My #hamr Weekend Update

A stellar good morning to one and all from the shackadelic on the road in Long Beach, California. Our weather is ideal Southern California as Sol is blazing, the sky is summer blue with paint brushed clouds floating above, and a temperature expected to peak in the mid-seventies later this afternoon. We are watching the London Olympics on NBC with my second cup of coffee and, hopefully, conditions are cooperating as the special event stations in London fill their respective logs.

Big lesson learned this weekend after scheduling a tour of Warner Brothers Studio in Burbank. I scheduled in print a visit for Friday, July 20th however I didn't review my paperwork as a diligent traveler always confirms any reservation. The studio tour was completely booked. I want to recognize the staff at Warner Brothers who went an extra mile because they salvaged my mistake and actually improved my embarrassment. We return to Burbank on the last full weekend in September for the deluxe tour including lunch in the studio commissary as well.

The bounce back lead us to the Griffith Observatory with its grand view of Los Angeles. I was mesmerized as we walked toward the building of both modern and ancient technology. The weather tarnished domes housed thousands of years of knowledge passed from generation to generation. I reflected about our modern digital age and our reliance on magic like devices. The ancients may have felt the same with their devices made of rock, iron, and steel. I was awed by a time piece made out of a steel cable and steel ring that read the time to an accuracy of my mobile device.

Likewise, solstice coordinates pointing toward summer and winter, is forever etched into the concrete. Also, there is a calendar laid out on an arch of steel with a magnifying like piece of glass that pin points the month and day. There is a Tesla coil inside the observatory and one can marvel at thin bluish tendrils of star like power whipping, snapping, and striking the cage.

I left Griffith Observatory with a deep sense of wonderment and gratitude to those giants who paved the way for our modern age.

73 from the shackadelic on the road in Long Beach, California.

CQ WW DX Deadline Change | Five Day Submittal

According to one RadioSport reflector, Bob Cox, K3EST, CQ WW Contest Chair announced effective September 2012 beginning with CQ WW RTTY, one's log must be submitted within 5 days after the end of an event.

I'd like to advocate taking log submission deadline to the next level for those vying for a position inside the Box.

Next Level
First, contact RadioSport sponsor of one's plan to compete inside the Box, then, a competitor has 72 hours or less to submit their log for adjudication after an event. If, one does not submit within this period, then a penalty is applied for example subtracting points from the total.

RadioSport Reality
Additionally, as much as I'd like to think RadioSport is a level playing field, the reality is RadioSport is not a level playing field. Therefore, it is time to recognize this reality and begin to rationally deal with it for example, Box competitors are not casual competitors, period.

The distinction between competitor and casual is time, money, location, and hardware. It is a real, tangible fact and I don't like to pretend otherwise.

Point Penalty
Consequently, since spoilers find methods at increasing points by subverting the rules consider penalizing spoilers where it hurts the most, total points. Likewise, when considering competition inside the Box, it only follows to ensure some type of Internet connection in order to submit the log between one to 72 hours after event conclusion or accept a point penalty.

At least for me, it is not an intrusion into the shack and it raises the bar which is expected for those competing at the international level putting the onus of near immediate log submission on the competitor. Further, neither does this raise the cost of adjudicating logs or increase staff in order to manage international competition while striving to preserve Box integrity.

Contest on!