[GreenKeys] ARRL RTTY contest

[Kevin H. Phillips]

At the risk of wearing out my welcome, I'll dig myself in a little 
deeper on this.  I can see Larry's point about still calling it "RTTY".  
Maybe it should be called  "RTTY-emulated".  There are plenty of folks 
using heavy metal who are plenty capable of competing in the contests 
because of their skill on the real machines.  My example on the M15 is a 
case in point even with my rudimentary ability.  I just wish the 
computer jockeys would have enough understanding of what the "TTY" part 
of RTTY really means that they would use CR/LF so the heavy metal people 
*could* participate.  As it is, it is pretty much a waste of time.  The 
contests could still be fun for heavy metal people and give them more 
opportunity to get on the air.  My personal feeling is that contests, or 
radiosports or whatever you want to call it, should be open to 
*everyone*.  The contests should not be the exclusive province of one 
group or one way of doing things.  To me, that seems like a snobbish 
viewpoint that isn't in keeping with the spirit of amateur radio as I 
understand it.  Maybe more could be done to foster a sense of 
inclusiveness.   Is that up to contest organizers or the ARRL (don't 
they represent "all" amateurs?)?  I can't say I have the answer.  If 
folks using heavy metal want to jump into a contest for an afternoon to 
warm up the oil and get the smells going and have some fun, whether or 
not they intend to make a several hundred or thousand contacts and win a 
top prize, then it should be easier for them to do that.

73
Kevin
W5TTY