Contest Sections 2024

UKO (UK and CD Entrants Open)
.
Standard licence conditions and no antenna restrictions

UKL (UK and CD Entrants Low Power)
.
The power output must be not more than 100W PEP at the final output stage or external amplifier connection to the antenna. Only one antenna may be used. Stacked, bayed and slot antennas are not allowed. Backfire or parabolic dish type antennas must not exceed 2 metres in diameter.

Sweeper (VHF NFD Overall Sweeper Results)
. VHF NFD Sweepers

SO (Single Op Others)
. Single Operator stations NOT operating from the main station address as shown on their licence validation document.

SF (Single Op Fixed)
. Single Operator stations operating from the main station address as shown on their licence validation document.

SAR (SHF UKAC Restricted)
.
The power output at the final output stage or external amplifier connection to the antenna must be no more than 25W on 2.3 GHz, no more than 10W on 3.4 and no more than 5W on 5.7 GHz & 10 GHz.
No antenna restrictions.

SAO (SHF UKAC Open )
.
Standard licence conditions and no antenna restrictions, the power output must be greater than 25W on 2.3GHz, more than 10W on 3.4 and more than 5W on 5.7GHz and 10GHz.

R (Restricted Section of VHF NFD)
.
(i) The power output of any band must not exceed 100W PEP at the transmitter, except on 4m where output power is restrcited to 50W

(ii) The height of any part of the antenna's driven element must not exceed 10 metres above ground level.

(iii) Only one antenna per band may be used (i.e. no stacked, bayed or colinear arrays or switching between two or more antennas). A slot fed Yagi or Quad antenna is not permitted. Dish or Backfire antennas must not exceed 2m diameter.

(iv) Operate on up to 5 bands from the following list, only the best 4 normalised scores will count to the final total.

50MHz (6m) 1400 to 2200 Saturday (all mode)

70MHz (4m) 0800 to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

144MHz (2m) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

432MHz (70cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

1.3GHz (23cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

Stations entering in this section must use the /P callsign suffix.

Open (Open section of VHF NFD)
.
(i) Maximum output power as permitted by standard full licence conditions.

(ii) General rules apply

(iii) Operate on any bands from the following list, but only the best 4 normalised scores will count to the final total:

50MHz (6m) 1400 to 2200 Saturday (all mode)

70MHz (4m) 0800 to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

144MHz (2m) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

432MHz (70cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

1.3GHz (23cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

Stations entering in this section must use the /P callsign suffix.

O (Open)
. All multi operator stations. Single Operator stations who are NOT operating from the main station address as shown on their licence validation document, but only if there is no SO section in the contest.

Non UK
. Non UK entrants

MS (Single Transmitter Section of VHF NFD)
.
(i) Open to Portable Stations Only

(ii) All antennas must be installed on a single mast and only one antenna for each band may be installed on that mast. Backfire or parabolic dish type antennas must not exceed 2 metres in diameter. No stacked or bayed arrays are permitted. The maximum height for any part of the driven element of any antenna is 12 metres above ground level. Note: a mast of greater than 12 metres in height is permitted as long as the antenna height restriction is complied with.

(iii) Operate on up to 3 bands, however simultaneous transmision on more than one band at a time is not allowed. The chosen bands must be selected during registration and operation on any other bands is not allowed. Indicated output powers are PEP measured at the transmitter. All 3 normalised scores will count towards the final total:

50MHz (6m) 1400 to 2200 Saturday (all modes 100W maximum output power)

70MHz (4m) 0800 to 1400 Sunday (all modes 50W maximum output power)

144MHz (2m) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all modes 100W maximum output power)

432MHz (70cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all modes 50W maximum output power)

1.3GHz (23cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all modes 10W maximum output power)

NOTE: Single band entries are not valid for this section and other than the selected entry bands, operation on any other band or bands is not permitted, even for the purposes of talk-back.

(iv) Operation for no more than 16 hours out of the 24 hours on 2m, 70cm and 23cm. Any break must last for at least 1 hour.

Stations entering in this section must use the /P callsign suffix.
Entries in this Section cannot form part of an entry in the Mix and Match Section.
See FAQ list http://www.rsgbcc.org/vhf/rules/2024/multisinglefaq.shtml

M (Mix and Match Section of VHF NFD)
.
7.4 Mix and Match (M)

(i) A group can elect to place different bands into Restricted, Low-Power or Open sections. E.g. 4m in Restricted, 2m and 70cm in Open, and 23cm in Low Power. This decision must be made at registration time. Only three stations can be in the same section (e.g. 6m, 4m and 2m in the Open section, 70cm in the Restricted section). Only the best 4 normalised scores will count to the final total.

(ii) Individual band entry will be tabulated in the appropriate main section, and a normalised score for the band produced on this basis.

(iii) The sum of the normalised scores will appear in a separate Mix and Match section table.

(iv) Operate on up to 5 bands from the following list:

50MHz (6m) 1400 to 2200 Saturday (all mode)

70MHz (4m) 0800 to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

144MHz (2m) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

432MHz (70cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

1.3GHz (23cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

(v) Note that 2m, 70cm or 23cm stations entered in the Low Power section may be operated for no more than 16 hours during the contest period. Each rest period must last at least 1 hour.

Stations entering in this section must use the /P callsign suffix.

Local
. This Section is for Local Clubs

LP (Single Operator, Fixed, 25W - Single Antenna)
.
This section is open to single operator fixed stations using 25W or less output and a single antenna.
When applied to the VHF Championship, if a station enters some contests with high power or extra antennas, and some with low power and a single antenna, only the low power, single antenna scores will count towards the championship.

L (Low Power Section of VHF NFD)
.
(i) The power output on any band must not exceed 25W PEP at the transmitter, except on 4m where ther power must be restricted to 10W.

(ii) The height of any part of the antenna's driven element must not exceed 10 metres above ground level.

(iii) Only one antenna per band may be used (i.e. no stacked, bayed,slot or colinear arrays or switching between two or more antennas). Dish or Backfire antennas must not exceed 2m diameter.

(iv) Operate on up to 3 bands from the following list:

50MHz (6m) 1400 to 2200 Saturday (all mode)

70MHz (4m) 0800 to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

144MHz (2m) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

432MHz (70cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

1.3GHz (23cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

(v) Each band may be operated for no more than 16 hours (except for 6m and 4m: see 7.3 (iv) above) during the contest period. Each rest period must last at least 1 hour.

Stations entering in this section must use the /P callsign suffix.

ITR (Intermediate Licensees)
.
Intermediate Licensees only, also the power output must be not more than 50W PEP at the final output stage or external amplifier connection to the antenna. No antenna restrictions.

General
. This Section is for General Clubs

FSR (Fixed Station Sweepers Restricted)
.
(i) Open to fixed stations only. (See Section 3 of general rules for definition)

(ii) Scoring is 1 point per kilometre for each QSO.

(iii) The final score on each band will be the number of points multiplied by the number of QSOs made with stations in the list of "VHF NFD Registrations" on that band and who are active during the contest.
The list of registered stations can be found at http://www.rsgbcc.org/cgi-bin/vhfposted.pl?Contest=VHF%20NFD%20Registration

(iv) The power output on any band must not exceed 100W PEP at the transmitter, except on 4m where output is restricted to 50W. Only one antenna per band may be used (i.e. no stacked, bayed,slot or colinear arrays or switching between two or more antennas). Dish or Backfire antennas must not exceed 2m diameter.

(v) Operate on up to 5 bands from the following list.

50MHz (6m) 1400 to 2200 Saturday (all mode)

70MHz (4m) 0800 to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

144MHz (2m) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

432MHz (70cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

1.3GHz (23cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

(vi) An award will be made to the leading Sweeper on each band and additionally bronze, silver and gold awards for contacting 50, 75 and 90% of registered NFD stations.

FSO (Fixed Station Sweepers Open )
.
(i) Open to fixed stations only. (See Section 3 of general rules for definition)

(ii) Scoring is 1 point per kilometre for each QSO.

(iii) The final score on each band will be the number of points multiplied by the number of QSOs made with stations in the list of "VHF NFD Registrations" on that band and who are active during the contest.
The list of registered stations can be found at http://www.rsgbcc.org/cgi-bin/vhfposted.pl?Contest=VHF%20NFD%20Registration

(iv) Maximum output power as permitted by standard full licence conditions. No antenna restrictions.

(v) Operate on up to 5 bands from the following list.

50MHz (6m) 1400 to 2200 Saturday (all mode)

70MHz (4m) 0800 to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

144MHz (2m) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

432MHz (70cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

1.3GHz (23cm) 1400 Saturday to 1400 Sunday (all mode)

(vii) An award will be made to the leading Sweeper on each band and additionally bronze, silver and gold awards for contacting 50, 75 and 90% of registered NFD stations.

FND (Foundation Licensees)
.
Foundation Licensees only, also the power output must be not more than 25W at the final output stage or external amplifier connection to the antenna. No antenna restrictions.

FLL (Full Licensees)
.
The power output must be not more than 50W PEP at the final output stage or external amplifier connection to the antenna. No antenna restrictions.

EUO (Non-UK Entrants Open)
.
Standard licence conditions and no antenna restrictions

EUL (Non-UK Entrants Low Power)
.
The power output must be not more than 100W PEP at the final output stage or external amplifier connection to the antenna. Only one antenna may be used. Stacked, bayed and slot antennas are not allowed. Backfire or parabolic dish type antennas must not exceed 2 metres in diameter.

AR (Restricted)
.
The power output must be not more than 100W PEP (50W on 4m) at the final output stage or external amplifier connection to the antenna.
Only one antenna may be used. Stacked, bayed and slot antennas are not allowed. Backfire or parabolic dish type antennas must not exceed 2 metres in diameter.

AO (Open )
.
Standard licence conditions and no antenna restrictions.

ALL (All)
. This contest has a single section for all stations, single or multi-operator, fixed or portable in any combination.

AL (Low Power)
.
The power output must not exceed 10W PEP at the final output stage or external amplifier connection to the antenna.
Only one antenna may be used. Stacked, bayed and slot antenna arrays may not be used. Backfire or parabolic dish type antennas must not exceed 2 metres in diameter

A (All)
. This contest has a single section for all stations, single or multi-operator, fixed or portable in any combination.

6S (6 hours Single Op Fixed)
. Rules as per section "SF" except stations may only operate for a maximum of 6 hours. Entrants may choose between any continuous 6 hour period in which to operate (e.g. 1500-2100, or 1917-0117) or alternatively split the 6 hour period into any number of segments as long as they are separated by at least 1 hour off time.
In order to increase activity we recommend the following times to operate in this section, 1400-2000 UTC Sat, but this is not mandatory.

Operation after your 6 hour window is allowed but will not count for points. All contacts must be included in the log.

Serial numbers must start at 001 for the 6 hour period, and you cannot enter both this section and the full contest.

In multi-band contests the same single 6 hour period must be used on all bands.

6O (6 hours others)
. Rules as per section "O" except stations may only operate for a maximum of 6 hours. Entrants may choose between any continuous 6 hour period in which to operate (e.g. 1500-2100, or 1917-0117) or alternatively split the 6 hour period into any number of segments as long as they are separated by at least 1 hour off time.
In order to increase activity we recommend the following times to operate in this section, 1400-2000 UTC Sat, but this is not mandatory.

Operation after your 6 hour window is allowed but will not count for points. All contacts must be included in the log.

Serial numbers must start at 001 for this 6 hour period, and you cannot enter both this section and the full contest.

In multi-band contests the same single 6 hour period must be used on all bands.

5B (2m 5W Backpacker)
.
a) 5W maximum output from the transmitter
b) Single antenna with no more than 20 half-wave elements (or equivalent)
c) Antenna height: Driven element no more than 6m above the ground
d) No operation from a motor vehicle. The vehicle supply must not be used to power any equipment used during the contest or to recharge batteries for the equipment.
e) All equipment used during the contest must be battery, wind or solar powered.
f) Equipment must be carried and operated at least 100m from the transportation vehicle.
g) Stations entering in this section must use the /P callsign suffix

25H (25W Hill Toppers)
.
a) 25W maximum output from the transmitter.
b) One or more antennas with no more than 20 half-wave elements (or equivalent) in total.
c) Antenna height: Driven element no more than 6m above the ground
d) Operation from a motor vehicle permitted.
e) All equipment used during the contest must be battery, wind or solar powered. If equipment is powered from a vehicle supply, the engine must be switched off for the duration of the contest.
f) Stations entering in this section must use the /P callsign suffix.

100 W (100W)
.
The power output must be not more than 100W PEP at the final output stage or external amplifier connection to the antenna. No antenna restrictions.

10 W
.
The power output must be not more than 10W PEP at the final output stage or external amplifier connection to the antenna. No antenna restrictions.