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{
    "url": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/email/WVQZXFK4GCZO5SMZV4F444VKP4DWAE3K/?format=api",
    "mailinglist": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/?format=api",
    "message_id": "B9EEF8F291834C6DB36FDAAEF4665979@Sheba",
    "message_id_hash": "WVQZXFK4GCZO5SMZV4F444VKP4DWAE3K",
    "thread": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/thread/FXSFWBLIVWGZUYYQMHPMDEDSJ32LRTJH/?format=api",
    "sender": {
        "address": "tim_cunningham (a) charter.net",
        "mailman_id": null,
        "emails": null
    },
    "sender_name": "Tim Cunningham",
    "subject": "[amsat-bb] Re: Field Day mode for AO-51",
    "date": "2010-05-06T05:57:33Z",
    "parent": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/email/BRYMKNKEOUMTOOX5K7X5NOZA4ZNRVUKK/?format=api",
    "children": [],
    "votes": {
        "likes": 0,
        "dislikes": 0,
        "status": "neutral"
    },
    "content": "> I have a couple questions:\n>\n> 1.  The folks who can't eek out a contact with the handheld and Arrow \n> during\n> Field Day, have you practiced?  It's how I have done it the last couple of\n> years without that much trouble, patience and timing are the keys :-).  We\n> have a good Field Day location where I can see down to the horizon.\n>\n\nTime is limited for many people and Field Day unfortunately is a time for \nmany to experiment with their buddies. Satellite? We can do that! Watch \nthis? How many times have you cringed when you heard that? Now we have a \ngroup of buddies standing around with their favorite liquid beverage, known \nto cause judgmental impairment, having a good time laughing and tinkering... \nFor some, this is their definition of Field Day while others take it a bit \nmore seriously. There is a wide mix of people on Field Day and we have to \naccept that as a known historical fact. If they become disgruntled and say \nthis is not the way I envision Field Day, they may not come back.\n\n\n\n> 2.  Has the single contact per FM bird rule really helped anyone?  In the\n> old days a couple big stations got on and essentially ran the bird.  Is it\n> fair?  NO! but they handed out a lot of QSOs and we seemed to get more \n> AMSAT\n> Field Day entries as well.\n>\n\nNo, it has not helped promote more contacts on an FM satellite. It has only \nallowed chaos to reign (fewer contacts) on the FM satellites.\n\nHistorical and factual information can clearly answer this question. When \nthere are big targets to hit (stations that can be heard clearly) things run \nsmoother and more contacts are made. You can debate it, but the facts are \nclear and supported by this operators experience. We already know the end \nresult and that it indeed produces more contacts at a faster rate to move \nthem in and move them out of the way in DXpedition style. This net control \noperator style of operation turns chaos into something more predictable and \ncontrollable while handing out contacts to stations that may never have a \nchance with the numerous stations calling over top of each other. I can \nremember sitting in a chair many years ago (year 2000 to be exact) handing \nout 1 contact after another on an FM bird which really led to the creation \nof the rule for a perceived problem. At the time I did not feel good about \ndoing it, but when we stopped doing it, chaos reigned once again. When we \nstarted net control operation again, contacts were being made at a rate of \ngreater than 5 to 1. We looked at each other sitting at the radio and \ndiscussed how many contacts were made when we operated in this fashion and \nthought we were doing a service in the Field Day spirit by handing out \ncontacts when none were being made or people were just calling over top of \neach other with no actual communication taking place. As we lost the bird \nanother clear station came on and did the same thing. Unfortunately, this \ncaused \"The Great FM Satellite Field Day Rift\" to give it a name. We were \nexercising what we thought was in the best interest of turning chaos (no \ncontacts being made) to something more efficient and productive that \nundeniably allowed more contacts to be made.\n\nOperation on FM satellites is more efficient with a control or net operator. \nThis was a crafted communication skill utilized to solve the immediate \nproblem of no contacts being made and it worked very well.\n\nThus, the rule added in the 2001 AMSAT Field Day Rules to limit contacts to \n1 was instituted. The rule was clarified in 2001 by the statement:\n\n[Operators are encouraged not to make any extra contacts via these \nsatellites (Ex: UO14 &AO27).]\n\nIt is a reasonable rule to the extent of only allowing 1 point so somebody \ndoes not run up a score or monopolize points from another station in the \nAMSAT Field Day Competition. The problem is the rule went too far by \nencouraging operators not to make any additional contacts on these \nsatellites. Statistics do not lie. They only validate the end result and \nthere should be plenty of results since 2001.\n\nFurthermore, in a June 2001 QST article written by Steve Ford, WB8IMY, he \npublished the following statements:\n\n[The politically correct thing for me to do is wag my finger at you and say, \n\"you must not use more than 5 W on the 2-meter uplinks to these satellites. \nIf we all play nicely and keep our power levels low, everyone will have a \nchance.\"]\n\n[If you must run high power to capture a spot in the FM mob scene, at least \nbe considerate. Once you've made a valid contact, get off (italics). Don't \nattempt to monopolize the birds throughout their 15-minute pass.]\n\nIt is naïve to think that everybody running 5W will solve the problem. It is \nField Day and everybody is hungry for their bonus points for the ARRL Field \nDay. When there are a thousand stations trying to squeeze into the same pipe \nat the same time, you should expect chaos. There is no way everybody will \nget a chance to work an FM satellite on Field Day. It is not possible with \nthe given bandwidth and time allotted. Somebody has to be above the noise \n(more ERP) to create a target to call. This is a well known FM capture \neffect.\n\nCall it monopolizing the satellite or whatever you want, the point is being \nmissed! We are suppose to be communicators and find ways to turn chaos into \nsuccess. That success was demonstrated during a 2000 Field Day exercise. \nLimiting the number of points for the AMSAT Field Day Competition was a \nreasonable and fair thing to do. The problem is it went too far and \ndiscouraged operators from making any additional contacts. This is an easy \nproblem to solve by striking that single statement from the rules.\n\nThinking back I could only imagine how many clubs, groups, or individuals \nwere jumping up and down with joy because they made a contact on one of the \nFM birds with a net control operator issuing contacts at a rate greater than \n5 to 1. The other reality is that a station is going to call a station that \nit hears clearly. Call it the contester in us or a DXpedition style of \noperation. If you are condemned to one contact, think about how much \nbandwidth is wasted because there are several stations calling you and you \nare encouraged not to answer them. This is what happens. Yes, we ignored the \nstations calling in 2002 because we complied with the suggestion of making 1 \ncontact and \"get off\". It was very sad to continue to listen to the chaos in \n2002 after our initial contact with no more discussion on solving the \nproblem.\n\nI always felt that the ARRL promoted net style operation to avoid chaos and \ncreate order in my 29 years of being a HAM. That is why Steve Ford's \ncomments caught me by complete surprise. Nets are the entire reason I do not \nlike to operate HF, because every time I got on HF to rag chew, several \nstations would join the discussion, and then announce a net was starting. \nBasically, the other stations checked in to chase those occupying their net \nfrequency out of the way.\n\n\n\n> The one bird one contact has been a noble experiment, maybe it is time to\n> examine the results.\n>\n\nExcellent idea! I can appreciate this.\n\n73's,\n\nTim - N8DEU\n\nDecatur, Alabama\n\n\n\n\n",
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