Contesting: The Competitive Side of HAM Radio

I finished my last ice hockey game of season in early April, but I didn't stop competing. This past weekend I participated in another competition, albeit a competition way different than ice hockey. I competed in the Florida QSO Party with my "team," the Portage County Amateur Radio Service (PCARS) from our club site in Ravenna, Ohio. The Florida QSO party is one of 50 state "Contests" that take place on weekends each year inviting any licensed amateur radio operators, and clubs like ours to compete and earn awards by contacting other stations, clubs and operators in certain locations during a period of time. 

Various award earned by PCARS

When I typically talk to people unfamiliar with HAM radio, I often focus on the practical aspects of the hobby. It teaches you all about waves, frequencies and signals, which we rely on constantly in our daily lives when we use radios, smartphones and WiFi. It could be necessary in an emergency, if cell service or power goes down -and PCARS does have volunteers who work for the county's Emergency Management Agency that train every two weeks for such an event. Amateur radio also allows a portion of the airwaves for amateurs to experiment with new wave forms, digital protocols, and communication technology that may help to drive innovation for the future. In fact, this is exactly why the Federal Communication Commission holds certain parts of the radio spectrum available for licensed amateurs like myself. But, what do we do with all this technology when there aren't any emergencies or communications problems that need to be solved? We have fun, of course! And, along with DX'ing, meeting new people from all over the world, and chatting with other HAM's in the local community, Contesting is a big part of that fun. 

So, what exactly is a Contest in terms of amateur radio? In the simplest terms, it's a competition to see who can contact the most individual radio operators and stations in a given time period. You use your radio to listen for other stations transmitting, or call out to request that other stations find you. Once you connect with someone, and they can hear you, you exchange some basic information, usually their call sign (the alpha numeric designation all licensed amateurs use to ID themselves over the air), their location and other details, such as a sequence number, a signal report or other pieces of information described in the rules of the Contest. Once you've got all the info you need from the other party, you'll write or type that information down, and submit it to the Contest officials after the competition is complete. The officials will then reconcile each submission to confirm that both parties made contact and gathered the correct info from one another to confirm a contact (or "QSO" as we often call it). Most of this is done digitally now, through SQL or other database software.

Award my team received for the Washington QSO Contest

Scoring depends on each individual Contest's rules. In most state "QSO parties" scoring is different for in-state contestants versus out-of-state contestants. In-state contestants may get points for both in-state and out-of-state contests, while out-of-state contestants may only get points for making contacts within the hosting state. For example, when competing in the Florida QSO party last weekend, my group from Ohio was only looking to call into Florida, as we wouldn't be awarded for making contacts elsewhere. This way, the state hosting the party is the focus of much of the radio activity that day. Additionally, extra points may be given for achieving certain goals like contacting someone from each county (or parish) in a state, or contacting one or more "special" stations, such as stations set-up in state parks, landmarks or points of interest. It's a bit like completing a "side quest" in a video game, or catching that "rare" Pokemon. 

Most Contests have different categories, so people with a wide range of interests can participate. Typically there are individual entries and group or team entries, but with those categories, different contestants can get awards in various categories, such as most VHF/UHF contacts, most CW (or Morse code) contacts, or most contacts on each HF band, etc. So there are usually a lot of ways to win or place, regardless of your interest. You can also uses contests to find new contacts on the radio, even if you aren't participating in the contest; as you can imagine, radio activity will increase in each state when they hold their contests, and this gives any amateur an opportunity to listen for and make contact with contest participants in a given location. 

When I first started in amateur radio, I did so because I wanted to learn about the technology, communicate with other countries and be prepared in case of an emergency. So, when I first joined PCARS, I was a little weary of "Contesting". I already played ice hockey, and the prospect of winning and losing was stressful enough. What if I sucked? I would be letting the whole team down! 

Images for our outdoor Parks-On-The-Air contest in January

Thankfully, PCARS and the amateur radio community at large are some of the nicest and most welcoming people you'll ever get to know. Just because it's a "Contest" and it's scored, doesn't mean it's stressful. Usually we simply stay on the radio only as long as we're comfortable. Some participants will work from their home rigs, and send in their contact sheet afterwards, and others will come to the club site and compete for a few hours each weekend as they have time. And each contest is a great opportunity to socialize, not only with the contacts you make on the air, but with other participants at your club or station. 

Good food is usually required as well. This past weekend, I not only got 5 contacts on the 20 meter band in the state of Florida, I also got two slices of pepperoni pizza, a Boston cream doughnut from Maggie's in Middlefield, Ohio, and all the Dr. Pepper I could drink! Not a bad way to spend a Saturday.