[UK-CONTEST] UK-Contest Digest, Vol 116, Issue 43

[Steve White]

I don't dispute the fact that the average age of licensed amateurs is 
increasing and that RSGB membership has declined (I don't have the figures 
for membership), but you are wrong on the licensing figures. For everyone's 
information, here are the approximate figures (taken from page 5 of the RSGB 
Yearbook).

2007: 63500
2008: 66800
2009: 69900
2010: 72500
2011: 75900
2012: 78400 (23% more than 2007)

Perhaps someone from the Contest Committee could confirm this, but as far as 
I am aware there was NEVER a plan to remove the Open section, only make 
alterations to the Restricted section, so I stand by what I said when I say 
that you are incorrect in saying that there is/was a *need* to 'muck about 
with short aerials and bits of wire'. Enter the Open section instead.

73

Steve, G3ZVW


Message: 7
Date: Fri, 31 Aug 2012 10:46:25 +0100
From: UKCONTEST <ukcontest at btconnect.com>
To: <uk-contest at contesting.com>
Subject: Re: [UK-CONTEST] UK-Contest Digest, Vol 116, Issue 42
Message-ID: <504087F1.5080404 at btconnect.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1"; format=flowed

I said the hobby isn't getting any younger, and is dieing, as is clear
by the number of Licensed amateurs, RSGB membership and the ever
increasing age of operators.

Contesting may have increased in popularity but the hobby as whole is in
decline.

To your point about the 14 major contests, of course these statistics
include world wide numbers, and not specifically UK based. See my
comment about RSGB membership.

As to the bits of wire in a field, see the proposed rule changes earlier
this year and the debacle that caused, not to mention costs!

The point being that if contesting is on the "up" then lets use that to
promote the hobby as whole, on a National and International level, by
aligning with other Region 1 simultaneous contests, lets use technology
to promote it, and finally, lets not constrain the future with backwards
thinking.

73

Adrian M?1LCR/P

Sent from my analogue hailing device !

On 31/08/2012 08:45, Steve White wrote:
> If amateur radio (or contesting) is dying....
> 1. How is it that the IOTA Contest is getting more and more entries each
> year?
> 2. How is it that "at the beginning of November the total number of logs
> received for 2011 RSGB contests (HF and VHF) overtook the number
> received for the whole of 2010"? - see RadCom January 2012.
> 3. How is it that participation in the world's 14 major contests
> increased by 60% in the first decade of the new Century? - see RadCom
> October 2009.
>
> And finally... where did the notion come from that in SSB FD you have to
> spend "24 hours in the rain mucking about with short aerials and bits of
> wire"? The rules state that in the Open section, "There is no
> restriction on the number, height or type of antennas."
>
> 73
>
> Steve, G3ZVW
>
>
> Message: 10
> Date: Thu, 30 Aug 2012 23:22:07 +0100
> From: UKCONTEST <ukcontest at btconnect.com>
> To: <uk-contest at contesting.com>
> Subject: Re: [UK-CONTEST] SSB NFD
> Message-ID: <503FE78F.20107 at btconnect.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1"; format=flowed
>
> Hello all
>
> I think its great the way DARC get Region 1 mapped out, as TXF's link
> shows. Why can't the RSGB do something like this ? Well done to DARC for
> putting this on.
>
> Talking of SSB FD....
> As far as I am concerned, the sooner the RSGB HF CC align the UK SSB FD
> (and the other FD contests for that matter) rules & sections with the
> rest of Europe the better. The hobby is not getting any younger to be
> polite, and to be more accurate, its dieing. Creating a "European Field
> Day" where the entrants can compete within sections, at a National and
> European level would create a far more interesting event than 24 hours
> in the rain mucking about with short aerials and bits of wire. Something
> that the RSGB HF CC, and in my opinion, the misguided, seem to want to
> promote.
>
> There's plenty of other weekends for that sort of thing !
>
> Faffing about with rule changes and creating a number of web pages that
> as one subscriber described needing a PhD to do anything with is just a
> waste of time and, to me, off putting.
>
> Keep it simple, make it a challenge (not with bits of wire & tape
> measures) make it interesting, and use technology to promote it.
>
> Anyway, I'm off to pack my stuff, and get going to my new SSB FD site,
> and let DARC know, so they can update the contest web site, PDQ, there
> we are, technology in action !
>
> 73
>
> Adrian M?1LCR/P
> _______________________________________________
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> UK-Contest at contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/uk-contest
>
>




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End of UK-Contest Digest, Vol 116, Issue 43
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