[CQ-Contest] Young people / the thrill is gone.

[Tom K Osborne]

On Sat, 16 Sep 2000 17:21:37 -0400 k9yo at ix.netcom.com writes:

> Quite frankly, I'm done with contesting. Like you Kirk, 
> I don't know why my interest has went down the drain. 
> Maybe it's the "twenties" syndrome. I know a lot of people,
> including some of my elmers who lost interest in their twenties
> or so, and picked it back up a few years later. It could
> just be something like that.

I've been doing this contesting thing for about 40 years or so here (off
and on).  One thing that keeps me going is knowing that I DON"T HAVE to
do it.  If I feel like it, I'll come in and make a few Q's, mostly just
to work the "gang" and see if I can pick up a new country now and then. 
If the weather is sunny outside, I go camping or take the family to the
beach.  Then when I get home, I'll get on the air for a while (unless
there is a good football game on). I remember for a while, I had to be at
the radio at 2330, checking propagation, seeing who's on the radio, etc. 
Finagle my boss into giving me a day off so I could rest and be ready. 
Contesting was turning into a "must do" thing.  I would spend the entire
weekend at the radio, hollering "5903" and letting the rest of the world
go to hell in a hand basket.  I finally realized that I was never going
to be a "big gun" (whatever that means) and be at the top.  Oh, I've won
my fair share of 1st place certificates and enjoy looking at them.  I
finally decided that the way to do this was to just have fun, and to me
having fun is doing it if I want to and not doing it if I don't.  I enjoy
contesting now as much as ever now, but if something else comes along to
take me away from the radio, it's not the end of the world.  See you all
in the Sprint this weekend.  73
Tom W7WHY
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