Contester's Rate Sheet for May 4, 2005
*********************** Contester's Rate Sheet 4 May 2005 *********************** Edited by Ward Silver N0AX SUMMARY o QSO Parties Everywhere - New England & Mid-Atlantic, IN, OR, NV o 6-meter/Microwave Spring Sprints o DX and Contest Forums Change Bands o New Icom Contesting Video o High Boltage Information o Tick Talk - Web Sites About Time o Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom BULLETINS o No bulletins this issue BUSTED QSOS o A golden issue last time! ANNOUNCEMENTS & NOTICES FOR 4 MAY TO 17 MAY 2005 Logs are due for the following contests: May 7 - Russian DX Contest, email logs to: RusDXC@contesting.com, paper logs and diskettes to: Russian DX Contest, PO Box 88, 119311 Moscow, Russia May 7 - EA RTTY Contest, email logs to: ea1mv@ure.es, paper logs and diskettes to: EA RTTY CONTEST, POBox 220, E - 28080 MADRID, Spain May 7 - YLRL DX-YL to NA-YL Contest, CW, email logs to: wx4mm@tm-moore.com, paper logs and diskettes to: Mary Moore WX4MM, 1593 Lee Road 375, Valley, AL 36854, USA May 7 - May CW Sprint, email logs to: n4af@contesting.com, paper logs and diskettes to: (none) May 10 - ARCI Spring QSO Party, email logs to: va3jff@yahoo.ca, paper logs and diskettes to: ARCI Spring QSO Party, c/o Jeff Hetherington, VA3JFF, 139 Elizabeth St W, Welland, Ontario L3C 4M3, Canada May 10 - 222 MHz Spring Sprint, email logs to: springsprints@etdxa.org, paper logs and diskettes to: 222 MHz Spring Sprint, ETDXA/WU4O, Jeff J Baker, 2012 Hinds Creek Road, Heiskell, Tennessee 37754, USA May 10 - Yuri Gagarin International DX Contest, email logs to: gc@qst.ru, paper logs and diskettes to: GC Contest Committee, POBox 2020, Moscow, 101000, Russia May 10 - Montana QSO Party, email logs to: angelmelody@centurytel.net, paper logs and diskettes to: Norm Palin K7NCR, 68 Silver Leaf Drive, Kalispell, MT 59901, USA May 11 - Georgia QSO Party, email logs to: mrcne4s@attglobal.net, paper logs and diskettes to: John Laney, K4BAI, PO Box 421, Columbus, GA 31902-0421, USA May 14 - TARA Skirmish Digital Prefix Contest, email logs to: (none), Post log summary at: http://n2ty.org/seasons/tara_dpx_score.html, paper logs and diskettes to: John C. Durbin, N8PSK, 175 Footville Richmond Rd E, Jefferson OH 44047, USA May 14 - YLRL DX-YL to NA-YL Contest, SSB, email logs to: wx4mm@tm-moore.com, paper logs and diskettes to: Mary Moore WX4MM, 1593 Lee Road 375, Valley, AL 36854, USA May 16 - Michigan QSO Party, email logs to: logs@miqp.org, paper logs and diskettes to: Mad River Radio Club, c/o Dave Pruett, 2727 Harris Road, Ypsilanti, MI 48198, USA May 17 - YU DX Contest, email logs to: logs@yudx.net, paper logs and diskettes to: Savez radio-amatera SCG, YU DX Contest, PO Box 48, 11001 BEOGRAD, Serbia and Montenegro May 17 - EA-QRP CW Contest, email logs to: ea1bp@yahoo.es, paper logs and diskettes to: Vocalia de concursos (Concurso CW), PO Box 48021, E-28043, Madrid, Spain The following contests are scheduled: Note that the following abbreviations are used to condense the contest rules summaries: SO - Single-Op; M2 - Multi-Op - 2 Transmitters; MO - Multi-Op; MS - Multi-Op, Single Transmitter; MM - Multi-Op, Multiple Transmitters; AB - All Band; SB - Single Band; S/P/C - State/Province/DXCC Entity; HP - High Power; LP - Low Power; Entity - DXCC Entity HF CONTESTS MARAC County Hunters Contest--CW, sponsored by the Mobile Amateur Radio Awards Club from 0000Z May 7 - 2400Z May 8. Frequencies (MHz): 3.575, 7.050, 14.050, 21.050, 28.050, work fixed stations once/band and mobiles once for each county and band. Categories: Mobile, Fixed. Exchange: RST, state, and county or DX. County line QSOs count as one QSO but separate multipliers. QSO Points: Fixed stations in US --1 point, Mobile--15 points, DX--5 pts, one station must be in a US county. Score: QSO Points × US counties counted only once. Mobiles sum score from each state. For more information: http://www.countyhunter.com/. Logs due Jun 10 to aa8r@aol.com or Randy Hatt, 7878 W County Line Rd, Howard City, MI 49239. 10-10 International Spring Contest--CW/Digital-- sponsored by Ten-Ten, International, from 0001Z May 7 - 2359Z May 8, 10-meters only. Exchange: Callsign, name, QTH, and 10-10 number (if a member). QSO Points: nonmembers--1 pt, members--2 pts. Score: total points. For more information: http://www.ten-ten.org/. Logs due May 23 to tentencontest@alltel.net or Steve Rasmussen, N0WY, #68684, 312 N 6th St, Plattsmouth, NE 68048. Indiana QSO Party--CW/SSB, sponsored by the Hoosier DX and Contest Club from 1600Z May 7 - 0400Z May 8. Frequencies (MHz): CW--1.805 and 40 kHz above the band edge on 80-10 meters, SSB--1.845, 3.850, 7.230, 14.250, 21.300, 28.450, try 160 at 0200Z, no crossband QSOs. Categories: SOAB (HP, LP < 100W, QRP <5W, no spotting assistance), MS (incl. SO using spotting assistance), Mobile, Portable. Exchange: RS(T) + S/P or IN county (DX stations send RS(T) only). QSO Points: SSB -- 1 pt, CW -- 2 pts, contact stations once per band/mode and once per county. Score is QSO Points x IN counties or S/P/C counted once per mode. Bonus for working W9UUU (call sign may change--check Web site). For more information: http://www.hdxcc.org/inqp. Logs due Jun 15 to inqp@hdxcc.org (Cabrillo format preferred) or HDXCC, c/o Mike Goode N9NS, 10340 Broadway, Indianapolis, IN 46280-1344. ARI International DX Contest--CW/SSB/Digital--sponsored by ARI from 2000Z May 7 - 1959Z May 8. Frequencies: CW/SSB--160 - 10 meters; Digital--80 - 10 meters, change bands or mode no more than once per 10 min. Categories: SO-CW, SO-SSB, SO-Digital, SO-Mixed, MS-Mixed, SO-SWL-Mixed. Exchange: RST and Italian Province or serial number. QSO Points: own country--0 pts (mult only), own continent--1 pt, different cont.--3 pts, Italian stations--10 pts. Score: QSO points x Italian Provinces + DXCC entity (except I, IS0, IT9, IG9/IH9) counted once per band. For more information: http://www.qsl.net/contest_ari. Logs due 30 days after the contest to aricontest@kkn.net (Cabrillo format is encouraged) or to ARI Contest Manager c/o ARI, Via Scarlatti 31, 20124 Milano, Italy. New England QSO Party--CW/Phone--2000Z May 7 - 0500Z May 8 and 1300Z - 2400Z May 8. New England is ME, NH, VT, MA, CT, and RI. Frequencies (MHz): CW--3.540, 7.035, 14.040, 21.040, 28.040; SSB--3.880, 7.280, 14.280, 21.380, 28.380; no crossmode or crossband QSOs, all CW QSOs in CW band segments. Categories: SOAB (HP, LP, and QRP), MS (includes stations using any kind of spotting assistance), mobiles use same categories. Exchange: RS(T) and S/P (non-US/VE sends "DX") or NE county/state. Work stations once per band/mode and mobiles in each county. County lines logged as two QSOs. QSO Points: phone--1 pt, CW and Digital--2 pts. Score: Non-NE stations--QSO points x NE counties; NE stations--QSO points x S/P/C; mobiles total QSO points from all counties and count multipliers only once. For more information: http://www.neqp.org/. Logs due 30 days after the contest to logs@neqp.org (Cabrillo format preferred) or NEQP, PO Box 3005, Framingham MA 01705-3005. Oregon QSO Party--CW/SSB--sponsored by the Central Oregon DX Club from 1400Z May 7 - 0200Z May 8. Frequencies (MHz): 80 -- 10 meters, CW--40 kHz above band edge, SSB-- 3.855, 7.255, 14.255, 21.355 and 28.455; no repeater QSOs. Exchange: Serial number and OR county or S/P/C. QSO Points: SSB--1 pt, CW--2 pts. Score: QSO points x OR counties (OR stations add S/P/C) counted once on each mode. One extra multiplier for every 8 QSOs with the same county. 100 bonus points for working K7O. For more information: http://www.codxc.com/. Logs due Jun 10 to oqp@codxc.org or to Oregon QSO Party, c/o CODXC, 61255 Ferguson Rd, Bend, OR 97702. Nevada QSO Party--CW/SSB/RTTY--sponsored by the Area 51 Contest Club from 0000Z May 7 - 0600Z May 8. Frequencies: 160 -- 6 meters, CW 15 kHz and SSB 25 kHz above General class band edge. Categories: SO (QRP <5W, LP, HP >100W), MS, MM, and County DX-pedition (all LP, HP), Rover. Exchange: RST and S/P/C or NV county. QSO Points: SSB--1 pt, CW/RTTY--2 pts. Score is QSO Points x NV counties or S/P/C counted only once. For more information: http://www.a51cc.com/announce.htm. Logs due Jun 1 to nk7c@cox.net or Pat Hess NK7C, 759 Fairway Drive, Boulder City, NV 89005. Radio Club of America QSO Party--SSB, from 1700Z May 7 - 0700Z May 8. Exchange: RST, QTH, name, equipment used. RCA members sign their calls "/RCA". Band changes throughout the day, for more information: http://www.radio-club-of-america.org/. Logs to mrraide@cbs.com or Mike Raide W2ZE, 21 Canandaiqua Street, Shortsville, NY 14548. Armed Forces Amateur/Military Crossband Communications Test--the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard are co-sponsoring the annual military/amateur radio communications tests in celebration of the 55th Anniversary of Armed Forces Day (AFD). The test is conducted one week earlier than Armed Forces Day (May 21) to avoid conflicting with the Dayton Hamvention. For complete information, including call signs and frequency lists: http://www.arrl.org/contests/announcements/af-day/AF-Day-2005-SKED.pdf. Mid-Atlantic QSO Party - SSB/FM/CW - Sponsored by the Independent Mid-Atlantic QSO Party Committee from 1600Z May 14 - 0400Z May 15 and 1100Z - 2400Z May 15. Mid-Atlantic states include DE, MD-DC, NJ, NY, PA, VA, and WV. Frequencies: 160 - 10 meters, 50 kHz from bottom of band segment for operating mode, 50, 144, 222, and 432 MHz. Categories: SO-LP and QRP (<5W), MS/Club, Mobile, Rover, all classes except QRP max. 200 W output. Exchange: serial number and QTH (Mid-Atl stations send 3-letter county and 2-letter state, US/VE send state or province, DX sends "DX"). QSO Points: Phone--1 pt, CW--2 pts, Mobile--3 pts. Score: QSO Points x Mid-Atl counties (Mid-Atl stations count S/P + 1 DX), all multipliers counted only once. For more information: http://www.qsl.net/maqso. Logs due 30 days after the contest to maqp_logs@yahoo.com or Mid-Atlantic QSO Party, Attn: Walter O'Brien W2WJO, PO Box 4922, Clinton, NJ 08809. FISTS Spring Sprint--CW--sponsored by the FISTS International CW Club from 1700Z - 2100Z May 14. Frequencies: 80 - 10 meters, work US/VE stations. Categories: SOAB-QRP (<5W), SOAB-QRO, Club. Exchange: Name, RST, S/P/C, members send FISTS number, nonmembers send power output. QSO Points: FISTS members--5 pts, nonmembers--2 pts. Score: QSO points × S/P/C (count each only once). For more information: http://www.FISTS.org/. Logs due 30 days after the contest to W8PIG@yahoo.com or Dan Shepherd N8IE, 1900 Pittsfield St, Kettering, Oh 45420. Alessandro Volta RTTY DX Contest--sponsored by COMO and ARI from 1200Z May 14 - 1200Z May 15. Frequencies: 80 -- 10 meters. Categories: SOAB, SOSB, MS, SWL. Exchange: RST, serial number, CQ Zone. QSO Points: see table on Web site. Score: QSO points x DXCC entities + W/VK/VE/JA/ZL call areas x Total QSOs. For more information: http://www.contestvolta.com/. Logs due Jul 31 to log@contestvolta.it or to Francesco Di Michele I2DMI, PO Box 55, I-22063 Cantu, Italy. Portuguese Navy Day--CW/SSB/PSK31--sponsored by the Portuguese Navy Radio Amateurs from 0800Z May 14 - 2300Z May 15 (CW/SSB) and 1300Z May 21 - 1300Z May 22 (PSK31). Frequencies: 80 - 10 meters according to the IARU band plan. Exchange: RS(T) and serial number. QSO Points: see Web site for table. Score: QSO points x multipliers. For more information: http://www.qsl.net/cq5mgp. Logs due May 31 to nura@netcabo.pt or Núcleo de Radioamadores da Armada, PO Box 226 - E. C. Alfeite, 2811-501 Almada, Portugal. VHF+ CONTESTS VHF Spring Sprints - CW/SSB, sponsored by the Eastern Tennessee DX Association as follows: 50 MHz - 2300Z May 14 - 0300Z May 15; Microwave - 902 MHz and higher - 6 AM -- 1 PM May 7. Fixed and Rover categories. Exchange is Grid Square only, count 1 pt per QSO. Score is QSO Points x Grid Squares, score each sprint separately. Rovers and Microwave sprints total all points and all grids worked from each grid. For more information: http://www.etdxa.org/vhf.htm. Logs must be emailed or postmarked within four weeks of the contest to springsprints@etdxa.org or ETDXA/WU4O Jeff Baker, 2012 Hinds Creek Road, Heiskell, Tennessee 37754. North American Spring Meteor Scatter Rally - sponsored by the WSJT Group from 0000Z Apr 30 and ends 0700Z May 9 during the annual Eta Acquarids meteor shower. Please note that the annual Eta Acquarids is a morning shower, the radiant being in a good position from about 0500 to 1200 local time. For more information about operating meteor scatter as well as contest information: http://www.ykc.com/wa5ufh/Rally/NAHSMS.htm. EU EME Contest - any mode, sponsored by DUBUS and REF, 0000Z May 14 - 2400Z May 15. Frequencies: 144 MHz, 2.3, and 3.4 GHz (Jun 11, 12 - 432 MHz and 5.7 GHz) Categories: Single and Multi-band, QRP and QRO - based on EIRP, Pro, CW, Digital, Mixed, Assisted. Exchange: callsigns TMO/RST and "R". QSO Points: 144/432/1.3 - 100 pts for random, 10 pts for scheduled QSO, 2.3 GHz and higher - 100 pts/QSO. Score: QSO Points (x2 for QSOs at 2.3 GHz and above) x S/P/C from random QSOs (or any QSOs at 2.3 GHz and above). For more information: http://www.dubus.org/ or info@dubus.de. Logs due Jul 10 to f6hye@ref-union.org or Patrick Magnin, F6HYE, Marcorens, F-74140 Ballaison, France. NEWS AND PRESS RELEASES Lots of result writeups are being shepherded through the development process by N1ND and the Contest Crew at ARRL HQ. With the ARRL 160-Meter Contest results just out, the 2005 RTTY Roundup, ARRL DX, 2004 Sweepstakes PDF versions, and ARRL 10-Meter contests are all at one stage of preparation or another. It's a busy time! (Thanks, Dan N1ND) Responding to a lack of sufficient space for the big DX and Contest Forum crowds, those Dayton Hamvention Forums will both be held on Saturday in the Van Cleve Ballroom of the Crowne Plaza hotel in downtown Dayton (http://www.crowneplaza.com/day-crowne). Originally scheduled to be held at the Hara Arena on Friday (Antenna Forum) and Saturday (Contesting Forum), the new schedule in the Crowne Plaza hotel is: - Antenna Technology Forum (K3LR host); Saturday from 12 noon to 2:30 PM - Contesting Forum (K1DG host); Saturday from 2:30 PM to 5:00 PM. This certainly seems like a vast improvement to your editor. I'll be able to spend all day Friday on my feet shopping and visiting at Hara Arena. I can then spend Saturday all day on my rear end enjoying the presentations! Thanks to Doug K1DG and Tim K3LR for taking the initiative to move the forums, avoiding uncomfortable crowding. Unified Microsystems (http://www.unifiedmicro.com/) is introducing two new USB interface products at Dayton (booth 206), the UCW-100 and the UVK-200. Many computers don't have enough LPT and COM ports to satisfy interface demands and new laptops might have only USB ports - what's a contester to do? The UCW-100 is a USB-to-CW converter that looks like a virtual COM port to Windows logging applications. The applications send command and text characters to the converter that are then translated to Morse by the UCW-100, eliminating the need for tricky timing. The UVK-200 is a similar interface for the Unified Microsystems VK-64 combination voice/CW memory keyer. Software developers are encouraged to contact Unified Microsystems for a programmer's manual. Icom has released a new video on contesting - Icom Radio News, Volume 2. Featuring the W1AW multiop crew from the 2004 Phone Sweepstakes and hosted by Sara K3OOO, it's fast-paced and engaging. You can find the link to it on the Icom Web site (http://icomamerica.com/amateur) in the story labeled "Icom's 2004 Dayton Hamvention videos". While you're there, take in Volume 1 on Field Day and warm up for the 2005 Hamvention with the 2004 Icom Dayton video. I like the bloopers video, myself. Contesters are always on the lookout for Antarctic stations to fill in those hard-to-get zone multipliers. The WAP Antarctic Gallery (http://www.ddxc.net/wap) has over 680 photos and QSL cards organized as Ancient QSLs, Antarctic QSLs, Maritime Mobile Photos, Polar Ship Gallery, and more. You can also find current information about activity from the Antarctic. (Thanks to the Ohio/Penn DX Bulletin, edited by KB8NW, sysop of the BARF-80 BBS) The original WRTC2006 schedule for announcing the Teams Selection Criteria was April 30th. The committee is still collecting some suggestions for the definitive rules, so they decided to postpone the announcement until May 30th. Oms PY5EG requests that we stand by and thanks everyone for supporting WRTC 2006. The Portuguese lesson this week features food items and terms because it's late afternoon and your editor needs a snack! From the Lonely Planet Western Europe menu, I mean, phrasebook... Assado - grilled - "Ah-SAH-doh" Assada - roasted - "Ah-SAH-dah" Arroz - rice - "Ah-ROZH" Cafe - coffee - "ka-FEH" Caril - curry - "ka-REEL" Frango - chicken - "FRAHN-goh" (also Galinha) OK - now I have to go find the cookie jar... RESULTS AND RECORDS Awards and prizes for the 2004 California QSO Party (CQP) should be arriving in mailboxes soon. Over 650 logs were submitted this year resulting in 32 plaques and 40 bottles of Twisted Oak wine being dispatched. This year's running on October 1st and 2nd will be the 40th with N6RCE as CQP chair, taking over from Al AD6E. (Thanks, Kevin N6RCE) Results for the 2004 Louisiana QSO Party are available at http://timmy.nicholls.edu/laqso/05winners.html. Congratulations to category winners KF5ER, W2LHL, N5YE, W8DJC, W5EW, K4MUT, W5WZ, NO5W. (Thanks, Scott W5WZ) The MNQP scoring records have now been updated at http://www.w0aa.org/mnqp/2005/mnqso.html. A summary of the records is available as a PDF file at http://www.w0aa.org/mnqp/2005/mnqp_rec2005.pdf. This year 50 new records were set in either the different major operating category or for the different categories for individual county, state, province and even DX. There are lots of opportunities to add your call to the list. (Thanks, Bill AC0W) Geoff W0CG reports, "I have finally gotten around to posting the PJ2T material from both modes of the ARRL DX contests, including logs, breakdowns, and lots of photos." Look for it at the PJ2T Web site - http://www.pj2t.org/. TECHNICAL The short item on tower bolts distributed last week was a bit too attenuated to be precise and John W0UN suggested that I print the following, more complete, set of sites for fastener information relevant to antennas and towers. These sites typically have additional links to other useful information, too. - General Information about fasteners http://www.boltdepot.com/fastener-information/Materials.aspx - Simple bolt marking chart http://www.zerofast.com/markings.htm - An extensive chart on fastener markings http://www.americanfastener.com/technical/grade_markings_steel.asp - A number of useful and printable fastener charts. http://www.boltdepot.com/fastener-information/Printable-Fastener-Tools.aspx - Torque specs for Grade 5 bolts http://www.clevelandvibrator.com/NewPDF/BOLT%20TORQUE%202%20pages.pdf http://www.hastingsmfg.com/Service%20Tips/torque.htm http://www.morbark.com/Service/belttorque.pdf http://www.zerofast.com/torque.htm (watch out for typos in the size column) - More than you ever wanted to know about corrosion. http://www.corrosion-doctors.org/ - Interesting note about recommended torques for smaller machine screws http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/aug2000/967051394.Eg.r.html Bob N7RDP also cautions against assuming that an NC bolt is an SAE bolt. An unmarked bolt might have as little as 1/10 the ultimate strength of an SAE grade 5 plated bolt. The key is to look for the bolt grade marking - the 3 hash marks on the bolt head as described in the bolt marking chart listed above. Matt WV1K has discovered just the thing for constructing dual-wire Beverages. Fi-Shock makes excellent and inexpensive dual-wire insulators. With a spacing of about 10 inches, the SC-200 is used as the end insulator, the SC-201 to maintain spacing, the A-200 to light up whenever you transmit, and the A-250 warning sign to get the attention of nosey folks! http://www.fishock.com/ is the Web site for the insulators or see Matt's Web page http://www.qsl.net/wv1k/bidirectional.html. For everything, there is a season, but contests tend to run on a slightly more precise time scale. Three new Web sites about time turned up for this issue. The first is http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/, a site that helps you get synced up to UTC. At the left side of the page is a long list of time conversions and information on time zones. The World Time site (http://www.worldtime.com/) displays some excellent graphics for watching the gray line. Finally, for those of you that don't want to sit around waiting for WWV to announce, "The time at the tone...", Bob W2CE contributes http://www.time.gov/timezone.cgi?UTC/s/0/java that displays correct time in any time zone. (The Java applet may take a few seconds to load, so be patient.) An email by Jim K9YC reminded me of the terrifically interesting National Institute of Standards Web site (http://www.boulder.nist.gov/timefreq) on time and frequency standards, including the WWV "family" of stations. The encyclopedic AC6V.com has a listing of other standard stations at http://www.ac6v.com/standard.htm. If you're searching for a font whose normal zero is slashed, Andale Mono (a TrueType font) is what you need. Download Andale Mono at http://www.fonts.com/findfonts/detail.asp?pid=206105 or http://www.softlookup.com/display.asp?id=23163 (Thanks, Bill W4WX) The details of short wave propagation are available in a detailed tutorial "Introduction to HF Radio Propagation" available at no charge from the Australian Space Weather Agency at http://www.ips.gov.au/. (Click on "Educational" and then "Radio Communications.") Barry W1HFN's plea for information about mounting antennas on telephone poles received numerous recommendations about where to go. No, not there! Barry relays that http://www.w9iix.com/ii00012.htm is the definitive site. Pete N4ZR reports good results with the balun kits sold by the Wireman. These are basically a length of Teflon coax and some ferrite beads. He uses a Budwig HQ1 center insulator, installs a PL-259 on each end of the assembled balun, and uses a big cable tie looped over the insulator and taped to the balun to hold the weight of the feedline. For a total cost of around $15 plus shipping (and a little workbench time), he couldn't be happier. Every once in a while, you just need to know the intricacies of video and TV signals. In those moments, it's nice to know about http://www.ntsc-tv.com/ where you can learn more than you ever wanted to know about the North American video standards. There are also links to information on the PAL and SECAM standards used outside North America. Dave K1TTT has added a bunch of new links and references to his Web site (http://www.k1ttt.net/) that is already chock-full of technical and operating goodies. That's one way to put a rainy day to work - thanks, Dave! CONVERSATION Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom Have you ever paused to listen to a master operator working a contest at a big station? It's a good way to learn, of course, but sometimes there is sufficient enjoyment from just pausing to observe in your search-and-pounce travels. An excellent operator has the smooth efficiency of a long-distance runner, wasting little energy and making the most of every opportunity, always in control, no matter how fast and furious the contacts. What defines operating excellence? Certainly, all kinds of skills are required; copying ability, using a radio's controls, proper speech or sending, timing. Physical excellence is also required; stamina, pacing, concentration. Then there's the abstract understanding of propagation, a mental data base of calls, devising winning strategies based on the rules and geography. Resources are crucial - you need equipment that works, antennas that play, a good location, the time to maintain and practice and operate regularly. When these all come together, it's an awesome thing to experience. What other types of excellence can you find or imagine? Speaking of fast-paced, how about working DX or contesting while pedestrian mobile? The eHam article about Paul W0RW's adventures afoot, "100 Countries on a 10 Foot Whip/Pedestrian Mobile" (http://www.eham.net/articles/10734) makes for an interesting read. It easily gets one thinking about contesting on foot or on a bike. Substitute "80 Sections" or "40 Zones" for "100 Countries" and get another type of excellence, one that combines personal endurance with operating skill. Is a radio triathlon a possibility? As the demographics of hams changes, contesting will explore alternatives to the traditional rate-times-coverage model. It will take time before these experiments bear fruit, just as it took a number of years before our current contesting formats could settle into their modern form. For example, the Sprint contests challenged the hold-and-run model thirty years ago and are today seen as the one of the most demanding of sheer skill. Clues abound. The Amateur Radio Direction Finding competitions are growing in popularity and sophistication every year. The upcoming 2005 ARDF World Championships will be held on the first weekend in August in Albuquerque, New Mexico (http://mywebpages.comcast.net/ardf-usa/). While knowledge of HF propagation and high-speed copying ability are not much of a factor in ARDF, personal fitness, stamina, and the ability to construct and maintain capable equipment certainly are. ARDF is a worldwide phenomenon and extremely competitive. Rover and mobile contest stations emphasize the elements of physical movement in addition to radio know-how. Instead of a big tower farm with X-over-X-over-X high in the sky, the challenge is to assemble a potent station that can withstand the rigors of travel and still put QSOs in the log. The same goes with mountain-topping clubs and portable stations. HF operators have long appreciated the abilities of the globetrotting operators that pop up on contest weekends with a fraction of the hardware available at fixed stations, yet manage to turn in logs with thousands of contacts worth millions of points. I am not attempting to diminish in any way the skills of the titans of traditional contesting. These operators possess quite possibly the broadest HF operating skill set of any in history. I am confident that if placed in an alternate contest format, they would quickly re-apply those skills and find a way to challenge for the top marks. What I am saying is that the new combinations of technology, operator background, and recreational opportunities are going to hybridize with traditional contesting. The number and style of contests is rising - I see new events regularly as I make up the "Contest Corral" column. Some run once and are never seen again. Others, such as the Stew Perry contest on 160-meters become an accepted part of the contesting pantheon. New categories and rules are continually sprouting. The Internet has already changed traditional contesting forever, so what further hybridization will follow universal high-speed connectivity? Groups of imaginative contesters are out there right now - after a club meeting or having a cool one after work - dreaming up the Next Big Things in contesting. How will they challenge our beloved contests, the CQ WW and Sweepstakes? Can they coexist? Will they amplify each other? Will they merge? I hope the answer is yes! 73, Ward N0AX ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Contester's Rate Sheet wishes to acknowledge information from the following sources: WA7BNM's Contest Calendar Web page - http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal ARRL Contest page - http://www.arrl.org/contests SM3CER's Web site - http://www.sk3bg.se/contest
