Category: announcements

Terry Zivney, N4TZ, has agreed to take over as Director of the CQ WPX Contest effective immediately. He replaces Randy Thompson, K5ZD, who has moved over to take on the CQ WW Contest.

First licensed 1961, Terry has had numerous top five USA finishes in the SOAB low power category of CQWW, CQWPX (as KS9K), and ARRL DX contests, although he did place #1 USA high power assisted in the 2003 WPX SSB. He competed in the 2010 World Radiosport Team Championship in Russia. He has had three articles published in the National Contest Journal.

Professionally, Terry will retire in May 2013 from Ball State University as the Maxon Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Finance and Insurance. In the 1970s he worked as an electrical engineer at Scientific-Atlanta and Computer Sciences Corporation.

“As a long-time low power contester, I especially appreciate the WPX contest because its unique mix of exotic DX and plentiful domestic contacts ensures that great fun will be had by all participants regardless of the propagation conditions,” said Terry. “I look forward to harnessing the momentum this contest has developed under the leadership of K5ZD and respecting the legacy of former directors K6AW, N8BJQ, and W8IMZ.”

Contact Terry at n4tz@cqwpx.com.

Contesting is a social game.  There are real people behind the callsigns in our log. Sometimes they give us joy, and sometimes a headache.  It is all part of the experience.

The social message site Twitter (www.twitter.com) provides a global real-time feed for sharing and communicating short messages with each other. Each Tweet is limited to 140 characters, but it is amazing how much fun you can share in that small form.

Twitter has a feature known as hash tags. They are a way of tagging your message for a specific audience or subject.  We are suggesting to use the hash tag #cqwpx for any messages related to the CQ WPX Contest. There is a new widget on the home page at www.cqwpx.com that will display any Tweet that contains the hash tag #cqwpx.

We would like to see participants use the Twitter #cqwpx hash tag to report their experiences during the upcoming CQ WPX SSB contest. Simply post a Tweet with #cqwpx and it will appear on the CQ WPX home page. Twitter also gives us a historical record to review later when preparing the contest writeup.  Please comment on unusual band openings, great rates, or epic DX contacts.

Examples using #cqwpx:

• 15 meters is wide open today #cqwpx
• Just worked P29 long path on 10 meters in #cqwpx

We also want to conduct an experiment in social feedback.  Use Twitter with #cqwpx to report stations that are not showing good sportsmanship on the bands. Include the call, time, and observation in your Tweet. This real-time feedback will create a public warning and will give us a log of what we may need to investigate.

Examples:

• #cqwpx XX1XX out band on 14349.9 at 1923z
• #cqwpx XX2ZZ very wide splatter 21233 at 1144z

You can post Tweets right from the CQ WPX home page.  You will need to have a Twitter account before you can post a tweet.  Accounts are free and very easy to set up.

Please do not use Twitter as a chat room for making QSOs.

This is all for fun so please be nice.

• Looking forward to seeing everyone in #cqwpx Mar 30-31

The WWROF continues its series of free Webinars with one focused on the upcoming CQ WPX Contest. CQ Contest Director Randy K5ZD will provide an overview of the rule changes for CQ WPX 2013 and will answer questions from the audience about the contest.

Date: March 24, 2013

Time: 1900 UTC (3pm EDST)

Registration Link:  https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/499861946

The World Wide Radio Operators Foundation (WWROF) is dedicated to improving the skills of amateur radio operators around the world, utilizing education, competition, advancement of technology and scientific research, promoting international friendship and goodwill, and preparing them to better serve society in times of communication need.  More information at www.wwrof.org.