[CQ-Contest] So Sunday Sucked?

[w5portablesix at aol.com]

This was posted on another contest forum and is worth a re-post here. J




The "NEW" Contest Killer




FT8!

Yep. In over 30+ years of contesting, I never thought I would NOT put in a full effort in a major contest, but I only played around for a couple hours in WW PH and SS CW because I was on FT8.

FT8 exchanges make it very attractive to the contester types. Quick signal report, exchange some grid square nonesense that very few care about and move on the the next contact..PERFECT!

Sure, FT8 requires very little, if any skill. You can basically mash your face on the keyboard, roll it around, and make QSO's, but the fact that I can sit in the NW with my small crappy vertical and 20w and work a never ending string of Europieans while the band is open is fun as hell. If I have PSK Reporter up it's even better! Watching all of EU light up on the map from a few simple CQ's makes me think Whoa! can this be real? Is this some kind of cheesy ham radio mode connected through the internet? Nope, it's REAL radio using the ionisphere, and it's a drug. I feel like i'm operating a DX contest from the East Coast. And i'm sure it's a similar feeling for the East Coast boys to work into Japan and SE Asia. 


 Let's see... I can operate a major contest watching unworkable spots roll by, constinately getting trounced and totally rekted in pile-ups, where my chances of actually calling CQ and getting responses is zero  OR  I can sit here and run DX stations with my piss weak station about as fast as I can given my 15sec slot and fill my log with DX contacts. hmmm...thinking...

Honestly I haven't had this type of excitement where the possibilities are endless as to what country will call me next since playing with Dr DX on my Commodore 64 back in the day.

Is this a fad that's popular because it's new? Maybe. The big station guys will all try it and mess around with it for awhile, but for the small stations guys it's the "Real Deal". 

The contest organizers need to take note here as it's always been a running topic on how to get the "new blood" into contesting. Moving forward, FT8 won't make it any easier.