Sport Radio – UKACs – What is it all about ?
The main word that springs to mind for me is Fun! However,
it is much more than that, by taking part in these my operating techniques have
improved and there have been a number of other benefits as well.
When the word contest comes to mind, I used to picture one
of those events on HF which has been likened by some as ‘Swimming with the Sharks’,
but not anymore.
So what’s different about the UK Activity Contests? Apart from the fact that they take place on
VHF, UHF and SHF? Well to use an old term, I would sum them up as a, gentlemanly
contest. Where everyone is very welcoming.
So who can take part in the UKACs? “All entrants and
operators of UK stations must be RSGB members except visiting amateurs, not
normally resident in the UK” Except if the operator is a member of an RSGB
Affiliated Society (AFS).
When do these UKACs run? They take place on a Tuesday
evening, between 19:00 and 21:30 (UTC), there are four sections you can enter –
which are mainly dependent on your power output. You need to log your contacts
and this is time, RST (Rx and TX) , Serial Number(Rx and TX), Locator. Once the contest has finished you
need to upload them to the contest web site. See the RSGBs web site http://rsgb.org.uk for full information.
I like to operate portable /P which is a good job as my home
QTH is down in a bit of a dip and although I hold a full licence I prefer to
use a maximum of 10 watts, if I am operating on my own I use a pen and paper to
log, backed up with a recorder. Then transfer to minos to upload, you can type
your log directly online, but I have found minos works well for me. When I can
find someone I prefer to get someone to log for me, and when I do this I get
much better results, and less errors! (due to my poor handwriting)(HI).
A typical contest starts a couple of days before when I make
sure my batteries are charged up and put my ‘sotabeam’ in my vehicle, log, tea
making equipment etc. I plan when I am going to setup.
When the evening arrives, it’s normally a bit of a rush,
getting home from work around 18:15 and getting setup on a site somewhere for
the start. I can normally be setup now in 10 minutes, and I am getting used to
it all now. I start off pointing the antenna, North and call CQ for around 10
minutes, then scan the band and then move North East and repeat the process,
again and again. This works well for me but, I am sure you will find what’s
best for you.
I find it useful to listen to a weak station until I hear
the locator, and then move the beam by hand, so that it’s pointing in the best
possible direction. If there are two of us my logger normally moves the beam
for me, which helps.
I find the evenings
great fun !!, when I am finished I go home, put the kettle on and make a cup of
tea, get the laptop fired up and go online to summit the results, then have a
good look at other peoples submitted scores. I find myself checking the results
section of the RSGB web site a couple of times a day. Once the new results are
up, someone in the club normally post them on out facebook site and we have a
bit of a rag chew.
Very often these discussions result in sharing ideas on how
we can improve. I also found the people from other clubs are happy to help you
improve too. Even if you are competing against them. This says a lot about the friendliness
of the contests.
One of the other areas that I enjoy is getting those who are
new to the hobby to come and take part, after we are all here to learn, and we
all started at some point as a beginner.
Look forward to working you – Paul
