Now this seems like a sane suggestion. As a golfer, I have always liked the
capability to play with anyone on a competitive basis with golf's handicap
system.
Using past scores for handicapping would also require that the score be further
diced into the score based on the time spent in the contest. Two flights, as
in golf, but split into two groups; the shorter time group with tribander and
wires, and the marathon unlimited group. Then, as Tom has suggested, post
finishers according to geographical area. (I know from experience that
propagation from Colorado pales against propagation from Florida.)
No new exchange, etc, just a processing of the scores by ARRL. And then we
have both gross score winners as we do now, and then the flights by "net"
scores. And as in golf, we play by gentlemen's rules with the new contester
starting out with a "starter" handicap just like in golf. And the guy putting
up stacks, amps, etc, from the past year taking a "bye" and entering only the
gross flight until he can establish some semblance of a performance handicap.
Someone compared our ham contesting to sailing and NASCAR. As a former
competitive sailor in mainly one-design regattas, I can tell you there is no
comparison there. And in the handicapped regattas, as W8JI points out,
engineering and planning only enlarges the scoring margin by those who choose
to really go after winning since the handicapping system is based on sailboat
class and not the preparation and engineering of the winners. Handicapping
should be based on operator/station performance, and not
I like the golf analogy best.
My 2 cents.
Jon Hamlet, RA/W4ZW
Temporarily in Moscow
==================
Proposal Coming
But being open minded let me think out loud �
I suppose �� that since golf has a handicap system based on previous scores,
how about adopting that into contesting? Your contest handicap can be based on
your best 5 previous scores in the contest, and then your score adjustment is
based on normalizing that against the average score of the last 5 winners.
[] . . . .
The contest results can then print both the �gross scores� and �net scores�,
gross score being the actual unadjusted score, and the net score being the
score adjusted by the handicap. You could have winners for both gross and net
categories just like golf!
No distance based scoring needed and it takes into account propagation
differences too!
--
73 Scott W2LC
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