Topband: Calling without hearing (was CQ 160 WW)

[k4zw@adelphia.net]

>On one hand, a WW contest is always a thrill, but on the other hand this one was very frustrating.
   Two things I enjoy most about Amateur Radio are contesting and DXing on 160 Meters.  Yet for the very reason others have expressed, I have a hard time getting psyched to do a 160 contest.  Last year after getting run off a frequency early Saturday night, I just decided it wasn’t worth the frustration.  This year I worked about 20 friends and decided to enjoy my time doing something else.  With so many people packed into such a small space, the problems are unavoidable.

>when they very obviously cannot hear the DX station at all.   
  I couldn’t agree more and this IS a growing problem on the lowbands.  Now I know someone will say hey I’ve heard you in a pile-up once or twice and you were calling out of turn.  Fair enough.  One of the things that draw most of us to Topband is the challenge of working stuff that is routine on other bands. Once and awhile an already weak signal suddenly drops even further into the noise or an ill-timed burst of QRN takes out the station we are trying to work.  It’s happened to the all of us at one time.  That’s not what we’re talking about here!
  Take a listen the next time someone even semi-rare shows up.  There are people calling that clearly have no business doing so.  A good example was 7X0RY Thursday night before CQWW 160.  He would ask for the N2.  A large portion of people just kept right on calling.  A K5, W3, WB2, K9 you name it.  They were in there.  Or better yet, he would get a full call and these same individuals would keep hammering away when he clearly was not calling them.  The process repeated itself with almost every station the 7X was trying to work.  This sort of thing is happening on a more frequent basis and it just defies logic and common sense.  
  I don’t know of any way to fix this other than to ask people to exercise a little restraint and self-control.  For starters, just because something is spotted on packet doesn’t mean you should start calling.  The rule I use is that I don’t call unless I believe I have a reasonable chance of hearing the guy come back to me.  By that I mean, was I able to hear who he was working before I pull the trigger?  Lastly, keep in mind that your peers are listening.  It’s your call and operating skills on display when you transmit.  

73
Ken K4ZW