Helvetia Contest

Helvetia Contest

The Helvetia Contest is open to Radio Amateurs and Short Wave Listeners in Switzerland and worldwide. The following regulations and the “General Rules and Regulations for HF Contests” are to be followed.

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USKA Web Site
RESULTS
 1. Date and contest period:
The last full weekend in April.Saturday 1300 UTC until Sunday 1300 UTC
26 April 2003, 1300 UTC to 27 April 2003, 1300 UTC )

 2. Object:
Swiss participants make contacts with both Swiss and foreign stations.Foreign participants make contacts with Swiss stations.

 3. Entry categories:
3.1. Participants in Switzerland

  • Single-operator stations, telegraphy (emission type A1A).
  • Single-operator stations, phone (emission type J3E).
  • Single-operator stations, mixed: phone (emission type J3E) + telegraphy (emission type A1A).
    At least 10% of all contacts must be made in each mode (example: 90% CW and 10% SSB).
  • Single Operator QRP (telegraphy, maximum 5 watts output; phone, maximum 10watts output).
  • Single-operator stations, digital: PSK31, RTTY (emission type J3E).
  • Multi-operator stations, digital: PSK31, RTTY (emission type J3E): The number of operators is unrestricted.
    Location: Home station or portable. Only one call sign may be used. The operators cannot operate in any other category.
  • Multi-operator stations, telegraphy/phone: The number of operators is unrestricted.
    Emission types: telegraphy (A1A) and phone (J3E).
    Location: Home station or portable. Only one call sign may be used. The operators cannot operate in any other category.
  • Multi-operator stations, telegraphy: Number of operators is unrestricted.
    Emission type: telegraphy (A1A).
    Location: Home station or portable. Only one call sign may be used. The operators cannot operate in any other category.
  • Shortwave listener.

3.2. Participants outside Switzerland

  • Single-operator stations, telegraphy (emission type A1A)
    and/or phone (emission type J3E).
  • Single-operator stations, QRP (telegraphy 5 watt maximum output; phone, 10 watt maximum output).
  • Single-operator stations, digital: PSK31, RTTY (emission type J3E).
  • Multi-operator stations, telegraphy (emission type A1A)
    and/or phone (emission type J3E).
  • Multi-operator stations, digital: PSK31, RTTY (emission type J3E).
  • Shorwave listeners.

 4. Operating bands:
1.8 MHz (telegraphy only), 3.5, 7, 14, 21, 28 MHz.Contacts are to be made within the following band segments:

Frequencies
Telegraphy Digital Phone
1810 – 1838 kHz No contacts No contacts
3500 – 3560 kHz 3580 – 3600 kHz 3600 – 3650 kHz
3700 – 3800 kHz
7000 – 7030 kHz 7035 – 7045 kHz 7050 – 7100 kHz
14000 – 14060 kHz 14070 – 14089 kHz 14125 – 14300 kHz
21000 – 21125 kHz 21080 – 21120 kHz 21200 – 21350 kHz
28000 – 28120 kHz 28050 – 28150 kHz 28300 – 29000 kHz

 5. Contest exchange:
The contest exchange required for every contact consists of the signal report (RS or RST) and the running minimum three-figure serial number.Swiss stations add the abbreviation of the canton where the station is located (e.g.58001ZH, 589001ZH).
Contacts with incomplete signal reports, missing serial numbers or a missing and/or incorrect canton are void.

 6. Scoring of contacts, multipliers:

6.1. Participants in Switzerland
Contacts with European stations:   1 point
Contacts with non-European stations:   3 points
Multipliers: Swiss cantons and DXCC countries/entities
(including Switzerland) per band:
  1 point
6.2. Participants outside Switzerland
Contacts with Swiss stations:   3 points
Multipliers: Swiss cantons per band:   1 point
6.3. Shortwave listeners
Monitored contacts:   3 points
Multipliers: see Paragraphs 6.1 and 6.2:   1 point

 7. Final score:
The final score is the total sum of the QSO points, multiplied by the total number of multipliers.

 8. Rest periods for single-operator stations:
Single operators must rest for a period of at least six (6) hours, which may be divided into a maximum of two (2) periods of any length; the beginning and end times of the required rest periods are to be noted on the summary sheet. With electronic logs, the rest periods are to be entered in the soapbox section. Additional rest periods are allowed and can be taken at will.

 9. Certificates and prizes:

  • The three (3) highest scorers in Switzerland in each category will receive a certificate.The first place station in each category may also receive an additional prize.
  • For foreign participants, rankings will be determined for each DXCC country/entity as well as each call sign district of the USA and Canada. In the complete rankings, participants in multiop stations from outside Switzerland will be especially highlighted. The determination of the call sign district in the USA is the actual state of the union in which the station is located.The first place station in each category in every country and every call sign district of the USA and Canada will receive a certificate.

 Logs:
Deadline: within 31 days (by postmark) after the contest.E-mail logs to:

E-mail:
contest@uska.ch

Paper logs should be sent to:

Mailing address:
Dominik Bugmann, HB9CZF
Zuerichstrasse 104 A
CH-8123 EBMATINGEN
SWITZERLAND


USKA SW Contest Rules March 2003
General Rules and Regulations for HF Contests

 1. Single-operator stations:
All participants must use their own personal call sign, and during the entire contest must themselves perform all operating functions (including station operation, making contacts, keeping logs, dupe checking, and operating in the proper band segments).The operator may enlist the assistance of third parties for station setup and tear down, maintenance of power supplies and generators; dupe checking after conclusion of the contest, and the preparation of final logs and other contest documents for submittal.

 2. Location:
The station location must be within Switzerland; it may not be changed during the contest.

 3. Call sign:
Participants in Field Day or National Mountain Day, must add the /P suffix to their normal call sign.

 4. Verification of contest exchanges:
No cross-band contacts are allowed.Contacts that can be confirmed with other submitted logs but that have incomplete or incorrect call signs for the contacted station or that contain incorrect signal reports shall not be valid.

 5. Duplicate contacts:
The same station, regardless of its location, can be included for points only once per band.Duplicate contacts may be left in the log as long as they are properly marked and are not counted for points. For each duplicate contact that is counted for points, a deduction of five-fold the scored points will be taken.

 6. Shortwave listeners:
Swiss shortwave listeners (SWLs) can take part in all contests; foreign SWLs may participate only in the Helvetia Contest. The rules and regulations must be applied accordingly.Contest contacts can be monitored whereby the SWL must make note of the date and time (UTC), call sign of the monitored station, band, emission type, signal exchange of the monitored station including serial number and Swiss canton abbreviation, and call sign of the contacted station. In any five (5) consecutively logged contacts, the same call sign may appear only once.

 7. Station equipment:

7.1. Single-operator stations
Backup equipment may be held in reserve; however only one (1) transmitter may be use at a time.Transmitters and receivers are to be set up and operated at the same location and may not be operated by remote control.
7.2. Multi-operator stations
As many stations as desired may be operated. However, only one (1) signal may be propagated at a time. The multiplier station may work only new multipliers (Swiss cantons and DXCC countries).Transmitters and receivers are to be erected at the same location and may not be operated by remote control.
7.3. DX clusters
The use of DX clusters is permitted.

 8. Logs:

8.1. Paper logs
A separate log sheet shall be kept for each band, and logs shall be written on only one side of the page. The following columns shall be shown on each page:

  1. Date (UTC)
  2. Time (UTC)
  3. Call sign of the contacted station
  4. Emission type
  5. Sent signal report/exchange
  6. Received station’s signal report/exchange
  7. Point(s) credit for the contact
  8. Multipliers (noted by DXCC country/entity prefix or Swiss canton abbreviation)

At the heading of each log page, the call sign of the participant and the band are to be entered. The log pages must be maintained in a legible manner; contacts that are not perfectly readable will be deleted by the contest judges.

8.2. Electronic logs
Electronic logs are mandatory for the Helvetia Contest, National Field Day and theChristmas Contest when the participant has 100 or more contacts. Electronic logs are to be submitted as complete chronological logs, not separated and scored by individual bands.Contest files can be submitted to contest@uska.ch in the following file formats: STF, N6TR.dat, K1EA.all, SD.log, YP-log, Cabrillo, QW, and for digital modes WF1B, MixW2, Alfa and WinPSK. In addition, a summary sheet must be submitted with the log file. The summary sheet is not required if an STF or Cabrillo file is submitted. The information about the station and call sign of the operator, which are normally contained in the summary sheet, must be shown in the header of the STF or Cabrillolog file. Any rest period for single-operator stations must be detailed in the soapbox section. As the file name, use <Call sign>.log, <Call sign>.sum or <Call sign>.stf. File designations such as H2602 or the like will not be accepted! In the subject line of the email, the participant must include the contest name plus the call sign used (for example: Helvetia 2003 HB9A.log). So that contact data can be exchanged with other European regional organizations for evaluation, the .STF file format (the so-called Stuetzerbacher format) developed by the DARC with adjustments for Swiss characteristics, has been adopted. Upon request, the USKA HF Traffic Manager will supply an exact description of the specifications for the .STF contest data format.

 9. Log submittals:
Log pages are to be submitted to the USKA HF Traffic Manager together with the completely filled out summary sheet within 31 days (by postmark) after the contest. For electronic logs, the date of receipt on the robot contest@uska.ch is the deciding factor.Log pages from the standard USKA logbook can be used.
The summary sheets obligatory with paper logs are available from the HF Traffic Manager upon supply of a SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope), or they can be downloaded from the USKA homepage.

 10. Operator qualifications/eligibility:
Only USKA members will be listed in the final official results. For multi-operator stations, at least the owner of the used call sign must be an USKA member.Foreign participants located outside Switzerland are excluded from this regulation for theHelvetia Contest.

 11. Disqualification:
Violations of any amateur radio regulations or of the contest regulations, unsportsmanlike conduct, or continuous poor transmitting quality can lead to the disqualification of the competitor. If the violation(s) are not considered to be serious, a caution warning alone may be issued.The HF Traffic Manager may perform unannounced inspections of contest stations. Inspections can also be delegated to members of the board.

 12. Jury:
A jury consisting of three (3) members of the USKA Executive Committee will determine any penalty based upon the statements of the log checkers, and if necessary will make its own determinations, of any incorrect classification or possible disqualification of a competitor.The decisions of the jury regarding disqualifications are final. The HF Traffic Manager makes any decisions with regard to warnings issued to participants.

Date of info: 24 April, 2003
Changed postal address for logs: 19 May, 2005
Source: USKA Web Site
Source: Hermann Stein, HB9CRV
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Abbreviations of the 26 cantons
AG AI AR BE BL BS FR
GE GL GR JU LU NE NW
OW SG SH SO SZ TG TI
UR VD VS ZG ZH