A new challenge

After reading Ron AE5NO's post "CQ Panama" on AmateurRadio.com, and the Stan Horzepa WA1LOU's latest post, "Doing Something New" on the ARRL Website, I decided to give a closer look see into this ARRL Diamond DXCC Challenge. This challenge is to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the DXCC program.

Psssssst...... so here's the low down.  The Diamond DXCC Challenge is very much like the Millennium DXCC Challenge that was held back in the year 2000.  The difference here is that you have all of 2012 to work 100 DXCC entities that existed back in 1937, the inaugural year of the DXCC program.  For the entities that no longer exist, you get to work their present day equivalents - for instance, since Abyssinia no longer exists today (but did in 1937), working present day Ethiopia counts for the same thing, and so on and so on and so on.  There's a complete list of entities and equivalents available at the ARRL Website.

Sounds cool, right?  It will definitely be a challenge to see if I can do this QRP.  There are several caveats.  There are no endorsements, per se, only for the amount of countries worked.  So I can't get an endorsement for doing this using QRP and all CW; but I'd be able to get stickers for working 125, 150, 175 countries and so on (like THAT's going to happen!). Also, this is totally on the "Honor System" - no QSLs required.

I know to a lot of you out there, that cheapens or invalidates the award,  There was a big discussion about this on QRP-L a couple of days ago with regards to QRP DXCC, which doesn't require QSL proof either.  But I have "regular" DXCC and QRP DXCC and DXCC Millennium; and I'm just as proud of the last two as I am the first.  I know I worked 'em all, QSLs or no - I wouldn't have applied otherwise. Geez, if you can't be honest with yourself about something like this - then I don't know what to say. How desperate can you be for a piece of wallpaper?

So this should definitely be fun, and should definitely fit right in with the program of getting on the air more this year.  Not only making more QSOs on a regular basis; but applying myself much more diligently during the major DX contests seems to be in order this year.  It's always nice to have a goal to work towards.

In a different vein, tonight I had the most delightful rag chew with Jim K4AXF down in Grottoes, VA.  Jim and I are both participants in the QRP Foxhunts.  It was good to finally be able to sit and chew the fat in a relaxed manner as opposed to just sending "599 NJ LARRY 5W".  Like that conveys a lot of information.  But for our QSO on 80 Meters tonight, the band was in superb Winter time condition and Jim was 599 Plus all the way.

Speaking of Winter time conditions - snow tonight into tomorrow. Ugh!  The weather prognosticators are saying anywhere between three to eight inches before turning over to that ever lovin' "wintry mix" of snow, sleet, and freezing rain.  I hope they're wrong and that they have to send reporters all over creation just to find one flake.

But if they are right, then maybe I can hunker down and stay inside all day and play radio.  Gotta look for that silver lining!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!