On 2/23/2015 12:44 PM, Ken Kent - KA2LIM wrote:
I am going to break my rule of not commenting and comment.
I am really tired of hearing all the whining about "it's not fair", " the NE
has a big advantage", "the playing field needs to be leveled", "the rules
need to be changed" blah, blah, blah. Bullshit!
If you don't like the rules of current contests, then start one of your own
and write the rules to suit you. (and be ready for all the complaining)
If you are participating in a contest to "WIN", then you are obviously in
it for the wrong reason, you should pursue other interests.
Personally I have been building a contest station for 13 years. Constantly
up-grading and adding more bands. No, I don't have lots of money, do a
little bit at a time. Building a station that is easy for others to operate
just happens to be "my thing", operating is secondary to me. Winning is
really not on the list. We do what we can do.
Where you live is what you have to work with. If you don't like where you
are located and "winning" is so important then move.
on the should be list:
#1 "HAVE FUN"
#2 Make every effort possible to make the contact, no matter how long it
takes
#3 your score is what it is
#4 HAVE FUN
#5 see rule #1 and #4
Flame away.....
Ken
KA2LIM
Ken,
Sorry, old man but I have to disagree with you on several points.
The nature of competition is to strive to be the best. For many people,
it's the only reason to compete at all. While winning is not my goal, I
do understand that winning is important to a lot of people.
Likewise, no one wants to enter a contest or competition where they are
at an inherent disadvantage. If NASCAR set up a race where drivers from
California started the race with 40 points more than other drivers, I
doubt that the sport would be as popular as it is. Likewise, the NFL
would not have prospered if teams from the AFC started the SuperBowl
with seven points on the board.
In a VHF or UHF competition, regional differences are significant. The
ARRL represents all their members, not just those in certain parts of
the country. /To the extent possible, /they have an obligation to
structure their contests to be as fair to all members as they can. I
don't think it's unreasonable to expect that.
I realize that transitioning from a national event with only one winner
in each category to a regional event is a big departure. But it does
seem to address a lot of the issues that have plagued past attempts at
leveling the playing field.
I totally agree with you that having fun should always be the main goal.
With indoor antennas and low power, I have no expectation of winning an
ARRL Contest regardless of it's structure. But I understand those who
have invested considerable effort into building their stations, and want
only to be competitive in the contest with others. Geography should not
be destiny in a national contest.
--
73,
Les Rayburn, N1LF
121 Mayfair Park
Maylene, AL 35114
EM63nf
6M VUCC #1712
AMSAT #38965
Grid Bandits #222
Southeastern VHF Society
Central States VHF Society Life Member
Six Club #2484
Active on 6 Meters thru 1296, 10GHz & Light
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