March To WRTC 2010 Revs Up With Final Stretch of Qualifiers; CQ WW SSB Up First For World

By Jamie Dupree NS3T  radio-sport.net 
Posted October 13, 2008

This year's CQ WW DX Contests promise to be even more of a competitive flashpoint, as the the drive to qualify for the 2010 World Radiosport Team Championships in Russia moves into the final stretch.

Operators in the US and Canada have five more contests to gain qualifying points: both ends of CQ WW DX and the ARRL November Sweepstakes, along with next year's Russian DX Contest, the final qualifying test.

Outside W/VE, there are only three qualifying tests left: CQ WW SSB and CW plus the 2009 RDXC.

It has amateurs the world over rushing to finalize their WRTC plans.

"I'm planning to kick out the gang from ZY7C to make one more SOAB HP effort in CQ WW CW," said Luc Moreira PT7AG/PY8AZT, who trails PY2NY in the all-Brazil qualifying region SA #1.

The regional qualifying battles mean that even if you have little chance of winning your overall category, you can still get the top prize locally, and a big chunk of the 950 WRTC points available in CQ WW.

"Both weekends of the CQWW are very important," says Richard King K5NA, who still commands one of the qualifying slots in the NA #3 in the USA.

"Hopefully we can do well and lead the M/S scores for the W5-W0 region for WRTC qualification and earn that 855 points," said King's teammate Jim George N3BB, who is also in the running for a qualifying slot from NA #3.

Like many in the US and Canada, K5NA and N3BB are trying to crunch the numbers to see what the best contest schedule will be from late October to late November.

"I am not sure whether operating and even winning either mode of the ARRL Sweepstakes Contests will help me out point wise," King told radio-sport.net.

"The WRTC point structure is so low for those contests, they become non-factors."

King does have a point, and it's one that US and Canadian hams will have to evaluate in coming weeks. While the CQ WW tests are worth a maximum of 950 points, the max score from ARRL SS for WRTC points is 700.

By contrast, the Russian DX Contest is worth 910. The 2009 running of that test will be the final qualifying contest for WRTC 2010.

It doesn't take long to look at the radio-sport.net spreadsheets to see who has taken advantage of the big "950" from CQ WW.

In Europe, Toni Linden OH2UA has four 950 scores from the 2007 and 2008 CQ WW contests, courtesy of his wins at CU2A.

While Linden is back at CU2A this year, his scores won't be added to his WRTC total, because the Russian rules limit you to only four scores from outside of your home region.