[SCCC] High Speed CW Contesting Comments Solicited

[Dennis Vernacchia]

...... and Bill ferments a "Special" wine that actually caused Ops to speed up, where normally fermented wine would, of course, slow an Op down ! 

;-)

N6KI


Sent from my stinking I Phone 

On Oct 18, 2010, at 10:33 PM, Bill Haddon <haddon.bill at gmail.com> wrote:

>> Bob NC6Q wrote to the SCCC reflector:
> 
>> Can you  actually work a whole contest only working other high speed ops?
> Are
>> there that  many CW operators out there?
> 
> Hi Bob,
> 
> I am the Contest Director and "inventor" of the NS Ladder competition, held
> three times a year for 10 weeks each session on Thursday nights.  see
> http://www.ncccsprint.com/
> 
> Each contest session is just 30 minutes . . the idea was to mimic a real
> athletic sprint.. . we like to say that ops are out of mental breath by the
> end, and this is in fact true.  Cw speeds have escalated.
> 
> Originally we allowed duplicate QSOs to keep the rate high, but we dropped
> that with increased participation, now about 50-70 stations per week. [but
> sometimes in the non-ladder weeks we have contests which do allow dupes for
> very high rates --- N6RO manages these non-ladder sessions].
> 
> The speeds get high. . but we have, for the most part, an exceedingly
> courteous bunch who slow down as necessary. . .quite a number of stations
> run the contest at 25 wpm or less.
> 
> However, we area aware that not everyone is able or even wants to zoom along
> at 30 wpm or more, so we sponsor a Slow NS or SNS 30 minutes earlier. .
> that's run by Mike, W9RE, of the SMC.
> 
> The advantage of higher speeds? 1) First, it's very satisfying, at least
> when ur done :-)   2) It improves proficiency, which is valuable in any
> contest, as Doug noted in his reply.   3)  Participating stations and ops
> are always in "top shape" for any upcoming weekend contest.
> 
> We'd be glad to have you, and any other SCCC folks join us!  Art, W6KY has
> been a recent participant, and Randy, W6SJ a past one.
> 
> 73 Bill n6zfo
> 
> PS I'm a bit of an imposter on the SCCC reflector.these . . I lived part
> time in San Juan Capistrano for 3 years while working at the Nichols
> Institute (Quest Diagnostics) in the Ortega Canyon, commuting home to SF
> area every 10 days or so..  But then we bought the top of a mountain at
> Clear Lake, and commute went from 4.5 hours to 12 hours, so I quit and now
> put my time into running a small winery and doing some ham radio.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On Mon, Oct 18, 2010 at 9:14 PM, Doug Brandon N6RT <n6rt at dabware.com> wrote:
> 
>> Hi Bob,
>> 
>> Sorry for the delay, but better late than never.  Contesters come in
>> one of two categories, casual and competitive.  The bottom line is
>> the faster you can make QSOs, the higher your score is likely to
>> be.  Any good contester who is CQing at high speed and has a station
>> call in at a much lower speed should slow down as a courtesy.  I know
>> I do.  Most serious competitors will purposely slow down their CQs
>> periodically to attract the more casual contester who may not be a speed
>> demon.
>> 
>> Keep up the good work, practice makes perfect!
>> 
>>   73 de Doug, N6RT
>> 
>> 
>> Bob NC6Q wrote:
>>> As a relatively new contester, I have posted to this group several times,
>>> thinking my "neophyte" comments would help other neophyte contesters not
>>> feel  alone with their frustrations. I guess it comes from the
>> teacher in me.
>>> Specifically, I've commented on how difficult it's been for me to make CW
>>> Contest QSOs with those operators sending at speeds higher than I can
>> copy.
>>> 
>>> I've been practicing diligently, almost daily, for several years now, and
>>> just this week I've started to "feel comfortable" copying at 25 wpm. Wow!
>> A
>>> cool  feeling! A few letters are still problematic, but I feel I've hit
>> some
>>> sort of  milestone this week. And, I plan to go as far as I can--30, 35,
>>> higher? I  want to be one of those QRQ guys too. I really like this
>> stuff.
>>> 
>>> I would like to hear from some of you who do operate CW contests at
>>> "higher" speeds, 30, 35 + wpm. You must do it because there's a
>>> pay-off. Besides
>>> it just "feeling good," there must be other rewards, that keep it going.
>> Can
>>> you  actually work a whole contest only working other high speed ops? Are
>>> there that  many CW operators out there? I'd like to know. And I hope
>> you'd
>>> say "yes,"  because that would perhaps bode well for the future of CW. Do
>>> many people ask  you to QRS? What percentage would you say? Any
>> other thoughts
>>> on this  topic?
>>> 
>>> I would sincerely like to hear comments on this from the perspective of
>> ops
>>> who do operate CW contests at
>>> "high" speed. It seems we just don't hear or  read about things like
>> that.
>>> Thanks very much.
>>> 
>>> 73,
>>> Bob  Grubic, NC6Q
>>> Signal Hill, CA
>> 
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