Original Rules and Awards

WMPLOTA Rules and Awards Scheme

Objective

For amateur radio satellite operators to contact as many amateur stations operating from Walmart parking lots as possible during the contest period.

All legal operating modes are permitted, but contacts must be made through an amateur radio satellite.

Date and Contest Period


00:00 UTC April 28 2018 through 23:59 UTC April 29 2018, inclusive.

Entry Categories

1. An Associate is defined as operating for activation credit, a picture of the activated location must include either a Walmart branded shopping cart or yourself and some portion of a Walmart branded store. Walmart, Walmart Neighborhood Market and Sam’s Club stores are allowable for credit. DX stations operating from a location not having a local Walmart branded store may activate the nearest local equivalent, but must operate portable.

Associate

  1. The Associate must hold an appropriate transmitting licence.
  2. The Associate must make a QSO, in which at least callsigns and two-way reports are exchanged. If possible, the Walmart Store Number should also be given as part of the QSO, but use your best judgement on FM satellites.
  3. An Assocate may claim all QSOs for points, including QSOs made with Shoppers and also with Associates on other Walmart parking lots during the activation.
  4. QSL cards or LoTW matches are not required, as the submitted Associate and Shopper logs can be used to verify your QSOs.

Shopper

  1. A Shopper is any station operating from a location other than those defined as an Associate, and contacting an Associate.
  2. The Shopper must hold an appropriate transmitting licence.
  3. The Shopper must make a QSO with the Associate, in which at least callsigns and two-way reports are exchanged. Wherever possible, the Walmart Store Number should also be obtained as part of the QSO.
  4. QSL cards or LoTW matches are not required, as the submitted Associate logs can be used to verify your QSOs.

DX

DX is an overlay category. DX is any station operating outside of the contiguous 48 US States and bordering Canadian Provinces. DX stations may enter as either Associate or Shopper.

Packet Rats

Packet Rats is an overlay category. A Packet Rat is any station operating packet satellites. Packet Rats stations may also enter in the Associate and Shopper categories.

Scoring and Bonuses

Associate

3 points for each Walmart Store worked (e.g. if you activate 3 stores during WMPLOTA, you get 9 points for these activations)
1 point per satellite pass with at least 1 completed QSO
1 point per QSO with either a Shopper or another Associate

Shopper


1 point per QSO with an Associate

Bonuses

Gridline – 40 points for any Associate operating on a gridline in a Walmart parking lot (once per day bonus)
BOGO – 20 points for any Shopper contacting an associate who is operating on a gridline in a Walmart parking lot (once per day bonus)

Near Gridline – 15 points for any Associate operating Walmart parking lot within 3 km of a gridline (once per day bonus)
Back to School – 25 points for any Associate or Shopper who is currently a student in kindergarten through college (one-time bonus)

Alaskan Activator – 15 points for any Associate operating from Alaska (one-time bonus) Alaskan Shopper – 10 points for a QSO with an Associate from Alaska (one-time bonus) Northwest Passage Activator – 10 points for any Associate operating from Yukon, Northwest Territories, or Nunavut (one-time bonus)

Northwest Passage Shopper – 5 points for a QSO with an Associate from Yukon, Northwest Territories, or Nunavut (one-time bonus)
Aloha Activator – 30 points for a QSO for any Associate operating in Hawaii (one-time bonus) Aloha Shopper – 25 points for a QSO with an Associate in Hawaii (one-time bonus)

Black Friday – 5 points for a QSO made on Friday night local time, from 00:00 UTC on Apr 28 until 00:00 midnight local time on Saturday (one-time bonus)
Big Hop – 5 points for each QSO having more than 3,600 km distance between stations (6 digit grid squares must be provided)

Big Talker – 7 points for a social media post highlighting your WMPLOTA activation using the #WMPLOTA hashtag. (one-time bonus)
Zombie Apocalypse – 5 points for activating a Zombie Walmart, a permanently closed Walmart store that remains vacant (one-time bonus)

QSO Multipliers

Zombieland Multiplier – 2x multiplier for each QSO made through the zombie sat Oscar-7 (AO-7)
Zombie Apocalypse Multiplier – 20x multipler for each QSO made through the zombie sat PCSat (NO-44).

Zombie chasers always roll back the Power. If the zombies hear you, they’ll eat you (and you’ll kill the fun for everyone).

Awards

Digital Award Certificates and QSL Cards are in development, but remember the real reward is the fun and notoriety you’ll receive from putting Walmart Parking Lots on the Air!

Award Levels

Express Lane – 1 QSO Checkout – 2-4 QSO

Greeter – 5 QSO
Overnight Stocker – Late night QSO from the nighttime hours (North America) of 00:00 UTC through 10:00 UTC. For you night owls, but pajamas are optional!
Store Manager – 10+ QSO
District Manager – work FROM more than 1 Walmart in your vicinity
Regional Manager – work (shop) at least one station in 4 major alpha gridsqares (example: at least one station each from EM EN DM DN)
Sam Walton Award for the most stores activated
People of Walmart – self-photo of operation from parking lot uploaded to Twitter with #WMPLOTA hashtag
“MacGyver Works at Walmart” Award. Achieve one QSO with an antenna built with parts purchased from the Walmart whose parking lot you are operating from. Antenna must be assembled in the parking lot, and receipt picture with items and store number posted with hashtag #WMPLOTA. You are allowed to bring a Swiss Army Knife, a pack of chewing gum, and an existing coaxial cable with connectors for connecting the MacGyver antenna to your radio. Everything else must be purchased.
Ol’ Roy (activator with most twitter posts of their dog from activated parking lots)
Ol’ Roy’ with Roy (activator named Roy with most twitter posts of their dog from activated parking lots)
Special Kitty – Same as ‘Ol Roy, but with your cat
Straight Talk – Broadcast the pass on your cell phone via Periscope on Twitter, YouTube Live, or Facebook Live, and post a link using the hashtag #WMPLOTA
Mobility – QSO from a motorized shopping cart or a regular shopping cart being pushed by an assistant
Buy One Get One Free Tabor^2 – work Chris Tabor (K7TAB) and Douglas Tabor (N6UA) on the same pass
Great Value – QSO while eating chicken obtained from the deli
Mainstays – QSO from a tent available in the camping section
Sam’s Choice – QSO with an op named Sam
Faded Glory – Twitter photo of the operation with the USA flag in the background
Maple Syrup – Twitter photo of the operation with the Canada flag in the background
Prickly Pear – Twitter photo of the operation with the Mexico flag in the background

Award Submission

For Leaderboard updates while the WMPLOTA Event is active, Associates and Shoppers should send a messages to awards@wmplota.org (mailto:awards@wmplota.org) to update their point totals. Each message, including the first message and all subsequent updates, should contain their entire log for the WMPLOTA period. Total points, bonus details, and any applicable awards summarized at the top of the message are appreciated for quicker updates of the Leaderboard.

The following details will be needed in each message:

Callsign Contacted

Walmart Store # Contacted (if known)

Contact Date and Time (UTC) Satellite

Band

Your Location (Grid Square or Grid Squares)

Your Walmart Store #

After the WMPLOTA Event is completed, logs files must be submitted by sending an ADIF file to award@wmplota.org (mailto:award@wmplota.org) for final certification of contest winners. File sharing links are appreciated (e.g. Dropbox). ADIF files can be created by the free ARRL Trusted QSL (TQSL) program and other populate logging programs. Associates, please use a six-digit grid square for your location, and then send us a list mapping the six- digit grid square to the Walmart Store Number activated at that location


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This page was last edited on 23 April 2018, at 21:28.