[UK-CONTEST] 6M AC Tuesday 23rd October

[Ray James]

For Bob G8HGN to mention the proposed M6 multiplier would not be the way to go certainly came as a welcome surprise.

I'm not persuaded by the points example Bob users to highlight anything other than M5 would work better.
It's plain and simple that Bob would get far better UK results if he was located on the other side of the hill he resides on and would work and hear more UK stations.
The fact he lives at a location better favoured to working into the continent is no reason the rest of the UK should have need to consider amending a successful UK contest multiplier rule.
I'm positive he'd hear and work a lot more UK stations if he was on the other side of that hill so it's not a case of staions to the NW not looking to the SE but just he's not hearing the majority of them who do.
A better station to make any comparison with is G8EOP in IO93.
Like Bob, Mel also runs 100w to a 6el beam and worked 9 squares and 45 contacts against the 9 squares and 44 contacts Bob made.
Bob has claimed 64,557 points whereas Mel has claimed 41,841 and he currently sits 10 places below him. On that basis I think Bob has done pretty well but would be even better placed without a NW obstruction.

A concern regarding the proposed change to M6 cropped up after reading the article in November's Radcom.

"As part of the continuing evolution of the event the contest committee is proposing a small change to the multiplier system used in all UKACs for 2013. To encourage more participation from Ireland and the continent".

Why? It's a RSGB UK Activity Contest not a pan-European event!
If EI and continentals want to come on and work the UK they'll do so already and provide lots of points in the process.
They can enter as long as a UK station is at one end of the QSO but those that do appear generally are not coming on the just work the UK but NAC or Dutch contest participants as well, or any DX and not just the UK.
Providing continentals including EI with a multiplier value for just the first QSO anyone has with that country will do nothing to inspire more participation. It's exactly the same now under M5.
If you work a UK square there is a greater impertus to work different ones and not bother too much working one you've already bagged which is why I'd hoped any "continuing evolution" would have gone in the direction of postal codes. That way each locator can generate multiple multipliers and not a case of working one IO91 and don't be too concerned about all the others in that square who'd like a contact, for example.
IRTS, Veron, REF and the rest are equally capable of arranging their own activity contests and perhaps following the same band dates and similiar times. That would encourage greater particpation all round.  
I am sympathetic to the fact that EI activity is dire and it's the responcibility of the IRTS, not RSGB to do something about it.
Should the IRTS get its act together then I doubt if many in the UK would complain M5 (or M5.5!) Included UK & EI squares as a multiplier as a way to support our near neighbour and I only say that because their needs are pretty similiar to ours being geographically located away from the main hub of continental activity. Good for the UK, good for EI.

73 Ray GM4CXM

"If GM4CXM crawled away and died tomorrow I would clap !!" - G4SWX  



--- On Thu, 25/10/12, Rob Harrison <robharrison at g8hgn.freeserve.co.uk> wrote:
 
> It's very apparent that a lot of the stations in the NW do
> not point south or SE until late on the contest, as I called
> and called that way from  about 2030, but only got a
> few takers, then a burst of activity from 2121 until the
> end. Most of my contacts to the north and NW were very
> scratchy, GI4SNA was very weak every time I looked, and only
> managed up to the "3" line, just. So only 9 mults this
> month, average is 10.
> 
> As for "shooting ducks" most of my ducks have flown away due
> to M5, only 4 worked in JO01.
> 
> At present 12th this month in AR if you take out the
> portables, but I think this highlights the problems of M5,
> and M6 may alter this a bit. 2E0BMO running 40w to a
> vertical has 14 mults and is one above me in the claimed
> scores.
> 
> He has 66% of my basic points but 5 extra mult's due to
> location. If M6 were in use I'd have exactly the same mult's
> 9 UK + 5EU. Then I'd be way above him, so that's not the way
> to go. Somewhere in between lies the
> answer........................ M5.5 anyone??
> 
> From claimed scores:-
> 
>      AR 2E0BMO IO83 42 4,739 113 14
> 66,346 G7RAU 334 40 Vertical Avg. condx. here. Fewer stns
> heard in the Sth than at weekend. Activity seemed lower than
> usual. Hidden
> 
>      AR G8HGN JO01 44 7,173 163 9 64,557
> DH6JL 463 100 6 ele LFA Average with some tropo' to the
> east.Tnx to all. robharrison at g8hgn.freeserve.co.uk
> 
> 
> 
> We can all do wonders with statistics, there are a lot of
> logs out there that could be analysed, to come up with a
> better system.
> 
> Mildly grumpy of Billericay, well it is Thursday :0)
> 
> 73 Bob G8HGN