Contesting......

[WRPL700]

So, can anybody explain contesting to me???  This weekend 10m and 20m (not sure about 17 or 15) was just plain jammed full of folks contesting.  What a zoo, if you ask me.  Hard to squeeze in enough space for normal use..... Contesters were stepping all over each other.  I did manage some QSOs on 20M and a few on 12M.

I guess if a contester wins a new radio, it makes sense...

 

[marcspaz]

They are typically a Points game.  The contest over the weekend was to make as many contacts as possible, on a global scale.  They were exchanging call signs, signal reports (which are always 59 in a contest, LoL) and a serial number.  The serial number is typically the incremental number of contacts you've made, but some people use other methods.

 

Yes the bands will get extremely crowded, sometimes they are 0.5KHz apart.  That is just part of contesting.  Pulling out the signal you want through all the noise... and being the person heard where there is nothing but noise.  It's a great way to improve and prove your skills when it comes to filter technique and other methods to accomplish the contact.

[CaptainSarcastic]

When I was active on HF, I would take the opportunity to explore the WARC bands like 17m. No contesting allowed there, so it's a nice escape!

[WSEZ864]

I would only add to marcspaz's post that this past weekend's contest was about "working all prefixes" and the contesters' goals were to talk to as many different areas as possible.

Contest traffic really can be a pain in the neck, but contests also offer great opportunity to talk to many relatively rare countries/DX entities that might not be on the air otherwise. This can be important to those who are trying to make contact with all of the possible DX entities and/or all states. I don't actually participate in the competitions, but do occasionally take the opportunity to make an unusual contact.

[Socalgmrs]

1 hour ago, WRPL700 said:

So, can anybody explain contesting to me???  This weekend 10m and 20m (not sure about 17 or 15) was just plain jammed full of folks contesting.  What a zoo, if you ask me.  Hard to squeeze in enough space for normal use..... Contesters were stepping all over each other.  I did manage some QSOs on 20M and a few on 12M.

I guess if a contester wins a new radio, it makes sense...

 

Omg you mean for a weekend you couldn’t talk to random strangers on the radio?   Did your foot fall off?  Did your head explode?   Did you have an emergency and no one would stand by?   Didn’t you have anything else in your life you couldn’t have done instead of hanging out in the radio room all weekend getting upset? 

[SteveShannon]

16 minutes ago, Socalgmrs said:

Omg you mean for a weekend you couldn’t talk to random strangers on the radio?   Did your foot fall off?  Did your head explode?   Did you have an emergency and no one would stand by?   Didn’t you have anything else in your life you couldn’t have done instead of hanging out in the radio room all weekend getting upset? 

Speaking of someone not having anything better to do…

[marcspaz]

1 hour ago, WSEZ864 said:

contests also offer great opportunity to talk to many relatively rare countries/DX entities that might not be on the air otherwise

 

Agreed.  That is a big plus.  I don't have a very active log, but I have reached over 100 countries so far, with this weekend including places like Serbia and Jamaica.  Though, Jamaica is a bit more common.

 

Here are a list of countries I have had contacts with from the DC Metro area... mostly while mobile.  I have also spoken to people in Alaska and Hawaii.

 

Andorra Anguilla Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Aruba Australia Austria Azores Bahamas Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Bermuda Bonaire Bosnia Brazil Bulgaria Canada Canary Islands Cape Verde Cayman Islands Ceuta and Melilla Chile Clipperton Island Colombia Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Curacao Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Dominican Republic Ecuador England Estonia Finland France French Guiana Germany Greece Guadeloupe Guyana Haiti Herzegovina Honduras Hungary Iceland Ireland Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Kaliningrad Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Madeira Island Malta Martinique Mexico Montserrat Morocco Netherlands New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Northern Ireland Panama Paraguay Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Romania Russia San Marino Sardinia Scotland Serbia Slovak Republic Slovenia South Africa South Cook Islands Spain St Helena Island St Kitts and Nevis St Lucia St Martin St. Maarten Suriname Svalbard Sweden Switzerland Trinidad and Tobago Turks and  Caicos Islands Ukraine Uruguay US Virgin Islands Venezuela Wales

[Jaay]

4 hours ago, WRPL700 said:

So, can anybody explain contesting to me???  This weekend 10m and 20m (not sure about 17 or 15) was just plain jammed full of folks contesting.  What a zoo, if you ask me.  Hard to squeeze in enough space for normal use..... Contesters were stepping all over each other.  I did manage some QSOs on 20M and a few on 12M.

I guess if a contester wins a new radio, it makes sense...

 

Definitely a test of your patience.

[Jaay]

1 hour ago, Socalgmrs said:

Omg you mean for a weekend you couldn’t talk to random strangers on the radio?   Did your foot fall off?  Did your head explode?   Did you have an emergency and no one would stand by?   Didn’t you have anything else in your life you couldn’t have done instead of hanging out in the radio room all weekend getting upset? 

WHY ARE YOU SUCH AN ASSHOLE ALL THE TIME ???   CAN'T YOU EVER MAKE A CIVIL COMMENT ???

[BoxCar]

3 hours ago, Socalgmrs said:

Omg you mean for a weekend you couldn’t talk to random strangers on the radio?   Did your foot fall off?  Did your head explode?   Did you have an emergency and no one would stand by?   Didn’t you have anything else in your life you couldn’t have done instead of hanging out in the radio room all weekend getting upset? 

 

1 hour ago, Jaay said:

WHY ARE YOU SUCH AN ASSHOLE ALL THE TIME ???   CAN'T YOU EVER MAKE A CIVIL COMMENT ???

@Jaay Because it's a contest -- and I'm winning!

[WRPL700]

3 hours ago, Socalgmrs said:

Omg you mean for a weekend you couldn’t talk to random strangers on the radio?   Did your foot fall off?  Did your head explode?   Did you have an emergency and no one would stand by?   Didn’t you have anything else in your life you couldn’t have done instead of hanging out in the radio room all weekend getting upset? 

I guess I hit a nerve, huh?  I am relatively new at HF ham radio, so this weekend was quite a shock to me.... yes there is always a few contesters here and there, but wow this last weekend was way, way over the top.

And yes I did more that sit in the radio room.... I rototilled our garden and cleaned up the yard.  Good enough for you???  

[marcspaz]

@WRPL700 Below is the ARRL Contest Calendar which, globally, leads to the heaviest use of the bands during contest days.  All of the rules are posted in the individual event pages as well. 

 

If you want to try your hand with it or avoid those days, the calendar may help.  

 

https://www.arrl.org/contest-calendar

[WRPL700]

28 minutes ago, marcspaz said:

@WRPL700 Below is the ARRL Contest Calendar which, globally, leads to the heaviest use of the bands during contest days.  All of the rules are posted in the individual event pages as well. 

 

If you want to try your hand with it or avoid those days, the calendar may help.  

 

https://www.arrl.org/contest-calendar

Mark:

This is very helpful Thank you.

You may not realize it, but you are somewhat responsible for me being a ham now.  About a year or so ago you and I talked about using a 102" whip for CB radio DX.  I finally converted that into a horizontal dipole with a Procomm dipole mount and another 102" whip.  I had to lengthen them a little.  Since getting my ham license, I have cut the whips down a little and they work great for 10M and since my radio has a tuner, 12M. So thanks for all the help.

[marcspaz]

5 hours ago, WRPL700 said:

Mark:

This is very helpful Thank you.

You may not realize it, but you are somewhat responsible for me being a ham now.  About a year or so ago you and I talked about using a 102" whip for CB radio DX.  I finally converted that into a horizontal dipole with a Procomm dipole mount and another 102" whip.  I had to lengthen them a little.  Since getting my ham license, I have cut the whips down a little and they work great for 10M and since my radio has a tuner, 12M. So thanks for all the help.

 

 

That is awesome to hear! I'm glad you had good luck with it and a good experience. Thise 102" whips make all the difference when using CB and yes, they are great for 10m, too. A little trimming and tuning and you're off to the races!

 

If you ever want to try and slightly smaller antenna for a mobile, the Diamond HF10CL is 86" long with an efficiency rating of 90%. It works great without doing anything to it on 10m and 11m... and with a tuner you can do 12m, too.  Of course a full size antenna will perform better, but it will be pretty tough to see/hear the difference.

[AdmiralCochrane]

9 hours ago, marcspaz said:

 

Agreed.  That is a big plus.  I don't have a very active log, but I have reached over 100 countries so far, with this weekend including places like Serbia and Jamaica.  Though, Jamaica is a bit more common.

 

Here are a list of countries I have had contacts with from the DC Metro area... mostly while mobile.  I have also spoken to people in Alaska and Hawaii.

 

Andorra Anguilla Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Aruba Australia Austria Azores Bahamas Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Bermuda Bonaire Bosnia Brazil Bulgaria Canada Canary Islands Cape Verde Cayman Islands Ceuta and Melilla Chile Clipperton Island Colombia Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Curacao Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Dominican Republic Ecuador England Estonia Finland France French Guiana Germany Greece Guadeloupe Guyana Haiti Herzegovina Honduras Hungary Iceland Ireland Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Kaliningrad Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Madeira Island Malta Martinique Mexico Montserrat Morocco Netherlands New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Northern Ireland Panama Paraguay Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Romania Russia San Marino Sardinia Scotland Serbia Slovak Republic Slovenia South Africa South Cook Islands Spain St Helena Island St Kitts and Nevis St Lucia St Martin St. Maarten Suriname Svalbard Sweden Switzerland Trinidad and Tobago Turks and  Caicos Islands Ukraine Uruguay US Virgin Islands Venezuela Wales

Impress me and tell me you've done Delaware

[WRYZ926]

I'm personally not a fan of contesting. I can't keep up with writing down the call signs, signal reports and times to make it any fun.

More power to those that do enjoy contesting. As mentioned, it is a good way to practice using your radio and learning how to filter signals out.

I do work the occasional POTA as an activator, but I don't get into any kind of rush making contacts. As long as I make the minimum of 10 contacts for an activation then I'm happy.

I usually stick to the WARC bands when working SSB or AM when there are contests going on. Contests are not allowed on any of the WARC bands. For voice that leaves the 12m and 17m bands. And you can work CW or digital modes on 30m.

[marcspaz]

59 minutes ago, AdmiralCochrane said:

Impress me and tell me you've done Delaware

 

Man, I can't describe what a PITA that was! Being in Virginia and having to do it on a short hop, too!

 

 

[WRYZ926]

One of the hardest states for me to work on 10m was South Dakota. For whatever reason, SD can be hard to get at times from Missouri. I would like to get an antenna up for 30m and 60m. I don't have the room at all for a 160m antenna.

I'm hoping that 6m opens up this summer like it did last summer. I'm sitting at 39 states worked on 6m.

[SteveShannon]

6 minutes ago, WRYZ926 said:

One of the hardest states for me to work on 10m was South Dakota. For whatever reason, SD can be hard to get at times from Missouri. I would like to get an antenna up for 30m and 60m. I don't have the room at all for a 160m antenna.

I'm hoping that 6m opens up this summer like it did last summer. I'm sitting at 39 states worked on 6m.

It was difficult for me too and I’m just one state to the west. 

[Jaay]

8 hours ago, WRPL700 said:

I guess I hit a nerve, huh?  I am relatively new at HF ham radio, so this weekend was quite a shock to me.... yes there is always a few contesters here and there, but wow this last weekend was way, way over the top.

And yes I did more that sit in the radio room.... I rototilled our garden and cleaned up the yard.  Good enough for you???  

He probably won't respond, since he Knows when he's been called out.

[WRYZ926]

Don't let Negative Nancy and his very negative waves bother you. Most of us either ignore him or laugh and make fun of him

[tweiss3]

I did a handful of contests when I started out. One was field day when COVID was still a think and everyone worked from home. Beyond the difficulty of figuring out how to get the radio and logging computer on a generator to work 1E, and the 1 RTTY contest I did, contesting in general has lost my interest. I barely get a chance to jump on HF, and usually when I do it's FT8/4 so I don't have to talk to someone.

[WSEZ864]

11 hours ago, WRYZ926 said:

...I can't keep up with writing down the call signs, signal reports and times to make it any fun...

If that's all that's stopping you, there are workarounds... I use the QRZ.Com logbook function and it's very easy.

If I'm on the radio looking for contacts, I start out by logging in to QRZ and opening my own logbook page. When I hear a station I might want to contact, I look up their call sign on QRZ and decide whether to try them.

On their QRZ page is a button that says "Log a new contact with _____". If I try them and succeed, I click that button and the contact sheet that pops up is already populated with most of the needed info. All I need to fill in is the frequency and signal report, hit 'enter' and it's done.

I used to use a paper log. I have a dedicated clock set to UTC, a formatted spreadsheet with required info blanks and would write as much info as possible. Using QRZ is a lot faster and their logbook function is pretty flexible for sorting. I think one can even upload directly to LoTW, but I don't bother going that far.

[WRYZ926]

Contesting is just too fast paced for me and I don't find any enjoyment in it. I'm not much on long rag chew sessions but I also don't want to feel rushed either.

And I do use QRZ at home for logging along with HAMRS for logging POTA contacts. My chicken pecking is not fast enough to keep up at times. Plus my arthritic hands don't always cooperate. I have to edit my posts frequently do to spelling and grammar errors,

[tweiss3]

I use N1MM to log anything I log, then I don't have to deal with frequency or mode at all, only call sign.