[NCC] NAQP CW Coming Up on August 4!

[Hal Offutt]

Hello CW Contesters!

The IARU 2018 is in the history books.  What fun it was and so great to 
see K3LR and DL1QQ place so high amidst such brutal competition.  
Congratulations!

So, had enough contesting for a while?

No way!

At 5 AM last Sunday, having operated continuously for 21 hours, I was so 
tired and practically praying for the contest to be over. Come Tuesday 
or so, I started checking the WA7BNM website to see when the next 
contest will come!  The XYL will never understand.

Anyhow, that next contest is the NAQP CW and it is scheduled for two 
weeks from Saturday (August 4).  This is the first whippage, if that can 
be considered a word, for this event.

Crappy summer conditions do not hold back participation in the August 
NAQP.  Last year, a record-breaking 836 logs were submitted, up from 768 
the previous year.   CW ops have realized just how much fun this contest 
is, even for modest stations.

NCC's star participant in the NAQPs is the W2FU multi-two team 
(consisting of K2TJ, N2ZN, NW2K and W2FU himself), who racked up 1,846 
contacts last year!  The team's 40 meter total was an incredible 665 
contacts, showing just how many stations there are to work in this 
contest.  Of course, they placed first in the multi-two category for the 
umpteenth time.

Special mention should be made of MRRC's NA8V.  Over the last couple of 
years, Greg has become the NCC/MRRC combined clubs' leading NAQP CW 
scorer.  Greg has produced over 900 QSOs on several occasions and in the 
January 2018 contest his claimed QSO total was 1001 (reduced to 995 
after log checking, an incredibly low error rate).  Greg will no doubt 
be aiming to make sure he gets past that 1,000 barrier post-log checking 
this time around.  Is there anyone in NCC or MRRC who can challenge Greg 
for the top spot?

Last August we fielded three teams, one of which came in 10th out of 88 
in the team competition.  That team consisted of NA8V, K3UA, W8CAR and 
K8AJS.  One team member couldn't make it so that 10th position team 
score was produced by only four stations.  One more score would have 
probably moved our team up a couple of places in the standings.  In the 
past we have placed two teams in the top ten once or twice, so if we can 
get participation up, we can do it again.

So, now that you're all hyped for the contest, please let me know your 
plans, whether part time or full time, and I'll register the teams on 
the morning of August 4.

73 until the next pestering.

Hal W1NN

NAQP CW Whip