[Fourlanders] (no subject)

[Jim Worsham]

The following was from the latest ARRL Contest Update.  I always bring a Y
adaptor and another set of headphones to the mountain.

73

Jim, W4KXY

 

Why a Y? 

Indeed! The Y I'm referring to is one of the beginning contester's best
friends, the Y-adapter for his or her headphones. We should all have a box
full of them for when the new contester (or potential ham) comes calling
during the multi-op. 

This prevents the usual "look at all the backs of heads" experienced by
visitors to a radio contest team in operation. If it's a phone contest,
everybody is yelling, but you can't hear the other side of the conversation.
And if it's a CW contest, all you hear is the amplifier fans, lots of
clickety-click from the typing and sending, and the occasional muttered,
"Damn!" Not exactly easy to explain and harder to understand what the
attraction could possibly be. 

Let's say the visiting ham expresses an interest in giving it a try. They
either get 160 at high noon or 10 meters at midnight. Good luck with having
any fun at that! Or worse, Joe Pro leans back, opines that it's time for a
snack and a nap and here, have at it, keep the rate up! I'm not sure which
is worse, being fed to the lions or hunting for one a deserted band. 

Where does the Y-adapter come in? Think of it as an on-ramp to the
superhighway of radiosport! That new ham or visitor can sit at the elbow of
Joe or Jean and listen as the QSO counter keeps ticking away. And face it,
we all love an audience to impress with our contestly wisdom by tossing an
aside here and there as the battle rages all around us. 

In days gone by, the apprentice would do the logging at the knee (or elbow)
of the contesting Elmer, freeing the main operator to run like blazes and
everybody had a good time. Today, the run operator keeps fingertips flying
on the keyboard, so a new operator has less to do. That means they have
plenty of time to listen. And learn. 

Seriously, while that new contester is listening is the time to feed them
the nuggets of guidance and answer their questions. "Why did you pick the
fast station over the slow one?" "How did you learn to sort out the calls?"
"Why did you just turn the RF Gain way down?" They can hear and learn right
there on the spot, with the real world experience happening right in their
head. There is no better way to learn! 

If you are looking for a good project for the team this year, building a set
of adjustable headphone splitters or even a way for a central position to
listen to any one of the radios would be a great addition to any station.
You'll wonder why you never did it before. 

Imagine, a simple thing like a two-buck Y-adapter! It may be the most
important piece of equipment a potential contester could ever have! 

73, Ward N0AX