The CQ DX Marathon!
THE PREMIER ANNUAL DX CONTEST!!!!
THE 2012 DX MARATHON IS NOW UNDERWAY!!!!!!
Starting January 1 of each year, the DX Marathon is the perfect answer for the DX-er who needs that extra incentive to get on the air every day! Simply work as many countries and CQ Zones as you can in each calendar year, regardless of the band or mode. Each country and zone counts only once, so you can concentrate on working new ones rather than working the same ones on multiple bands or modes. Awards are given for top scores in 3 modes and 8 bands plus low power/small antennas. See complete contest rules for 2012 here. A copy of the 2012 Score Sheet can be downloaded here. Details on awards can be found here. Need more information? Contact us at: info@dxmarathon.com
The 2011 DX Marathon is now over. Please submit your Score Sheets by 2359Z January 31, 2012. The official submission form and information can be found here. Completed Score Sheets should be sent as an attachment to scores@dxmarathon.com. Results of the 2011 DX Marathon will be published in a future issue of CQ Magazine and then posted on this website 30 days after publication. High Claimed scores will be published on this web site in early February.
2010 Logs Due by January 31, 2011
This year’s DX Marathon ends December 31, so it’s time to go back through your log, see what you have worked, enter it onto the DX Marathon spreadsheet and then update it with any additional contacts through the end of the year. Don’t forget the new countries created from the former Netherlands Antilles recently announced by CQ magazine! (Note: These islands can count for a “double-dip” if you contacted them both before and after October 10, when their status changed.) See rule 5 in the main text or the DX Marathon website for details on how and where to submit your log. Remember, log submission dead- line for the 2010 CQ DX Marathon is January 31, 2011
Announcing:
The 2011 CQ DX Marathon
BY JOHN SWEENEY,* K9EL/VA3CDX
The 2011 edition of the CQ DX Marathon begins at 0000 UTC on January 1, 2011 and runs through 2359 UTC on December 31, 2011. The goal, as always, is to work as many countries and CQ zones as possible at least once during the calendar year. There are no changes to the rules this year. Once again we will use a downloadable Microsoft Excel® template (or equivalent) which may be filled in and e- mailed to a special address as your log entry. Conversion pro- grams are available to automatically populate the template from your logging program. See the DX Marathon website for details. Here are the 2011 rules for the CQ DX Marathon:
Rules, 2011 CQ DX Marathon
Activity period:
The CQ DX Marathon is a year-long activ- ity, beginning at 000 UTC January 1 and ending at 2359 UTC December 31. Each year’s event is separate.
Frequencies:
Any authorized amateur frequency may be used. Contacts through repeaters or satellites are not allowed for credit, nor are contacts with maritime or aero- nautical mobile stations. All contacts must be made entirely over amateur radio frequencies—i.e., Echolink-type contacts do not count.
Modes:
Any authorized amateur mode may be used. Three modes will be recognized in the DX Marathon: CW, SSB, and Digital. All modes other than CW and SSB will count as Digital. Submissions with all contacts utilizing a sin- gle mode will be recognized.
Categories:
All awards are for single operator only. Entries with two or more callsigns will only count as a single entry if all contacts were made by the same (single) operator at the same station using the same antennas. There are two entry classes, “Formula” and “Unlimited.”
Formula:
An entrant may choose one of two options in this class: (1) All contacts must be made with a maximum output power of 10 watts, regardless of band or mode; or (2) the operator may run a maximum of 100 watts output to a sim- ple antenna, such as a vertical or dipole (see the appendix later on in these rules for further rules on antennas used in either option for Formula class). An operator in Formula class must select QRP (10 watts or less) or 100 watts and limited antennas at the beginning of the year’s DX Marathon, and may not switch between entry modes during the year. All contacts must be made without assistance of any sort, includ- ing, but not limited to, lists, passes, or use of higher power or prohibited antennas to initially secure the contact. Use of spotting nets such as a DX Cluster® is allowed.
Unlimited:
Any antenna may be used, along with any power level for which the operator is licensed. Use of spotting nets such as DX Cluster® is allowed.
Scoring:
Each country worked is worth one point. Each CQ zone worked is worth one point. The total score is the sum of zones and countries worked, on any mode and any authorized band. There are no multipliers of any kind. Each country and zone count only once. A single QSO may count for both a country and a zone. If in the course of the year you work 238 countries and 37 zones, your score is 275. If you work all 40 zones and 150 countries, your score is 190. The CQ DX Countries List and the CQ Zone List constitute the official lists. The lists are available on the DX Marathon web site. In the case of ties, the operator whose last scoring con- tact was earlier chronologically will be judged the winner. Decisions of the Marathon Manager are final.
Submissions:
Submissions must be made electronically, via e-mail to <scores@dxmarathon.com>. A Microsoft Excel® template into which contacts may be entered is available for download from the CQ DX Marathon website at <http://www. dxmarathon.com>. The website also provides other options for those without access to Excel®. All scores must be re- ceived by January 31 following the close of each DX Marathon.
Verification:
QSLs are not required. The operator is expected to claim contacts only from stations the operator has every reason to believe are legitimate, and only to claim contacts in which an accurate two-way exchange was clear- ly accomplished (see Appendix for further explanation). Scores will be adjusted by the DX Marathon committee for claimed contacts with pirates or any station not considered legitimate. Submissions may be penalized or voided in cases of fraud or poor sportsmanship. Submissions that do not pro- vide clear descriptions of Formula class antennas to show that the antennas meet the Formula class antenna rules may be re-classified to Unlimited class. Decisions of the Marathon
Submissions must be made electronically, via e-mail to <scores@dxmarathon.com>. A Microsoft Excel® template into which contacts may be entered is available for download from the CQ DX Marathon website at <http://www. dxmarathon.com>. The website also provides other options for those without access to Excel®. All scores must be re- ceived by January 31 following the close of each DX Marathon.
Verification:
QSLs are not required. The operator is expected to claim contacts only from stations the operator has every reason to believe are legitimate, and only to claim contacts in which an accurate two-way exchange was clear- ly accomplished (see Appendix for further explanation). Scores will be adjusted by the DX Marathon committee for claimed contacts with pirates or any station not considered legitimate. Submissions may be penalized or voided in cases of fraud or poor sportsmanship. Submissions that do not pro- vide clear descriptions of Formula class antennas to show that the antennas meet the Formula class antenna rules may be re-classified to Unlimited class. Decisions of the Marathon
Manager are final.
Clubs:
Clubs are strongly encouraged to use the frame- work of this contest for intramural and regional competitions. Claimed Scores:
Competitors are encouraged to submit claimed scores to the DX Marathon website throughout the year. The claims will be updated regularly and posted on the website.
Clubs are strongly encouraged to use the frame- work of this contest for intramural and regional competitions. Claimed Scores:
Competitors are encouraged to submit claimed scores to the DX Marathon website throughout the year. The claims will be updated regularly and posted on the website.
Results:
The final listing of official scores will be posted on the DX Marathon website after the annual summary of the winning scores and details is published in CQ magazine.
The final listing of official scores will be posted on the DX Marathon website after the annual summary of the winning scores and details is published in CQ magazine.
Awards:
Certificates: Certificates will be issued to the winners from each CQ zone and each CQ country. Where there is sufficient activity, additional certificates may be issued for other high scorers or for scores using a single mode.
Plaques:
The CQ DX Marathon Committee will award plaques to the top scorer in each class. Additional sponsors are welcome.
The CQ DX Marathon Committee will award plaques to the top scorer in each class. Additional sponsors are welcome.
In all cases, the rulings of the CQ DX Marathon Committee and the CQ DX Marathon Manager are final.
Appendix
Formula Class antennas, option 1:
Operators selecting the 10-watt option are limited to antennas on a single tower and whose height does not exceed 65 feet or 20 meters above ground elevation, within 330 feet or 100 meters of the tower base. Wire antennas may also be used but must meet the criteria of the 100-watt option, and may be tower-supported at only one point.
Operators selecting the 10-watt option are limited to antennas on a single tower and whose height does not exceed 65 feet or 20 meters above ground elevation, within 330 feet or 100 meters of the tower base. Wire antennas may also be used but must meet the criteria of the 100-watt option, and may be tower-supported at only one point.
Formula Class antennas, option 2:
Antennas for opera- tors choosing the 100-watt option must be either simple ver- ticals or wire antennas lacking significant gain. No arrays are allowed, whether vertical or horizontal, nor are long wires exceeding 130 feet or 40 meters, except on 80 and 160 meters. The base of vertical antennas used must not be more than 33 feet or 10 meters higher than the station floor and may not exceed 65 feet or 20 meters in total height. Dipoles or other wire antennas must not be more than 60 feet above ground. Yagis, quads, or tower mounted antennas (except wire antennas meeting the height limits above) may not be used in this category.
Antennas for opera- tors choosing the 100-watt option must be either simple ver- ticals or wire antennas lacking significant gain. No arrays are allowed, whether vertical or horizontal, nor are long wires exceeding 130 feet or 40 meters, except on 80 and 160 meters. The base of vertical antennas used must not be more than 33 feet or 10 meters higher than the station floor and may not exceed 65 feet or 20 meters in total height. Dipoles or other wire antennas must not be more than 60 feet above ground. Yagis, quads, or tower mounted antennas (except wire antennas meeting the height limits above) may not be used in this category.
Contacts:
Each contact for a claimed country or zone must be a solid contact. The station claiming a contact with anoth- er station is expected to have had his or her callsign fully and accurately received and transmitted by the other station, and to have copied his/her own call being correctly sent by the other station. For example, K2MGA may not claim credit for a QSO with a DX station who had his call as K3MGA, even though in many cases the DX station would QSL the contact with the correction made (after receiving a card from K2MGA, realizing the error and correcting his/her log). For a contact to count, both stations must correctly copy all of both callsigns.
Each contact for a claimed country or zone must be a solid contact. The station claiming a contact with anoth- er station is expected to have had his or her callsign fully and accurately received and transmitted by the other station, and to have copied his/her own call being correctly sent by the other station. For example, K2MGA may not claim credit for a QSO with a DX station who had his call as K3MGA, even though in many cases the DX station would QSL the contact with the correction made (after receiving a card from K2MGA, realizing the error and correcting his/her log). For a contact to count, both stations must correctly copy all of both callsigns.
http://dxmarathon.com/ContestRules2011/index.htm
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