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http://www.arrl.org/contests/update/?issue=2017-10-04

The ARRL Contest Update

October 4, 2017
Editor: Brian Moran, N9ADG

IN THIS ISSUE
 *  New HF Operators: Receiving Antennas
 *  Bulletins
 *  Contest Summary
 *  News: Shortened ARRL Contest Deadline Reminder, OCDX, Makrothen,
    Loggers, EME, and more
 *  Word to the Wise: "Klick"
 *  Sights and Sounds: WWROF Webinar Adds a Speaker, Solar Flare During a
    Contest
 *  Results: CQWW RTTY Raw Scores, Kansas QSO Party Final Results
 *  Operating Tip: Use the RF Gain Control Effectively
 *  Technical Topics and Information: Recording Both Sides With an Icom USB
    Interface, Folded Counterpoise, Fireballs
 *  Conversation: Pitching In
 *  Contests
 *  Log Due Dates

____________________________________________________________________________


NEW HF OPERATORS - THINGS TO DO

A receiving antenna can make all the difference on the lower bands, as it can
provide a better the signal to noise ratio than typical transmitting antennas.
Some examples that aren't too complex and don't take up too much room include a
loop or flag. At times you can even use an existing antenna for a different
band. For example, at my QTH during a VP8 DXpedition a few years ago the
signals on 160-meters were not receivable using a dipole, but they were audible
on a 40-meter vertical. The Low-Band DXing book by ON4UN has many fine examples
of receiving antennas, and W8JI's website describes theory and practice.

____________________________________________________________________________


CONTEST SUMMARY

5-Oct - 18-Oct 2017

Complete information for all contests follows the Conversation section

October 5

 *  CWops Mini-CWT Test
 *  SARL 80m QSO Party
 *  NRAU 10m Activity Contest

October 6

 *  NCCC RTTY Sprint
 *  NCCC Sprint
 *  YLRL DX/NA YL Anniversary Contest

October 7

 *  ARRL EME Contest
 *  GTC CW Cup
 *  TRC DX Contest
 *  Microwave Fall Sprint
 *  Oceania DX Contest, Phone
 *  Russian WW Digital Contest
 *  SKCC Weekend Sprintathon
 *  International HELL-Contest
 *  California QSO Party
 *  FISTS Fall Slow Speed Sprint
 *  WAB HF Phone

October 8

 *  International HELL-Contest
 *  RSGB DX Contest
 *  UBA ON Contest, 6m

October 9

 *  4 States QRP Group Second Sunday Sprint
 *  RSGB 80m Autumn Series, CW

October 10

 *  10-10 Int. 10-10 Day Sprint

October 11

 *  NAQCC CW Sprint
 *  Phone Fray
 *  CWops Mini-CWT Test

October 12

 *  CWops Mini-CWT Test

October 13

 *  NCCC RTTY Sprint
 *  NCCC Sprint

October 14

 *  Makrothen RTTY Contest
 *  Oceania DX Contest, CW
 *  QRP ARCI Fall QSO Party
 *  Scandinavian Activity Contest, SSB
 *  Arizona QSO Party
 *  Pennsylvania QSO Party
 *  FISTS Fall Unlimited Sprint
 *  PODXS 070 Club 160m Great Pumpkin Sprint

October 15

 *  Makrothen RTTY Contest
 *  Arizona QSO Party
 *  Pennsylvania QSO Party
 *  Asia-Pacific Fall Sprint, CW
 *  UBA ON Contest, 2m

October 16

 *  Run for the Bacon QRP Contest
 *  ARRL School Club Roundup
 *  Telephone Pioneers QSO Party

October 18

 *  Phone Fray
 *  CWops Mini-CWT Test
 *  RSGB 80m Autumn Series, Data

____________________________________________________________________________


NEWS, PRESS RELEASES, AND GENERAL INTEREST

Reminder: Beginning with the recent ARRL September VHF Contest, log deadlines
are shorter for the majority of ARRL Contests. In summary, ARRL VHF Contests
now have a 10-day log deadline - and starting with November Sweepstakes, ARRL
HF Contests now have a 5-day log deadline.


Reminder part deux: If your club participates in the ARRL Contest Club
Competition, remind the club member taking care of the details that if they
haven't done so, it's time to review the membership eligibility lists for the
2017-2018 contest season. This must be done BEFORE the first point-qualifying
contest, ARRL Sweepstakes, otherwise sadness may ensue: "club results will be
calculated based on only the eligible members that you file in your eligibility
list uploads before the contest begins." No Mulligans on this one: see the
September QST article on "ARRL Contest Changes for the 2017-2018 Season" (PDF)
or the web page for the details.


After the recent hurricanes in the Caribbean, and just five days before the
contest, the sponsors of the North American SSB Sprint cancelled the October 1
(September 30 local) contest, to not have any chance of impacting the important
health and welfare traffic using the Amateur bands. According to Bob Hayes,
KW8N, NA SSB Sprint Committee Chairman, "As much as many enjoy this contest and
were looking forward to participating in it this weekend, it is necessary and
appropriate to give wide berth to the health and welfare communications now
taking place on the Amateur Bands. We encourage all Amateur Radio operators to
assist or donate to the recovery efforts through appropriate aid
organizations." According to the SSB Sprint website, the contest has been
rescheduled for November 12, 2017.


The popular and historic Oceania DX (OCDX) Contest runs on two consecutive
contest weekends, one for Phone and one for CW. October 7, 2017, 0800z is the
start of the phone event. According to the sponsors, "multipliers are the key"
to winning this radio contest. In the OCDX contest, Oceania prefixes count as
multipliers the first time they're worked per band, where 'prefix' includes the
number. As an example, ZL1, ZM1, ZL2 and ZM2 are four multipliers. While you
may be able to find uncommon Oceania prefixes on CW using cluster spots, you'll
have to aggressively hunt for the rare ones for the SSB event. Some rare ones
are planned -- it's anticipated that Christmas Island and Cocos Keeling Island
will be on the air for the phone and CW weekends, respectively. Overall
activity is expected to be brisk: despite declining conditions in 2016, new
records were set, and over 1200 logs were received. For more information, check
the website for the rules, anticipated activations, and general information on
entering this contest.


Jeff, WK6I, writes:

How do you do a contest like Makrothen?

(with apologies to Rogers and Hammerstein)

Given up for dead a year ago, the Makrothen contest is back with a vengeance,
now sponsored by the Pizza Lovers 259 club of Northern California. The
Makrothen - which is a word meaning "great distance" in ancient Greek - is one
of the few distance-scored contests conducted below 50MHz. Competitors exchange
4-character Maidenhead grid squares, and the score is calculated based on the
distance in kilometers between the grid square centers. There are some
additional details - like band multipliers, see the rules - but basically you
add up all your 'klicks' and that's your score.

Distance Based Scoring provides a more equitable scoring system that minimizes
the station location advantage that is so typical of most other HF contests.
This allows stations around the world to compete with one another on
effectively the same terms making the contest more fun for all participants!

Now that I have your attention, perhaps I should mention... it's a RTTY
contest!

There are some other additional twists. The Makrothen is nominally a 24-hour
contest, but that is split into three 8-hour periods during which everyone
operates, separated by 8-hour pauses where everyone takes a break.

Also, the Makrothen features a separate single-op, multi-receiver category. If
your contesting proclivities lean towards SO2R or SO2V (using the sub-receiver
on a single transceiver), be sure to enter this category. All categories may
operate with assistance.

The rules, some additional background and resources, and log submission can all
be found at https://www.pl259.org/makrothen/. The first contest period occurs
on October 14.


Scott, N3FJP, announces that a new version of his Pennsylvania QSO Party
Contest Logger is now available via his website. Recent changes to the PAQP
have added additional Canadian multipliers. In related news, Scott's non-QSO
Party software now supports multiple real time contest scoreboards.


Bruce Horn's popular Contest Calendar website has a new URL! The new link for
WA7BNM's Contest Calendar is http://www.contestcalendar.com.


Beep, Beep, Beep, Sold! A vintage full-scale test version of Russia's 1950's
Sputnik satellite sold for $847,000 last week. If you're looking for a modern
beacon transmitter you can use on the Amateur bands, including the new ones at
2200 and 630 meters, check out QRP Labs' Ultimate3S kit. Some people have flown
the Ultimate3S to over 6 miles height and around the world using high-altitude
balloons. (Dennis, N6KI)


WRTC 2018 announces the completion of the selection of all 63 teams with the
determination of the Youth and Wild Card spots. Youth teams are comprised of
operators under the age of 25. Seven Youth teams applied, and the three
selected will be led by CE2MVF, YO8TTT, and HA8RT. The Wild Card teams include
K1DG and teammate N2NT, along with teams captained by 9A7DX, YV1DIG, ZL3CW, and
UN9LW.


I asked Lance, W7GJ, what it would take to make just one Earth-Moon-Earth (EME)
contact in the upcoming ARRL EME Contest, just to do it. It could be a nice
challenge to share among a group of club members. Lance has quite a bit of
experience in this area, dragging EME gear to many far away places just to give
other Amateurs rare grids on this mode. His reply:

"Here is a quick introduction for someone who might want to try 6-meter or
2-meter EME. I have worked many single Yagi stations on both 2m and 6m, and the
only for thing for sure is that if you don't try, you won't be successful.

The first step on trying EME on 6m or 2m would be to download WSJT-X and learn
how to use it to operate JT65. A step-by-step checklist for setting up the
program is at http://www.bigskyspaces.com/w7gj/JT65.pdf.

One of the very popular features of WSJT-X is that it will work with most
modern rigs that have some sort of USB cable to control the rig by computer
using CAT (a separate "computer interface" box is not necessary in such a
case).

If you cannot elevate your antenna, and you have a quiet QTH with chance for
good ground gain (smooth, unobstructed terrain toward your east or west), find
someone who has a larger array with elevation so they can track the moon and
run a sked with you while your moon ascends (or descends) through your ground
gain antenna lobes below 20 degrees elevation.

You can run the WSJT-X "ECHO MODE" to check on your own as to whether you have
ground gain lobes and what moon elevations work best for you, given your
antenna height above ground, and the steepness of the terrain around your
antenna site.

Ground gain lobes work best if you don't have any buildings or HF antennas
below your VHF antennas to shield them from the valuable ground gain
reflections. You can compare the gain of popular antennas and learn more about
ground gain on my website.

Especially on 6m, it is important to increase your chances by trying EME on a
day when conditions are best for EME. The best days for 6m EME are also shown
on my website. In addition, you should avoid days when there is aurora or a
high Kp index.

Next, if you want to try to work somebody on 6m, go to the ON4KST EME chat page
and try to line up a JT65A mode sked with a big station.

If you want to try 2m, follow the same steps as above, but go to this page to
arrange a sked. GL and DX! VY 73, Lance"


October 15 is the first date that most US Amateurs can realistically use the
new 2200 and 630 meter bands. The PSKReporter website is ready to take
reception reports from digital mode applications like WSJT-X that support
report uploading.


The ARRL School Club Roundup starts October 16, and ends October 20. Be on the
lookout for activity, and give out a few contacts if you can.

____________________________________________________________________________


WORD TO THE WISE

Klick - shorthand, or even slang, for kilometer. There are 620 miles for every
1000 klicks.

____________________________________________________________________________


SIGHTS AND SOUNDS

Frank, W3LPL, will be joining Carl, K9LA, for the World Wide Radio Operator
Foundation (WWROF) webinar "A Look at Propagation for the 2017/2018 Contest
Season." You can mark Wednesday, October 4, 9 PM EDT (Thursday, October 5 -
01:00 UTC) in your calendar, and don't forget to pre-register. They'll discuss
the current solar cycle 24, what to expect over the next six months, and how it
will affect the contest season.


Kaelen, son of Rhonda, KD6LMW, visiting the San Diego Contest Club's NX6T.
Kaelin is studying for his license, and was loaded up with a brand new Nye
Telegraph key, Heathkit HW-8 transceiver, and Baofeng UV-5R. Kaelen's mom will
be control operator until Kaelen earns his ticket. John, W6JBR, in the
background, demonstrated FLDIGI and Ham Radio Deluxe. According to Dennis,
N6KI, "Kaelen has been bitten by the ham radio bug!" [Photo by N6KI]


Jose, CT1BOH, read an article by K9LA entitled "Solar Flares at ZF2RR" and that
encouraged him to share his own observations (in 2009) of a X4.0 flare that
affected is 2000 CQWW CW P40E contest operation. Jose has graphs of the solar
flux observations, and 26 minutes of audio on 21 and 28 MHz during the event.


Presentations from the recent Six-Meter BBQ are starting to appear on YouTube.
Here's one by David Shoaf, KG6IRW, talking about six-meter DXing and
Contesting.

____________________________________________________________________________


RESULTS AND RECORDS

Ed, W0YK, states that raw scores for the CQWW RTTY Contest have been posted. He
notes that these are NOT the same as claimed scores. Raw scores are calculated
from the official scoring software before any penalties or deductions are
considered. "Final log checking may change these numbers."

"The 2017 Kansas QSO Party preliminary results are posted to the Kansas QSO
Party website. We had a record 383 logs (up from our previous high of 325), 113
Kansas operators and 51 1x1 call signs spelling KANSAS, QSOPARTY, SUNFLOWER and
BISON. John, N6MU swept all 105 counties for a 7th year in a row. Please look
over the results and contact Bob, W0BH with corrections/problems. Thanks to all
who participated!" (Bob, W0BH, KSQP Coordinator)

____________________________________________________________________________


OPERATING TIP

Use the RF gain control effectively

It's easy to overlook the RF gain control, but it can be another tool you can
use to more quickly get stations into the log. With most radios, adjusting the
RF gain control down results in an increase in the S-meter indication. In the
presence of fading on a signal, you can adjust the RF gain just to the point
where you can still hear your signal, but the S-meter is steady, with no
fluctuations. At this point, any effects of AGC on the signal should be
minimal, and your copy should improve. Some operators even turn OFF their AGC
to dig for the really weak ones on relatively quiet bands, preferring to
manually control the gain using the RF Gain control. In noisy bandy conditions
you can reduce RF gain, thereby reducing overall noise levels, which can help
to decrease operator fatigue.

____________________________________________________________________________


TECHNICAL TOPICS AND INFORMATION

Anyone who has tried to record both ends of a CW QSO using the USB sound card
built in to an IC-7300 or IC-7851 quickly discovers that received audio is
recorded OK, but transmitted CW sidetone is not. The recorded audio mutes
completely whenever you transmit CW. This frustrating limitation of Icom radios
has been documented in the N1MM online manual, and in N6TV's Contest University
presentations. A solution to this longstanding limitation has finally been
discovered! K5DHY reported that sidetone was being recorded OK on his IC-7300.
Mystified, N6TV asked K3CT to investigate, and John discovered that simply
changing the obscure menu item USB AF Beep/Speech... Output to ON immediately
enabled CW sidetone to be recorded OK over the USB connection, along with any
received audio. With some contest sponsors requiring top competitors to make
recordings of all transmitted and received audio, one task just became much
simpler. This works for the IC-7300, IC-7850, IC-7851, and probably the new
IC-7610, but be advised that the default setting is OFF instead of ON, so
action is required to make this work. (Bob, N6TV)


Guy, K2AV has preserved and enhanced the Folded CounterPoise (FCP) antenna
information that Jack, W0UCE (SK) previously maintained, and has placed it on
his website, K2AV.com. Guy and Jack started a correspondence about this antenna
after Guy's article "The FCP: A 160 Meter Counterpoise for a Postage-Stamp Lot"
appeared in the May/June 2012 NCJ. Information that has been added since the
original article includes using it in an Inverted L configuration. Guy calls
his website a "work in progress" since he intends to add more information as
experimentation proceeds.


That fireball that you see in the sky could be the origin story for yet another
movie superhero, but it's more likely to be a meteor, which is defined as the
"visible path of meteoroids that have entered the Earth's atmosphere at high
velocities." In addition to being adequate but fleeting targets for VHF
signals, they can also put on quite a show. Of course there's a website for
tracking them.


The term "dual use item" is now an appropriate descriptor for Xbox controllers.
Perhaps in the future we'll be swiping left and right to work our way through
the pileups?

____________________________________________________________________________


CONVERSATION

Pitching In

You've likely seen the hurricane Maria recovery coverage on the news, on the
ARRL website, in the ARRL Letter. According to Fred Kleber, K9VV/NP2X, "Life is
returning to some sort of normalcy in the VI while our neighbors in PR are well
into the 'desperation state'. " Amateurs are contributing with pragmatic
solutions to providing support to those who have been thrust back into the
pre-electrification era. Fred notes that he's "part of a team which is slated
to fly a plane with a tow banner over remote parts remote parts of PR. The
banner will instruct anyone with a ham or FRS (the cheap walkie-talkies you can
buy at Walmart or sports stores) on which frequencies to call for help. The
plane will have a ham operator, GPS, and a repeater on it to obtain status and
summon help, if needed. Low tech but effective in reaching remote parts of PR
which still haven't received aid."

The ARRL in conjunction with the American Red Cross have sent a team of fifty
Amateurs to Puerto Rico assist with on-the-ground communications and relief. A
number of Amateurs based in the continental US have been relaying traffic. Some
are contesters, and no doubt their experience in operating and handling
information quickly has benefited them. Amateur related businesses have
answered the call for resources with equipment and support of their employees'
time in service of this disaster. At least one contest has been rescheduled to
avoid any possibility of interference with recovery related communications.

As the recovery progresses over the next few months, just being aware that the
effort is continuing can help out in small ways - for example being aware of
potential frequencies that can be in use, listening just a little more
carefully before transmitting, and remembering to support the aid organizations
already there.

According to Fred, the goal of the Virgin Island government is "restoration of
power to 90% of St. Croix by Christmas." He points out that "the simple things
in life, like the light switch, power, water, a toilet flushing, and so on,
have taken on a whole new meaning."

That's all for this time. Remember to send contesting related stories, book
reviews, tips, techniques, press releases, errata, schematics, club
information, pictures, stories, blog links, and predictions to
contest-update@arrl.org

73, Brian N9ADG

____________________________________________________________________________


CONTESTS

05-Oct - 18-Oct 2017

An expanded, downloadable version of QST's Contest Corral in PDF format is
available. Check the sponsor's Web site for information on operating time
restrictions and other instructions.


HF CONTESTS

CWops Mini-CWT Test, Oct 4, 1300z to Oct 4, 1400z, Oct 4, 1900z to Oct 4,
2000z, Oct 5, 0300z to Oct 5, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10m;
Member: Name + Member No., non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs
due: October 7.

SARL 80m QSO Party, Oct 5, 1700z to Oct 5, 2000z; SSB; Bands: 80m Only; RS +
Serial No. + Grid Locator or QTH; Logs due: October 12.

NRAU 10m Activity Contest, Oct 5, 1700z to Oct 5, 1800z (CW), Oct 5, 1800z to
Oct 5, 1900z (SSB), Oct 5, 1900z to Oct 5, 2000z (FM), Oct 5, 2000z to Oct 5,
2100z (Dig); CW, SSB, FM, Digital; Bands: 10m Only; RS(T) + 6-character grid
square; Logs due: October 19.

NCCC RTTY Sprint, Oct 6, 0145z to Oct 6, 0215z; RTTY; Bands: (see rules);
Serial No. + Name + QTH; Logs due: October 8.

NCCC Sprint, Oct 6, 0230z to Oct 6, 0300z; CW; Bands: (see rules); Serial No. +
Name + QTH; Logs due: October 8.

YLRL DX/NA YL Anniversary Contest, Oct 6, 1400z to Oct 8, 0200z; CW, SSB,
Digital; Bands: Any; Serial No. + RS(T) + (ARRL Section/province/country); Logs
due: November 6. GTC CW Cup, Oct 7, 0600z to Oct 7, 1200z and 1200Z-1800Z, Oct
8; CW; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10m; GTC Members: RST + "GTC" + 3-digit member
number, non-GTC: RST + "NM"; Logs due: October 30.

TRC DX Contest, Oct 7, 0600z to Oct 8, 1800z; CW, SSB; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15,
10m; TRC Members: RST + Serial No. + "TRC", non-TRC Members: RST + Serial No.;
Logs due: October 15.

Oceania DX Contest, Phone, Oct 7, 0800z to Oct 8, 0800z; Phone; Bands: 160, 80,
40, 20, 15, 10m; RS + Serial No.; Logs due: October 31.

Russian WW Digital Contest, Oct 7, 1200z to Oct 8, 1159z; BPSK63, RTTY; Bands:
160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10m; UA: RST(Q) + 2-character oblast code, non-UA: RST(Q)
+ QSO No.; Logs due: October 13.

SKCC Weekend Sprintathon, Oct 7, 1200z to Oct 9, 0000z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40,
20, 15, 10, 6m; RST + (state/province/country) + Name + (SKCC No./"NONE"); Logs
due: October 15.

International HELL-Contest, Oct 7, 1600z to Oct 7, 1800z (80m), Oct 8, 0900z to
Oct 8, 1100z (40m); Hell; Bands: 80, 40m; RST + QSO No.; Logs due: October 22.

California QSO Party, Oct 7, 1600z to Oct 8, 2200z; CW, Phone; Bands: 160, 80,
40, 20, 15, 10m; CA: Serial No. + County, non-CA: Serial No. + (state/VE
area/DX); Logs due: October 23.

FISTS Fall Slow Speed Sprint, Oct 7, 1700z to Oct 7, 2100z; CW; Bands: 80, 40,
20, 15, 10m; FISTS: RST + (state/province/country) + first name + FISTS No.,
non-FISTS: RST + (state/province/country) + first name + power; Logs due:
November 6.

WAB HF Phone, Oct 7, 1900z to Oct 8, 1900z; Phone; Bands: 20, 15, 10m; British
Isles: RS + serial no. + WAB square, Other: RS + serial no. + country; Logs
due: October 29.

RSGB DX Contest, Oct 8, 0500z to Oct 8, 2300z; CW, SSB; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15,
10m; RS(T) + Serial No.; Logs due: October 13.

UBA ON Contest, CW, Oct 8, 0530z to Oct 8, 0800z; CW; Bands: 80m Only; ON: RST
+ Serial No. + ON Section, non-ON: RST + Serial No.; Logs due: October 29.

4 States QRP Group Second Sunday Sprint, Oct 9, 0000z to Oct 9, 0200z; CW, SSB;
Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10m; Member: RS(T) + (State/Province/Country) +
Member No., Non-member: RS(T) + (State/Province/Country) + Power; Logs due:
October 31.

RSGB 80m Autumn Series, CW, Oct 9, 1900z to Oct 9, 2030z; CW; Bands: 80m Only;
[other station's call] + [your call] + [serial no.] + [your name]; Logs due:
October 11.

10-10 Int. 10-10 Day Sprint, Oct 10, 0001z to Oct 10, 2359z; All; Bands: 10m
Only; 10-10 Member: Name + 10-10 number + (state/province/country), Non-Member:
Name + 0 + (state/province/country); Logs due: October 18.

NAQCC CW Sprint, Oct 11, 0030z to Oct 11, 0230z; CW; Bands: 80, 40, 20m; RST +
(state/province/country) + (NAQCC No./power); Logs due: October 15.

Phone Fray, Oct 11, 0230z to Oct 11, 0300z; SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15m;
NA: Name + (state/province/country), non-NA: Name; Logs due: October 13.

CWops Mini-CWT Test, Oct 11, 1300z to Oct 11, 1400z, Oct 11, 1900z to Oct 11,
2000z, Oct 12, 0300z to Oct 12, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10m;
Member: Name + Member No., non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs
due: October 14.

NCCC RTTY Sprint, Oct 13, 0145z to Oct 13, 0215z; RTTY; Bands: (see rules);
Serial No. + Name + QTH; Logs due: October 15.

NCCC Sprint, Oct 13, 0230z to Oct 13, 0300z; CW; Bands: (see rules); Serial No.
+ Name + QTH; Logs due: October 15.

Makrothen RTTY Contest, Oct 14, 0000z to Oct 14, 0759z, Oct 14, 1600z to Oct
14, 2359z, Oct 15, 0800z to Oct 15, 1559z; RTTY; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10m;
4-character grid square; Logs due: October 22.

Oceania DX Contest, CW, Oct 14, 0800z to Oct 15, 0800z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40,
20, 15, 10m; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: October 31.

QRP ARCI Fall QSO Party, Oct 14, 1200z to Oct 15, 2359z; CW; Bands: 160, 80,
40, 20, 15, 10m; ARCI: RST + (state/province/country) + ARCI No., non-ARCI: RST
+ (state/province/country) + power out; Logs due: October 29.

Scandinavian Activity Contest, SSB, Oct 14, 1200z to Oct 15, 1200z; SSB; Bands:
80, 40, 20, 15, 10m; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: October 20.

Arizona QSO Party, Oct 14, 1600z to Oct 15, 0600z, Oct 15, 1400z to Oct 15,
2359z; CW, Phone, Digital; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6, 2m; AZ: Serial
No. + state + county, non-AZ: Serial No. + (state/province/country); Logs due:
October 31.

Pennsylvania QSO Party, Oct 14, 1600z to Oct 15, 0500z, Oct 15, 1300z to Oct
15, 2200z; CW, Phone, PSK, RTTY; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6, 2m; PA:
Serial No. + County, non-PA: Serial No. + ARRL/RAC Section; Logs due: November
15.

FISTS Fall Unlimited Sprint, Oct 14, 1700z to Oct 14, 2100z; CW; Bands: 80, 40,
20, 15, 10m; FISTS: RST + (state/province/country) + first name + FISTS No.,
non-FISTS: RST + (state/province/country) + first name + power; Logs due:
November 13.

PODXS 070 Club 160m Great Pumpkin Sprint, Oct 14, 2000z to Oct 15, 2000z;
PSK31; Bands: 160m Only; RST + (state/province/country); Logs due: October 22.

Asia-Pacific Fall Sprint, CW, Oct 15, 0000z to Oct 15, 0200z; CW; Bands: 20,
15m; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: October 22.

Run for the Bacon QRP Contest, Oct 16, 0100z to Oct 16, 0300z; CW; Bands: 160,
80, 40, 20, 15, 10m; RST + (state/province/country) + (Member No./power); Logs
due: October 22.

ARRL School Club Roundup, Oct 16, 1300z to Oct 20, 2359z; CW, Phone,
RTTY/Digital; Bands: All, except 60, 30, 17, 12m; RS(T) + Class (I/C/S) +
(state/province/country); Logs due: November 4.

Telephone Pioneers QSO Party, Oct 16, 1900z to Oct 17, 0300z; CW/Digital,
Phone; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, VHF/UHF; Members: RS(T) + chapter no. +
name, non-Members: RS(T) + name; Logs due: December 10.

Phone Fray, Oct 18, 0230z to Oct 18, 0300z; SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15m;
NA: Name + (state/province/country), non-NA: Name; Logs due: October 20.

CWops Mini-CWT Test, Oct 18, 1300z to Oct 18, 1400z, Oct 18, 1900z to Oct 18,
2000z, Oct 19, 0300z to Oct 19, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10m;
Member: Name + Member No., non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs
due: October 21.

RSGB 80m Autumn Series, Data, Oct 18, 1900z to Oct 18, 2030z; RTTY, PSK; Bands:
80m Only; [other station's call] + [your call] + [serial no.] + [your name];
Logs due: October 20.


VHF+ CONTESTS

ARRL EME Contest, Oct 7, 0000z to Oct 8, 2359z; CW, Phone, Digital; Bands:
50-1296 MHz; Signal report; Logs due: December 6.

Microwave Fall Sprint, Oct 7, 0800z to Oct 7, 1400z; not specified; Bands: 902
MHz and above; 6-character grid square; Logs due: October 21.

UBA ON Contest, 6m, Oct 8, 0800z to Oct 8, 1000z; CW, Phone; Bands: 6m Only;
ON: RS(T) + Serial No. + ON Section, non-ON: RS(T) + Serial No.; Logs due:
October 29.

UBA ON Contest, 2m, Oct 15, 0700z to Oct 15, 1000z; CW, Phone; Bands: 2m Only;
ON: RS(T) + Serial No. + ON Section, non-ON: RS(T) + Serial No.; Logs due:
November 5.

Also see the SKCC Weekend Sprintathon, Arizona QSO Party, Pennsylvania QSO
Party, above.


LOG DUE DATES

05-Oct - 18-Oct 2017

October 5, 2017

 *  ARS Spartan Sprint

October 6, 2017

 *  Russian WW MultiMode Contest
 *  Phone Fray

October 7, 2017

 *  CWops Mini-CWT Test

October 8, 2017

 *  NCCC Sprint
 *  NCCC RTTY Sprint

October 9, 2017

 *  SARL VHF/UHF Analogue/Digital Contest
 *  AGCW VHF/UHF Contest
 *  Maine QSO Party

October 10, 2017

 *  220 MHz Fall Sprint

October 12, 2017

 *  SARL 80m QSO Party

October 15, 2017

 *  Peanut Power QRP Sprint
 *  AGB NEMIGA Contest

October 16, 2017

 *  ARRL 10 GHz and Up Contest
 *  QRP Afield

October 17, 2017

 *  German Telegraphy Contest
 *  Iowa QSO Party

October 18, 2017

 *  432 MHz Fall Sprint

____________________________________________________________________________


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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

ARRL Contest Update wishes to acknowledge information from WA7BNM's Contest
Calendar and SM3CER's Contest Calendar.

____________________________________________________________________________


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