In a recent blog post, Frank Howell K4FMH did a detailed analysis of entrants to the ARRL Sweepstakes Contests for the past 20 years. The overall result is that those taking part in the contest are getting older rapidly.
The ARRL provided data, including Date-of-Birth, for the study which shows the average age of both CW and SSB contesters has increased by some 15 years since 2000.
The chart above shows the dramatic shift in age of participants and it's not hard to see that there will be a dramatic change in the next two decades.
Whatever about contesting on SSB, contesting on CW is highly skilled at it requires operators to use high speed morse for long periods of time. It takes years for people to get that proficient.
I suspect the impending demise will be first felt in CW contests and then SSB later on. If I had to guess then I think we'll probably see a rise in contests using digital modes as this will be more attractive to newer contesters.
Looking at the stats in the chart, I suspect we will see big changes in the next decade.
It's probably fair to point out that contesting is a very polarizing subject and many will not see the decline in contesting as a problem.
You can view Frank's original blog post HERE
