CW Pong!

CW Pong is a Morse challenge for two operators and has been developed by LIDS members as an aid to learning Morse code and improving on-air CW copy, as well as being a bit of fun.

Full details and rules can be found on our CW Pong page. Who will you challenge to a CW Pong duel?? Tweet your experiences to @lids_cw with the hashtag #cwpong.

LIDS Hamfest competition

It’s only a few weeks until National Hamfest at Newark Showground, the UK’s biggest amateur radio rally, and LIDS will be there! Not on a stand – at least not this year, we’re too cheap for that – but LIDS members will be wandering around inside and outside the main hall and operating the LIDS club station from the camping area, using the club callsign M0LCW/P. And that has given us a great idea for a competition…

LIDS is all about encouraging people to have a go at CW for the first time, and we know plenty of LIDS members who are taking their first steps at learning the code but not yet plucked up the courage to try a QSO. Well, here is your chance.

Every LIDS member who has a CW QSO with M0LCW/P over the Hamfest weekend will be put into a draw to win a lovely LIDS mug. One QSO counts for each day of operation (Thursday/Friday/Saturday), so you can have 3 chances to win. But every LIDS member who works us will receive a LIDS lapel badge, so you simply can’t lose!

M0LCW/P will be operational on 40m at irregular intervals over the weekend. Watch our Twitter feed for details of when we are QRV.

There is no minimum speed for contacting M0LCW/P. Just call at whatever speed you are comfortable with. If you prefer, send a DM to the LIDS Twitter account with your QRG and M0LCW/P will call you instead. Don’t worry if you’re still struggling to make the characters work for you because all we need is your callsign in the log to be eligible. Have a look at our guide to your first CW QSO if you need a little extra encouragement.

This is a great opportunity to have your first Morse contact as well as get the coveted(!) LIDS club call in your log. And if that wasn’t enough, you get a LIDS lapel badge and a chance to win a LIDS mug!! If that doesn’t persuade you to blow the dust off that Morse key then we really don’t know what will.

Christmas competition winner

Our Christmas competition closed at midnight and the winner is (drum roll please) …. Michael G0POT.

The competition got off to a slow start and it was anyone’s to take for a long while, but Michael pulled ahead in the last couple of days to finish with 4 LIDS QSOs and wins the prize of a 600MHz frequency counter. Well done Michael, and thank you to Patrick M0ZPK for generously donating the prize!

Our thinking caps are now on for our next LIDS activity. If you’ve got ideas we would love to hear them. Comments on Twitter to @lids_cw please.

Christmas competition

Following the success of our Twitter competition a little while back, we’ve decided to ‘up the ante’ for our Christmas special. Patrick M0ZPK has very generously donated a 600MHz frequency counter to the LIDS cause. You know you want it, and here’s what you need to do to get it.

We want to get LIDS on air and making some beeps to each other. Every QSO made with a LIDS station between 21st December and 4th January gets you a point, and the station with the most points wins the prize!

Here’s the small print (because it wouldn’t be a proper competition without small print):

  • The competition runs from 21st December 2014 @ 0000 to 4th January 2015 @ 2359. All times are UTC.
  • Any band and mode may be used but NOT voice modes (microphones unplugged please).
  • To claim your points you need to TWEET your log entry to us at @lids_cw with the callsign and Twitter handle of the station you worked, the mode, and the #comp hashtag. We’re not interested in your 599 report but anything else you can squeeze into your 140 characters that might make us smile would be appreciated.
  • Each station can be worked once a day to count for points so get those skeds organised. The use of Twitter to arrange skeds or to self-spot is encouraged (and probably essential).
  • You do not need to be a LIDS member to enter this competition but why not ping us a message and gets a LIDS number anyway – it’s free!
  • LIDS cannot be held responsible for your licence compliance, your conduct on air, your VSWR, the state of your shack, or any cooling of relations with your spouse/partner/cat as a result of you entering this competition.
  • Finance subject to status. Guarantees and indemnities may be required. Posed by models. Your mileage may vary.
  • Our policy is one of continuous improvement, as yours should be.