King George County Amateur Radio Operators’ 2014 Field Day Report & Analysis Sam Stello KK4VR August 28, 2014

Field Day 2014 Point Summary Bonus Points Claimed970 QSO Points Claimed858 TOTAL1828

Bonus Points Claimed % Emergency Power 400 –4 stations x 100 Media Publicity100 Set Up In Public Place100 Information Booth100 Site Visit by Invited Official100 Site Visit by Served Official100 GOTA Bonus 20 Submitted via Web 50

Evidence Submitted 100% Emergency Power Generators Picture Media PublicityNewspaper Clips (2) Set Up In Public PlaceKGRO Advertisement + Posters Information BoothPictures (2) Site Visit by Invited OfficialSteve Dempsey Picture Site Visit by Served OfficialNone GOTA BonusPictures of station Submitted via WebYes Club attendance listList generated from club roster (we didn’t have a sign-in sheet)

QSOs Claimed BandCWDigitalPhone 160m 80m9 40m m389 15m36 10m 6m 2m 1.25 Other Satellite GOTA44 TOTAL TOTAL POINTS CW multiplier was 2x; Digital 2x; Phone 1x Each QSO Score multiplied by 2x for Power Multiplier (under 150 watts)

QSO Analysis CW 55%Phone 45%Digital 0% 160m 0% 80m 3% 40m 51% 20m 17% 15m 13% 10m 0% 6m, 2m, 1.25m, satellite 0% GOTA QSOs 16% (all phone QSOs; reported separately from other contest QSOs)

OBSERVATIONS We claimed more Bonus Points than QSO Points –Generator Emergency Power was worth 400 bonus points –Sheriff Dempsey and Steve Lynd visits gave us 100 bonus points each –Public location & advertisements gave us 100 points each –GOTA station was only 20 bonus points We made nearly the same number of CW and Phone QSOs (153 vs 123) –CW made up 71% of QSO points, Phone 29% The club made just 6 CW and 5 Phone contacts per hour (averaged over 24 hr contest period) Bonus Points can be easier and faster than QSO points –Example: for an additional 100 points, copy W1AW bulletin once…. Or…. work phone QSOs for 10 hours (at our average 5 QSOs per hour)! We would probably lose 5 QSO points by taking one phone operator off line for a half hour to brief a VIP visitor like Sheriff Dempsey, but it can earn us 100 bonus points, and certainly does a lot of good for our public relations!

Point Chasing Options (using our 2014 Field Day numbers as the baseline)  points Operating QRP (under 5 Watts using solar charged battery, solar power, wind power, water power, etc.) changes power multiplier from 2x to 5x (2145 points vs 858) and changes club category NOTE: QRP ops using generator or commercial is still only 2x  +480 points Maximum allowed GOTA points is 500 (20 points awarded per set of 20 contacts for each operator); a dedicated GOTA instructor doubles earned points  +384 points Increase our CW/Digital QSO rate from 6 to 10 per hour over 24 hours by automated logging (reduce duplicates); operating additional CW or digital station(s); providing a logging assistant; operating longer, operating in shifts to keep each station running for the entire contest, etc.  +246 points Switch from phone QSOs to digital or CW; those points would double to 492 points (from 246) This would increase our total points 170% (from 1828 to 3115) !! Was the GOTA station worth the effort it took to set up and operate? (I think it was very worthwhile, but for reasons other than points….) If Point Chasing, don’t use phone modes if you are CW or Digital capable! PERSPECTIVE ALERT: The club averaged 10 points/hr operating phone, 25 points/hr operating CW

Point Chasing Options (2) (using our 2014 Field Day numbers as the baseline)  +100 points Conduct formal educational activity during Field Day  +100 points Change entry class from 4A to 5A (this is not an advantage since other 5As also get the extra 100 points)  points Send one National Traffic Manager message to ARRL Section Manager  +100 points Complete at least one satellite QSO  +100 points Make 5 QSOs using “other than commercial power or petroleum based generators” Easy! Make just five QSOs operating with batteries! Easy!

Point Chasing Options (3) (using our 2014 Field Day numbers as the baseline)  +100 points 20 point bonus for each participant under 18 completing a QSO (up to 100 points total)  +100 points Copy W1AW Bulletin once during the contest  +10 points per message  For every formal NTS message originated, handled or delivered  +10 points Operate phone QSOs for one more hour at our averaged QSO rate (increases points to 1838 from 1828 points)  +0 Points  Points added for each additional operating band and/or mode Easy, but we needed to keep a Log Book to claim the points! Points are earned for QSOs, not bands or modes Easy!

Conclusions Despite not being serious point chasers in 2014, we did chase points. We did very well weather you measure success in points or by using more meaningful measures of success (such as participation levels, enthusiasm, new members added, public awareness, public good will, skill level improvements, friendships formed, memories made, calories added and fun levels.) If we want to collect more points in 2015, I suggest we maintain an awareness of the level of effort required for the contest points gained, and decide which points are worthy of our efforts. We must not let the point chase interfere with more important club objectives.