New HF Operators — Things to Do

posted in: Announcements, News Articles |

There are a number of contests or practices that occur on weekdays on a periodic basis. In some time zones, participation in these can be hampered by working, working late, family commitments, or other variables related to life. If you’re looking for something different to do and your schedule’s changed, why not try one of these events? On Tuesday evenings, you have a choice of a seasonal QRP Fox Hunt or the weekly Phone Fray. The QRP Fox Hunt is a much different format than most contests, make sure you check the rules. CW Ops Tests(CWT) have three sessions on many Wednesdays in the US time zones, and seem to be gaining in popularity. Thursday evenings, it’s all about the NCCC RTTY Sprint, followed by the NCCC (CW) Sprint. Oh, there’s also a seasonal QRP Fox Hunt on many Thursday evenings.

Band activity may be picking up with so many people staying at home. In the upcoming weekend, you can look forward to four QSO parties, including the Louisiana QSO Party in a new date slot. Some QSO parties are posting notices confirming that their events are still happening, along with any modifications necessary because of government orders or CDC recommendations. Expect mobile or rover operations to be diminished or curtailed. The Florida Parks on the Air event has been cancelled due to the fact that Florida parks are closed. Your DX opportunities are the SP DX Contest, or for RTTY, the EA RTTY Contest.

The weekend of April 11, there are three more QSO parties, and three more DX Contests. Propagation can influence west coast DX contest seekers to favor the JIDX Contest, while the east coast prefers the OK/OM DX Contest or Yuri Gagarin International DX Contest. The Yuri Gagarin contest appears to be quite the challenge – from examining the contest results and public UBN reports, for a contact to count toward a score, the other station must also turn in a log, and all information must match exactly in both logs.

CONTEST SUMMARY

Complete information for all contests follows the Conversation section

1 Apr – 15 Apr 2020

April 2

April 3

April 4

April 5

April 6

April 7

April 8

April 9

April 10

April 11

April 12

April 13

April 14

April 15