Another great video... I like cw contesting. I am not a big fan of SSB contesting, but here is what I learned over the years: 1. At least 1/3 of QSO's in ssb contests are from hams that have no idea what the contest exchange is, are not contesters, and just want to make a contact to test their antenna or audio. "Hey Marge, look at all the pretty lights".... "Hey marge...look at all these stations". Always good to give some quick coaching... you'll work a whole string of "001" serial numbers but watch out for the long-talkers.... 2. the "no points for America working america"... in CQWW. It's getting to be a bigger and bigger issue due to #1 above.... Most don't know the point of this contest is to work DX... "hey marge, look at all the loud stations on my fish finder" 3. Two sets of phonetics are super important- amazing how many US hams don't know this. it's just that americans being americans don't habla otro idiomas, so they struggle with alternate pronounciation / phonetics and can't imagine a world where that exists. DXers seem to know this. Same for adjusting CW speed when there is back scatter or aurora echo. 24 WPM can sometimes be faster rate than 35 wpm. 4. ID frequently. No one likes the hammy ham who thinks he is a big shot with a big station (you know who you are, where you are from) that fail to ID 5. Be a mentor. The bully aligator stations do attract jammers... better to be kind and mentor the 30% who have no idea what the contest is... than be a bully and get jammed for an hour by a drunk ham who usually lives on some 75M net but decided today that he would follow big station around the bands and jam their receiver for the next hour or two.... Lastly, it's funny/ wierd / strange / unusual / atypical how many small pet peeves many contesters have. A lot of contesting is your own mental stamina and ability to look past other's contesting "faults". Lots of ways to do ham radio... For every bozo using "please copy" on SSB, there is a "5NN" signal report on CW that is equally worthless space filler.... Great content Kevin. Well done again.
Your programs are a considerable investment of time. Thanks to you and the guys for being so generous with yours. As a listener, time flies, and even at the end, Im still "all ears." PS IMO, a large part of your success is the positive interplay of different voices and personalities that are conveying seriously good wisdom and good judgement. Bob, W3HKK since 1956.
^^^ Very informative post. But the difference in equalizing "Please copy" (SSB) with "5NN" (CW) wasting time is that the former is *not* a required part of the exchange, takes up time, and usually emoted by a slow talker. Over time with enough of those replies, it could cost someone who's 'in it to win it' lost Q's. Per previous "contest crew" videos, those at the top have shown that final scores could be affected by a few Q's difference between #1 and #2. Whereas in 95+% of contests, 5NN (or 59) *is* a required part of the exchange. No biggie for me to hear, because I'm nowhere near the top. I'm more of a CW over SSB contester also. And my 5NN's are at an accelerated speed. Not being a fan of 'assisted' contesting, when I S&P my biggest peeve is hearing a runner that doesn't give his call between Q's, so I have no idea who he is. If he has a fast-moving pile-up, I'll give him 2-3 Q's between signing his call. But I've heard some go 10+ Q's before signing. It's just as easy to say "Thanks K7JQ" instead of "Thanks QRZ" (or "TU K7JQ" in CW) and let those who already worked you move on. I know they think it takes extra time, but there's such a thing as being courteous.
My pet contest peeves: (also applicable for QSO parties, special event stations, POTA activators, etc.) 1. Not clearly IDing often enough. "Often enough" depends upon the situation. If you're running a frequency and have a pile-up waiting to work you, then every 3rd or 4th contact is probably often enough. But, if you take the time to say "QRZed?", you should be giving your callsign instead. If you're calling "CQ contest", then you should be giving your callsign PHONETICALLY every time you make that call, you should not be saying "CQ contest, QRZed?" (I can't believe how many times I hear this!) Note my emphasis on the need to give your call phonetically. Believe it or not, it's hard for some people to distinguish between B C D E G P T V Z, or A J K, or M and N, or Q and U, or I and Y, or F and S, or S and X (Gee, maybe that's why phonetics were invented!). This is especially true with QRM or other less than ideal conditions, and/or when it's spoken very rapidly in an accent that's different from what the listener is used to hearing. Usually, speaking a little more slowly and clearly is MUCH faster than high-speed mumbling. If you eliminate the need to repeat, you save time. 2. Stations that respond to "CQ contest" (or, "CQ special event", or "CQ POTA") and don't have a clue as to what it's all about, and expect it to be explained to them on the air. Instead of wasting everyone's time on the air, take some of your own time and do a little research, then you'll know the proper exchange to give, if you decide to contact that station. Operators of special event stations should state the name of the event, not just call "CQ special event". POTA operators should give their park ID number when calling CQ.
I can think of maybe one radio that is $12k - the IC7851. Most contest operators have radios that are significantly less expensive than that. Mine is a FTDX5000 which sells for about $2,250 right now. And if you want to talk expensive....what is today's equivalent selling price of the Collins "gold dust" twins? IIRC, about $2,500 new which is equivalent to about $25,000 today...
Well. ENN is fast, but it's only needed because the contest rule creators decades ago put in that a signal report was important to confirm a contact... when it's all the same and serves solely as a mental filler, it is pointless. Sending ENN at 60WPM is just a filler. Let's be intellectually honest... it has zero real implication to having been copied correctly (or not). No one gets the qso disqualified for copying the signal report wrong because its always ENN or 5NN...so it's an irrelevant part of the exchange and just a rule for the sake of a rule and has been for a long time. Unlike copying the wrong callsign or wrong zone... that gets the Q disqualified. In practice, equally pointless to "please copy"... With cut numbers, why don't we all just replace it with a single dit. It's because we like that mental pause to get ready to copy the good stuff. I love Nov SS... separates the adults in the room who can actually copy cw ! There is no signal report in the Nov SS exchange. Its UR Callsign, Serial, Class, My Call, Check and state. You gotta know what you're doing. No fake-it there. no waste of 599 or 5nn or enn. I like that some contests have moved away from that 599 signal report as part of the exchange... .. like the CWT's/CW Open etc.
The worst habit of a quick contact/technical only ham is to break into QSO's to nab contacts, where the break in is now wanted. The worst habit of the rag chewer is to barge into contests and DX pile ups to start long winded conversations where none is wanted or appreciated. I'm still surprised to see how much of the latter goes on. I'm sure some of it is the usual suspects doing their usual trouble making, knowing full well the problems they are causing. Others seem to be oversocialized people who honestly think every contact is supposed to be a long conversation on personal events, and that everyone owes them a conversation. They never seem to understand they are the problem, and never take their getting kicked out of the line with much grace or acceptance.
I always like to smoke cigars and take down operator information before I reach out and make contacts, especially POTA. Seems like every other time I operate, I have to sit and wait 10 minutes before I reach out to the POTA operator and remind him he hasn't given his call sign in the last 10 minutes (even if he has given his park number a dozen times). Some of those kids get awful snappy after being told to follow FCC rules, and just plain good operating etiquette.
Keep educating them. we are self-policing. just do it with kindness and grace. Many will come right around.
I've only done a few contests and they were multi-op efforts with friends. In those few occasions I learned it's really not all too difficult to do well with a "small" station. While you aren't likely to beat out the pros without a miracle you can still reel in some wall trophies for the shack. If you put some effort in selecting what class station, mode and band(s) you operate and such you can easily narrow the entry field and compete in classes within the same contest with fewer entrants and win that class or region.
I had some phone"wins" for new DX around major contests. when I was a General...1. I knew a contest was coming up... 2. I knew that some hams travel toward the equator to operate the contest ... 3. I knew they'd be testing....4. I worked them before the "mayhem". But, my most memorable phone contacts were completely outside any contest schedule. I think India, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Antarctica etc from my humble station in New England, and a few other "far flung places", even using FM, with 100w when coniditions work, are much more memorable. The main thing is to have a station on the air. Someone always needs a can at the other end of the string. Not an FT/JT operator. I'd call CQ phone. Can't stand pushing buttons and it requires no effort. 73
