[VHFcontesting] 2016 ARRL UHF Contest Cancelled

[James Duffey]

This has just been posted on the ARRL site:

< http://www.arrl.org/news/view/arrl-2016-august-uhf-contest-cancelled >

I have promised to myself to try not to make cynical and snarky comments on this list, but this cancellation of the UHF contest is really trying that resolution.

I will be the first to admit that the UHF contest has big problems, I once went out as a rover and made zero contacts in the whole contest, but if lack of activity is a problem, one sure way of making sure that activity decreases, not increases, is to cancel the contest. Then no one can participate and there will be no activity, the exact opposite of what is intended. 

It will be hard to put the contest on hold and then restart it again with reasonable activity. There is a large risk that interest will be lost entirely if there is no contest and that the people who had marginal interest will lose interest in UHF contesting entirely. 

I wonder how many people who provided input to the ARRL VHF Contest Revitalization Committee suggested that the contest be cancelled until better alternatives could be found? I wonder how many people would have answered yes to a question like “With activity in the UHF Contest hovering between 150 and 250, do you think the contest should be cancelled?" Even a contest with low participation is better than no contest at all. - Duffey KK6MC
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KK6MC
James Duffey
Cedar Crest NM