The PSRG QSO Party is a weekend-long event to encourage contact between members of the Puget Sound Repeater Group outside of nets and without the use of the repeater, thereby practicing and promoting the radio art and building our community.
The PSRG QSO Party will begin on July 30th at 00:00, and end on July 31st at 23:59, Pacific time.
Rules
- Eligibility. All members of the Puget Sound Repeater Group are eligible to participate.
- Exchange. The exchange must include your name and some kind of signal report (such as RST or CM, we aren’t picky).
- Bands and Modes. All bands, all modes – as long as it’s simplex. See the FAQ for details.
Example exchange
This is a minimal contact that you might see on 2m FM; it includes the required name and signal report. Feel free to chat about anything and everything, though! The goal is to have a conversation.
- Station 1 : CQ PSRG, CQ PSRG. This is K7DRQ, calling CQ PSRG.
- Station 2 : K7DRQ, this is KI7RMU.
- Station 1 : KI7RMU, this is K7DRQ. You’re coming in loud and clear, you’re a 5 by 9. My name is Quentin! Back to you, KI7RMU.
- Station 2 : Hi Quentin, I’m Jack. You’re a little in the noise, you’re probably 3 by 5. How do you copy ?
- Station 1 : Thanks Jack, good copy. Thanks for the contact, and 73! KI7RMU, this is K7DRQ.
- Station 2 : Sounds good! Wishing you 73, K7DRQ, from KI7RMU. I’ll be clear.
Scoring
One point is awarded per unique contact, per band, per mode. If you contact the same person on another band, or using a different mode, you score another point!
Bonus points
In addition, there are bonus points to be had.
- 5 bonus points for trying a new band or mode for the first time (max 10 points)
- 5 bonus points for speaking with someone you’ve never chatted with before (max 10 points)
- 2 bonus points for mentioning the PSRG QSO Party on nets (max 4 points)
These will be awarded on the honor system – just let me know when you submit your logs.
Logging
Logs should contain :
- the date and time (in Pacific time) of the contact
- exchange info (other station’s callsign, name, and their RST report for you)
- band and mode information
As an example :
| Date | Time | Callsign | Name | Report | Band | Mode |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 30 | 11:32 | KI7RMU | Jack | CM5 | 2m | FM |
| July 30 | 17:02 | KD7DK | Doug | RSQ 591 | 20m | PSK31 |
| July 31 | 08:51 | K2RNA | Ryan | 349 | 30m | CW |
| July 31 | 13:16 | KX2CW | Joan | 59 | 10m | SSB |
| July 31 | 13:16 | KD7WGN | Lee | 59 | - | Echolink |
Please use a spreadsheet for logging. You can copy this log template to get started (click on File, then Make a copy).
Send logs to k7drq@psrg.org for scoring! After the contest, a leaderboard will be published. Logs must be returned to K7DRQ by August 7th to qualify.
Prizes
The top three stations will each receive a gift card, courtesy of the PSRG!
- First Place : $50
- Second Place : $30
- Third Place: $20
Last year’s top prize went to Ron, NR7O. Congrats, Ron!
FAQ
- What qualifies as a contact?
- Any contact that is direct, and not via a repeater, is valid. The simplest is of course FM simplex on an HT or base station, but HF also works great. Almost all modes are valid, as long as things are simplex or direct.
- In the spirit of including our more distant friends, we welcome the use of Echolink and Allstar – as long as these contacts are made direct (node to node), and not via, say, the PSRG node or DoDropIn systems. Via both Echolink and Allstar, it’s possible to connect to someone’s node directly, and that will work great for this contest.
- Can I use digital modes?
- You sure can – any mode that allows you to exchange your name and some kind of signal report. This means that almost all digital modes that allow longer messages to be exchanged will work great. JS8Call, PSK31, RTTY, Olivia, and Packet are all good options. Maybe arrange a sked and try something new!
- FT8 does not really allow this exchange, and custom messages are likely to not be correctly interpreted by WSJT-X, so sadly, FT8 is not allowed in this QSO Party.
- Can I arrange a contact beforehand ?
- Yes, skeds are perfectly okay! Arranging your QSO beforehand, on the repeater or otherwise, is perfectly fine. However, contacts on the Double Nickel Simplex Net don’t count, as they are part of a net and not standard simplex contacts. This also makes sure Dan KB7RYY doesn’t automatically win as net host!
- Where can I go to arrange contacts ?
- If you’re on the PSRG Discussion Group, that might be a great place to arrange a sked. Otherwise, maybe mention on a net that you’re looking for some skeds, and connect with people after the net or via email.