Mark Pride K1RX returns for Episode 4 of the How to Contest series with a timely warning: misplaced expectations can ruin a perfectly good contest weekend. In this episode, Mark and host Kevin Thomas W1DED explore the psychological side of contesting—how to set goals that motivate rather than frustrate, how to factor in location and operating time, and how clubs and communities can ground your ambitions in reality. Mark shares what many new contesters eventually learn the hard way: location matters, participation matters, and physics is not negotiable. Whether you’re working a 48-hour marathon or grabbing a few bursts of time around walking the dog, success comes from matching goals to real-world conditions. That might mean working only the high-band European openings or chasing a top-ten finish in QRP. The right category choice can transform an uphill battle into a personal win. He also reminds us that contest clubs are a force multiplier. As a longtime leader in the Yankee Clipper Contest Club, Mark explains how even small scores can add up to big results—and how surrounding yourself with operators of all levels accelerates learning. For those struggling with noise, location, or time constraints, he offers a simple solution: go where the fun is. Visit another station. Operate with a team. Or jump into high-participation events like WWA or CQWW, where every QSO becomes part of a global conversation. This is Episode 4 of 7 in the How to Contest series. Join the conversation and subscribe to Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio. Thanks to DX Engineering for supporting Q5 Ham Radio and empowering operators wherever they operate from—from mountaintop DXers to apartment-bound dreamers.

Mark Pride K1RX returns for Episode 3 of the How to Contest series with one loud, clear message: antennas matter. In this installment, he and Kevin Thomas W1DED move from station snapshots to serious diagnostics—evaluating performance, identifying bottlenecks, and building a strategy for measurable improvement. If Episode 2 was about what’s on your desk, this one’s about how that gear performs when the contest clock starts.

Mark makes the case for thinking like an engineer and acting like an experimenter. Whether you’re running wires in trees or assembling a top-tier station, your success hinges on one principle: build, compare, iterate. That might mean setting up an A/B antenna switch to catch degradation in real time, or doing the unglamorous work of shutting off breakers to track down S9+ noise from a neighbor’s touch lamp. It’s not about luck or luxury—it’s about learning what works, one contest at a time.

This episode also returns to a recurring theme: start where you are. Many contesters have tried to “buy” performance, only to discover that without years of problem-solving and fine-tuning, even a tower full of aluminum won’t carry you. Real improvement comes from wearing out your antenna switch, making smart trade-offs, and being brutally honest about what you hear. Because as Mark puts it, “If you can’t hear them, you can’t work them.”

This is Episode 3 of 7 in the How to Contest series. Join the conversation and subscribe to Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio.

Thanks to DX Engineering for supporting Q5 Ham Radio and helping hams of all experience levels make smart, measurable progress with their stations.

Mark Pride K1RX returns for Episode 2 of our How to Contest series with a deceptively simple question: What’s on your desk? In this episode, we get tactical. Mark and Kevin Thomas W1DED take a close look at your current gear—radios, antennas, tuners, meters, logging software—and explain why a contest weekend is the most honest stress test you can run on both your station and your skill. This is where the rubber meets the bands. You might feel loud on a quiet Wednesday, but when the contest clock starts Friday night, your signal hits a wall. That’s the moment when casual operating gives way to contest reality—and why every serious contester should keep a running to-do list after each event. Prioritize improvements not by prestige, but by ROI: what’s going to bring more contacts, more reliability, and, above all, more fun? Along the way, Mark weighs in on solar conditions, contest calendars, and the subtle psychology of expectation. He reminds us that everyone from new ops to world champs like KL9A and N6MJ are learning every weekend. The secret is participation: don’t wait for the perfect band opening or a massive contest score. Get on the air, build your list, and chase joy—not just points. This is Episode 2 of 7 in the How to Contest series. Join the conversation and subscribe to Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio. Thanks to DX Engineering for supporting Q5 Ham Radio and standing behind contesters at every stage of the journey—from their first QSO to the final log submission.

The PJ6Y DXpedition to Saba Island in October 2025 was a masterclass in youth-driven excellence. Spearheaded by veteran mentor Gregg Marco W6IZT, this ambitious project wasn't just about racking up QSOs — it was about building the future of ham radio. With a team of young operators from five countries, many on their first-ever DXpedition, PJ6Y delivered a stunning 13.3 million points in the CQ WW SSB contest, operating Multi-Two with minimal gear and maximum spirit. Despite rugged volcanic terrain and weather that flirted with disaster, the team pulled off over 55,000 QSOs across modes, including 8,700 during the contest alone. Their modest station — built entirely on arrival — consisted of a hex beam, a rebuilt A3 tribander, and a couple of wire antennas tuned to squeeze out every last contact. What made the real difference, Gregg noted, wasn’t the infrastructure but the drive and preparation of the operators. Three had never contested before. All left with pileup poise. There’s a technical story here — Elecraft K3s, KPA500s, N1MM for logging, and remote FT8 operations via NexGen2 RIBs located miles from the main site — but the human moments carried the day. Vincent PC2Y’s selfless scheduling, Matúš OM8ATE’s remote training lineage, Ewan N7EWN’s DXCC dreams, and Emilia YO8YL’s SSB passion added soul to the signal. This operation grew from 3D2Y’s remote roots and now continues as a multi-year project training the next generation of expedition leaders. The team left tired, inspired, and already dreaming of what comes next. Join the conversation and subscribe to Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio. Thanks to ICOM for supporting Q5 Ham Radio and building radios that inspire operators to push the boundaries of what's possible.

Mark Pride K1RX believes in a contesting philosophy that starts with curiosity and ends with mastery. In this inaugural episode of our 7-part How To Contest series, Mark joins host Kevin Thomas W1DED to lay the groundwork—not just with antennas and amplifiers, but with a mindset. Contesting, he argues, isn’t just about high scores; it’s about the “Four Cs”: Connectivity, Control, Curiosity, and Creativity. That framework, gifted to him by a new ham, now shapes how he sees contesting within ham radio. Over 62 years on the air, Mark has mentored both youth and retirees, many of whom encouraged him to share his deep contesting knowledge publicly. What emerges is a contesting ethos driven by continuous improvement. Whether it's choosing the right phonetics to break through pileups, rethinking your chair setup for a 48-hour marathon, or changing CW timing on the fly, Mark reminds us: "If you can’t hear them, you can’t work them." This episode establishes a key premise for the series: most hams already have what they need to start contesting. The decisions come down to strategy, logging software like N1MM, and developing the mental habit of post-contest review. That’s where situational awareness takes root. Mark brings it all back to something fundamental: contesters are the R&D wing of amateur radio. Whether or not you ever submit a log, this is where you go to learn. Welcome to the How To Contest Series, Episode 1 of 7. Join the conversation and subscribe to Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio. Thanks to DX Engineering for supporting Q5 Ham Radio and powering the operators who push the limits—in Parks on the Air, contesting, and around the world.

Bill Fehring W9KKN, Chris Hurlbut KL9A, and Dan Craig N6MJ—the Contest Crew—are back to reflect on a record-breaking 2025 and chart their course for 2026. From CQ9A to EF8R, the Crew covered serious ground this past year.

But first, RTTY Roundup gets a quick (albeit late) post-mortem: Bill jumped in last-minute at NJ4P, Dan marveled at their in-band efficiency, and Chris…watched football. Then they shift to the North American QSO Party, a fast, low-power HF contest where operators race for multipliers and contacts across North America in a tight 12-hour window.

The real depth comes in the retrospective. Chris called 2025 his best ham radio year ever, breaking records and speaking at Dayton. Dan turned a last-minute EF8R plan into a masterclass in single-op record breaking excellence. And Bill, mid-move, still managed CTU talks and major multis. Each looks ahead to WRTC 2026 with clear focus.

The conversation closes with big hopes: pulling more POTA ops into the contest fold, embracing new tech where it helps, and getting contest results faster. They stress integrity—and double down on the value of peer pressure in keeping the sport clean. Contesting’s future, they argue, will be built on both trust and tech.

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Huge thanks to DX Engineering for supporting the global contesting community—from world-record multis to POTA ops chasing pileups in the parks. Their passion powers ours. Let me know if you'd like a thumbnail caption or social blurb to match.

Josiah "Si" Russell WD5JR is part of the next wave of operators breathing new life into ham radio. At just 18, Si already has a POTA record that would make many seasoned hams envious—over 400 activations and more than 5,300 parks hunted. But it’s not just about numbers. From activating rare parks in Turks and Caicos to representing Oklahoma as a Parks on the Air mapping coordinator, Si blends enthusiasm, technical skill, and a drive for community building that’s rare at any age. Though he grew up surrounded by ham radio—his great-granddad, grandparents, parents, and even his eight-year-old cousin are all licensed—Si didn’t dive in right away. It took a Florida road trip and a chance activation to spark his passion. That spark quickly became a fire, fueled by outdoor adventure, the challenge of DXing from remote parks, and a growing love for contesting and CW. Ham radio became more than a hobby—it became a family refuge during his mom’s cancer treatment and a catalyst for personal growth. There’s also a quiet confidence to how Si operates. Whether it’s packing an Icom 7300 in foam for international travel, giving presentations at hamfests, or learning SO2R techniques for CW sprints, he’s always building. Not just a skillset, but a path forward—showing that youth isn’t a liability in ham radio; it’s a lifeline. Join the conversation and subscribe to Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio. Thanks to Icom for their continued support of Q5. With radios that empower young ops like Si to chase pileups from remote beaches and contest from small-town shacks, Icom continues to push the boundaries for operators worldwide.

The Contest Crew—Randy K5ZD, Dan N6MJ, Chris KL9A, and Bill W9KKN—recap the ARRL 10-Meter Contest in this debrief. It was a weekend of mixed propagation, scoreboard drama, and some hard truths about pileup etiquette. They break down why signals vanished in minutes, how backscatter shaped the game, and why audio still matters. It's also a field guide to what not to do in a pileup. Looking ahead: January contests, tower builds, and a quiet shift toward what’s next. Join the conversation and subscribe to Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio. Thanks to DX Engineering for supporting contesters, DXers, and every operator chasing stronger signal in any season.