Super Contest Man
I won the Multi-Operator category in BOTH CW and SSB contests in 1995 Sweepstakes for Northern New Jersey! While I did expect to win the SSB contest since I did it with 3 great contesters at K2WK's superstation, I was shocked when I received this, for the CW contest -- which I did, alone, and for only 12 hours, from my wimpy, no beam, 100 watt station! It shows that ANYONE in the right circumstances, can emerge a winner!!!
The following was published by yours truly in the Oct. 1993 issue of IRAC news, the official newsletter of the Irvington-Roseland Amateur Club, Roseland, NJ. Revised May 1996.
Super Contest Man
Faster on the mic than an auctioneer, more powerful than a 50kw radio station, able to leap through pileups on a single call. Look in the contesting tent. It’s a bird! It’s a plane! NO! It’s Super Contest Man. Yes, it’s Super Contest Man. Strange visitor from another planet. Disguised as a mild mannered ham radio operator, a normal everyday joe, his mission is truth, justice, and getting the best score possible!Super Contest Men come in all shapes and sizes, and normally, no one can tell the difference. But when a ham radio contest starts, the Super Contest Man has only one mission... to score points; he is ignorant of the rest of the world. Super Contest Man locks himself in his shack at the start of a contest and is not seen from again except for the occasional unloading of his super bladder and the filling of his super mouth until the contest is over (sometimes as long as 48 hours straight!).
Why does Super Contest Man do this? No one quite knows, but many theories persist. One rumor says that it’s for the participation pins, and coffee mugs that he can get. Others say, it’s to see their call in CQ and QST magazines. But the most common theory is that Super Contest Man is a game player at heart, loves the competition, and strives to do the best that he can.
Was Super Contest Man always like this? NO WAY! There was a time that he was known as El Poopo Scoopo, a terrible contester. He thought a key started his car. He thought a pile-up was what he did with firewood. He thought CQ, was Sea-Q, a new dish at Red Lobster. So, how did El Poopo Scoopo become Super Contest Man? Well, it took time.
The first thing Super Contest Man tried was getting on the air. He felt very intimidated, but kept making regular, ragchew-type contacts, first on SSB, and later on CW. (CW, he found particularly difficult, but knew he had to try if he wanted to upgrade to general, but that’s another story). He read of the upcoming ARRL Novice Roundup in QST, and thought here is a way of making some new contacts and getting some more practice. He read this QST article several times until he was certain of exactly what he needed to do for the Roundup. And it worked! When the contest ended, he had worked 20 new states!
Well, now he was feeling good about himself. He read in CQ magazine that the CQ WPX phone contest was to happen in a few weeks. He got so many new states in the roundup, he wondered if maybe he could work a few new countries? Again, he read the rules over and over until he was absolutely certain of just what he needed to do. At the same time, his company loaned him a brand new PC for his home use. Super Contest Man decided he would try and use the computer to help him log his QSOs. But he had little experience with contesting programs and spent every night trying to learn its particulars.
Well, 3 weeks later, the contest started. He turned on his radio. All he heard was a rush of noise that sounded like New Year’s Eve at the Waldorf Astoria. He could not pull one voice out of the mess. He sat there listening to that noise for more than an hour. Suddenly...a strong signal came on the frequency and called "CQ CONTEST FROM YV5EVD". Wow, a signal I can hear! Now, let’s see what YV5 is... Venezuela, a new country! OK, let’s call him. Super Contest Man went to hit the mike button, but froze and started shaking. He turned white, and sweat ran down his brow. "CQ CONTEST YANKEE VICTOR FIVE ECHO VICTOR DELTA"... but Super Contest Man couldn’t move. He listened to that YV5 station call for 15 minutes, and then disappear.
He said to himself, "This is stupid!". Then he heard "CQ CONTEST YT2E, YANKEE TANGO TWO ECHO, CONTEST". Before he knew what he was doing, he quickly hit the mike and said "KILO BRAVO TWO uuuuuh uhhhhh uhhhhhhhhh" and unkeyed. Back came "THE KILO BRAVO TWO STATION PLEASE YOUR CALL?" He didn’t answer. Again he heard "KB2 PLEASE COME AGAIN". He grit his teeth, hit the PTT and said "KILO BRAVO TWO JULIET BRAVO KILO". He heard "KB2JBK, you’re 59 number 275". From reading the rules, he knew exactly what to do. "Uh, uh, thanks, you’re 59, ugh, number 1", he said into the mic. In reply, he heard, "Thanks Old Man, Good luck in the contest, Q-R-Zed YT2E". Super Contest Man fell back into his chair, wiped the sweat off his brow, and then realized he had just worked Yugoslavia, a new country! Hey, this wasn’t so bad after all!
Well, the rest is history. Super Contest Man now works in most contests, and is usually within the top 5 scores in Northern New Jersey. He won a certificate from the ARRL for placing first within IRAC for the November Sweepstakes 1992 SSB contest, and won first place, multi-operator, in all of Northern New Jersey for both CW and SSB in 1995 November Sweepstakes. In 1993 and 1995, he took first place in NNJ in the New Jersey QSO party. When he thinks back to his early days, sometimes he finds it hard to believe. But he remembers his roots, and wants to help others who wish to become Super Contest Men themselves, or just to be good enough for next year’s Field Day. Super Contest Man leaves this article with a few suggestions to these folks:
- Read the rules, over and over, until you are sure of exactly what you need to do.
- If using a computer for logging, make sure you know how to use the program and how to type. If you’re not using a computer, make sure you are familiarized with the logging sheets.
- Listen to what stations are exchanging, and then GO FOR IT! In the beginning, don’t expect perfection, you won’t find it. Get at least a few contacts, you can’t get good at it, unless you practice.
- Work a contest for new states or countries like Super Contest Man did in the beginning.
- Make sure you don’t wait for a contest that you and your friends want to mount a serious effort in as you will only hold your teammates back. Practice in one of the many other contests.
- Try not to get uptight and make sure that you do make a few contest qso’s as practice makes perfect. And believe it or not, you will very quickly be on the road to becoming a Super Contest Man yourself.
Though slightly modified and spiced up, this is almost exactly my story. I was really bad only a few years ago. It took me less than 2 contests to become proficient, and now, I’d say I’m an expert - check any recent QST for the results for NNJ! hi!
The best practice contest for ANYONE with HF privileges are any of a number of state "QSO parties", such as the New Jersey QSO party, Connecticut QSO party, Virginia QSO party, Texas QSO party, etc. State QSO parties are generally more "sane" as some of these contesters will even chat a short bit. You don’t have to live in that state to participate, in fact, they are counting on your call! Check the Contest Corral section of QST for the upcoming contests and READ the rules thoroughly.
For anyone with VHF/UHF privileges, try the VHF Sweepstakes in January and June, and the September VHF QSO Party. Even if you don’t have SSB or CW equipment, turn your FM radio to 146.55, 146.58, 223.50, or 446.0 MHz (this goes for every VHF/UHF contest too!). Though there will not be as much activity as there would be on the other modes or HF, you will still make a few (and sometimes, many) contacts. VHF/UHF contesting is usually more relaxed as there are fewer stations and every contact means a lot. You will make some contester very happy, even if you spend only a few minutes answering or calling. But, the disadvantage is that sometimes contacts are very few and sporadic.
If you have any questions or need help in learning how to contest, please, come and talk to me. I’d be very happy to help and would love to see more really whiz-bang contesters out there.
Hope you enjoyed, 
73, John N2KJM ex-KB2JBK