>Does tomorrow's contesting look like this?
. . .
>MM with 2 hired guns
>MM with no hired guns
>MM with great cooks
>MM with lousy food
>Etc etc etc.
Well, it's almost April 1, so I offer a column I wrote for NCCC during the
pandemic... Note, that all rights are reserved, including public
performance for profit in Carnegie Hall and screaming at Speakers' Corner
in London.
/dev/null < flames
Dave
WD6T
New Contest Categories in CQP
WD6T
There has been much consternation among certain contesters concerning the
elimination of the unassisted category from the WPX phone and CW contests.
While we at NCCC can't change what other contest managers are doing, we can
try to address the needs and concerns of contesters by adding categories to
our own California QSO Party in 2021.
First of all, the unfair advantage afforded by 2BSIQ and SO2R will be
partitioned from those with only one radio with a new SO1R category. This
will be further subdivided into SO2V and SO1V. Note that SO1V operators
may tune as rapidly as they desire as long as they don't use an A/B switch
to change frequency. However, if their radio affords the ability to set the
tuning step, they must keep the step at 1 kHz. or less, otherwise they will
be put in the SO2V category. In addition, there will be a new SO1C
category for crystal-controlled transmitters. Such operators can be
identified in their CQ when they say they are "tuning the band." As
SO1C operators
have less frequency agility, it is considered good sportsmanship for SO1V,
SO2V and SO2R operators to yield the right of way to an SO1C operator,
particularly if he is QRP. Note that CQ’ing on two frequencies on the same
band by rapidly swapping crystals is prohibited.
Thus far, we have considered only single operators. However, many hams have
spouses, not to mention dogs. New categories take this into account. For
example, MO1R1D3C is for a married one-radio operator with a dog and three
cats. Keep in mind that a married operator whose spouse brings him a
sandwich must compete in the assisted category.
We all know that antennas play a huge role in contest success. Just as the
major CQ contests have a "TB-Wires" overlay, in which the operator promises
to use nothing more than a tri-bander (albeit at 140'), and a single
element antenna on the low bands (such as an 80 meter rotatable dipole at
190'), we will have a similar category in the 2021 CQP, but will expand on
the concept as follows:
1. Low TB-Wires - Same as TB-Wires but antennas may be no higher than 25'
above ground. Verticals are allowed as long as they have no more than one
radial.
2. Dual TB-No wires - No more than two antennas may be used, and no more
than three bands per antenna.
3. Indoor wires - Any number of indoor wire antennas may be used, including
attic dipoles, ceiling-mounted loops, and house wiring.
4. High wires - Any wire antenna at any height may be used, providing the
operator can traverse it on a unicycle. Warning: No net contacts allowed.
Similarly, those unfortunate hams with only one tower and mono-banders need
no longer feel at a disadvantage when forced to compete against those with
multiple towers, as there are now separate categories based on the number
of towers: MB1, MB2, MB3, etc. For those who can't remember how many
towers they have, or who erect a tower during the contest, or who cannot
count beyond three, there is a special category: MBM ("many").
Finally, there are two new dummy load categories: Wet and Dry. The dry
category is further broken down into three fan RPM sub-divisions, Fast,
Medium and Slow. This seems only fair.
Power categories have been expanded to the following to cover the common
cases:
* "Godzilla" - 1.5KW or as much as you can get away with
* "Largemouth bass" - 1 KW
* "120 volter" - 500 W
* "Chocolate" - 200 W
* "Vanilla" - 100 W
* "Soft white" - 75 W
* "Cue Our Pee" - 5 W
* "Fried" - 1 W or less
Note that if you use a compact fluorescent or LED light bulb as an antenna,
you must compete in the category of the equivalent incandescent bulb.
In addition, as terrain plays an important part in the effectiveness of a
station, the power categories are being augmented by relative elevation
categories. To determine your category, measure the angle of the terrain in
30-degree increments. Your "Terrain Factor" category T is then determined
by the following formula:
T = Sum<n=0,11> (A-a(n)) * H(n) * P(n),
where A is your altitude in meters above sea level, a(n) is the altitude 300
meters from your QTH in the n'th direction, H(n) is the ham population
multiplier in that direction, divided by the average distance to that
population in kilometers, and P(n) is the mean signal strength in dB in
that direction averaged over five separate years, spaced 11 years apart.
It is not necessary to compute the T factor yourself. Just enable
"location services" for your logging program and it will not only compute
it, but also email it to the contest manager, OR’ed with a random 64 bit
number derived from thermal noise and signed with a secure cryptographic
hash function.
Home-brewing is an integral part of ham radio. Therefore, a new category
has been added for those who replace the integrated circuits in their
modern radios with micro-tubes, which are widely available via eBay and the
dark web and are easy to install, requiring only basic ESD soldering tools
and an electron microscope.
Keep in mind that any of the above categories can be combined with one or
more other categories. So, for example, you could compete as Godzilla Indoor
Wires, though you must first conduct an FCC safety evaluation and report
the results to your state, county and local authorities. Your family may
also implore you to update your will. Humor them.
We are confident that you will find that these new categories make the
California QSO Party both more tasty and less filling. We don't expect to
completely solve the problem of fairness in contesting, but at least this
new approach allows those in the MO1R Slow-Fan Dummy Load Fried Terrain -100
category a chance to compete with one another without having to worry about
the SO2R Wet Dummy Load Godzilla Terrain 1000’s having an unfair advantage.
Fine print: We reserve the right to add or remove categories without
warning or reason. No plaque will be awarded for any category that has less
than one entry. Officers of the NCCC must compete in the “Overworked”
category. Happy April!
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