UK-CONTEST] The contest "exchange"....

 
Hello UK Contesters,

The use of UK Districts as an exchange in various RSGB
Contests (including the recent 21/28MHz) has always struck
me as a bit of a waste of an opportunity. Why use as an
"exchange" something which is NOT collected for any Award
outside of the contest? In the Swiss H-26 Contest you
receive Swiss Cantons. There's a nice award for working all
26 Cantons. In the French REF contests ditto. It's
Departments, and there's a programme of awards for
collecting French departments. The same goes for US States
in the ARRL-Contest and for Oblasts in some Russian
Contests. But in the UK, we use a contest exchange, which is
not, as far as I know, connected with any well known
operating award. 

There's no incentive for award chasers to take part in RSGB
contests if the received "exchange" does not relate to any
award and to anything "collectable".

WAB Squares would probably be more useful/attractive in this
respect than UK Districts. It's quite common for people to
ask in HF QSOs (both in and out of contests) "what's your
WAB OM?". But no-one has EVER asked me for my UK District.
Why should they!

73 - Nigel G3TXF







-----Original Message-----
From: uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com
[mailto:uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of Mike
Pemberton
Sent: 05 October 2010 21:07
To: uk-contest at contesting.com
Subject: [UK-CONTEST] RSGB 21 / 28MHz Contest 2010

Hi all,

well I did have a listen and had a few QSOs on 15m but
nothing much seemed to be audible on my very simple
antennas.
It is a pity because I really used to like this contest. 

Unfortunately I am not sure the rest of the world wants to
work UK and UK districts any more and maybe a 21/28 contest
with more international appeal would help. Multipliers for
UK districts and higher points for UK stations too perhaps
(a la IOTA island stations) but with an all work all format
may be more popular. The danger is all contests start to
look alike. We lost the 7 MHz contests because the work G
stations format (amongst other reasons). It would be a pity
to lose another unique RSGB event by not moving with the
times. I quite liked the "mixed or single mode" improvement
of a few years ago but that obviously did not hit the spot
and bring back big numbers of stations outside the UK.

Please try to keep this event in the calendar even if we
have to change the format a little to popularise it.

Like many others with non-radio interests the prospect of
almost dead 21/28 lost out to other activities again this
year.

Only my thoughts and I know this one has been around the
buoy with the contest committee a few times.

73

Mike G4DDL
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