The ARRL International Grid Chase
/A new and exciting operating event will kick off on 1st January 2018, at 0000 UTC (New Year's Eve in US time zones), when the ARRL International Grid Chase gets under way. The year-long event hopes to build on the success of the highly successful 2016 National Parks on the Air (NPOTA). The objective is to work stations on any band (except 60 meters) in as many different Maidenhead grid squares as possible, and then upload your log data to ARRL's Logbook of The World (LoTW). Registration in LoTW is free, and it costs nothing to participate
Many Amateur/Ham Radio Contesters are familiar with grid squares from the VHF/UHF and satellite realms, and everyone lives in one. ARRL's VUCC is based on grid squares, and some contests on HF, VHF, and UHF also use them as a scoring factor.
The Maidenhead grid square system divvies up the entire globe into 324 fields, each containing 100 grid squares 1° latitude × 2° longitude in size. With 32,400 potential grid squares, it's not likely that anyone will run out of challenges, even though some grid squares are surrounded entirely by water or are in areas that are uninhabited or difficult to access.
Once you get active in the chase and start uploading your log data, each new grid square contact confirmed through LoTW will count toward your monthly total. Getting started is simple. Turn on the radio and just call CQ or "CQ Grid Chase" or listen for others doing the same. Make a contact, exchange grid squares, log it, and move on to another. At the end of each month, your totals on the Grid Chase leader board will reset to zero, although the system retains these to determine top finishers in various categories at the end of the year.
Any contact you make in 2018 can count toward your Chase score; it doesn't have to involve an exchange of grid squares. As long as the other operators also participate in LoTW, you'll get credit automatically when they upload their logs. This means that contest contacts also count, as will contacts with special event stations or other on-air activity that uses LoTW to confirm contacts.
Some radio amateurs live in sparsely populated grid squares, and if you're one of those, you could find yourself handling a pileup! Expeditions to hard-to-reach or rare grid squares undoubtedly will evolve. You also can travel to one of those grid squares yourself. Some vehicle or handheld GPS units can be set to display when you are in a particular grid square. Apps are available for smartphones or tablets, such as Ham Square for iOS devices or HamGPS for Android devices.
There are no restrictions on modes or bands, as long as they are legal. Satellite contacts are valid for the Chase. The event is open to all radio amateurs.
ARRL Contest Branch - http://www.arrl.org/contests
