The current issue of QQ arrived today ... man, what a nice job guys!
Ron, wonderful job! You raised a point in the editorial about code
speed, that I think could be the start of a nice discussion.
The quote was: "In life outside amateur radio, you must first have
the skills needed for the job to be done. ... If you want to be in
the top ten listing of one of the major CW contests, you need to get
your speed up!"
Now, I agree 100% with the sentiment and particularly the analogy.
But there is a delimma contained in that analogy that also applies.
How does one get the experience to qualify for a level that demands
previous experience?
This holds true in amateur radio as well -- how does one develop the
skill and confidence necessary to achieve a high competency at CW
when you can't find signals on the band to work?
I'm becoming acutely aware of this, having been licensed as an extra
class in 1990, and returning after a 5-year haitus. My code speed
sucks. Well, perhaps I'm better than I think. Maybe it's
confidence.
Ron mentions TR Log's contest trainer as good CW practice. What
about on the bands? It seems, in listening around a bit (and a very
little bit at that) that speeds tend to congregate around 10 wpm and
25+ wpm. My nerves prevented me from copying a lot of signals at 10
wpm, and I didn't even have the piece of mind to offer a "QRS"!
Perhaps I'm not perceiving the question properly, and I'm certainly
not the person to be commenting on this. I'd LOVE to hear from the
novice/tech+ among us as to how on-the-air operating has improved
their code speeds and perhaps how they feel the "improvement" issue
can best be addressed for the rest of us.
My goal is to be *competent* at 30 wpm by year's end. Since
tomorrow is April 1, and I'm solid around 10 wpm now, hopefully this
goal is realistic.
Considering that operating time at my end is limited (my shack is
the kitchen table, and the antenna is only 15 ft up!), what other
techniques can I use to improve my receiving skills? Sending will,
I believe, take care of itself.
BTW, I believe one thing that will help is to begin demanding some
free novice-class, power limited frequencies on an Amateur-exclusive
basis world wide. 40 is popular, but very, very difficult for
novices (and anyone else for that matter) to use. We need that
worldwide allocation from 7.0 or 6.9 to 7.3 or 7.2. Clear the
novice band segments, I say! Give them a chance to *hear*, *copy*
and *improve*!
Again, Ron, really nice job and an excellent editorial, which I
agree with 100%. My only question is -- "how?"
72 es 73 de
Marty, KM7W
__________________________________________________________________
Jackson, Tennessee e-mail: mdwatt@usit.net
http://www.public.usit.net/mdwatt
"The Curmudgeon's Corner"
NorCal #???? - ARCI #7514 - QRP-L #953 - AK/QRP #098 - Grid EM55oq
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