Red & Yellow Cards Are Back, As Organizers Vow Continued Cheating Crackdown In CQ WW

By Jamie Dupree NS3T  radio-sport.net 
Posted October 25, 2010

After a two year cheating crackdown that has won wide support in the worldwide contesting community, organizers of the CQ WW contest are making clear that their new penalty system is here to stay.

"If you submit a very competitive log, you can count on it being checked in detail," said CQ WW Director Bob Cox K3EST.

In a webinar sponsored by the Potomac Valley Radio Club, Cox said the FIFA-style system of "Red" and "Yellow" cards instituted last year sends the right message about cheating.

"The yellow card is given for an infraction of the rules," Cox said, like not claiming the right category. "A Red card is given for more egregious violation."

Two other contests have also joined with CQ WW in using the Red/Yellow Card system, agreeing to extend DQ's to more than just their contest.

"If an entrant receives a red card in any cooperating contest, it will be recognized by all," said Cox. "If you are DQ'd in EUHFC, you won't be eligible in CQ WW."

"We hope that this system grows," Cox said, quietly urging other contests to join this new cheating penalty regime.

For the 2009 CQ WW SSB Contest, there were 7 Red Cards and 4 Yellow Cards handed out; in the CW test, there were 3 Red Cards and 1 Yellow Card.

Also, a number of operators were moved into the Assisted category. (For more on those decisions, see the sidebar on the right.)

The public penalties are a major change from past operations of the CQ WW Contest Committee, which often addressed these matters in private.

More Awards For Assisted Entries

Looking for ways to reduce contest cheating in CQ WW, organizers have decided to dramatically increase the awards that are offered to those who enter the Assisted category, hoping that will keep them from trying to cheat and enter their log as Un-Assisted.

"We will now list in the results all Assisted Low Power and QRP entries in the results," said Cox, "and they're available for all awards also."

"This greatly expands the Assisted category awards program."

The hope of the CQ WW Contest Committee is simple - use the extra awards to entice people to enter their Assisted entry in the Assisted category, whether in High Power, Low Power or QRP.

"When you submit your log, claim the correct category and obey the rule limitations for your category," said CQ WW Committee member Doug Zweibel KR2Q.

"It's pretty easy to do."

"Most of all the contest is about fun, and that's what we want to emphasize," said K3EST.

Observer Program Future Unclear

While Cox was very clear about penalties for cheating and the expansion of awards for the Assisted category, it was not as clear what is happening with the CQ WW Observer Program, which last year was used to monitor certain high scoring entrants for possible cheating.

"In 2010, we will again employ observers," Cox told the PVRC webinar, though he did not say how many or what contesters might be targeted this year.

"These people are a select group and essentially involve not more than 100 out of 12,000 entries," he added.

When asked later, "Is the observer program still in play for this year?" Cox said yes, but acknowledged that CQ WW is still "trying to sort things out."

Among the unknowns, who will be funding the trips made by observers. Last year, it was Alexander Teimurazov 4L5A, but that source of funding seemingly dried up when Teimurazov had a very public falling out with the contest committee over the work of one observer.

CQ WW officials have said a different funding source would be used, but as the CQ WW SSB contest arrives, no announcements have been made on any changes.