It's sort of a "Mass Hysteria" or "Group Mentality" type of thing.. when something does well to begin with.. photos of that type suddenly see a surge in popularity. This can be a large surge, or a tiny bit of a surge, depending on the quality of the photo, or other factors, but it's definitely there.
These oregon beach shots are really popular right now, and they continue to be very technically well done.. thus a huge surge. The voting reflects this in challenges. Smart people *will* jump on this ship (or those lucky enough to be around such landscapes), but, due to human nature, it can't last long.. and will eventually be replaced by some other "In the moment" thing.
Not much we can do about it except -- if you're really that gung-ho about ribbons or high placings -- follow the trends to the best of your ability and submit shots of that type.
The good thing is.. the "Browse Photos" section usually has a great selection of non-ribbon type photographs to look at, and people's great works are often brought up in the forums, so it doesn't always have to be about the win :)
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