National System Award 2011: New Zealand Railway Stations

UPDATE: Closing date for logs has been extended. Due to requests from hams in the Christchurch quake area, the closing date for the award has been extended. Late logs will be processed and certificates sent out until the end of May. Don't delay as it will take longer to process after the original end of March close of date.

The railway network in New Zealand once had extensive coverage and service all over the country. The National System aims to provide wide coverage and reliable service to most of the country. New nodes are still being added to the system and we are not likely to be “pulling up the rails” anytime soon!

To celebrate and explore the coverage of the National System this year we are inviting hams to use the NS from railway stations around the country. A contact can be from any station that is documented in a reliable manner, no matter if it is still in service or has been retired. With whole lines missing now, it will be a challenge to find and operate from many of the locations, while others are still in active service and easy to access. Operating from a train is allowed and you can claim the last or next railway stations as you move along. In many cases the old station is not accessible to the public, so you will need to locate close to it and remain in public areas.

The rules are as follows:
• The award will run from 1 January 2011 to 7 February 2011(inclusive)
• All contacts must be via the National System
• A point will be awarded for:
o Each NZART Branch area worked
o Each railway station worked
• You can claim the branch area or railway station you are operating from, but each QSO can only count once
• The log must include working the Branch 74 station ZL2WA

There is no fee for this award and certificates will be issued showing the number of branches worked and the number of railway stations claimed.

It is intended that the Wellington VHF Group website will show a map of railway stations as they are worked. Please email station names and location to awards@vhf.org.nz as you work them.

Please send a log of contacts (containing: date, time, callsign, NZART branch name and number, or railway station name for each contact) Sample log sheet here on google docs to:

NS Award 2011 Custodian
Wellington VHF Group Br 74
P.O. Box 12259
Thorndon
Wellington 6144

Or email to zl2wa@clear.net.nz with NS2011 in the subject line. Applications close 31 March 2011.