The Contest Crew is… back on W1DED Worldwide Ham Radio with a tactical debrief on the upcoming CQ WPX SSB contest—and this time, the stakes are personal. Host Kevin Thomas, W1DED, is in Turks and Caicos to operate as VP5E, and he’s tapping into the collective brainpower of three of the world’s top contest minds: Randy Thompson K5ZD, Chris Hurlbut KL9A, and Dan Craig N6MJ.

What follows is equal parts masterclass and mentoring session. Should Kevin run low or high power from his island station? Where should he fix his non-rotatable beam? What’s the smartest way to spend the 36 single-op hours? The Contest Crew delivers, with specific, highly transferable advice for anyone jumping into WPX.

They break down how to use overlays to your advantage, why 40 meters could be your secret weapon, and how to approach rate vs. multipliers without losing your mind. Kevin, who’s been living at the station for weeks and logging thousands of QSOs in prep, is ready to level up—and the Crew gives him the blueprint to do it.

We also get a behind-the-scenes look at the multi-multi match-up everyone’s watching: K3LR vs. ND7K. Expect all-star lineups, fast hands, and some friendly cross-band smack talk. Whether you’re a seasoned contester or just looking to pick up a few extra multipliers this year, this is the pre-WPX tune-up you didn’t know you needed.

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