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HF
Islands on the Air (IOTA) Contest 2008
(The
General Rules for RSGB HF Contests do not apply to this
event.)
IOTA Contest
Section here - (Contaning previous years results, all time
record scores, trophy list and online log submissions.) 1. GENERAL
The aim of the contest is to promote contacts between stations in
qualifying IOTA island groups and the rest of the world and to
encourage expeditions to IOTA islands.
2. WHEN 1200UTC Saturday 26 July to 1200UTC Sunday 27 July 2008 (the contest always takes place over the last FULL weekend of July).
3. BANDS AND MODES
3.5, 7, 14, 21 and 28MHz, CW and SSB. IARU band plans should be
observed, with CW contacts being made only in the recognised CW ends of
the bands (see RSGB Yearbook and similar sources, for recognised IARU
band plans). Contest-preferred segments must be observed, no operation
to take place on 3500-3510, 3560 - 3600, 3650 - 3700, 14060 - 14125 and
14300 - 14350kHz.
4. CATEGORIES
All
entrants must operate within the limits of their chosen category when
performing any activity that could impact their submitted score. All
equipment (transmitters, receivers and antennas) plus all operators
must be located within a 500m diameter circle or within the property
limits of the station licensee’s address, whichever is the greater.
4.1 Location:
• Island
(Any station operating from a qualifying island, as listed in the IOTA
Directory. Island stations must ensure beforehand that the island from
which they are operating is a valid qualifying island for IOTA. Any
questions about the IOTA programme and island validity should be
addressed to the IOTA Manager (see RSGB IOTA Web site).
• World (any station not on a qualifying island).
4.2 Operators:
• Single operator
• Single-operator Assisted (passive use (self-spotting not allowed) of DX spotting nets and DX Cluster is allowed).
• Multi-Operator
(24-hour Mixed Mode only. Multi-ops are restricted to a maximum of two
transceivers, the second station to be used to find and call other
stations only if the station is a new multiplier. It must not be used
to solicit other contacts, e.g. by calling "CQ" or "QRZ". Any
non-multiplier QSOs made accidentally on the second station must be
logged, but will be scored as zero points. Multi-ops may make passive
use (self spotting not allowed) of DX spotting nets and DX Cluster.
Multi-operator entrants should include a full list of operators with
their entry).
4.3 Mode:
• CW
• SSB
• Mixed-mode (multi-operator entries must be Mixed Mode).
4.4 Operating Time:
• 24 hours
• 12 hours
(Multi-operator entries must be 24 hours, In the 12-hour categories,
operation need not be for one continuous 12-hour period but, once
operation has commenced, off periods must be a minimum of 60 minutes.).
4.5 Power (Any station not indicating transmitter power will be classified as High Power):
• High-power (maximum, as permitted by the station licence but, in any case, no more than 1500 watts output)
• Low power (maximum 100 watts output),
• QRP (maximum 5 watts output).
5. DXPEDITIONS
5.1
Island stations may, additionally, indicate that they are a
DXpedition station as defined below, and compete for a range of
expedition trophies and certificates (an additional listing will be
shown in the results). It is essential that you make this clear on your
cover sheet as notification after the entry deadline cannot be
accepted.
5.2 The definition of DXpedition for this optional listing is one:
•
where the island can only be reached by boat or air (islands
which can be accessed by bridge or causeway - man-made or natural - are
not eligible),
• where none of the operators is resident on the island,
•
where the operators take all radio equipment and antennas with
them and do not rely on a resident for any part of the station,
•
where, in the case of 100W IOTA Island DXpedition stations, the
antennas are limited to one element per band (e.g. dipole, vertical).
(High power DXpeditions have no antenna restrictions).
6. EXCHANGE
Send
RS(T) and serial number starting from 001, plus IOTA reference number
if applicable (island stations MUST include the IOTA reference as part
of their exchange). Do not use separate numbering systems for CW and
SSB. Stations may be contacted on both CW and SSB on each band.
Multi-operator entrants may find it convenient to allocate separate
blocks of serial numbers for the run and multiplier stations, but do
ensure if possible that there is no duplication of serial numbers.
7. SCORING
7.1 QSO Points
– All entrants can work anyone, island or non-island. Contacts with
non-island stations count 3 points. Contacts with IOTA islands
count 15 points except that, if you are on an island, contacts with
your own IOTA reference count 3 points.
7.2 Multiplier
- The multiplier is the total of different IOTA references contacted on
each band on CW, plus the total of different IOTA references contacted
on each band on SSB. Multi-op stations may not work members of their
own group for multiplier credit.
7.3 Total Score - The score is the total of QSO points on all bands added together, multiplied by the total of multipliers.
8. LOGS
8.1
Electronic submission of logs by disc or e-mail is encouraged - and in
fact required - for all high scoring entrants and all who use a
computer to log or prepare the logs. Entrants submitting paper logs
will not be eligible for certificates or awards. Those who log on paper
are encouraged to get the log typed up by a friend and submit
electronically. Electronic submissions should be in Cabrillo format (a
definition of Cabrillo, as applied to the IOTA contest, can be found on
the RSGB HFCC Web page). Word, Excel or other proprietary file formats
are no longer acceptable. Many popular contest logging programs support
the IOTA contest. Single-operator entrants are recommended to try SDI
from EI5DI, which is free and can be downloaded from www.ei5di.com/sd/sdisetup.exe
8.2 For Cabrillo logs, the categories and category overlays are:
CATEGORY:
[SINGLE-OP, MULTI-OP] ALL [HIGH, LOW, QRP] [SSB,
CW, MIXED]
CATEGORY-ASSISTED: [ASSISTED, UNASSISTED]
CATEGORY-DXPEDITION: [EXPEDITION, NON-DXPEDITION]
CATEGORY-TIME: [12-HOURS, 24-HOURS]
So, a single-op, World, low power, 12-hours, CW, unassisted would show:
CATEGORY:
SINGLE-OP ALL LOW CW
CATEGORY-ASSISTED: UNASSISTED
CATEGORY-TIME: 12-HOURS
A multi-op island station may, for example, indicate:
CATEGORY:
MULTI-OP ALL HIGH MIXED
CATEGORY-DXPEDITION: EXPEDITION
8.3
Logs must show: Time, Callsign, Band, Mode, RST / serial number / IOTA
reference sent, RST / serial number / IOTA reference received. Please
ensure you send a single log in order of sent serial number. Do not
send separate logs for each band. Logs from IOTA stations must state
their island name and IOTA reference number. The log data in a Cabrillo
log should be of the format:
QSO: 28024 CW 2003-07-26 1338
G3XTT 599 001
EU-005 ZS6EZ 599
018 ------
QSO: 21003 CW 2003-07-26 1341
G3XTT 599 002
EU-005 G4TSH 599
130 EU-005
QSO: 21002 CW 2003-07-26 1343
G3XTT 599 003
EU-005 5B4/G3UFY 599 036 AS-004
8.4 Entries can be emailed to iota.logs@rsgbhfcc.org
and should be sent as a normal attachment to the e-mail. Send as an
uncompressed file. Do NOT send more than one attachment. In the
"subject" line of your e-mail message, please include your contest
callsign. Please take a moment to check your log via a text editor
before sending it, to avoid potential problems. You will receive an
acknowledgement by e-mail within 24 hours, directing you to a Web page
to complete the submission process, or advising you if there is any
problem with your log. Further help on log submission is available by
going to the HFCC Web page (www.rsgbhfcc.org).
8.5
Please note that the RSGB has a new address, which should be used for
postal (paper and disc) entries. This is: RSGB IOTA Contest, Radio
Society of Great Britain, 3 Abbey Court, Fraser Road, Priory Business
Park, Bedford MK44 3WH, UK.
8.6 The closing date is for mailing of logs is 1 September 2008.
8.7
Island Stations - By submitting a log for this contest you agree that
the RSGB can automatically grant credit to IOTA participants' scores
for claimed QSOs that reasonably match the data in your submission
(this facility is included in the Next Generation IOTA Software).
8.8
Photographs of IOTA contest operations are very welcome and will be
posted on the HFCC Website or used in RadCom. Do not send these as part
of your log submission, but mail them separately to iotacontest@rsgbhfcc.org There
is also be an opportunity to upload photographs , YouTube clips and
your location (by way of Google Earth) when you complete your log
submission.
9. PENALTIES
Points
may be deducted, or entrants disqualified, for violation of the rules
or the spirit of the contest. This includes, for example, refusal by
IOTA island stations to make contacts with their own country when
requested, use of a third party to make contacts on a list or net,
working CW multipliers on an SSB frequency, failing to observe the
contest-preferred band segments, or not giving the IOTA reference for
every contact. The decision of the IOTA Contest Manager and RSGB HF
Contests Committee is final in all matters of dispute.
10. AWARDS
Certificates
will be awarded to leading stations in each category and section, and
in each continent, according to number of entries. A large number of
Awards and Trophies is now available, and new sponsors are always
welcome. Please see the full list on the RSGB HFCC Web site.
11. SWL CONTEST
There
is no longer an SWL section in the IOTA Contest, but the Mediterraneo
DX Club runs an IOTA SWL Contest in parallel with the IOTA Contest.
SWLs can find full details on the MDXC Web page: http://www.mdxc.org/swl
12. NOTE FROM RSGB IOTA CONTEST MANAGER:
The IOTA Contest Manager can be reached via the RSGB, or by e-mail at: iotacontest@rsgbhfcc.org
IOTA Contest information, including rules, trophies available, previous
results, soapbox and photographs, and logs received can be found on the
RSGB HF Contests Committee Web site at www.rsgbhfcc.org Copies of the
IOTA Directory, if required, can be purchased from RSGB (see www.rsgb.org). A full list of IOTA islands, and other information relating to the IOTA program can be found on the RSGB IOTA Web Page (www.rsgbiota.org).
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