so i was just browsing around and caught wind that there was a pretty decent 10 meter opening last week, guys on the west coast were reportedly working Europe pretty easily which is wild considering where we've been in the solar cycle. i managed to catch a few EU stations myself on Friday afternoon, nothing crazy but definitely better than the last few months. felt like the band had some actual life to it again.

also saw something on one of the other forums about Icom possibly releasing something new — think it was related to the IC-705 line but im not totally sure, the post was kind of vague. anyone actually know whats coming or have more details? i dont want to get too excited and then find out its just a firmware update lol. been happy with my 7300 but i always like to see what's out there.

also did anyone catch the ARRL announcement about the changes to the Extra class question pool? worth paying attention to if you're studying or helping someone study right now.

yeah the 10m opening was real, i worked about a dozen stations in Spain and Italy on Friday using just a wire dipole in my attic which honestly surprised me. the SFI had been creeping up all week so i figured it was worth a shot. its been so long since 10 was consistently open that i almost forgot how fun it is up there. a lot of operators who got licensed in the last few years have basically never experienced a real cycle peak so this is probably exciting for them.

on the Icom thing, i think what you saw might have been about a possible successor to the 705 or maybe a new mobile rig — there were some photos floating around that looked like they came from a Japanese trade show or something. dont hold me to that though. and yeah the question pool update is a real thing, they quietly updated the effective date i think, someone in my local club mentioned it at the last meeting.

omg wait the 10m opening happened Friday?? i was at work and completely missed it, thats so frustrating. i just got my general a few months ago and havent really had a chance to work HF properly yet, been mostly on 40 and 20 with mixed results. someone told me 10 meters is almost like VHF when its open which sounds amazing. is there any way to know in advance when these openings are gonna happen or is it just luck and being around at the right time? i check dxmaps sometimes but im not always sure what im looking at tbh.