[CQ-Contest] "Please Copy" - an opinion

[Richard Smith]

 Regarding extra words being spoken during SSB contest QSOs, especially "please copy", I would like to share an opinion.
There have been times, in my earlier years of contest operating, that I would let myself become so frustrated at operating practices that I would lecture or be a bit rude to the operator who called. After reconsidering my attitudes over a number of years, I came to the conclusions below:
1) Increasing participation in contests should be foremost in my mind. Anything I do to help increase participation is a plus. Anything I do to turn hams away from contesting is a minus.
2) Nobody is required to call me in a contest. Each caller makes the decision to call me. I want the experience to be a positive one, so that he/she is happy that they called and they hopefully will want to call me again. If they go away with a negative attitude towards me (or contesting in general), that's on me. It was in my power to make it a good experience, and I failed.
3) If I turn someone off to contesting, I not only lose that QSO, but may have lost Q's on multiple bands, and even more importantly, in multiple contests. It doesn't just hurt me. It hurts the sport of contesting, which affects us all.
I would suggest that if some of us feel the need to educate hams about the best operating practices, it should be done off the air, in articles, at hamfests, or other venues, rather than correcting an operator on the air. I haven't always been able to do this, but I try.
73, Rich, N6KT