Why don't we just award everybody a first place sticker and a cool ride in the special bus just for entering the joy luck club contest.
sj ----- Original Message ----- From: Tim Bennett<mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: soaring@airage.com<mailto:soaring@airage.com> Sent: Wednesday, January 09, 2008 7:52 PM Subject: RE: [RCSE] Contest Format Jim Bacus wrote: > > "Shafting" the other fellow competitors by completing the task > time? "Unethical?" ;-) > > I see it as maximizing my available flying time during a contest > event, and playing by the rules of the contest attempting to > maximize my score. Jim makes a valid point while at the same time highlighting one of the weaknesses of seeded MOM as currently practiced. The format creates a structure that encourages or even requires what would seem to some as unsportsmanlike behavior which belittles and demeans the unsuccessful competitor. The rules encourage exploiting any opportunity to "bury" someone who has a bad flight by putting on a show of being the only one flying for as long as possible while everyone stands and watches. This kind of structure is unnecessary and disproportionately rewards the single episode of good luck or heroic effort as opposed to consistent superior performance round after round. There can be no greater turn off in competition than being shafted or buried. While it may be fun for one guy, it is at the expense of everyone else. If playing by the rules makes the competition a turnoff to many, maybe better rules can correct this. This is an issue of the design of the contest format which my earlier idea seeks to address. By assigning scores that are limited on the low side, a competitor is not able to lose or win the whole contest in one round and there is no need nor opportunity to bury or shaft anybody. I think this is a better way to structure a contest if you want to insure all competitors have a good time and encourage participation while not artificially limiting the performance of any competitor. I guess a key objective I left out was: "Respect for the dignity of all participants." I also think "...maximizing available flying time during a contest..." is better done by increasing the pace of the event so more rounds can be flown. Tim Bennett LSF IV RCSE-List facilities provided by Model Airplane News. Send "subscribe" and "unsubscribe" requests to [EMAIL PROTECTED]<mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>. Please note that subscribe and unsubscribe messages must be sent in text only format with MIME turned off. Email sent from web based email such as Hotmail and AOL are generally NOT in text format
