[CQ-Contest] QRP

[James Duffey]

As a casual QRP contester, I ask no favors in a contest that you would 
not give any other station. Listen and try to work me, if I am weak, 
try to get the fills, and when you feel you have spent too much time 
trying to work me move on. I understand, just treat me like you would 
any other weak station. I think that most QRPers feel the same way.

I don't sign /QRP and I encourage other QRPers getting into contesting 
not to do so as well. When you hear someone signing /QRP, they are 
obviously new to contesting, or at least rigorous contesting. But they 
are trying. Often on this list I have seen posts about getting new 
blood into contesting. Here is new blood. So the best way to encourage 
him is to work the guy, encouraging him with a contest contact. You can 
them try to get the message to him that signing QRP is costing him and 
others time and points. IF he is local, that may be easy, but if not 
perhaps a QSL or an e-mail will help with a friendly note thanking him 
for the contact and suggesting that he and others may do better in the 
contest if he doesn't sign /QRP. Education is better than denigration.

There are lots of active contesters in the QRP community, but many only 
work QRP contests. They constitute new blood for the contesting 
community and are an untapped resource to keep contesting going into 
the future. We should try to entice them into being more active in the 
general contests. One way to do this is to invite local QRPers to 
participate in the contest forums at local hamfests, or invite them to 
club meetings if you have a club that is contest oriented. In turn, 
participate in the QRP forums at hamfests or in the local QRP club, 
perhaps offering to give a beginning contesting talk to them. That is 
the place to tell them not to sign  /QRP.

A, B, and Q, we are all in this together. It does no good for one 
segment to bash another segment. It only discourages them and gives us 
all fewer stations to work. - Dr. Megacycle KK6MC/5

--
James Duffey KK6MC/5
Cedar Crest NM 87008
DM65