W2LJ was a No Show

Unfortunately, the QRP ARCI Contest Manager found no time to participate in the QRP ARCI Fall QSO Party on Saturday!

I got a late start on Saturday morning, and was almost late for my own VE Session More on that in a bit. I ran out of the house without taking my morning heart meds and as a result, felt kind of crappy for the rest of the day, until I took them a few hours later than I usually do.  After grocery shopping, I was kind of too "pooped to pop", so I didn't get on the air. Lesson learned - take those @#^%$ pills before leaving the house in the morning!

Getting back to the VE Session - we had one candidate.  This has been a pitiful year for our VE Sessions. Candidates are becoming scarcer than hens teeth. We had one in May, only two at the Hamfest in June, and none in July, August or September! The only thing I can attribute this to is the genesis and popularity of online exams. Candidates don't have to travel and can take the exam from the comfort of their own home.

I told the Team that I was going to schedule monthly exams for 2026 for the first half of the year only. If the number of candidates does not pick up, we will cease monthly sessions and go to a quarterly schedule. One of our Team members suggested that we offer online exams and I told him that if the Team wanted that, then one of them would have to take over as Liaison. I have absolutely no interest whatsoever in taking on that responsibility. In my mind, there's way too many opportunities for irregularities and I'm not putting my license on the line for that.

Maybe that was a bit harsh, but it is what it is.

Being a VE Liaison is a lot more work than just showing up to a session, grading exams and signing paperwork. The pre-session coordinating of candidates, making sure enough VEs show up, and preparing examination materials, in addition to post session paperwork eats up a lot of personal time. From what I understand, the on line sessions require even more work for the Liaison. 

Quite frankly, I've done this for a lot of years and it's getting to be that I'd rather spend the time sitting behind my own radio and getting on the air.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!