[SCCC] High Speed CW Contesting Comments Solicited

[Bill Haddon]

> and Bill ferments a "Special" wine that actually caused Ops to speed up

Hey, I'll work on that one Dennis : maybe you will be our Beta Tester.  Of
course we'll be in  competition with Morse Code Shiraz from VK land:
N6ZFO to KE3X:

"Sitting in front of me is an (empty) bottle of Morse Code Padthaway Shiraz,
vintage 2008, which was served at the NCCC hostility suite at Visalia this
year.  The wines are available locally in California.

Quoting from the charming tribute on the back label:

*"In this digital world, we remember the craft of the postal telegraphists.
For decades their Morse signals, dexterously delivered along Australia's
great telegraph line, connected us with the world and helped to save
countless lives.  We honour the Morse Codian fraternity with this collection
of gourmet produce and fine wines"
*
By Henry's Drive Vignerons   See http://www.henrysdrive.com/

73 Bill n6zfo

On Mon, Oct 18, 2010 at 10:51 PM, Dennis Vernacchia <n6ki73 at gmail.com>wrote:

> ...... 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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> >>
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