REDISCOVERING CW

While the debate of “Code vs No-Code” seems to never die, many hams still use code daily and even the new hams are still learning and using it. This article is not a stance on either side of the Code issue nor is it a Coder vs No-Coder bashing, but rather a reflection on recent events that spurred old memories and relit my desire for CW operating.

I was first licensed as a Novice in August 1976. Back then you had to take your Novice test from an Extra Class and the test was mailed in to be graded. The interim time seemed forever to a young kid bitten with the Ham Radio bug, but soon my newly issued Novice license `WN5UZU' appeared in the RFD mail delivery. I was now an official ham! I called my Elmer (a year and a half older than I at 17) and we decided that I should get on the air that afternoon right after work. We sat at my newly installed bedroom shack and tuned up on 80M. I called CQ a couple of times and got a bite. I heard the station sending clearly in the speaker but for the life of me, could not remember the code. My Elmer was copying along and told me that the station was calling me. It took a moment or two to gather my composure and then I started copying my call being sent. I had done it. I had actually contacted another ham radio operator using code. Many CW QSO's would follow while preparing for the 13wpm General test.

Fast forward about a year and half, around late 1978, and now I had a new call `WB5UZU' and General Class privileges. Since I was never the best Morse operator and really like the new ability to actual `talk' voice to voice, my use of the Code waned with the inclusion of SSB and HF use. Soon I found myself struggling to remember the 13 wpm that I had achieved to pass the required General Class code proficiency test. As the years went along farther I found I could barely copy code at all.

Within the last few months, my desire to rekindle my code speed has flourished, driven by a bit of friendly ribbing by my old Elmer and other CW ops that I know. I have been copying on the air and using computer based tutoring. My speed is slowly coming back. I can now copy a decent 10-12 wpm now. Soon I hope to raise that even further.

You may ask “Why do you say all this?” Well first to say that I, for one, like all facets of amateur radio. I am also very disappointed in myself for having let my code skills deteriorate to the condition they are in today. I have come to realize that code is just another mode but at the same time, there is something magical about being able to convey a message around the world without actually speaking a human language.

This last weekend I decided I want to do something I had never done before. That was to participate in a CW contest, namely the WPX CW. I had recently built and configured a digital interface for my rig and could now operate PSK, RTTY, etc, as well as CW using my PC. I know there are those that are purists that think that using a PC for CW is `cheating' or such ilk. I would rather like to think that it is an equalizer that helped me copy the 30-45 wpm average speeds that many use in these contests. Without the PC helping, I would not have been able to really join in the fun. I did do my best to copy the code sent and to do fills where noise and static covered up the PC's ability to discern the actual code being sent but at such high speeds, for now, I was overwhelmed. By the time the contest was over (I only worked about 8 hour's total) I found that my speed seems to be up a word or two. I found that I could actually copy most of the code sent from slower participants by ear without the PC's decoding because of the static on 40M during that time made the PC go nuts. All in all, I made 104 QSO's (appx 17000+ points), worked a couple of new DX entities and had a blast doing it. It brought back memories of my early years in amateur radio.

If you are like me and a bit rusty, set up your PC and enjoy digital and CW operating while rebuilding your speed. Or just get back on with a straight key and have at it. It's kind of like riding a bike - once you know how, you never forget. You just need to practice some more. If you are a newcomer to amateur radio, don't feel like you're not welcomed on CW. We all had to learn it somehow. Get a key, get on the bands and send some code.

If you despise code and want nothing to do with it, that's great too. There are far too many modes and facets of operating to get upset over just one mode. Pass it by for now and who knows; maybe later you'll get bit by the code bug, like I have again.

73 es gud DX,

Gene KI6LO