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Re: [VHFcontesting] Yes -- Please Move the January Contest

To: k5qe@k5qe.com
Subject: Re: [VHFcontesting] Yes -- Please Move the January Contest
From: Rhinosix <rhinosix@aol.com>
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2013 15:01:31 -0500 (EST)
List-post: <vhfcontesting@contesting.com">mailto:vhfcontesting@contesting.com>
If you factor in the world wide socker play offs with the NFL action you find a 
2 hour
window for our contests.  Ok maybe a one hour window.  If you are a real VHFer 
who wants to
run and gun the Es you will have no problem with making a choice.  E skip 
should determine 
when we have are contests.
Jerry W2JCN
 
 

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Marshall-K5QE <k5qe@k5qe.com>
Cc: vhfcontesting <vhfcontesting@contesting.com>
Sent: Mon, Jan 28, 2013 11:08 pm
Subject: Re: [VHFcontesting] Yes -- Please Move the January Contest


Hello Tom and everyone else interested in this topic.....

After reading all the posts on this topic and some private posts to me, 
the following two topics seem to be the most discussed. Most of the 
posts seem to be circling around these two objectives:
1)Make every effort to insure that there is 6M Es during the Jan contest and
2)Engineer the contest so that the various football games don't interfere.

How to accomplish these two objectives is the question.  As Tom has 
pointed out, there is an HF contest every weekend.  However, IF we moved 
the Jan VHF contest to the FIRST weekend in January, the contest would 
fall in the Winter Es season.  The chance of good Es in the Jan contest 
would be a great contest incentive....more contacts, more grids.  What a 
deal!!  We then would be opposite the ARRL RTTY contest.  I don't know 
how big that contest really is AND I don't know how many VHF ops would 
be torn between the VHF contest and the RTTY contest(I do know one).

It seems to me that the RTTY contest is less competition than NAQP or 
the CQ 160M contest.  I know that there are several VHF ops that are 
quite nutty about 160M.  So, the RTTY contest looks to me like the 
"lesser of evils".

Someone will point out that there are football games on the first 
weekend in Jan.  Assuming that is correct, is there any way to engineer 
the contest to avoid the football games completely? Frankly, I don't 
know.  After trying to understand the NFL's scheduling my head is 
spinning and pounding at the same time.  It appears that the first 
weekend in Jan is when the wild card games are played....one on Sat and 
one on Sun.  So, this is doubly bad....two football games to try to 
avoid.  However, the significance of these games is much less than the 
later games, so maybe we would not see a huge effect from them.  Still, 
two games are twice as obnoxious as one game.

I have been convinced that my previous idea of a longer contest with 
breaks, but on the same weekend, is not overly bright.  I must have been 
smoking the "funny weed" when I came up with that particular idea.  I 
was trying to find a way to keep the football game from hurting us.  
Hopefully, some better idea(s) will surface.

Herb has told us that the ARRL will not listen to anything we have to 
say.  If I understand his points, they are A)that the VHF contest has 
been held on the third weekend for decades and therefore cannot be moved 
and B)we are not HFers so we don't have the numbers and hence the Grand 
Poobahs in Newington are not interested in us.  Unfortunately, he is 
most probably correct. The ARRL is not noted for careful coordination 
with its stakeholders.

IF we are stuck with the third weekend date, then is there any way to 
avoid the football game??  When does this football game begin??  Not the 
pre-game blather, but the real game??  Let us assume that it starts at 
7PM EST(0000Z on Monday).  We could start the contest at 9AM EST(=1400Z) 
and end it at 6PM on Sunday(=2300Z).  If I did my times right(which I 
often don't), then that would be the same 33 hours of contesting time.  
The rovers would not have to be out two nights....actually it would be 
good for the rovers to be able to get in earlier on Sunday--especially 
in the January weather.  This idea does not change the date of the 
contest, it just changes the start and stop times to avoid the football 
game.

Does any of this work??  Your ideas are most appreciated.....by me and 
by the others interested in this topic.

73 Marshall K5QE


On 1/28/2013 6:18 PM, Tom Haavisto wrote:
> I am a relative newbie to VHF contesting, so no problem moving it as far as I 
am concerned.
>
> HOWEVER - take a look at the contest calender.
>
> First weekend - ARRL RTTY Roundup
> Second weekend - ARRL NAQP CW
> Third weekend - ARRL NAQP SSB
> Fourth weekend - CQ 160 CW
>
> Keeping in it January means sharing with a major contest.  Making it the 
fourth weekend means sharing with the CQ 160 contest, and I think the hard core 
contesters have already shown where their loyalties lie.
>
> I don't follow professional sports - I prefer RADIO sport :-)
>
> Tom - VE3CX
>
>

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