by Paul Bourque, N1SFE
ARRL Contest Program Manager

As reported in September 2019 QST - Page 81

Welcome to the 2019 – 2020 contest season!

I am excited to talk about the efforts under way to make ARRL’s contest program better than ever.

Contest Web Page Updates
The ARRL Contests landing page (http://contests.arrl.org) has lots of new features. The most recent updates include the addition of pages for Clubs, Public Logs, and Log Checking Reports (LCRs). The Clubs page gives contest clubs access to their eligibility lists and tools from the new landing page. All logs are now publicly accessible on the Public Logs page after the full results are published. And the Log Checking Reports page is the same great tool as before, now accessible from the Contests landing page. A new feature allows anyone to request the LCR, but it will be sent back to the email address supplied when the log was originally submitted (non-member, foreign, or call sign change participants no longer need to request LCRs from ARRL).

HF Contest Log Deadline Extensions
We have also pushed HF log deadlines to 7 days, allowing a full week after the contest (including a weekend) for timely log submission via our web app at https://contest-logsubmission.arrl.org. The web app will continue to accept logs for ARRL HF and VHF+ contest events up to 5 days after the published deadlines, except that any logs received in this post-acceptance 5-day window are not eligible for awards (they will appear in event line scores in italics). Five days after the deadline, the Logs Received page (http://contests.arrl.org/logsreceived.php) will display additional category and claimed score information (if populated).

Club Competition
The Club Competition toolset now includes a web page for club secretaries or membership/eligibility coordinators to perform a peer review of their most recent Club Competition events. They can review their member log submissions and the submissions of other clubs with which they may be competing, at http://contests.arrl.org/clubcompdetails.php.

Faster Results
ARRL contest result timelines continue to shorten, from completion of an event to the preliminary and full results publication. This can be attributed to the more recent shortened deadlines, and enhanced log-checking and results tabulation automation and processes.

Contest Results Authors
Contest results authors put together lively, detailed event writeups and analysis. If you have what it takes to provide stimulating event discussion for HF or VHF+ events, send an email to contests@arrl.org, including links to anything you’ve previously published.

Electronic Logs for VHF Events
We are now accepting Cabrillo (or ADIf) logs for the 10 GHz and Up Contest and International EME Competition events.This is the electronic option via the web app, in lieu of emailing logs. Paper log submissions will continue to be accepted.

As these or any refinements to the details on the changes being implemented this contest season are posted, see www.arrl.org/arrl-contests-changesfor-2019-2020.

Paul Bourque, N1SFE, is the ARRL Contest Program Manager. He can be reached at n1sfe@arrl.org.