[CQ-Contest] Secrets of SSCW - #2

Wed Oct 15 23:09:48 EDT 2003

Here's what I do to make time available for contests and still keep 
peace (or is it truce?) in the family.  I have a calendar program into 
which I enter all the contests I'm interested in.  I show the name and 
the start and end dates and times.  e.g. on Oct 24 the calendar shows 
*** CQ WW SSB Start 5pm; Oct 25 shows *** CQ WW SSB; and Oct 26 shows 
*** CQ WW SSB 5pm end.  The times are local, not UTC.  What are the 
three *?  I have devised a rating system which works as follows:

If there is one * that tells my wife that I might enter it but if she 
wants to schedule something else, go right ahead - no need to ask me.

If there are two * that tells my wife that I want to enter this one but 
it's negotiable.

*** tells my wife that this is a biggie and there isn't much that's more 
important to me than being in it.

You don't want to overdo the *** ones.  For the four months Sep to Dec I 
have only 11 of them.

This calendar becomes the family planning calendar.

There is also the problem of interruptions.  I have spent some time 
trying to think of ways of communicating the fact that this is an 
all-encompassing activity which requires intense concentration, making 
interruptions intolerable.  What I came up with was triggered by the 
european custom of referring to contesting as "radio sport".  So, now I 
tell people that contesting is just like running a marathon.  It is 
something you train for and you have to spend some money on it if you 
want to do well.  When the marathon date comes up nobody asks you to 
justify what you're doing and wouldn't it be a better use of your time 
to wash the car.  You run the marathon.  I have been making this 
marathon analogy for 2-3 years. Now, during a contest, when my wife 
wants to know if the blue sweater looks better than the green I can ask 
her if she would interrupt in the same way if I were running in a 
marathon.  Well, that's the plan.  So far I have yet to actually try it. 
 Still, it is true that you would be admired by all and sundry if you 
chose marathon running as your sport.  Well, I chose radio.  When looked 
at this way, all guilt falls away.

Loved the NCC tapes.  Some of the techniques illustrated are simply awesome.

73 de Jim Smith    VE7FO

Tree wrote:

>
>
>Instead of talking about frequecy choices today, (you don't really need 
>to know that just yet), let me talk about a different issue that requires
>action sooner, rather than later.
>
>This has to do with your family.  Back when we were all single and didn't
>have anything QRMing our contest life, it wasn't a big deal to make 
>arrangements to have the weekend free to jump into the SS.  However, most
>of us now have more complicated lives and getting a weekend to ourselves
>is not so easy.  It is beyond the scope of this document to instruct you
>on how to get this weekend reserved for your activity - but you need to
>make sure this important step is done.  
>
>Furthurmore - you should not feel bad about doing this once or twice a 
>year.  When is the last time you got to spend some quality time in front
>of the radio?  
>
>In fact, there is a twisted way of looking at this that provides some
>motivation to really pour yourself into the event.  
>
>If you are like me, the number of hours that you spend in front of
>the radio over the course of a year is always decreasing.  I find 
>that a contest is often the only way I can get some time to play
>radio.  It is scheduled in advanced so that the normal activities
>associated with family life can be pushed aside, and it is intense
>activity - which can help you get your "fix" in a shorter period of
>time.  
>
>So - make sure you have the time marked off on the calendar - make 
>sure everyone knows that you will be focused on the radio and ask
>for support.  Then, look at this as an opportunity to play radio 
>without interruptions or guilt.
>
>This frame of mind will help on Sunday when things are slow and you
>wonder why you are doing this.  If you remember, that this is your
>time to play radio - you won't want to cut it off too soon.  I find
>I can even get on for contests with really slow rate - just because
>it is fun and happens so seldom anymore.
>
>We will cover "Sunday" as a whole subject in a future posting.
>
>Adding onto yesterday's posting about two radios, if you are not yet
>using a logging program in the SS, you should consider it.  Some of
>the logging programs are pretty good at orchestrating your two radios
>so that you are not transmitting on both of them at the same time, 
>and so you have fewer dead times where nothing is happening.  You
>can do a google search on contest logging software or look in a 
>recent NCJ to see what's out there.  Getting one and being comfortable
>with it will go a long way to enhancing your two radio performance.
>
>Finally, we have recently uncovered some audio files used by one of
>the old contest clubs to help improve their performance during the 
>SS.  Many great secrets are demonstrated in these recordings.  They
>are required listening to anyone who is serious about competiting.
>Hopefully, after hearing them, you will be less so.
>
>You can find them at this URL:
>
>http://www.kkn.net/~k5tr/nccc-tapes.html
>
>Many thanks to K5TR for making these available on the web.
>
>73 Tree N6TR
>tree at kkn.net
>
>PS: If you have some specific questions about the SS, serious or otherwise,
>please pass them along and I will try to address them.
>---------------------------------------------------------------
>    The world's top contesters battle it out in Finland!
>THE OFFICIAL FILM of WRTC 2002 now on professional DVD and VHS!
>       http://home1.pacific.net.sg/~jamesb/
>---------------------------------------------------------------
>
>_______________________________________________
>CQ-Contest mailing list
>CQ-Contest at contesting.com
>http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/cq-contest
>