[MiQP-Mail] 2017 MiQP Date
David Pruett
k8cc at comcast.net
Sat Feb 25 12:01:44 CST 2017
MiQPers:
The 2017 Michigan QSO Party is just seven weeks away, April 15-16,
2017. We hope everyone is making plans for get on the air for this
years' event.
One of the challenges which comes with holding an event in the Spring
(and particularly in April) is the possibility that Easter will fall on
the same weekend. The date of the Easter holiday shifts from year to
year based on factors not immediately obvious to the casual observer
(like me).
These are the circumstances for 2017. Easter is the day after MiQP.
Historically, this has had an impact on MiQP by lowering participation.
This situation for 2017 was pointed out to the MiQP chairman and
organizing committee late last summer, and it was suggested to shift the
date of the 2017 MiQP. April has five weekends in 2017, and it was
reported that the 2017 Florida QSO Party (which typically is held on the
weekend following MiQP) would occur a week later, creating an open
weekend (at least for 2017) after the regular MiQP date on the third
weekend in April.
The chairman polled the members of the committee and certain other MiQP
participants and observers (a total of 12 people in all) as to whether
the date of the 2017 MiQP should be shifted to avoid Easter. The
results of this informal poll were 3:1 in favor of keeping the regular
date for 2017, with most respondents expressing the opinion that keeping
the "regular" weekend, serving to "keep our spot", was more beneficial
than the potentially small boost for 2017.
The chairman also did a little research, examining the MiQP results from
recent years in which MiQP and Easter fell on the same weekend vs.
"normal" years. The results of this research were a little
surprising. While the number of MiQP entries received in a year where
MiQP and Easter fell on the same weekend were reduced significantly, the
negative effect on the number of QSOs made by those MiQPers who DID get
on the air was much less. Using the most recent MiQP/Easter convergence
(2014) and the years before and after for comparison:
2013 2014 2015
# of entries 294 190 194
avg QSOs made 153 126 131
avg operating time5:08 4:59 5:03
So, from the pre-Easter year to an Easter year. the number of entries
dropped 35.4% while the average number of QSOs made dropped 16.4%.
Average time spent on the air in the contest dropped only 3%.
So while Easter does have an impact on MiQP, the effects do not ruin the
contest significantly for those participants who DO choose to get on the
air. For all of these reasons, the MiQP Committee decided that the 2017
MiQP would remain on it's "regular" weekend, April 15-16, 2017, and this
date has been posted on the MiQP home page since last fall.
We recognize that Easter means different things to different people.
With Good Friday on Friday, and Easter on Sunday, it makes a busy
weekend depending how you choose to celebrate it. But MiQP is Saturday
only, so it IS possible to operate MiQP without interfering with the
holiday weekend if you so choose. It is our hope that by bringing this
to everyone's attention seven weeks before the contest, more people will
find a way to fit MiQP into their plans for the holiday weekend. We
hope everyone will get on the air on April 15 and make some QSOs in the
2017 Michigan QSO Party.
73,
Dave Pruett, K8CC
Chairman, Michigan QSO Party
k8cc at comcast.net
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