We start with contesting - the first part
Racing apparently stems from a deep-rooted human desire to be better, stand out. Surely everyone has ever raced (and perhaps he won). There are sports, where thousands or millions of spectators watch the competition. Competitors will meet in a direct duel in one place. Amateur radio racing - contesting - is exceptional in this: the participants in the fight are not visible, many times they never meet in person and spectators do not have the opportunity to watch the race.
Nevertheless, a large part of the amateur radio community is involved in contesting. Why? Everyone's reasons will probably be different: try your operator's, technical and tactical skills, the opportunity to establish connections to unusual areas of the world, share the excitement and fun of racing with friends, or to support others in their racing efforts…
That you haven't started racing yet? Well, it's high time, because the others are already racing! Let's go!
Looking around
For a beginning contestant, it is essential to collect the necessary information. The alpha and omega is to study the conditions of the race and the results from previous years. In magazines, but especially on the Internet you can work out the details, which influenced the result of that station.
It is excellent, if you have the opportunity to familiarize yourself with the given type of race, for example as a member of a club station or SWL. Videos on YouTube or pages of active contestants can also help.
Custom options
It will probably not be possible to participate in every race. Based on own possibilities (temporal, financial, spatial) we will try to find the best type of race for ourselves, in which we have a chance for a good result.
A three-element yagi on 80m is an unattainable antenna, but to stack two three-element yagi….
On VHF is the most important factor affecting the QTH result. Altitude is not as important as the profile of the surrounding terrain. If there is a wall of mountains near your QTH, do not count on connections in this direction. Operation from elevation, where it is necessary to set up for each race and dismantle the workplace after the race is difficult, but all the more interesting. Nature will certainly prepare many surprises for you and you will learn to improvise well. The reward will be a good result.
Minimal equipment: device capable of VHF operation at least in the 2m band, SSB/CW and directional gain antenna, yagi or quad. Informative price: from 8,000 Sk
The second type of VKV race is EME and MS races. Participating in this type of race requires a well-versed technical and operational aspects of these operations. Expect a larger antenna system and the use of higher power. until significant zeros appear along the wire in the direction of the final radiation, operation is also possible from domestic QTH, which are otherwise bad for VHF.
Minimal equipment: device capable of VHF operation at least in the 2m band, SSB/CW/DIGI, power amplifier, preamplifier, rotator, antenna system, computer. Informative price: 25.000Sk
KV contesting is possible from almost any QTH, where there are sufficient spatial options for antennas. Every KV band, each type of competition has different demands on this key element – the contestman's weapon.
"Local" KV races as is OM Activity contest, SSB Liga, KV Operating asset or Activity 160 are the easiest for a beginner. They do not require knowledge of a world language and simple wire antennas are sufficient. Horizontally polarized antennas with a high radiation angle such as a dipole are particularly suitable, inv.V or lying quad.
Minimal equipment: device capable of KV operation in the band 160 or 80m, at least the CW, even SSB is better. Possible use of home made devices. Wire antenna. Informative price: from 3,000 Sk, for factory equipment from 10,000 Sk
Digi KV contesting is a form of contesting, where the reception and transmission of signals is realized using a computer. A computer with special radio amateur software is connected to the radio station using a suitable interface. Frequency stability is required for the device.
Minimal equipment: device capable of KV operation in the 80m band, better 20m, SSB with interface to sound card and computer (even an older type). Wired, for the 20m band, a directional antenna is better. Informative price: from 14,000 Sk
Single-band KV contesting CW/SSB. Only a few individuals with space and financial possibilities have the opportunity to implement full-size antennas for all KV bands. A good alternative for others is to focus on one band, where it is possible to implement a decent antenna system. A good knowledge of the propagation conditions on the given band will also be an advantage, stations etc, which gives the prerequisites for achieving excellent results. For the upper KV bands it is a directional antenna, combinations of a vertical antenna for DX connections and a horizontal antenna for short distances are suitable for the lower KV bands. Increased criteria are placed mainly on the receiver.
Minimal equipment: KV all-band equipment of the middle and upper class (single-band KV are no longer manufactured in this category at the factory), antenna for lower bands or directional antenna plus rotator for higher bands. Informative price: from about 18,000 Sk
All-band KV contesting requires multiple antennas. With antenna type FD-4, Wind has a very small chance of gaining ground. Many stations in this category use trap-type multi-element antennas for the higher bands and wire antennas for the lower bands. Big-guns also use several full-size antennas for each band. The KV contestman's choice between the all-band and single-band category is very important in this area. Many times it is more advantageous to specialize in one band
Multi - multi contest station MW5W
Glossary
contest – radio amateur race
contestman – racer
contesting – racing, amateur radio racing
YouTube – www.youtube.com portal of amateur videos
SWL – short wave listener, shortwave listener
QTH – opinion of the radio station (in terms of location)
KV – short waves (frequencies up to 30 MHz)
VHF – very short waves (frequencies above 30MHz)
EME – Eart-Moon-Earth, communication by reflecting a signal from the moon
MS – meteor scatter, communication by reflection from meteorite tracks
SSB – phone operation
CW – telegraphic operation
DIGI – digital operation
Dipole – single-element antenna in the shape of a line segment
Yagi – two and multi-element directional antenna, t.j. an antenna showing gain in a certain direction and attenuation in other directions
Quad – loop antenna, where the loop can be shaped like a triangle, square or circle
Next time: strategy and planning
