 March 13, 2024 Editor: Paul Bourque, N1SFE | |
Upcoming Contests - Things to Do Virginia QSO Party The Virginia QSO Party (VAQP) begins at 1400 UTC on Saturday, March 16, and runs through 2359 UTC on Sunday, March 17. See the website for rules and other contest details. Participants are reminded that the VAQP is part of the 2024 State QSO Party Challenge. For more details about the challenge, visit http://stateqsoparty.com/. North American SSB Sprint The North American SSB Sprint Contest, begins March 24 at 0000 UTC, and concludes at 0400 UTC. The four-hour contest, on the 80-, 40-, and 20-meter bands, are short, intense competitions which challenge the best operators, while allowing others to sharpen their contesting skills. Operators who have never participated in the Sprints before should take a look at the Tips & Tricks section of the website. For complete rules, visit ssbsprint.com/rules/. Bulletins Last Call for Papers and Presentations for the 2024 Eastern VHF/UHF/Microwave Conference There's still room for more presentations for the 47th Eastern VHF/UHF/ Microwave Conference, to be held April 19 - 20, 2024 in Windsor, Connecticut. All aspects of VHF/UHF/microwave operating, technical and non-technical (contesting, homebrewing, EME, antennas, software, etc.), are welcome. If you have a topic that you'd like to submit to the proceedings, contact Paul Wade, W1GHZ, via email at w1ghz@arrl.net. The conference is sponsored by the North East Weak Signal Group. For more details visit http://www.newsvhf.com/. 2024 EME Conference Speaker and Presentation List Updated There are several new additions to the speaker and presentation list for 20th EME Conference to be held August 9 - 11 at The College of New Jersey campus in Trenton, NJ. This year's Saturday banquet speaker will be Joe Taylor, K1JT. for a full list of presentations, visit https://eme2024trenton.org/. Contest Summary See the "Contests" section below for complete contest information. March 14 March 15 March 16
March 17 March 18
March 19 March 20
March 21 March 22 March 23 March 24 March 25 March 26 March 27
Results and Records 2023 CQ World Wide CW Results CQ WW Contest Director John Dorr, K1AR, has announced that the final scores for the 2023 CQ World Wide CW contest are now available at https://www.cqww.com/scoresph.htm?page=1&yr=2023. North American CW Sprint Final Results The final results for the recent North American CW Sprint are now - Thanks to Ward Silver, N0AX North American QSO Party RTTY Preliminary Results The North American QSO Party (NAQP) RTTY Contest Manager Mark Aaker, K6UFO, has announced that the preliminary results from the February 2024 NAQP RTTY are now available at the National Contest Journal website, ncjweb.com/current-naqp-rtty-results/. Technical Topics and Discussion The WSJT-X development team has announced that Release Candidate WSJT-X 2.7.0-rc4 is ready for download by beta testers. includes new features (especially for companion program QMAP) as well as bug fixes. A full list of enhancements can be found in the release notes at https://wsjt.sourceforge.io/wsjtx-doc/Release_Notes_2.7.0-rc4.txt. Release Candidates are intended for beta testers. If you download and Direct links to installation packages for Windows, Linux, and macOS can be found on the WSJT-X website at https://wsjt.sourceforge.io/wsjtx.html. - Thanks to Joe Taylor, K1JT That's all for this time. Remember to send contesting-related stories, book reviews, tips, techniques, press releases, errata, schematics, club information, pictures, stories, blog links, and predictions to contest-update@arrl.org. Contests March 14, 2024 - March 27, 2024 An expanded, downloadable version of QST's Contest Corral is available as a PDF. Check the sponsors' website for information on operating time restrictions and other instructions. HF CONTESTS CWops Test (CWT), Mar 14, 0300z to Mar 14, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 16. CWops Test (CWT), Mar 14, 0700z to Mar 14, 0800z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 16. BCC QSO Party, Mar 14, 1900z to Mar 14, 2059z; CW, SSB, RTTY; Bands: 80; RS(T) + T-shirt size (see rules); Logs due: Mar 14. NCCC FT4 Sprint, Mar 15, 0100z to Mar 15, 0130z; FT4; Bands: (see rules); 4-character grid square; Logs due: Mar 17. Weekly RTTY Test, Mar 15, 0145z to Mar 15, 0215z; RTTY; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 17. QRP Fox Hunt, Mar 15, 0200z to Mar 15, 0330z; CW; Bands: 20; RST + (state/province/country) + name + power output; Logs due: Mar 16. NCCC Sprint, Mar 15, 0230z to Mar 15, 0300z; CW; Bands: (see rules); Serial No. + Name + QTH; Logs due: Mar 17. K1USN Slow Speed Test, Mar 15, 2000z to Mar 15, 2100z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Maximum 20 wpm, Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 17. PODXS 070 Club St Patrick's Day Contest, Mar 16, 0000z to Mar 16, 2359z; PSK31; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6; (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 23. BARTG HF RTTY Contest, Mar 16, 0200z to Mar 18, 0159z; RTTY; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; RST + Serial No. + 4-digit time (UTC); Logs due: Mar 25. F9AA Cup, SSB, Mar 16, 1200z to Mar 17, 1200z; SSB; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 2; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Apr 16. Russian DX Contest, Mar 16, 1200z to Mar 17, 1200z; CW, SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Ru: RS(T) + 2-character oblast, non-Ru: RS(T) + Serial No.; Logs due: Mar 31. Africa All Mode International DX Contest, Mar 16, 1200z to Mar 17, 1200z; CW, SSB, RTTY; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; RS(T) + Serial No.; Logs due: Apr 1. Virginia QSO Party, Mar 16, 1400z to Mar 17, 2359z; CW, Phone, Digital; Bands: All, except WARC; VA: Serial No. + county, non-VA: Serial No. + (state/province/"DX"); Logs due: Apr 15. Feld Hell Sprint, Mar 16, 2000z to Mar 16, 2159z; Feld Hell; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; (see rules); Logs due: Mar 20. UBA Spring Contest, SSB, Mar 17, 0700z to Mar 17, 1100z; SSB; Bands: 80; ON: RS + Serial No. + UBA Section, non-ON: RS + Serial No.; Logs due: Mar 31. Run for the Bacon QRP Contest, Mar 17, 2300z to Mar 18, 0100z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; RST + (state/province/country) + (Member No./power); Logs due: Mar 23. K1USN Slow Speed Test, Mar 18, 0000z to Mar 18, 0100z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Maximum 20 wpm, Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 20. ICWC Medium Speed Test, Mar 18, 1300z to Mar 18, 1400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Mar 21. OK1WC Memorial (MWC), Mar 18, 1630z to Mar 18, 1729z; CW; Bands: 80, 40; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Mar 22. Bucharest Digital Contest, Mar 18, 1800z to Mar 18, 2059z; FT4; Bands: 80, 40; RST + QSO No.; Logs due: Mar 25. ICWC Medium Speed Test, Mar 18, 1900z to Mar 18, 2000z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Mar 21. RSGB FT4 Contest, Mar 18, 2000z to Mar 18, 2130z; FT4; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Signal report; Logs due: Mar 19. Worldwide Sideband Activity Contest, Mar 19, 0100z to Mar 19, 0159z; SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6; RS + age group (OM, YL, Youth YL or Youth); Logs due: Mar 20. ICWC Medium Speed Test, Mar 19, 0300z to Mar 19, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Mar 21. IRTS 80m Evening Counties Contest, Mar 19, 2000z to Mar 19, 2100z; CW, SSB; Bands: 80; EI/GI: RS(T) + Serial no. + county, non-EI/GI: RS(T) + Serial No.; Logs due: Apr 2. QRP Fox Hunt, Mar 20, 0200z to Mar 20, 0330z; CW; Bands: 20; RST + (state/province/country) + name + power output; Logs due: Mar 21. Phone Weekly Test, Mar 20, 0230z to Mar 20, 0300z; SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15; NA: Name + (state/province/country), non-NA: Name; Logs due: Mar 22. A1Club AWT, Mar 20, 1200z to Mar 20, 1300z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: RST + Name; Logs due: Mar 25. CWops Test (CWT), Mar 20, 1300z to Mar 20, 1400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 23. Mini-Test 40, Mar 20, 1700z to Mar 20, 1759z; CW; Bands: 40; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Mar 22. Mini-Test 80, Mar 20, 1800z to Mar 20, 1859z; CW; Bands: 80; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Mar 22. CWops Test (CWT), Mar 20, 1900z to Mar 20, 2000z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 23. Walk for the Bacon QRP Contest, Mar 21, 0000z to Mar 22, 0300z; CW; Bands: 20; Maximum 13 wpm, RST + (state/province/country) + Name + (Member No./power); Logs due: Mar 28. NAQCC CW Sprint, Mar 21, 0030z to Mar 21, 0230z; CW; Bands: 80, 40, 20; RST + (state/province/country) + (NAQCC No./power); Logs due: Mar 24. CWops Test (CWT), Mar 21, 0300z to Mar 21, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 23. CWops Test (CWT), Mar 21, 0700z to Mar 21, 0800z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 23. NTC QSO Party, Mar 21, 1900z to Mar 21, 2000z; CW; Bands: 80, 40, 20; NTC Member: RST + Member No., non-Member: RST + "NM", Less than 25 wpm; Logs due: Mar 24. NCCC FT4 Sprint, Mar 22, 0100z to Mar 22, 0130z; FT4; Bands: (see rules); 4-character grid square; Logs due: Mar 24. Weekly RTTY Test, Mar 22, 0145z to Mar 22, 0215z; RTTY; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 24. QRP Fox Hunt, Mar 22, 0200z to Mar 22, 0330z; CW; Bands: 20; RST + (state/province/country) + name + power output; Logs due: Mar 23. NCCC Sprint, Mar 22, 0230z to Mar 22, 0300z; CW; Bands: (see rules); Serial No. + Name + QTH; Logs due: Mar 24. K1USN Slow Speed Test, Mar 22, 2000z to Mar 22, 2100z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Maximum 20 wpm, Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 24. FOC QSO Party, Mar 23, 0000z to Mar 23, 2359z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, VHF; FOC-Member: RST + Name + Member No., non-Members: RST + Name; Logs due: Mar 30. Maidenhead Mayhem Sprint, Mar 23, 0000z to Mar 24, 2359z; CW, SSB, Digital; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; 2-character grid field; Logs due: Apr 8. North American SSB Sprint Contest, Mar 24, 0000z to Mar 24, 0400z; SSB; Bands: 80, 40, 20; [other station's call] + [your call] + [serial no.] + [your name] + [your state/province/country]; Logs due: Mar 31. K1USN Slow Speed Test, Mar 25, 0000z to Mar 25, 0100z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Maximum 20 wpm, Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 27. QCX Challenge, Mar 25, 1300z to Mar 25, 1400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; RST + Name + (state/province/country) + Rig; Logs due: Mar 31. ICWC Medium Speed Test, Mar 25, 1300z to Mar 25, 1400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Mar 28. OK1WC Memorial (MWC), Mar 25, 1630z to Mar 25, 1729z; CW; Bands: 80, 40; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Mar 29. QCX Challenge, Mar 25, 1900z to Mar 25, 2000z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; RST + Name + (state/province/country) + Rig; Logs due: Mar 31. ICWC Medium Speed Test, Mar 25, 1900z to Mar 25, 2000z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Mar 28. Worldwide Sideband Activity Contest, Mar 26, 0100z to Mar 26, 0159z; SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6; RS + age group (OM, YL, Youth YL or Youth); Logs due: Mar 27. QCX Challenge, Mar 26, 0300z to Mar 26, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; RST + Name + (state/province/country) + Rig; Logs due: Mar 31. ICWC Medium Speed Test, Mar 26, 0300z to Mar 26, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Mar 28. SKCC Sprint, Mar 27, 0000z to Mar 27, 0200z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6; RST + (state/province/country) + Name + (SKCC No./"NONE"); Logs due: Mar 31. QRP Fox Hunt, Mar 27, 0200z to Mar 27, 0330z; CW; Bands: 20; RST + (state/province/country) + name + power output; Logs due: Mar 28. Phone Weekly Test, Mar 27, 0230z to Mar 27, 0300z; SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15; NA: Name + (state/province/country), non-NA: Name; Logs due: Mar 29. A1Club AWT, Mar 27, 1200z to Mar 27, 1300z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: RST + Name; Logs due: Apr 1. CWops Test (CWT), Mar 27, 1300z to Mar 27, 1400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 30. Mini-Test 40, Mar 27, 1700z to Mar 27, 1759z; CW; Bands: 40; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Mar 29. Mini-Test 80, Mar 27, 1800z to Mar 27, 1859z; CW; Bands: 80; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Mar 29. CWops Test (CWT), Mar 27, 1900z to Mar 27, 2000z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Mar 30. UKEICC 80m Contest, Mar 27, 2000z to Mar 27, 2100z; CW; Bands: 80; 6-Character grid square; Logs due: Mar 27. VHF+ CONTESTS AGCW VHF/UHF Contest, Mar 16, 1400z to Mar 16, 1800z; CW; Bands: 144 MHz, 432 MHz; RST + "/" + Serial No. + "/" Power class + "/" + 6-character grid locator; Logs due: Mar 24. VHF-UHF FT8 Activity Contest, Mar 20, 1700z to Mar 20, 2100z; FT8; Bands: 1.2G; 4-character grid square; Logs due: Mar 25. UBA Spring Contest, 6m, Mar 24, 0600z to Mar 24, 1000z; CW, Phone; Bands: 6; ON: RS(T) + Serial No. + UBA Section, non-ON: RS(T) + Serial No.; Logs due: Apr 7. See also: PODXS 070 Club St Patrick's Day Contest, Virginia QSO Party, Worldwide Sideband Activity Contest, FOC QSO Party, SKCC Sprint Log Due Dates March 14
March 15
March 16 March 17
March 18 March 19 March 20
March 21 March 22 March 23
March 24
March 25
March 27 ARRL Information Click here to advertise in this newsletter, space subject to availability. Your One-Stop Resource for Amateur Radio News and Information No other organization works harder to promote and protect amateur radio. Membership supports benefits, services, programs, and advocacy to help you get (and stay) active and on the air. Membership includes access to digital editions of all four ARRL magazines: QST, On the Air, QEX, and NCJ. Subscribe to NCJ - the National Contest Journal. Published bimonthly, it features articles by top contesters, letters, hints, statistics, scores, NA Sprint, and QSO Parties. Subscribe to QEX - A Forum for Communications Experimenters. Published bimonthly, it features technical articles, construction projects, columns, and other items of interest to radio amateurs and communications professionals. Free of charge to ARRL members: Subscribe to The ARRL Letter (weekly digest of news and information), the ARES Letter (monthly public service and emergency communications news), Division and Section news, and much more! ARRL offers a wide array of products to enhance your enjoyment of Amateur Radio. Visit the site often for new publications, specials, and sales. Donate to the fund of your choice - support programs not funded by member dues! Reprint permission can be obtained by emailing permission@arrl.org with a description of the material and the reprint publication. Acknowledgements ARRL Contest Update wishes to acknowledge information from WA7BNM's Contest Calendar.
| |
 | |
