[Drake] Contest QRM

[Paul]

While I accept the purpose of this reflector is focused on Drake equipment,
I'd like to respond to the "anti-contest" crowd at large. This also applies
to a lesser extent to those who are "anti-DX".

While it is indeed true that there is some sort of contest activity every
weekend, there really are only about 5 major SSB contests per year that
"take over the whole band": SweepStakes (November), CQWWDX (October), ARRLDX
(March), WPX (March), and FD (June - and this is really an emergency
preparedness event). 

Let me quantify it another way: There are 52 weekends per year, major SSB
contest activities consume 5 weekends (10%). Out of 365 days in a year,
we're talking about 10 days of SSB contests. Is it REALLY that much of an
imposition on the hobby as a whole?

Permit me to address the 700,000 figure of licensed USA Amateurs not being
contesters. How many of the 700,000 are active on HF more than 12 times a
year? How many are active on HF on any given day? I'm sure a whole lot less
than 700,000 or people would be complaining about over crowded bands every
day! Sorry, that figure doesn't prove anything really. You could say "What
percentage of the 700,000 licensed hams are on PSK-31?" It wouldn't prove
anything in this context.

Activity on the bands during contests ebbs and flows based on QSO rates as
driven by propagation. The point being, the "non-contester" can alter the
time/band/frequency of their QSOs to work around the contest. You know the
contest weekend is coming up, change your plans to work around it.

Besides fuming about the contest "ruining the entire band" why not try a
WARC band, or another mode? How about go visit old ham buddies face to face?
What about cleaning up the shack or doing antenna work? Or, as suggested
below, do something besides ham radio.

What about "deliberate interference"? Having a contester park his "CQ
Machine" 1 kHz away from your QSO does not constitute "deliberate
interference". The FCC defines "deliberate" as Station A being interfered
with by Station B. Station A changes frequency (significantly - not by
500Hz)to get away from Station B's QRM (here is the deliberate part) and
Station B follows station A and resumes the interfering activity.

Nets and contests? As I'm sure everyone is aware, the FCC doesn't authorize
any individual or group exclusive rights to a specific frequency in the
Amateur Radio Service. The vast majority of contesters will give organized
nets respect and a wide birth when requested. In the case of a DX contest, a
foreign station may not be able to copy the stations involved in a domestic
(USA) type net and you can't fault him for that.

Emergency preparation? This is the one that tends to "tighten my jaw". You
want efficiency in emergency communications. Let me tell you, there is
nobody better than a contest operator at getting information through during
rough conditions. Contesters tend to have the best equipment and stations at
their disposal along with the sharpest operating skills. Besides, how many
times do you need to drill for an emergency? Especially on HF. When there
really is an emergency and "clear channels" are declared by the FCC in
support of disaster communications both ARRL and CQ (as contest sponsors) go
out of their way to get the word out regarding these "clear channels". This
has happened only a very small number of times during a major contest
weekend.

One final point if I may. If it wasn't for Contesters and DXer's, I contend
HF equipment sales would have diminished years ago. If all you want to do is
ragchew with the guy across town on 80 meters, your B-Line or SB-102 will do
that just fine. You want to copy the guy stranded in a sailboat in distress
under the Latino SSB traffic on 14303, you'll likely need a better radio
than something from the 1960's. The next time you're at a large hamfest, go
talk to the Yaesu, Kenwood or ICOM rep and ask him who provides the most
input (in terms of advancing the state of the art) that hams would like to
see in their radios.

At the end of the day, amateur radio is a truly the greatest hobby and is
essentially unlimited in terms of things try. There is no reason for anyone
to become bored with ham radio. To close this missive, keep an open mind!
Maybe even give contesting a try. You might get hooked on the sport, or
collecting States for a WAS award, or Zones for WAZ or countries for DXCC. 

I apologize if my rather curt response offended anyone, but I do have a
problem with one group steadfastly refusing to get along with the interests
of another - especially when it concerns a hobby. As you no doubt concluded,
I am a contester (almost exclusively CW these days) and a DXer but I also
enjoy working on (and operating) Drakes and other "classic" equipment. See -
there's 3 or 4 ham radio interests right here :-) 

Vy 73
Paul K5RT