1996 San Francisco
The 1996 World Radiosport Team Championship was held in the San Francisco, California, USA area in July 1996, and was organized by the Northern California Contest Club. The format continued to be teams of two competitors each, operating at stations with similar antenna and power restrictions, participating in the IARU HF World Championship, a worldwide operating event that includes both phone and CW operation.
During the competition, the WRTC stations used distinctive “1×1” callsigns specially approved by the Federal Communications Commission. This was the first time 1×1 callsigns were issued to amateur radio operators in the USA.
The callsigns used – W6A through W6Z and K6A through K6Z – were assigned randomly to each team, and helped prevent other stations in the IARU HF World Championship contest from recognizing their friends. The special call signs also ensured that all stations had call signs that took approximately the same amount of time to speak phonetically or to send in Morse code. Fifty-two two-operator teams represented twenty-four countries and all six inhabited continents.
First place: Jeff Steinman KRØY and Dan Street K1TO of the United States
Second place: John Laney III, K4BAI, and Bill Fisher KM9P of the United States
Third place: Dave Hachadorian, K6LL, and Steve London N2IC of the United States
More Info
WRTC 1996 Video
March 27, 2009This is a video documentary of an elite amateur radio competition, the 2nd World Radiosport Team Championship (WRTC), held in the San Francisco Bay Area in July, 1996.
Continue reading →WRTC 1996 Rules
December 23, 1996Updated 23 December 1996
These are the rules the 52 teams followed during WRTC-96. The “exhibition teams” were exempt from all rules and were not eligible for awards.
WRTC-96 will be held in conjunction with the IARU HF World Championship contest. The WRTC competitors will have a slightly different set of additional rules they must follow, however.
Continue reading →WRTC 1996 Final Results
July 12, 1996Final results of WRTC 1996 in San Francisco.
Continue reading →WRTC 1996 Schedule
July 1, 1996This is the schedule we followed during WRTC-96
For beer lovers and contest afficionados, informal “Beer Busts” will be held poolside at the WRTC 96 hotel Wednesday, Thursday, Sunday, and Monday afternoons/evenings. Everyone is invited–tickets may be purchased at the entrance.
Continue reading →WRTC 1996 Teams Announced
April 3, 1996WRTC-96 PRESS RELEASE #7
Redwood City, CA
April 3, 1996WRTC-96 ANNOUNCES SELECTION OF TEAM MEMBERS
WRTC-96, Inc. announced today selection of the 104 team members who will compete in the World Radiosport Team Championship competition scheduled for July 13 and 14, 1996. The WRTC competitors will enter the IARU HF World Championship contest as 52 two-person multi-operator, single-transmitter entries. All 52 teams will be located near San Francisco Bay on flat terrain in relatively close physical proximity so as to minimize propagation differences, and all will run 100 watts output to nearly identical antenna systems. By eliminating many of the station and propagation variables normally associated with radio contesting, the WRTC strives to present a meaningful head to head competition in which the winners can rightfully claim to be “the best of the best.”
Continue reading →WRTC 1996 Team Selection Process
September 30, 1995Date: Sat, 30 Sep 1995 10:35:38 -0700 (PDT)
From: Charles Epps <epps@netcom.com>
Subject: WRTC-96 Press Release #4WRTC-96 PRESS RELEASE #4
Redwood City, CA
September 30, 1995The World Radiosport Team Championship (WRTC-96) will pit up to 52 two-operator teams in a head-to-head competition in the San Francisco Bay Area during the IARU HF World Championship the weekend of July 13-14, 1996. Forty-five teams are allocated to 27 Invited Countries, one team to the defending champions from WRTC-90, and six teams to Wild-card entries which may come from any country. Entrants are responsible for their own transportation to San Francisco where the WRTC-96 Committee will provide them housing, meals, local transportation and access to station locations.
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