A very inspiring message from Trey ...
It makes me think of who my personal heroes are in contesting. There
are many. Most were added to the list in my younger years. Nowadays
my ego gets in the way of recognizing outstanding operating, even when
its right under my nose.
For gentlemanly, classy, professional, stylish operating, its gotta be
W4KFC. Nobody else is even close.
My hero for running a pileup is K1GQ. Hearing him when he was at
KH6RS was the best lesson I've ever had in how to transform an unruly
bunch of W/VE alligators into a neat row of ducks, to be knocked off
crisply and with a minimum of fuss.
K8MFO is the best guy I've ever heard getting through a pile. I remember
when Don had a Gotham quad in Saginaw, MI. I heard him break a 15 m
pile to XV5AC when Vietnam was rarer than anything. He just knows
where and when to call.
For seriousness and dedication its gotta be N4AR. Who else do you
know who never calls in a pileup unless he knows what it is? Opening
his station up to a bunch of neophyte ops like myself in the 70's must
have been like handing the keys to a Corvette over to a 16-year old kid.
This is nothing other than a nostalgia-trip, obviously. But what else is
there to do when there are no sunspots other than to embarass these
fine contesters? :-)
I now resume my usual role as reflector "lurker."
-- Pat
WA8YVR
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