Greetings fellow newsletter editors! Looking for a way to spice up your winter issues and also spark a club-wide event? Here's what the Western Washington DX Club's Totem Tabloid did in 1994 (and we are repeating it this year) to have fun during the ARRL DX Contest. Basically we had a "Tournament within the DX Contest" for our "Little Pistols". The tournament was limited to 20 meters single band, low power to make it attractive to the largest number of participants. We didn't invite the local "Big Guns", N7TT, W7XR, or NN7L because they are just TOO good... I started the publicity in January (What a coincidence - THIS is January!) with a letter, announcement poster, and a stamped return postcard sent to all likely entrants (reviewing previous contest results gave me their callsigns). I also plugged the event furiously at the January and February club meetings. And don't forget a few notes on the local packet cluster to stir up an entry or two. We had a small trophy made at a local trophy supply store (it cost about $30 with an old brass key from my junk box attached). The trophy has room for about 10 years worth of winners' callsigns. Everyone who entered also put in $1 to buy dinners for the winner and runner-up in the tournament before our March meeting. The results were spectacular! Check out the QST with last year's contest results (October?) and see the long list of 20 meter low power entrants from Western Washington! I would highly recommend this contest for clubs of any size. Even two entries make for fun competition. Being in pileups with other locals and comparing notes each evening on 3835 made the contest a LOT of fun! This year we are holding the same contest, but instead of a dinner for the runner-up we are giving the dinner to the "Most Improved" entrant. Total expenses for postage for all the announcements and information distribution was about $20 - this is for approximately 20 potential entrants and could be significantly less if information is distributed by hand, at meetings, via club newsletters, or via email. --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- [FULL PAGE POSTER (WITH LARGE FONTS) SENT TO ALL ENTRANTS IN MID-JANUARY] First Annual Western Washington DX Club ARRL DX CW Contest Low Power Tournament! February 19-20, 1994 20 Meters Single Band 100 Watts Single Op "Unassisted" - No Using Packet Spots! Open to all WWDXC members! Totem Tabloid sponsored trophy to top scorer! Certificates to all participants! Report your score on 3835 or Packetcluster immediately after the contest! GALA AWARDS BANQUET April 12, 1994 - 6:30 PM Sloop Tavern Contact Jack, WA0RJY, to register ($1 entry fee) fine print ---> All decisions of the secret judges are final! --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- [LETTER THAT ACCOMPANIED THE POSTER - .29 POSTAGE X 21 LETTERS = $6.09] January 11, 1994 To: AA7FT, AA7PM, AA7RN, K7GEX, K7HBN, K7LXC, K7SS, K7WA, N0AX, N7EPD, N7LOX, N7RO, W7IIT, W7JEN, W7KJJ, W7NG, W7QN, W7TSQ, W7VIH, WA7UVJ, WA7VNI, WA0RJY Dear Fellow Contester: You'll be happy (and, dare I hope, honored) to know that the editorial staff of the Totem Tabloid has recognized you as one of the WWDXC's low power contesting mavins! We would like to extend a cordial invitation to have you join a tournament during the upcoming ARRL DX Contest (CW weekend). The tournament will be in the single band "unassisted" class - 20 meters - and will have a power limit of 100 watts. 20 meters was chosen since it is a pretty universal DX band and everyone should have a relatively good antenna for 20. Plus it will allow us old guys to get some sleep... These tournaments can be a lot of fun as we fight through the same pile-ups, find multipliers that our friends/opponents don't know about, and have a group of competitors that are friends, locals, and of generally equal skill levels. Each evening after 20 closes we can meet on packet, the club repeater, or 75m SSB (3835?) to exchange lies about our total QSOs and our total mults (this is optional!). This sort of local competition adds a lot of excitement to the contest experience. An appropriate trophy (hopefully something with "bare feet" and without a bowling ball...) will be awarded by the Totem Tabloid Editorial Staff (me) to the highest scorer. All participants will also receive a handsome unmounted certificate that is suitable for framing. Plus the losers will join together to buy the winner a hamburger, fries, and drink(s) of his choice at the Sloop Tavern before the March WWDXC monthly meeting (a per person cash outlay of from less than $1 up to a top of $3 depending on the number of entrants and appetite of the winner). Advance registration for the tournament is required! Please take a few seconds to mark the enclosed postcard with your decision regarding this event. Before the "Big Weekend" I will circulate a list of participating stations. I hope we'll see you in the pile-ups! 73, Jack Fleming, WA0RJY Totem Tabloid Editor --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- [THIS WAS PASTED ONTO THE BACK OF A POSTCARD (WITH POSTAGE) FOR THEIR REPLY .19 POSTAGE X 21 POSTCARDS = $3.99] My call is ______________________. Please check one: ___ YES! Sign me up for the tournament! ___ NO! Sorry, I'm too much of a weasel-livered low life to join the fun! In order to exchange lies and stories I would prefer that each evening, after 20 closes, we meet on (put in order of preference - 1st 2nd 3rd - use 0 if not possible from your QTH) : ___ DX Packetcluster ___ 147.00 Repeater ___ 3.835 MHz or ___ Forget it - I need sleep! --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- [THIS LETTER WAS SENT AS A FINAL PRE-TOURNAMENT NOTICE OF WHO WAS IN THE CONTEST AND A REMINDER OF THE RULES .29 POSTAGE X 16 LETTERS = $4.64] January 24, 1994 To: AA7FT, AA7RN, K7HBN, K7LXC, K7SS, K7WA, N0AX, N6MZ, N7EPD, N7LOX, N7RO, W7KJJ, W7QN, W7TSQ, W7VIH, WA0RJY Dear Brave Fellow Contester: Thanks for joining the 1994 Totem Tabloid sponsored WWDXC CW Tournament. A handsome (brand new!) plaque has been ordered and will be on display at the February 8, 1994 WWDXC meeting. The plaque is a knockout! It also looks like one thin dollar from each contestant should be enough to cover the cost of the winner's dinner at the Sloop before the March WWDXC meeting (and possibly go a long way toward a free dinner for the first runner-up!). The winner will get a complete dinner including hamburger (or substitute entree of choice), fries, and multiple beverages. The second place finisher will receive a burger (no cheese or bacon!), fries, and one beverage (or a prize equal to whatever funds remain after the winner's bill is paid - whichever is less). The difference in menu selection is to ensure competition for that top spot! Remember, we are in the 100 watt, unassisted, 20 meters single band category. No amplifiers! No sneaking peeks at packet! And no going to W7XR's super station QTH for the weekend! The concensus is that we should meet on 75 meters in the evenings after 20 closes. I propose that on the hour (8:00 pm?, 9:00 pm, 10:00 pm, etc.) and on the half hour (8:30 pm?, 9:30 pm, 10:30 pm, etc.) anyone interested in chatting about the contest stop by 3835 (if QRM - move DOWN to a clear spot). On the other hand, K7WA notes on his postcard that, "20 never closes!" Jim may be living in the past... We have a pair of distinguished "secret judges" who are not participating but who know the contesting game well. Any dispute will be resolved by them and their decision is final. If you have any questions, please send me a note or catch me at the next WWDXC meeting. 73, Jack Fleming, WA0RJY Totem Tabloid Editor-in-Chief Tournament Chairham --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- [THIS LETTER WAS SENT TO TWO "BIG GUNS" TO GET THEIR PARTICIPATION IN CASE OF RULES QUESTIONS - FORTUNATELY THEY WEREN'T NEEDED .29 POSTAGE X 2 LETTERS = $.58] January 24, 1993 NN7L, N7TT Dear Big Time Contesters: As you can see from the attached notices we are having a cw tournament during the upcoming ARRL DX contest for the 100 watt guys in the club. We are in desperate need of a pair of honorable responsible scrupulous unimpeachable distinguished judges to mediate any disputes that might arise. Your names came immediately to mind. Would you be willing to be the "secret judges" for this contest? It is very unlikely that your services will be needed - but you never know. Any disputes would be presented to you for an unbiased ruling. In cases where your votes are deadlocked at one against one, I would suggest that heads be a favorable outcome for the involved contester and tails be a negative outcome. If I don't hear from you I will assume that you are willing to take on the responsibility. If I do hear from you I will also assume that you are willing to take on the responsibility. And, in any case, since the identities of the "secret judges" are only known to the editorial staff of the Totem Tabloid (me!), I guess I can say whatever I want in case of a dispute and attribute it to the "secret judges". It's sort of like being the Wizard of Oz! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Sorry about that. I get a little carried away sometimes... In any case, thanks in advance. I hope your services are not needed, but would appreciate your assistance if the occasion arises. 73, Jack Fleming Totem Tabloid megalomanic Editor-in-Chief --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- [A FINAL LETTER TO ALL PARTICIPANTS SENT OUT AFTER THE CONTEST BUT BEFORE THE GALA AWARDS BANQUET AT A LOCAL TAVERN .29 POSTAGE X 18 LETTERS = $5.22] February 23, 1994 To: AA7FT, AA7PM, AA7RN, K7HBN, K7LXC, K7SS, K7WA, N0AX, N6MZ, N7EPD, N7LOX, N7RO, W7EJZ, W7JEN, W7KJJ, W7QN, W7VIH, WA7VIH, WA0RJY Dear Brave Fellow Contesters (and you wimps that didn't show up!): Wow! What a weekend! I know I had a great time running across everyone on the bands, meeting on 75 in the evening, and fielding telephone calls at home. I hope everyone else had as much fun. Maybe winning also makes it better... Conditions to Europe were as good as could be expected on Saturday morning. Somehow the QRM gods allowed me to sit on 14001.5 for most of an hour and run Europeans (my rate meter even edged over 100 a couple times!). I ended up with 58 QSOs in an hour. The big guys just didn't pinch me out like they usually do. Eventually N4AR pushed me from below and K2TR slid down from above and I had to QSY - but it was a good run that may have won the tournament. From then on both Ward and Brian were playing catch up (a very unusual position for me to be in...). Sunday afternoon was another story... I made 8 QSOs between Noon and 3:00 PM on Sunday... If it wasn't for the flurry of new multipliers (CO, HT, FY, 4U1) with an hour to go, this contest would have died "not with a bang, but a whimper." At one point late in the contest I lost the will to live. I knew that I was ahead of Ward by a few Qs and that he was ahead of me by a few mults. I desperately needed mults. Deperately. So there I am in the FY pileup calling fruitlessly for 10 minutes with about 45 minutes to go in the contest. I'm calling frantically. I listen to the stations the FY's replying to and call right on their frequency (sometimes he's listening a little high, sometimes low, apparently tuning with his RIT). I try to anticipate where he will listen next. I try tailending (not easy with my anaconda call). I try delaying my call in hopes that the last "RJY" would be in the clear. I try everything. A couple times I went away and looked for other mults but kept the frequency in memory. I tried breaking the monsterous HT1T pileup - not a chance. I returned to give the FY another try. No luck. I keep trying. Then I heard him say, "N0AX/7 59950" and Ward sent his exchange and was gone. One call and Ward extends his mult lead... As I said, I lost the will to live. I never worked the FY, but in the end it turned out all right (for me!) as my QSO lead was enough to edge out Ward on the final score. Pre-tournament favorites N7RO and K7SS weren't able to give the contest the full effort that would probably have won it for them. As it was, with part-time participation, N7RO managed to rack up the second most QSOs of all participants. Nice job! Thanks to everyone for participating. It was great fun. We'll do the same thing again next year with a minor rule change that disqualifies past winners from winning the plaque a second time (my chances of a repeat are slim anyhow...) - so we'll have a new winner each year. If you have any questions or comments for the Totem Tabloid, please send me a note on packet, internet (oolon@eskimo.com), or catch me at home at 206-361-2732. I'm definitely looking for some first hand accounts (before this weekend!) for the next issue of the Tabloid! Also be sure to attend the gala banquet at the Sloop Tavern on Tuesday, March 8th at 6:30 or so. SEND YOUR LOGS TO THE ARRL!!!!!! Thanks for participating and 73! Jack Fleming, WA0RJY Totem Tabloid Editor-in-Chief Tournament Chairham --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- PAGE BREAK --- [SENT ALONG WITH THE PREVIOUS LETTER AFTER THE CONTEST BUT BEFORE THE BANQUET] FINAL RESULTS WWDXC LOW POWER TOURNAMENT SEMI-OFFICIAL STATISTICS Call QSOs MULTs Points WA0RJY 428 79 101,436 N0AX 396 80 95,040 N7LOX 368 77 85,008 N7RO 400 69 82,800 W7JEN 232 66 45,936 W7KJJ 228 61 41,724 AA7RN 200 60 36,000 K7WA 203 57 34,713 WA7VNI 122 38 13,908 W7QN 116 39 13,572 N7EPD 94 35 9,870 W7VIH 54 29 4,698 AA7FT 10 10 300 AA7PM ? ? ? K7HBN ? ? ? K7LXC ? ? ? K7SS ? ? ? N6MZ ? ? ? W7EJZ ? ? ? Please send your scores to the ARRL so that we have a big listing in the 20 meter low power category! We probably have more entries here than in the entire history of the class!!!