well. pretty bad but also kind of amazing? like i knew the big guns would be running hundreds of contacts an hour but i wasn't really prepared for how fast everything moves. i'd tune to a frequency and before i could even get my call sign out someone else would answer the DX station and they'd already be in QSO. my timing was just completely off for the first few hours.

ended up with 47 contacts over the whole weekend which i know is nothing but i worked Japan, Brazil, and a couple European stations which felt incredible given im running like 100 watts into an attic dipole. logged it all in N1MM which i'd never used before and that was its own adventure trying to figure out the exchange format on the fly.

anyway just wanted to share because i keep seeing people say contests are intimidating and yeah they are but also just do it. already looking at ARRL November Sweepstakes as my next one since the exchange seems a bit more manageable than CQ WW.

CQ WW is obviously the big one everyone talks about, and i know ARRL Field Day happened already (missed it this year, still kinda bummed about that) but from what i understand theres a whole bunch of stuff between now and december. someone mentioned the ARRL Sweepstakes and some state QSO parties and then theres the 10m contest in december i think.

i guess my question is do i just jump into CQ WW as a first contest or is that like showing up to your first 5k and running a marathon instead. also i do a little SOTA stuff and i know some people combine that somehow with contests but i have no idea how that works exactly. my setup is pretty modest, just a dipole up about 25 feet and a 100w radio so i dont know if thats even competitive or if ill just be spinning my wheels calling CQ and getting nothing back.

any advice from people who actually do this stuff regularly would be great

honestly I dont really know what to expect with something like CQ WW. I've been reading about it and the exchange is zone numbers right? I looked up my CQ zone and I think im in zone 5 but I want to double check that. also is it worth jumping in even if you're just gonna be running search and pounce the whole time? I feel like I'd just be in the way of the serious contesters who actually know what theyre doing. any advice from people who've actually done it before would be great, especially for someone who's never really operated a contest from their own station

Also my setup is pretty modest, just a Yaesu FT-891 and a wire dipole up about 30 feet. Is that even worth bothering with or am i gonna just get frustrated calling CQ into the void all weekend. I did try to tail-end a few QSOs during Field Day this summer and that was actually kind of fun so maybe i have some taste for it. Anyway just wondering if anyone has advice for a first timer who doesnt want to totally embarrass themselves lol

this year i want to actually get on the air myself. i have an ic-7300 and a resonant dipole for 40m that i put up last spring. nothing fancy. i know CQ WW is coming up in october and there's also the ARRL sweepstakes in november i think? not sure which one to try first or if i should even bother without a better antenna situation. also been seeing some posts about SOTA activations which seems like a totally different thing but still gets logged for some contests? or does it? im honestly not sure how that works

any advice from people who have actually done these would be great, im not trying to win anything just want to get a feel for it

also saw some stuff about ARRL Field Day earlier this year and that looked fun but kind of overwhelming with all the club stuff going on. is CQ WW less chaotic for a solo operator or is it pretty much the same energy? i have a modest setup, IC-7300 and a wire dipole up about 25 feet, nothing fancy. just want to get my feet wet without embarrassing myself too badly.

my setup is pretty modest — an IC-7300 and a wire dipole up about 25 feet. i can get out on 40 and 20 fairly well but 10 and 15 have been hit or miss depending on conditions. is it even worth trying to participate in CQ WW SSB or should i wait until im more comfortable? and if i do jump in what do i actually need to know about exchange formats and logging. ive heard N1MM is the way to go but havent set it up yet and im a little intimidated by it honestly.

also someone mentioned SOTA activations as a way to get operating experience without the pressure of a big contest — anyone done both and have thoughts on which builds skills faster? i feel like im drinking from a firehose a little bit right now

anyone have tips for what actually matters vs what people stress about for no reason? feels like everyone has opinions on everything from generator placement to which logging software and my head is spinning

CQ WW is coming up and i keep seeing people on here getting excited about it and i want to actually try to participate properly this time, like from my own station. i have a IC-7300 and a dipole up about 30 feet, nothing fancy. is CQ WW a good starting point or is it kind of overwhelming for someone who hasnt really done a proper contest solo before? also whats the difference between CQ WW SSB and CW — i mean i know one is phone and one is morse but do they have different dates or is it the same weekend

also somebody mentioned SOTA to me at a hamfest and that seems like a completely different thing? like hiking with radios? is that considered a contest or more of an award program thing. sorry if this is a dumb question im just trying to figure out what to focus on

We're considering adding a GOTA station this year to get more new hams involved. Any Class A or F entry may operate one additional GOTA station on any Field Day band, HF or VHF. What's been your experience with GOTA operations?

• How do you staff it effectively?
• Best bands/modes for new operators?
• Any special equipment considerations?

from what i can tell Field Day is more of a group thing and CQ WW is more serious? i watched some youtube videos of guys doing SOTA activations too and that looks amazing but i dont have any hiking gear set up for that yet. my buddy mentioned there's also the ARRL Sweepstakes coming up and said it might be a good starter but he couldnt really explain why.

anyway i guess my main question is — for someone who's just getting comfortable making regular QSOs and still kind of slow on CW, what would you all suggest as a first real contest experience? do i need a fancy logging program right away or can i just use paper for a first attempt?

my question is more like... how overwhelming is it really for someone whos never done a serious contest before. i tried field day with the club in june and that was kind of chaotic but fun, though i wasnt really running my own station i was just logging for one of the guys. CQ WW seems way bigger. do i need special software or can i just do it with pen and paper to start, and is there a way to participate that isnt like... trying to compete seriously. just want to have fun and work some DX without feeling completely lost

i know Field Day is coming up in june and from what i understand its more of a club thing? my local club does it every year out at the fairgrounds but i wasnt sure if i should just show up or if theres something i need to do beforehand. i also saw some stuff about SOTA on here and that seems like a totally different animal, like hiking to a summit and operating portable which sounds amazing but also like a lot of gear to figure out.

anyway im not really asking anything specific i guess, just wondering if anyone has thoughts on which of these events is good for a first timer and whether i should be worrying about logging software or if i can just do paper logs to start. my setup is pretty basic, just a 100w HF rig and a wire antenna in the backyard.

the thing is i dont really understand how the big contests work. like CQ WW for example — i get that you're trying to work as many stations as possible but whats the actual point of the zones and multipliers and all that. and how do people even keep track of everything in real time. someone at the club mentioned N1MM and i downloaded it but havent really figured it out yet.

also been reading about SOTA which i know isnt exactly a contest but seems similar in the competitive sense? i hiked a few summits this summer and brought my FT-818 but wasnt really activating properly i guess. and theres apparently a big SOTA event coming up in november that someone mentioned on the local repeater but i cant find info on it now.

anyway if anyone has advice on which contest is good for a first timer id really appreciate it. dont want to jump into CQ WW and just be totally lost the whole time.

is it worth jumping in even if i only have a modest setup, running maybe 100 watts into a dipole up about 30 feet? i feel like id just be getting buried by the big gun stations with their stacked yagis and amplifiers running legal limit. also what software are people using these days for logging during a contest, im currently just using HRD for everyday stuff but i heard N1MM is kind of the standard for serious contesting.

also completely unrelated but has anyone been doing SOTA activations lately, i keep meaning to get out and try that before the weather gets too bad here in the northeast. seems like a totally different vibe from contesting but id like to try both before year end if possible.

my setup is pretty modest, just a IC-7300 and a dipole in the attic which i know isnt ideal for serious contesting but i figured even if i only make like 20 contacts its better than nothing right. i downloaded N1MM and spent like two hours last night trying to figure out how the exchange works for SSB. i think i got it? you just send your signal report and zone number? zone 4 for me i think but i actually had to look that up which is embarrassing.

anyway is anyone else planning to get on this weekend or doing any kind of club effort? also wondering if this is a good way to prep for Field Day next year since thats kind of the big social one everyone in my area does together. SOTA has been on my radar too but thats a whole other thing to learn.

is there like a progression to these things? like should i start with something smaller before jumping into CQ WW or ARRL sweepstakes? ive also been hearing about SOTA which sounds totally different from the logging contest stuff. anyway just looking for any advice from people who have actually done these, what was your first contest and did you feel completely lost at first or is it just me

my setup is pretty modest, just a Yaesu FT-891 running into a dipole up about 25 feet in the backyard. i know im not gonna set any records lol but i just want to get some contacts and learn how it works. do i need logging software? i've just been using paper logs for everyday QSOs. also not sure if i should try SO (single op) or just do search and pounce the whole time. any advice welcome, especially from people who remember their first real contest

ended up working like 47 countries in about 4 hours on 20m and a bit of 15m which i know isnt impressive to most of you but for me that was kind of a revelation. kept hearing zones i'd never even thought about, worked a couple of guys in africa and one station in the middle east that came back to me on the first call which felt pretty good.

the rate during the peak hours was insane though, some of the big contest stations were just running and running and i had no idea how they were keeping up. also realized pretty quick my logging software setup was a mess and i was doing a lot of manual stuff i shouldnt have been.

anyway my question is - for someone who wants to actually do CQ WW or ARRL DX seriously next year, where do you even start with getting competitive? is it mostly antenna or is operating skill a bigger factor at lower power levels? and does anyone do SOTA activations around contest weekends to try and get both at the same time or is that too much to juggle

like i get the basic idea, you make contacts and log them and theres some kind of multiplier system for zones or countries or something. but i dont really understand how you actually operate during one. do you just sit on a frequency and call CQ contest or do you tune around and answer other peoples CQ? also is it rude to jump in as a total newbie when all these serious contesters are going at it? i feel like id be in the way

also been looking at Field Day results from this past june and SOTA stuff too, those seem a little more relaxed? or am i wrong about that. anyway any advice on just getting started would be great, even if its just "dont worry about your score just get on the air" which is probably the answer lol

i did do Field Day with my club back in june which was a blast honestly, that was my first taste of really operating under pressure and i got hooked. but that felt more relaxed because there were experienced guys around to help. doing something like CQ WW on my own feels different.

is it worth jumping into CQ WW SSB this fall even if i dont really know what im doing? or should i start with something smaller first. also someone mentioned SOTA activations count toward some contests or something? i might be confusing things. anyway just looking for a reality check i guess

anyway i sat down saturday morning with my IC-7300 and a wire dipole, nothing fancy, and just started calling CQ on 20m. within like the first hour i had worked stations in 12 different countries which is more dxcc entities than i had in my entire logbook up to that point. the rate was insane at times, like 60-70 contacts per hour which for me felt like i was barely keeping up. log4om was open on the other screen and i was still figuring out the macros midway through. total chaos honestly.

by sunday i was exhausted but had something like 380 contacts in the log and managed to hit every continent except Antarctica which i guess is just always going to be hard. already looking at the ARRL DX contest coming up in february and thinking about trying some CW runs which terrifies me but in a good way. anyone else remember their first big contest? does it always feel this addictive or does it calm down eventually lol

also someone at the hamfest mentioned SOTA and i know thats not technically a contest but it seems related somehow? like people activating summits count toward scores or something? im probably getting that mixed up. anyway just trying to figure out what the on-ramp looks like for someone who hasnt really done serious contesting before. any upcoming events worth targeting for a first timer would be great too

i also want to try ARRL Field Day next summer since that seems more relaxed and social but CQ WW feels like the big leagues. anyone here done both and can tell me what to expect? im a little intimidated honestly. every time i tune across the bands during a big contest it sounds like absolute chaos and i have no idea how people are copying calls that fast.

also random side question — does anyone do SOTA activations around contest weekends or is that kind of a different world entirely