<html><head></head><body><div class="ydpe81f4002yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;font-size:16px;"><div id="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493"><div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;" dir="ltr"><b><font color="#9c005c" size="5">Announcing the 2019 Illinois QSO Party…</font></b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;" dir="ltr"><b></b><font color="#9c005c"></font><br></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Sponsored by The Western Illinois Amateur Radio Club. Inc.</b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><b><br>Date/Time: </b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><b>1700Z October 20 to 0100Z October 21, 2019 GMT</b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><b></b><br><b>Bands: </b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">160 through 2 meters, excluding 60, 30, 17, and 12 meters.<br>Special band activity times: IL stations are encouraged to spend some time on 20 meters in the early<br>Afternoon to work DX stations seeking IL counties and to check 15 meters and 10 meters at 1800Z, 1900Z and 2000Z<br>.<br><b>Exchange: </b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">IL stations give RST and county; others give RST and state, province, or country.<br>Scoring: Count 1 point per phone QSO, 2 points per CW/digital QSO. No repeater QSOs. All stations are<br>limited to one transmitted signal at a time. SO2R operation is permitted. Stations may be worked once per<br>band and mode (phone and CW/digital), and once per band/mode/county for IL Mobile and Rover stations.<br>Each Mobile or Rover vehicle is considered one station and must use only one call. Contacts with/by<br>stations at the border of 2 counties count as 2 counties and 2 QSOs; the border of 3 (or 4) counties count as<br>3 (or 4) counties and 3 (or 4) QSOs. IL stations multiply points by the sum of states, IL counties, VE<br>provinces, and a maximum of 5 DXCC countries (for this event W/K, Alaska, Hawaii and VE do not count<br>as DX entities). Count additional DX for QSO points but not for additional multipliers. Non-IL stations<br>multiply points by number of IL counties worked.</div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br><b>Entry Classes:</b><br>- Illinois Fixed Station, High Power: Permanent station location, single county, with a transmitter<br>output power level exceeding 200W PEP.<br>- Illinois Fixed Station, Low Power: Permanent station location, single county, with a transmitter<br>output power level not exceeding 200W PEP.<br>- Illinois Portable: Not a permanent station location; antennas erected for the purpose of the<br>contest; may be on a county line or corner. (Note: County lines established by waterways may not<br>be activated in the ILQP.)<br>- Illinois Mobile: Stations capable of motion while operating though may be stationary. Entrants<br>are encouraged to utilize a separate driver and to choose operating procedures with safety<br>uppermost in mind! Mobile entrants may operate from only one county at a time. Simultaneous<br>operation from more than one county will result in reclassification to “Rover” category.<br>Illinois Rover: Stations operating from more than one non-permanent location. Single county,<br>county line and county corner operation is permitted. Any type of mobile or portable antennas<br>may be used. Any power source may be used (auto, generator or commercial mains). Rover<br>stations may operate while moving or stopped.<br>- Outside Illinois, High Power: Any fixed, portable or mobile station operating from outside the<br>state of Illinois, with a transmitter output power level exceeding 200W PEP.<br>- Outside Illinois, Low Power: Any fixed, portable or mobile station operating from outside the<br>state of Illinois, with a transmitter output power level not exceeding 200W PEP.<br></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br><b>QRP Competition: </b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">A QRP entrant shall certify that operation was with a transmitter output power level of<br>5 watts or less at all times by checking the QRP box in the Entry Class column on the summary sheet.<br>QRP stations should also indicate an Entry Class. QRP competition is independent of Entry Class.</div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br><b>Awards:</b><br>Plaques will be awarded to the highest-scoring IL Fixed Station High Power, IL Fixed Station<br>Low Power, IL Mobile, IL Rover, IL Portable, IL 2 County Line Portable, Outside Illinois Station<br>High Power, and Outside Illinois Station Low Power. Plaques will also be awarded, regardless of<br>entry class or station location, to the station reporting the highest raw Phone only QSO total, the<br>highest raw CW only QSO total and the highest raw Mixed Mode QSO total. (Note: Illinois<br>county line or county corner QSO multipliers do not apply for the raw QSO awards.)<br>Certificates will be awarded to the 2nd through 5th place IL Fixed Stations, High Power, the 2nd<br>through 5th place IL Fixed Stations, Low Power, the 2nd through 5th place IL Mobiles, the 2nd<br>through 5th place IL Rovers, the top IL and the top Outside Illinois QRP stations, and the highest<br>scoring station (reporting at least 25 IL contacts) in each state, province, and country. Certificates<br>will also be awarded to the top 3 IL single county Portables, the 2nd and 3rd place IL 2 county line<br>Portables, the top 3 IL 3 county line Portables and 2nd and 3rd place IL four county line Portables.<br>As certificates are delivered in electronic format via email, all entrants are requested to include a<br>valid email address on their summary sheet. If a certificate winner desires a hard copy version, the<br>WIARC will do so for a donation 0f $2.50 to cover the costs of printing and mailing.<br>Illinois Club Competition: Illinois entrants are encouraged to include the name of their local club<br>on their entries. A traveling plaque sponsored by the Western Illinois Amateur Radio Club will be<br>updated with name and score of the top IL club aggregate score.<br>Illinois Edible Award: Any Outside Illinois operator who makes at least 200 IL QSOs or works<br>at least 75 IL counties will receive an ‘Illinois Edible Award’.</div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br><b>Logs: </b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">All entrants who use computerized logging are required to submit logs in electronic format. Do not<br>submit a computer printed log from a logging program without also submitting the electronic file (i.e.<br>Cabrillo file) as the scoring and verification process starts by transferring all log data into a master Excel<br>file. Hand written paper logs which are accompanied by an official ILQP Summary Sheet will be accepted<br>for manual transcription by the Committee.<br>Electronic logs: Cabrillo format is preferred. Those entrants using a program that does not<br>produce a Cabrillo file for submission should contact the ILQP Contest Committee concerning<br>acceptable formatting. Electronic logs should be sent as an e-mail attachment to n9jf@arrl.net .<br>Participants without e-mail access wishing to submit an electronic log should send the Cabrillo file<br>on a DOS formatted 3-1/2 inch floppy disk, a 5 inch CD-ROM, or a ‘thumb drive’ by mail. Disks<br>and ‘thumb drives’ should be mailed to WIARC, P.O. Box 3132, Quincy IL 62305-3132. Disks<br>and ‘thumb drives will not be returned unless accompanied by as SASE with sufficient return<br>postage.</div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br><b>Paper logs: </b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">A paper log shall be hand written and indicate the entrant’s QTH, the band and mode,<br>UTC, the call of the station worked, RST sent and received, and the state, province, IL county, or<br>DX country. New multipliers must be marked in the log. Paper log submissions must be<br>accompanied by a completed ILQP summary sheet (can be downloaded, printed from the website<br>or requested from the sponsor with SASE). Paper logs should be mailed to WIARC, P.O. Box<br>3132, Quincy IL 62305-3132.<br>Logs that do not comply with submission requirements will be classified as Check Logs and<br>will not be eligible for awards.<br><br><b>Submission deadline: </b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Logs sent by e-mail must be received by and logs sent by mail must be postmarked<br>by midnight, CST November 21, 2019. A list of all logs received will be posted to the ILQP webpage.<br>Electronic logs received by e-mail will also be acknowledged by return e-mail. Entrants assume<br>responsibility for contacting the event sponsor if they do not receive confirmation or if their call is not<br>included in the “logs received” listing.</div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br><b>Disqualification: </b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Participants are expected to follow good Amateur practices and operate within the<br>restrictions of their license and in accordance with ILQP Rules. Compelling evidence to the contrary may<br>serve as grounds for disqualification. The decision of the Illinois QSO Party Committee shall be final.<br>Rules, summary sheet, and other information are available for download<br>at http://www.w9awe.org/ILQP.html .<br>You are invited to join the ILQSO email reflector at http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/ilqso </div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br><b>Miscellaneous:</b><br>County Name Abbreviations: Participants are reminded that a proper log record of a contact with an<br>Illinois station in this event requires the name of the Illinois County where that station is located be entered<br>as part of each QSO record. It is quite acceptable to enter either the complete and correctly spelled county<br>name or the unique abbreviated form of the county name. To facilitate the use of abbreviations, a list of<br>recommended Illinois County name abbreviations is included every year as part of the ILQP Summary<br>sheet. Each Illinois County has an established 4 letter abbreviation (Lee County excepted) shown in this list<br>and which has been in use in this event for many years. Unfortunately, logs are submitted every year with<br>all manner of variation and corruption of these abbreviations. In the past the ILQP Committee has been<br>very lenient in not busting QSO’s due to the use of a non-standard abbreviation as long as there is some<br>unambiguous clue in the abbreviation used as to the actual county name. In some cases, we even find that<br>the wrong county name has been used. This often involves White (WHIT) and Whiteside (WTSD) counties<br>as well as Mason (MASN) and Macon (MACN) counties. The ILQP Committee asks that each entrant<br>review the list of county name abbreviations on the summary sheet and use only these abbreviations in their<br>log entries and to make sure the correct abbreviation for a given county is used. As mentioned, there has<br>been great leniency in the past for the use of highly corrupted, widely varying or totally incorrect<br>abbreviations. However, as this event is now generating a master log each year of nearly 50,000 QSO’s,<br>manual intervention by committee members in the scoring process is becoming tedious and time<br>consuming. And so, a word to the wise, in the future, this leniency will not be continued as a part of the<br>scoring process. </div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br><b>QSO Record Minimum Data: </b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Each entrant is asked to review their log file prior to submission to ensure<br>that every QSO record (i.e. each line) includes the following minimum data: operating frequency or band;<br>operating mode; GMT date; GMT time; the call sign of your station; the RS(T) sent; the location of your<br>station; the call sign of the station contacted; the RS(T) received; and the location of the station contacted.<br>In addition, in a Cabrillo log file, each record should include the following data: ‘QSO:’ in the first field of<br>each line. Please examine the sample excel spreadsheet generated Cabrillo file that is available for down<br>load on the WIARC ILQP web page. Also please review the sample log file at the end of the document for<br>help in determining compliance with the preferred format.</div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br><b>Cabrillo File Header Information: </b></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Prior to submitting a log file, entrants should review the information<br>contained in the header field of their Cabrillo file to make sure it is complete and accurate. In particular,<br>make sure entry class, personal information, call sign, station location, and club affiliation are correctly<br>shown. The header information is automatically pulled and used by the processing software. Please<br>examine the sample excel spreadsheet generated Cabrillo file that is available for down load on the WIARC<br>ILQP web page.</div><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br></div><div class="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp42b9d073signature" style="font-family:Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><div style='font-family:"Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><div id="ydpe81f4002yiv2414474493ydp44590602yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1511390297332_3211"><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br></div></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>