Amateur radio direction finding (ARDF, also known as radio orienteering and radiosport) is an amateur racing sport that combines radio direction finding with the map and compass skills of orienteering. It is a timed race in which individual competitors use a topographic map, a magnetic compass and radio direction finding apparatus to navigate through diverse wooded terrain while searching for radio transmitters. The rules of the sport and international competitions are organized by the International Amateur Radio Union. The sport has been most popular in Eastern Europe, Russia, and China, where it was often used in the physical education programs in schools.
ARDF events use radio frequencies on either the two-meter or eighty-meter amateur radio bands. These two bands were chosen because of their universal availability to amateur radio licensees in all countries. The radio equipment carried by competitors on a course must be capable of receiving the signal being transmitted by the five transmitters and useful for radio direction finding, including a radio receiver, attenuator, and directional antenna. Most equipment designs integrate all three components into one handheld device.
The sport originated in Northern Europe and Eastern Europe in the late 1950s. Amateur radio was widely promoted in the schools of Northern and Eastern Europe as a modern scientific and technical activity. Most medium to large cities hosted one or more amateur radio clubs at which members could congregate and learn about the technology and operation of radio equipment. One of the activities that schools and radio clubs promoted was radio direction finding, an activity that had important civil defense applications during the Cold War. As few individuals in Europe had personal automobiles at the time, most of this radio direction finding activity took place on foot, in parks, natural areas, or school campuses. The sport of orienteering, popular in its nativeScandinavia, had begun to spread to more and more countries throughout Europe, including the nations of the Eastern Bloc. As orienteering became more popular and orienteering mapsbecame more widely available, it was only natural to combine the two activities and hold radio direction finding events on orienteering maps.
Interest in this kind of on-foot radio direction finding activity using detailed topographic maps for navigation spread throughout Scandinavia, Eastern and Central Europe, the Soviet Union, and thePeople's Republic of China. Formal rules for the sport were first proposed in England andDenmark in the 1950s.[1] The first European Championship in the sport was held in 1961 in Stockholm, Sweden. Four additional international championships were held in Europe in the 1960s, and three more were held in the 1970s. The first World Championship was held in 1980 in Cetniewo, Poland, where competitors from eleven European and Asiancountries participated. World Championships have been generally held in even-numbered years since 1984, although there was no World Championship in 1996, and there was a World Championship in 1997. Asian nations began sending national teams to international events in 1980, and teams from nations in Oceania and North America began competing in the 1990s. Athletes from twenty-six nations attended the 2000 World Championship in Nanjing, China, the first to be held outside of Europe.[dead link][2]
As the sport grew in the 1960s and 1970s, each nation devised its own set of rules and regulations. The need for more clearly defined and consistent rules for international competitions led to the formation of an ARDF working group by the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) in the late 1970s. The first ARDF event to use the new standardized rules was the 1980 World Championship. These rules have been revised and updated over the years, increasing the number of gender and age categories into which competitors are classified, as well as formalizing the start and finish line procedures.[3] While some variations exist, these standardized rules have since been used worldwide for ARDF competitions, and the IARU has become the principal international organization promoting the sport. The IARU divides the world into three regions for administrative purposes. These regions correspond with the three regions used by the International Telecommunications Union for its regulatory purposes, but the IARU has also used these regions for sports administration. The first IARU Region I (Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and ex-USSR) Championship was held in 1993 in Chtelnica, Slovakia,[dead link][2] the first IARU Region III (Asia and Oceania) Championship was held in 1993 in Beijing, China,[dead link][4] and the first IARU Region II (North and South America) Championship was held in 1999 in Portland, Oregon, USA.[3] In addition to participation in international events, most nations with active ARDF organizations hold annual national championships using the IARU rules.
ARDF is a sport that spans much of the globe. In 2012 over 570 athletes from thirty-three countries, representing four continents, entered the 16th World Championships held in Kopaonik, Serbia [5] Organized ARDF competitions can be found in almost every European country and in all the nations of northern and eastern Asia. ARDF activity is also found in Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the United States. Although they represent a broad range of amateur radio interests in their nations today, several member societies of the International Amateur Radio Union were originally formed for the promotion and organization of the sport and continue to use the term radiosport in their society name. These include the Federation of Radiosport of the Republic of Armenia (FRRA),[6] the Belarusian Federation of Radioamateurs and Radiosportsmen (BFRR),[7]the Chinese Radio Sports Association (CRSA),[8] and the Mongolian Radio Sport Federation (MRSF).[9] To promote the sport, the IARU has delegated individuals as ARDF Coordinators for each IARU region to help educate and organize national radio societies and other ARDF groups, especially in nations without prior activity in the sport.
Description of competition and rules
The rules used throughout the world, with minor variations, are maintained by the IARU Region I ARDF Working Group. Although these rules were developed specifically for international competitions, they have become the de facto standard used as the basis for all international competitions worldwide.
An ARDF competition normally takes place in diverse wooded terrain, such as in a public park or natural area but competitions have also been held in suitable suburban areas. Each competitor receives a detailed topographic map of the competition area. The map will indicate the location of the start with a triangle and the location of the finish with two concentric circles. Somewhere within the competition area designated on the map, the meet organizer will have placed five low power radio transmitters. The locations of the transmitters are kept a secret from the competitors and are not marked on the map. Each transmitter emits a signal in Morse code by which it is easily identifiable to the competitors. The transmitters automatically transmit one after another in a repeating cycle. Depending on entry classification, a competitor will attempt to locate as many as three, four, or all five of the transmitters in the woods, and then travel to the finish line in the shortest possible time. Competitors start at staggered intervals, are individually timed, and are expected to perform all radio direction finding and navigation skills on their own. Standings are determined first by the number of transmitters found, then by shortest time on course. Competitors who take longer than the specified time limit to finish may be disqualified.
ARDF events use radio frequencies on either the 2-meter or 80-meter amateur radio bands. These two bands were chosen because of their universal availability to amateur radio licensees in all countries. Each band requires different radio equipment for transmission and reception, and requires the use of different radio direction finding skills. Radio direction finding equipment for eighty meters, an HF band, is relatively easy to design and inexpensive to build. Bearings taken on eighty meters can be very accurate. Competitors on an eighty meter course must use bearings to determine the locations of the transmitters and choose the fastest route through the terrain to visit them. Two meters, a VHF band, requires equipment that is relatively more complicated to design and more expensive to build. Radio signals on two meters are more affected by features of the terrain. Competitors on a two meter course must learn to differentiate between accurate, direct bearings to the source of the radio signal and false bearings resulting from reflections of the signal off hillsides, ravines, buildings, or fences. Large national or international events will have one day of competition using a 2-meter frequency and one day of competition using an 80-meter frequency.[1]
In addition to the rules of the sport, ARDF competitions must also comply with radio regulations. Because the transmitters operate on frequencies assigned to the Amateur Radio Service, a radio amateur with a license that is valid for the country in which the competition is taking place must be present and responsible for their operation. Individual competitors, however, are generally not required to have amateur radio licences, as the use of simple handheld radio receivers does not typically require a license. Regulatory prohibitions on the use of amateur radio frequencies for commercial use generally preclude the awarding of monetary prizes to competitors. Typical awards for ARDF events are medals, trophies, plaques, or certificates.