SOTA Statement von der Bergfunkerseite
Geschrieben von dj2ay Saturday, 22. March 2008
We regret the decision of the OM in the UK.
The usage of the prominence on the landscape of a low mountain range leads to absurd dislocations in the list of mountains in the concerned region. The acceptance of SOTA is going to be non-existing. With this kind of slashed list of mountains is making ham radio from the mountains absolutely ludicrous. How are you going to explain to someone, that the well-known crest the „Schneekopf“ is no longer part of ham radio from the mountains.
By the way, since 1970 this crest has been a location for contests of one of the most successful crews for the VHF-, UHF-, as well as the SHF competitions, which are well known in Europe under DL0GTH.
We in Thuringia are not going to delete our list of mountains, instead we are going to preserve and expand it. We demand from the MT in the United Kingdom to delete this destructive change of rules for regions in the low mountain range immediately.
Since the beginning it was important for us in Thuringia to enable with a multiplicity of mountains all interested old man in the participation. We tried to grasp all crests in all regions of Thuringia to expand the participation in Thuringia. In the last four years the attendance has enhanced intensely. Every weekend and no matter what kind of weather is, there are always activators on their way. Until then some unused Frequencies were made alive again. Some old men together with his YL has rediscovered the hobby Amateur Radio. Ham radio from the mountains equals in Thuringia for lived companionship of old men while common activities and joy of Connection from the mountains.
Since the early beginning we added SOTA activities through the Thuringian Mountain Day (“Thüringer Bergtag”), the Thuringian Mountain Contest (“Thüringer Bergwettbewerb”) as well as through the Thuringian Mountain diploma (“Thüringer Bergdiplom”). At the present time we are working on the complete support and billing of these activities through an internet platform. The impending factual exclusion of the German low mountain range out of the SOTA program has encouraged us to go on with developing our own database solution and to force it. Within the bounds of a developing German Mountain Contest we are also ready to include lists of other regions, provided that there is an agreement between the regions in the DL.
73 and awdh from the mountains,
Roberto DJ2AY
Deputy chairman of Thuringia DARC
(and ex RM TH)
Thanks for passing this on, perhaps you could QSP my response back to Roberto!
The reasons for expanding the number of summits in your region, and your motivation for doing it as expounded above, are completely laudable, and I wish you every success with it.
The problem is that it is not within the spirit and aims of the SOTA award programme.
I can see no reason why your own programme based on your own criteria and with it’s own distinct identity should not happily co-exist with a SOTA Association based on our own criteria and ethos. In fact the two schemes could be complementary and lead to a whole that is greater than the sum of it’s parts. I look forward to news of developments, whatever way things go!
Having looked on Google Earth, I really cannot tell if Schneekopf (DM/TH-002) will still qualify as a SOTA summit using either a P150 or P100 rule.
However I can see some that have almost no prominence and feel that they most certainly do not qualify even under the P100 rule and in my opinion should therefore never have been accepted as SOTA summits.
Perhaps in hindsight the MT were mistaken to permit a rule that allowed any Association to define summits that did not meet either the original SOTA P150 rule or the P100 rule as permitted in some other associations.
I like Paul (G4MD) can see no reason why both SOTA and some other scheme with it’s own criteria and aims cannot co-exist.
Now in Belgium we have only 8 SOTA places. Everyone know, Belgium (ON-land) is a LOW summit countrie. If you want remain the 150 m rule … chance exists removing some summits in ON-land, DM-RP, ect … so we have nothing more left.
On 30-45 min. max. drive from my QTH lie several summits but of the 150 m rule the do not qualify. If the 100 m rule is also for Belgium, which would be beautiful …
Because of too expensive fuel prices, I will not drive longer distances.
For us (Nord-Belgium)it is now already min. 2 hours drive to the closest ON-summit and 3 hours drive to the closest F and DL-summits.(DM/RP)
I think that this is the end of the SOTA programme for us on the moment wen you remove the summits that do not satisfy to the rules.
Give ALL the LOW summit regions and countries the 100 m rule so that Belgium and other LOW summit regions and countries can obtain also for more sota places or stay on the list.
It would be beautiful that all high and low regions and countries get a chance to participate in the programme. Via the 100 m rule is that certainly possible.
Yes, in hindsight, it probably was a mistake for the MT to permit an association to add extra summits using its own rules. You have to bear in mind several factors. SOTA was in its infancy then, and the then MT would have been keen to embrace and encourage new associations without appearing to be obstructive. However, I’m sure they wouldn’t have anticipated the addition of summits that have, in some cases, even less than 25m prominence. And of course there was no Google Earth back then.
SOTA MT recognises that an amateur radio programme about summits, must be about real individual summits, as indeed it is already in most places. It also recognises that the original DM and DL ARMs (with the extra rules) were formally accepted into the Programme by th MT, and that is why a generous timescale (to 31 December 2008) is offered, and why all summits in question will be valid for activators, chasers and SWLs until then.
Luc,
As I understand it, the ON association was formulated on a P150 basis, and 8 qualifying summits were identified using P150 criteria. It now appears that one of them - ON/ON-002 - is a mistake, and will probably be deleted in the next update of the ARM. As far as I know, all other summits are valid P150 hills, and therefore will not be lost. Indeed, if your Association Manager makes a request to reclassify the association as P100, and that is granted, then ON could have more summits.
Hallo all,
Yesterday I deleted all my QSOs from the database,
and all first activations and more than 600 activation-Points.
Also all chaser points and all photos on flicr sota group.
Wherever two or more persons are locked in conversation there will always be confusion and misunderstanding. Realising this is the first step to wisdom. If more people realised this we might not have so many wars.
You want a perfect solution; there is no perfect solution. What has upset you is exactly the opposite to what was upsetting a lot of other people. It is time to learn that some poems don’t rhyme, and some stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what’s going to happen next.
There is no level playing field but the insistence that everyone plays to the same rules is essential. Imagine if George Best had decided he did not like the off side rule and given back all his medals and caps. Everyone would have laughed at him.
I urge everyone to pick up their teddies and rattles get back in their prams and just enjoy the great outdoors and SOTA.
I am very sorry to hear that you have decided to leave SOTA, Jens.
If at any time you decide to return you will be welcome.
SOTA is a challenge, although there are bound to be some easy summits SOTA was never intended to be too easy. The P150/P100 rules ensure that a SOTA activation is an achievement whatever the height of the summit. As you have decided that you prefer a lower level of achievement, may I wish you the best of good fortune in your hills?