Contesting controversies
Encyclopedia
Like most other sports, amateur radio
contesting
has its share of disputes and controversy. These disputes are long-standing and may see no thorough resolution for a long time. They are presented for their informational value, with the positions in dispute summarized. There are several online forums where these topics are discussed.
to "spot" transmitting stations by submitting their call sign
and frequency of operation to a computer system which redistributes the information to all other connected users of the system. The term "packet cluster" is derived from the use of AX.25
packet radio as the original connection mode to the computer systems; today, connections are commonly made by telnet
over the Internet
instead. Packet clusters are designed to help radio operators share information so that other stations can find transmitting stations that might be of interest to them.
The original packet cluster systems were deployed by members of the Yankee Clipper Contest Club to help their fellow club members improve their contest
scores. More recently, the pioneers behind the web-based DX Summit spotting portal received a Yasme Excellence Award for that project.
There are two main controversial aspects to the worldwide deployment and use of the packet cluster system today.
, identifying such abuse on the packet cluster system is difficult, and may lead to false-positive
s. Enforcement in cases where self-spotting is suspected can be variable. Peer pressure
remains the most effective means of curbing this undesirable behavior.
station operated by several members of their own club. Although the station being spotted is not itself abusing the rules of the contest, it may still benefit from the activity of its friends. Many feel that it is difficult to differentiate between undesirable cheerleading and the more normal spotting activity, and that coming up with well-defined rules to prohibit it would have significant negative side effects
.
can bring very large numbers of stations to the high frequency
radio bands in a short period of time. Because the amount of radio spectrum
available is limited, this can result in significant competition for frequencies. Since stations in the Amateur Radio Service
must share spectrum and are not assigned specific channels, no one station, contester or otherwise, has a right to use any particular frequency in a radio band. During big contest weekends, thousands of contesters take to the air causing much contention.
Some contest sponsors have been sympathetic to this issue and have adapted their contest rules by defining non-contest windows. A non-contest window is a portion of the band in which stations may not solicit contest contacts. However, these can have unexpected, negative side-effects. One such side-effect is that some windows completely prevent some stations from participating since the window may be their only available frequency band. Contesters contend that several HF
Amateur radio
bands (30 meters, 17 meters, and 12 meters) are completely contest-free by a kind of "gentleman's agreement", and more suitable for those who wish to avoid contest activity completely. Non-contesters counter that these bands are smaller and far less popular than the bands contesters use and that propagation conditions make contacts difficult. Also, 30 meters is a CW-only band which leaves nothing below 17 meters for voice contacts.
regulations in some countries restrict which mode of emission
can be used in which portions of each radio band. One subband may allow CW
or RTTY whereas other subbands may be designated for telephony
or image communications. In some portions of the world, these subband designations are not regulated, but are specified in voluntary bandplans. A great deal of effort goes into agreeing bandplans at an international level and most operators adhere to them. Non contesters argue that while everyone else conforms to the bandplans contesters assume they can do what ever they want. This one aspect of contesters' behaviour causes the most anger and disagreement.
The IARU Region I bandplan specifies that phone
emission
s should remain above 7050 kHz, with CW
emission
s below. In major worldwide phone contests, stations often operate phone below 7050 kHz, including those in IARU Region I. Many object to the use of phone
emissions in spectrum designated for CW
use and argue that contesters should observe the bandplan just as others do.
n VHF
radio contests, rover stations are those that travel from one Maidenhead grid locator to another. The rules of major VHF contests allow these stations to make two-way contacts with other stations from each unique grid locator in which they travel. Rover activity is responsible for contest operations from many grid locators that might otherwise not have any active contest stations.
A captive rover is a rover station whose contest operation is intended specifically or primarily for the benefit of another fixed station. A captive rover might travel to locations in several different grid locators and make two-way contacts only with one specific multi-operator station in the contest. That station benefits from the activity of the rover station, whereas its competition in the contest cannot receive the same potential benefit. A fixed station that is helped by multiple captive rovers can generate a very large score making two-way contacts with only a small set of rovers.
This kind of highly-coordinated operation is very controversial, and several efforts have been made in contest rules to discourage it. Some argue that it is far too difficult to define exactly what conditions would merit disqualifying a station and its contacts as a captive rover station. Others openly acknowledge the activity, and argue that until the contest rules are capable of explicitly prohibiting it in a way that is fair and enforceable, that it should be allowed to continue.
, and "circle" through the possible combinations of grid locators, making contacts in each combination. The rover stations then drive to the next intersection of grid locators on their planned route and repeat the process. Stations participating in grid circling do not need to be capable of communicating over distances longer than a few miles. Even without making contact with any other stations in the contest, grid circling stations can generate large scores just by contacting the other stations in their small, tightly-coordinated group.
Some object to the activity because it does not contribute to the contest at large; the stations in the grid circling effort generally do not contact many other stations in the contest. Others object to the unfairness of these stations competing in the same category as other rover stations that do not grid circle, and who are at a perceived scoring disadvantage. Grid circlers themselves often argue that the technical and operational challenges of such an operation represent significant achievement, and the activity, if discouraged, is not explicitly prohibited. Some suggest that grid circling should be allowed, but such teams of station should be ranked in a separate category from other rovers.
paths, or contacts over great distance, and are often made during the middle of the night when other contest
activity is low.
Newer digital operational modes such as JT65 and FSK441 require accurate timing coordination between stations. While skeds for contacts made with these modes can be made before the contest, during non-contest times several web sites are used to make impromptu real-time skeds, and these web sites have been used during contests as well. As these advanced digital modes become more popular, the temptation to make real-time skeds with contest stations may remain powerful to some.
Amateur radio
Amateur radio is the use of designated radio frequency spectrum for purposes of private recreation, non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, and emergency communication...
contesting
Contesting
Contesting is a competitive activity pursued by amateur radio operators. In a contest, an amateur radio station, which may be operated by an individual or a team, seeks to contact as many other amateur radio stations as possible in a given period of time and exchange information...
has its share of disputes and controversy. These disputes are long-standing and may see no thorough resolution for a long time. They are presented for their informational value, with the positions in dispute summarized. There are several online forums where these topics are discussed.
Packet clusters
A packet cluster system allows radio operators or shortwave listenersShortwave
Shortwave radio refers to the upper MF and all of the HF portion of the radio spectrum, between 1,800–30,000 kHz. Shortwave radio received its name because the wavelengths in this band are shorter than 200 m which marked the original upper limit of the medium frequency band first used...
to "spot" transmitting stations by submitting their call sign
Call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign is a unique designation for a transmitting station. In North America they are used as names for broadcasting stations...
and frequency of operation to a computer system which redistributes the information to all other connected users of the system. The term "packet cluster" is derived from the use of AX.25
AX.25
AX.25 is a data link layer protocol derived from the X.25 protocol suite and designed for use by amateur radio operators. It is used extensively on amateur packet radio networks....
packet radio as the original connection mode to the computer systems; today, connections are commonly made by telnet
TELNET
Telnet is a network protocol used on the Internet or local area networks to provide a bidirectional interactive text-oriented communications facility using a virtual terminal connection...
over the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
instead. Packet clusters are designed to help radio operators share information so that other stations can find transmitting stations that might be of interest to them.
The original packet cluster systems were deployed by members of the Yankee Clipper Contest Club to help their fellow club members improve their contest
Contesting
Contesting is a competitive activity pursued by amateur radio operators. In a contest, an amateur radio station, which may be operated by an individual or a team, seeks to contact as many other amateur radio stations as possible in a given period of time and exchange information...
scores. More recently, the pioneers behind the web-based DX Summit spotting portal received a Yasme Excellence Award for that project.
There are two main controversial aspects to the worldwide deployment and use of the packet cluster system today.
Self-spotting
The most controversial use of the system is in self-spotting, where a competitive station sends a spot advertising its own operation on the air. Almost all contest sponsors explicitly prohibit this activity in their contest rules, so finding stations that self-spot in a blatant manner is uncommon. Most stations that engage in self-spotting do so by hiding or masquerading their identity as the source of the spot. Because of its easy accessibility and lack of user authenticationAuthentication
Authentication is the act of confirming the truth of an attribute of a datum or entity...
, identifying such abuse on the packet cluster system is difficult, and may lead to false-positive
Type I and type II errors
In statistical test theory the notion of statistical error is an integral part of hypothesis testing. The test requires an unambiguous statement of a null hypothesis, which usually corresponds to a default "state of nature", for example "this person is healthy", "this accused is not guilty" or...
s. Enforcement in cases where self-spotting is suspected can be variable. Peer pressure
Peer pressure
Peer pressure refers to the influence exerted by a peer group in encouraging a person to change his or her attitudes, values, or behavior in order to conform to group norms. Social groups affected include membership groups, when the individual is "formally" a member , or a social clique...
remains the most effective means of curbing this undesirable behavior.
Cheerleading
Another controversial use of the packet cluster system is known as cheerleading. A cheerleader in this context is a station that uses the packet cluster system to spot one particular other station for the purpose of promoting that station's contest operation and improving its score. Cheerleading is most evident when several cheerleaders promote a single station, such as when all the members of a contest club repeatedly and aggressively spot a single contest DX-peditionDX-pedition
A DX-pedition is an expedition to what is considered an exotic place by amateur radio operators, perhaps because of its remoteness or because there are very few radio amateurs active from that place. This could be an island, a country, or even a particular spot on a geographical grid.The activity...
station operated by several members of their own club. Although the station being spotted is not itself abusing the rules of the contest, it may still benefit from the activity of its friends. Many feel that it is difficult to differentiate between undesirable cheerleading and the more normal spotting activity, and that coming up with well-defined rules to prohibit it would have significant negative side effects
Unintended consequence
In the social sciences, unintended consequences are outcomes that are not the outcomes intended by a purposeful action. The concept has long existed but was named and popularised in the 20th century by American sociologist Robert K. Merton...
.
Conflict with non-contesters
ContestsContesting
Contesting is a competitive activity pursued by amateur radio operators. In a contest, an amateur radio station, which may be operated by an individual or a team, seeks to contact as many other amateur radio stations as possible in a given period of time and exchange information...
can bring very large numbers of stations to the high frequency
High frequency
High frequency radio frequencies are between 3 and 30 MHz. Also known as the decameter band or decameter wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decameters . Frequencies immediately below HF are denoted Medium-frequency , and the next higher frequencies are known as Very high frequency...
radio bands in a short period of time. Because the amount of radio spectrum
Radio spectrum
Radio spectrum refers to the part of the electromagnetic spectrum corresponding to radio frequencies – that is, frequencies lower than around 300 GHz ....
available is limited, this can result in significant competition for frequencies. Since stations in the Amateur Radio Service
Amateur radio
Amateur radio is the use of designated radio frequency spectrum for purposes of private recreation, non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, and emergency communication...
must share spectrum and are not assigned specific channels, no one station, contester or otherwise, has a right to use any particular frequency in a radio band. During big contest weekends, thousands of contesters take to the air causing much contention.
Some contest sponsors have been sympathetic to this issue and have adapted their contest rules by defining non-contest windows. A non-contest window is a portion of the band in which stations may not solicit contest contacts. However, these can have unexpected, negative side-effects. One such side-effect is that some windows completely prevent some stations from participating since the window may be their only available frequency band. Contesters contend that several HF
High frequency
High frequency radio frequencies are between 3 and 30 MHz. Also known as the decameter band or decameter wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decameters . Frequencies immediately below HF are denoted Medium-frequency , and the next higher frequencies are known as Very high frequency...
Amateur radio
Amateur radio
Amateur radio is the use of designated radio frequency spectrum for purposes of private recreation, non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, and emergency communication...
bands (30 meters, 17 meters, and 12 meters) are completely contest-free by a kind of "gentleman's agreement", and more suitable for those who wish to avoid contest activity completely. Non-contesters counter that these bands are smaller and far less popular than the bands contesters use and that propagation conditions make contacts difficult. Also, 30 meters is a CW-only band which leaves nothing below 17 meters for voice contacts.
Controversies regarding voluntary band plans
The amateur radioAmateur radio
Amateur radio is the use of designated radio frequency spectrum for purposes of private recreation, non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, and emergency communication...
regulations in some countries restrict which mode of emission
Types of radio emissions
The International Telecommunication Union uses an internationally agreed system for classifying radio frequency signals. Each type of radio emission is classified according to its bandwidth, method of modulation, nature of the modulating signal, and type of information transmitted on the carrier...
can be used in which portions of each radio band. One subband may allow CW
Continuous wave
A continuous wave or continuous waveform is an electromagnetic wave of constant amplitude and frequency; and in mathematical analysis, of infinite duration. Continuous wave is also the name given to an early method of radio transmission, in which a carrier wave is switched on and off...
or RTTY whereas other subbands may be designated for telephony
Telephony
In telecommunications, telephony encompasses the general use of equipment to provide communication over distances, specifically by connecting telephones to each other....
or image communications. In some portions of the world, these subband designations are not regulated, but are specified in voluntary bandplans. A great deal of effort goes into agreeing bandplans at an international level and most operators adhere to them. Non contesters argue that while everyone else conforms to the bandplans contesters assume they can do what ever they want. This one aspect of contesters' behaviour causes the most anger and disagreement.
The IARU Region I bandplan specifies that phone
Telephony
In telecommunications, telephony encompasses the general use of equipment to provide communication over distances, specifically by connecting telephones to each other....
emission
Types of radio emissions
The International Telecommunication Union uses an internationally agreed system for classifying radio frequency signals. Each type of radio emission is classified according to its bandwidth, method of modulation, nature of the modulating signal, and type of information transmitted on the carrier...
s should remain above 7050 kHz, with CW
Continuous wave
A continuous wave or continuous waveform is an electromagnetic wave of constant amplitude and frequency; and in mathematical analysis, of infinite duration. Continuous wave is also the name given to an early method of radio transmission, in which a carrier wave is switched on and off...
emission
Types of radio emissions
The International Telecommunication Union uses an internationally agreed system for classifying radio frequency signals. Each type of radio emission is classified according to its bandwidth, method of modulation, nature of the modulating signal, and type of information transmitted on the carrier...
s below. In major worldwide phone contests, stations often operate phone below 7050 kHz, including those in IARU Region I. Many object to the use of phone
Telephony
In telecommunications, telephony encompasses the general use of equipment to provide communication over distances, specifically by connecting telephones to each other....
emissions in spectrum designated for CW
Continuous wave
A continuous wave or continuous waveform is an electromagnetic wave of constant amplitude and frequency; and in mathematical analysis, of infinite duration. Continuous wave is also the name given to an early method of radio transmission, in which a carrier wave is switched on and off...
use and argue that contesters should observe the bandplan just as others do.
Captive rovers
In North AmericaNorth America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
n VHF
Very high frequency
Very high frequency is the radio frequency range from 30 MHz to 300 MHz. Frequencies immediately below VHF are denoted High frequency , and the next higher frequencies are known as Ultra high frequency...
radio contests, rover stations are those that travel from one Maidenhead grid locator to another. The rules of major VHF contests allow these stations to make two-way contacts with other stations from each unique grid locator in which they travel. Rover activity is responsible for contest operations from many grid locators that might otherwise not have any active contest stations.
A captive rover is a rover station whose contest operation is intended specifically or primarily for the benefit of another fixed station. A captive rover might travel to locations in several different grid locators and make two-way contacts only with one specific multi-operator station in the contest. That station benefits from the activity of the rover station, whereas its competition in the contest cannot receive the same potential benefit. A fixed station that is helped by multiple captive rovers can generate a very large score making two-way contacts with only a small set of rovers.
This kind of highly-coordinated operation is very controversial, and several efforts have been made in contest rules to discourage it. Some argue that it is far too difficult to define exactly what conditions would merit disqualifying a station and its contacts as a captive rover station. Others openly acknowledge the activity, and argue that until the contest rules are capable of explicitly prohibiting it in a way that is fair and enforceable, that it should be allowed to continue.
Grid circling
Grid circling is a highly-coordinated operation of two or more rover stations. Two or more rover stations arrive at an area near the intersection of four Maidenhead grid locatorsMaidenhead Locator System
The Maidenhead Locator System is a geographic coordinate system used by amateur radio operators. Dr. John Morris, G4ANB, originally devised the system, and a group of VHF managers, meeting in Maidenhead, England in 1980, adopted it...
, and "circle" through the possible combinations of grid locators, making contacts in each combination. The rover stations then drive to the next intersection of grid locators on their planned route and repeat the process. Stations participating in grid circling do not need to be capable of communicating over distances longer than a few miles. Even without making contact with any other stations in the contest, grid circling stations can generate large scores just by contacting the other stations in their small, tightly-coordinated group.
Some object to the activity because it does not contribute to the contest at large; the stations in the grid circling effort generally do not contact many other stations in the contest. Others object to the unfairness of these stations competing in the same category as other rover stations that do not grid circle, and who are at a perceived scoring disadvantage. Grid circlers themselves often argue that the technical and operational challenges of such an operation represent significant achievement, and the activity, if discouraged, is not explicitly prohibited. Some suggest that grid circling should be allowed, but such teams of station should be ranked in a separate category from other rovers.
Real-time schedules
Most contests prohibit the use of non-radio means to solicit contacts during the contest period. This does not prevent stations before a contest starts from making schedules (or skeds) with other stations to attempt two-way contacts during the contest. These schedules are often made for attempts at marginal propagationRadio propagation
Radio propagation is the behavior of radio waves when they are transmitted, or propagated from one point on the Earth to another, or into various parts of the atmosphere...
paths, or contacts over great distance, and are often made during the middle of the night when other contest
Contesting
Contesting is a competitive activity pursued by amateur radio operators. In a contest, an amateur radio station, which may be operated by an individual or a team, seeks to contact as many other amateur radio stations as possible in a given period of time and exchange information...
activity is low.
Newer digital operational modes such as JT65 and FSK441 require accurate timing coordination between stations. While skeds for contacts made with these modes can be made before the contest, during non-contest times several web sites are used to make impromptu real-time skeds, and these web sites have been used during contests as well. As these advanced digital modes become more popular, the temptation to make real-time skeds with contest stations may remain powerful to some.
Forums for discussion
- RC.N Forums
- Contesting Online
- CQ-Contest Email Reflector
- VHF Contesting Email Reflector
- Contesting Blogs and Forums