That's nice Kelly but in the end most people just want to have fun and
right now Sweepstakes isn't on Sunday. That shows with the lack of
activity on Sunday. I can't think of another all-band contest other than
Sweepstakes where you can only work a station once?
BTW we don't run out of CA stations to work after sunset. I first went
to 20 meters on Saturday at 2145z. Stayed there until about 2210z when I
went to 40 meters. I went back to 20 meters at 2339z. Stayed there until
0215z (The band was open all over the country , including CA, from here
in GA.) and then back to 40 meters. That's why my 80 meter QSO count was
lower than it normally is. I tried 80 later on Saturday night but there
wasn't much activity because everyone was on 40 meters. My guess is that
most of the people who have higher numbers on 80 meters were SO2R and
were interleaving QSO's between 80 and 40 meters.
Jeff
On 11/6/2017 1:29 PM, ve4xt@mymts.net wrote:
The main benefit I see from the one-Q per station rule is it democratizes SS
unlike other contests.
Here is what leads me to this conclusion: megabuck GA station is going to work
out California on 20 and higher before sunset. Because of this, his 6/6/6 on 80
(cmon, have a sense of humor) is not as valuable, so he's primarily left
working on 80 what he can't work on the high bands, just like everyone else.
Give him the chance to work all those W6s again on 40 and 80, which he can do
far easier than Joe Lunchbucket with an inverted vee at 50, and again on 160
with his high dipole, and you've turned SS into a megabuck-station-only contest
like many of the others.
SS is unique in how small stations can still do quite well. Much of that is due
to the neutering of multi-element low-band antennas through the one-q per
station rule. I like the fact a good op may need nothing more than a tribander
and shorty-forty on the same tower to win.
I get that Sunday doldrums are a drag, but I'm not sure opening up this
particular rule is the best answer.
73, kelly, ve4xt
Sent from my iPad
On Nov 6, 2017, at 10:36, Jeff Clarke <ku8e@ku8e.com> wrote:
I love CW contests with a passion but I might consider not doing CW SS FT
anymore. I took just about all my off time in one stretch starting at 0800 Z
so I could get a decent nights sleep because I dreading operating (BORING) on
Sunday. The only thing that kept me going was that I needed about 5 multipliers
for a sweep. Watching football when operating also helped me get thru it ! If
it wasn't for those things I might have quit early.
Maybe it's the right time to think about a rules change because it isn't going
to get better anytime soon. The declining sunspots will make participation
decrease even more than it has. I'm still fairly young in my 50's and I'm
afraid in 10 years there won't be anyone to work in a CW contests. Lots of
checks in the 1950's and 1960's. Not as many in the 1970's when I was licensed.
Very few above the 1990's and 2000 +.
I know it's been discussed before but maybe it's time to allow a QSO with the
same station on multiple bands. It would at least make SS more fun. Before
anyone argues this wouldn't be fair consider pretty much the same people win
every year because they have a good station/antennas and are SO2R experts. Plus
most have a geographical advantage as well. I will admit I have it a lot better
in Georgia then I did in Ohio. But not as good as those on the west coast. How
else could I make almost make 400 QSO's on 20 meters using a dipole at 40 feet?
Plus when 40 meters goes long it's good for me too because the guys north of me
can't work each other. That gives me somewhat of a captive audience. On the
other hand 80 meters isn't as good for me as it was in Ohio. Always get beat
out when a station further away is called by someone closer to them. So no
matter the advantage you might enjoy it might be offset by someone else's on
another band.
I also wish they would make SO2R a separate category because it gives someone
an advantage similar to SOA.
Jeff KU8E
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