Radio Amateurs of Canada

Welcome to the Radio Amateurs of Canada website!

Welcome to RAC! Click here to Join/Renew today.

Contesting

RAC Canada Day Contest Rules 2022 Concours de la fête Canada RAC 2022

By

RAC Canada Day Contest Managers

RAC Canada Day Contest Rules: English and French

Changes to the RAC Contest Rules

New RAC bulletin logo November 2019

Sam Ferris, VE5SF and Bart Ritchie, VE5CPU
RAC Contest Managers

The Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC) Contests and Awards Committee is pleased to announce changes to the RAC sponsored contests. Please take a few moments to review the updated rules. We look forward to your participation in the RAC Canada Day and Canada Winter contests.

Download (PDF, 680KB)

Special thanks to our sponsors for their support of the RAC contests.

The global pandemic continues and we want to make sure that all participants in the RAC Canada Day Contest on Friday, July 1 help us to celebrate Canada’s birthday safely.  The RAC Contest Committee is therefore asking all participants in the Canada Day Contest 2022 to follow the guidelines provided by the government and health officials in your respective area for any of the multi-op categories enabled within the contest. If you do carry out an operation in any of the multi-op categories, please advise as part of your log submission that you have followed your locally applicable guidelines for group sizes and social (physical) distancing. 

We hope to hear you on the air for the July 1, 2022 Canada Day contest (00:00 UTC through 23:59:59 UTC). Don’t forget to share your stories with us at and to use #RACCD.

RAC Contest Sponsors July 2022

Changements apportés aux concours de la fête du Canada et de l’hiver du Canada

– Traduction par Jacques Roland, VA3DLZ. Merci Jacques!

Le Comité des concours et prix de Radio Amateurs du Canada (RAC) a le plaisir d’annoncer la mise en oeuvre de diverses modifications aux règles de participation aux concours organisés sous l’égide de RAC.

Veuillez prendre quelques instants pour vous familiariser avec la version actualisée des règles. Nous espérons que vous serez nombreux à participer au Concours de la Fête du Canada et au Concours d’hiver pancanadien organisés par RAC.

Download (PDF, 726KB)

Changes to the RAC Contest Rules 2022 Modifications aux règles de participation aux concours organisés sous l’égide de RAC

By

Changes to the RAC Canada Day and Canada Winter Contest Rules

New RAC bulletin logo November 2019

Sam Ferris, VE5SF and Bart Ritchie, VE5CPU
RAC Contest Managers

The Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC) Contests and Awards Committee is pleased to announce changes to the RAC sponsored contests. Commencing with the 2022 contest year we will be adding two new entry categories: Single Operator – Assisted – High Power (SOAHP) and Single Operator – Assisted – Low Power (SOALP).

There is no additional subclassification for either of the two assisted categories. Winners in these categories will qualify for a newly sponsored plaque as well as the typical certificates grouped as in the other entry classes. These categories will be added to the records list alongside the other category records. We would like to thank GPS Central / Radioworld in Calgary, Alberta (https://www.gpscentral.ca/) for sponsoring the plaques in these new categories for both RAC contests. The whole organization at Radioworld in Toronto and now at their Calgary team are great supporters of our activities.

With the advent of our new Web Log submission system, the log submission deadlines have been shortened to 14 days from the end of the contest. We will be phasing out email and paper log submission in the near future. We are also changing the requirement to qualify for certificates. Participants must make a minimum of 50 contacts (QSOs) to be eligible to receive a certificate in any of the categories. We have also provided additional clarifications on how the Rookie category is structured and adjudicated as part of the updated Category Notes provided in the rules.

The Category Notes that form part of the rules has been clarified and there is more information as to how contest categories are structured and adjudicated. We have also added a “Summary of Category Elements, Limitations and Eligibility” table to the rules to highlight key elements of adjudication for the categories.

Please take a few moments to review the updated rules, starting with the Canada Day Contest Rules 2022 which are available at the links provided below. We look forward to your participation in the RAC Canada Day and Canada Winter contests.

Special thanks to our sponsors for their support of the RAC contests.

The global pandemic continues and we want to make sure that all participants in the RAC Canada Day Contest on Friday, July 1 help us to celebrate Canada’s birthday safely.  The RAC Contest Committee is therefore asking all participants in the Canada Day Contest 2022 to follow the guidelines provided by the government and health officials in your respective area for any of the multi-op categories enabled within the contest. If you do carry out an operation in any of the multi-op categories, please advise as part of your log submission that you have followed your locally applicable guidelines for group sizes and social (physical) distancing. 

We hope to hear you on the air for the July 1, 2022 Canada Day contest (00:00 UTC through 23:59:59 UTC). Don’t forget to share your stories with us at and to use #RACCD.

Download (PDF, 680KB)

RAC Contest Sponsors July 2022

Changements apportés aux concours de la fête du Canada et de l’hiver du Canada

– Traduction par Jacques Roland, VA3DLZ. Merci Jacques!

Le Comité des concours et prix de Radio Amateurs du Canada (RAC) a le plaisir d’annoncer la mise en oeuvre de diverses modifications aux règles de participation aux concours organisés sous l’égide de RAC.

À compter de la saison de concours 2022, nous ajouterons deux nouvelles catégories de participants : Opérateurs uniques – Assistés – Haute puisance (SOAHP) et Opérateurs uniques – Assistés – Basse puissance (SOALP).

Il n’existe aucune sous-catégorie supplémentaire pour l’une ou l’autre de ces deux catégories « assistées ». Les gagnants faisant partie de ces catégories seront admissibles à l’obtention d’une nouvelle plaque attribuée par commandite, ainsi qu’aux certificats typiques regroupés selon le même système que pour les autres classes de participants. Ces catégories seront ajoutées à la liste des records au même titre que les records enregistrés pour les autres catégories.

Nous aimerions remercier GPS Central / Radioworld de Calgary, Alberta d’avoir commandité l’attribution des plaques décernées dans ces nouvelles catégories pour les deux concours RAC. Tous les membres du personnel de Radioworld à Toronto, et maintenant ceux de son équipe de Calgary, fournissent un soutien inestimable à nos activités.

Suite à la mise en place de notre nouveau système de soumission des journaux de bord par application Web, les délais à respecter pour la présentation des données ont été ramenés à 14 jours après la date de clôture de chaque concours. Nous remplacerons définitivement l’ancien système, basé sur la soumission de journaux de bord par courriel et par relevés sur papier, dans un proche avenir. Nous sommes également en train de modifier les conditions à remplir pour obtenir des certificats. Les participants doivent effectuer un minimum de 50 contacts (QSO) pour pouvoir recevoir un certificat dans l’une quelconque des catégories. Nous avons également fourni des détails supplémentaires, dans la version actualisée des Notes sur les catégories fournie en marge de l’énoncé des règles, sur la façon dont la catégorie « Rookies » est structurée et organisée pour l’attribution de prix.

Les Notes sur les catégories qui font partie des règles ont été formulées plus clairement, et des renseignements supplémentaires ont été fournis sur la façon dont les catégories de participants aux concours sont structurées et organisées pour l’attribution de prix. Nous avons aussi ajouté un tableau intitulé ”Récapitulation des éléments, des limitations et des critères d’admissibilité des catégories” aux règles afin de mettre en exergue les principaux éléments intervenant dans l’attribution des prix prévus pour les diverses catégories.

Veuillez prendre quelques instants pour vous familiariser avec la version actualisée des règles, en commençant par le Règlement du Concours de la Fête du Canada 2022, dont le texte figure dans le site Web de RAC, accessible en cliquant sur les liens fournis ci-dessous. Nous espérons que vous serez nombreux à participer au Concours de la Fête du Canada et au Concours d’hiver pancanadien organisés par RAC.

https://www.rac.ca/contesting-results/

Download (PDF, 726KB)

TCA Contest Calendar: May, June and early July 2022 Canadian Prairies QSO Party: Saturday, May 14

By

Contest Calendar and New Canadian QSO Parties

Canadian Prairies QSO Party poster
Canadian Prairies QSO Party poster

The Contest Calendar provided below was prepared by Tom Haavisto, VE3CX, as part of “The Sports Page” column in the May-June 2022 issue of The Canadian Amateur magazine.

In his column in the March-April 2022 TCA, Tom Haavisto, VE3CX, described two new QSO Parties in Canada: the Quebec QSO Party which was held on April 17; and the upcoming Canadian Prairies QSO Party which will be held on May 14-15.

Excerpt from “The Sports Page” column in the March-April 2022 issue of The Canadian Amateur”

“I am very happy to announce that two new Canadian QSO Parties are starting operations this year! This is exciting, as it gives everyone a chance to work more Canadians!

QSO Parties by their very nature are fun events and very much open to casual operators who want to give contesting a try. Yes – there is a serious side to QSO Parties as well – more on that later. The part I find great is that people are willing to showcase their part of Canada and get folks to work them! How great is that?

First up, we have the Quebec QSO Party. It will be held on Sunday, April 17, 2022 from 1200 UTC to 2000 UTC, and is sponsored by Club Radio Amateur de l’Outaouais (CRAO). Their vision is to have an exciting Amateur Radio event where operators from the province of Quebec contact others from around the world and where the many administrative regions in the province are featured.

It is a 10-hour event on Sunday and covers 160 through 2 metres. The exchange is simple. For those inside Quebec, the exchange is signal report and administrative region. For those of us outside Quebec, the exchange is signal report and province. You can use both CW and phone, and stations can be worked on both modes on all bands.

Next up, we have the Canadian Prairies QSO Party, which will be held on Saturday, May 14, 1700 UTC to Sunday, May 15, 0300 UTC. It combines the Prairie Provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta into a single entity.”

Download (PDF, 6.38MB)

Front cover of March-April 2022 eTCA (small size)Unlike most American states, these three provinces are not subdivided into counties. Instead, we have federal electoral districts. Manitoba and Saskatchewan have 14 districts each, while Alberta has 34, making for a total of 62 districts. 

For those who are “out of province” (think “out of state”), your goal will be to work as many of the 62 districts as possible. 

For those “in-province”, the goal is to work everybody (13 provinces/territories plus 50 states). Note that stations within the Canadian Prairie Provinces can count one multiplier from every province, including their own. For those inside the Prairie provinces, the exchange is signal report and administrative region. For those of us outside the Prairie Provinces, the exchange is signal report and province.

Bands are 10, 15, 20 and 40 metres. Since this QSO Party is mostly during daylight hours, 80 and 160 metres are excluded.

You can find more details on their website at: https://cpqp.ve6hams.ca/rules-2/

QSO Party Challenge

“Both new QSO Parties are included in the QSO Party Challenge. The annual State QSO Party Challenge recognizes all Radio Amateurs’ participation in the US State and Canadian Province QSO Parties. It is open to any Amateur who participates in any of the approved State QSO Parties (SQPs). Participants must simply submit their scores to 3830Scores.com to be included in the Challenge.

For Canada, we have the BC QSO Party, the Ontario QSO Party, the Quebec QSO Party and the Canadian Prairies QSO Party, which are all included in the QSO Party challenge.

‘The purpose of the State QSO Party group is to be the catalyst to take state QSO party contesting to the next level.’

State and Provincial QSO Parties are meant to be fun, low pressure events, and they appeal to both serious contesters and casual operators alike. They offer plaques and certificates, and encourage Amateurs to get on and enjoy this great hobby of ours. 

The State QSO Party Challenge encourages people to participate in at least 50% of State QSO Party Challenge approved QSO Party contests. All contacts must be made within the same calendar year. 

The Worked All QSO Parties (WAQP) awards program also offers achievement level awards to applicants who have participated in at least 50% of the State QSO Party Challenge approved State QSO Party contests during the same calendar year. 

These levels are: 

“Ultimate” – 100% participation; 

“Elite” – 90% through 99% participation;

“Expert” – 75% through 89% participation;

“Aficionado” – 50% through 74% participation in State QSO Party Challenge and State QSO Party contests.

Applicants who qualify for the “Ultimate” achievement level for the first time will be given the opportunity to purchase a WAQP plaque. You can find more details at: http://stateqsoparty.com/

Slide for May-June 2022 TCAWhy Work QSO Parties At All?

Cover of May-June 2022 tCAThink of inviting friends to an open house. Yes, this analogy fails in several ways, especially in these Covid times. Rather, think of inviting friends to an open house that showcases your province or part of Canada. Would you not want to welcome guests and say “Hello?”.

The exchange – either county or administrative region gives others some idea of where you are located within the province, and encourages others to learn more about your part of the world.

That is what QSO Parties are all about – welcoming others to your “open house”. Yes, there are awards and plaques available; and yes we encourage people to make lots of QSOs as part of each QSO Party. After all, is that not the best part of this great hobby we have – spending time on the air, making QSOs? 

I hope you will get on and be part of the many Canadian QSO Parties.

Hope to see you on the bands.”

– Tom Haavisto, VE3CX

Excerpt from “The Sports Page” column in the March-April 2022 issue of The Canadian Amateur. In the May-June 2022 TCA pictured above, Tom writes about “The Return of the Multi-ops”.

You can subscribe now by joining RAC!

RAC Canada Day Contest 2021 Results and Soapbox: Updated February 25 Correction to previous update

By

Thank you to RAC Canada Day Contest 2019 sponsors and participants

RAC Canada Day Contest 2020 Report: Updated February 25

RAC Contest Managers Bart Ritchie, VE5CPU and Sam Ferris, VE5SF

After the results were published in The Canadian Amateur magazine and on the RAC website, we were notified of some errors.

Due to a bug in our new Web Log submission system the 6-metre log for Pierre Jolin, VE2GT, was dropped and just the check log was entered. We have updated these results adding in Pierre’s log to the SOSB-6 metre results.

Corrections:

  • The team at VA2RAC had made an entry that should have been mapped into the Multi-Operator Multi-Transmitter (MOMT) category versus the Multi-Operator Single-Transmitter Low Power (MOSTLP) category they were mapped into.  This puts them in second place in the MOMT as well as bumping VE4RAC out of third place in the results for the MOMT category. This means they did not set a new record in the MOSTLP category as originally reported and we have restored the record box to the 2018 record set by VA3RAC (VE3ZF host).
  • With that change the MOSTLP winner becomes Al Law, VE3FZ. Second and third place changes move to KA1SYG  and  N3RJ moving them both up in the placement of this category.  Details are noted in the updated MOSTLP category and the MOMT category in the PDF article provided below.
  • While typing in the category summary, we transposed the suffix of Brian Campbell, VE3MGY call sign. His call is VE3MGY and not VE3MYG as shown in the original article.

Our apologies to all those affected by these errors. Our thanks to all those who participated and we hope you all have been staying as safe as possible during this very trying time. With that bit of introduction, on with the detailed results!

As always, you can find all the contest rules and entry forms at:

http://wp.rac.ca/contesting-results/

– 73, Bart, VE5CPU and Sam, VE5SF 

Download (PDF, 591KB)

RAC Canada Winter Contest 2021 Logs as of January 31, 2022 now available

By

RAC Canada Winter Contest 2021 Logs

Thank you for participating in the RAC Canada Winter Contest

A summary of logs received for the 2021 RAC Canada Winter Contest is now available on the RAC Contesting Rules and Results webpage.

It is also available for viewing below.

The log categorization found within the summary is based on the contents of log files submitted in accordance with the contest rules.

A total of 997 electronic logs were received, a new all-time record for entries in the RAC Canada Winter Contest.

Please direct any inquiries to or 

Sam Ferris, VE5SF
RAC Canada Winter Contest Manager

Bart Ritchie, VE5CPU
RAC Canada Day Contest Manager

RAC Contest Sponsors 2021

Download (PDF, 627KB)

RAC Canada Winter Contest 2021: December 18

By

COVID-19 Update | New Log System | Contest Rules: English and French
RAC Contest Sponsors

New RAC bulletin logo November 2019Update | Mise à jour :

Info: RAC Contest Log Submission System

Disponible en français

The global pandemic continues and we want to make sure that all participants in the RAC Canada Winter Contest on Saturday, December 18 take part in the contest safely.  

The RAC Contest Committee is therefore asking all participants in the Canada Winter Contest 2021 to follow the guidelines provided by the government and health officials in your respective area for any of the multi-op categories enabled within the contest. 

If you do carry out an operation in any of the multi-op categories, please advise as part of your log submission that you have followed your locally applicable guidelines for group sizes and social (physical) distancing. 

Special thanks to our sponsors for their support of the RAC contests.

We hope to hear you on the air for the RAC Winter Contest (00:00 UTC through 23:59:59 UTC on December 18, 2021). Don’t forget to share your stories with us at and to use #RACWC.

Download (PDF, 563KB)

Concours d’hiver du Canada de RAC 2021

Nouveau système de gestion de logs pour nos councours

La pandémie mondiale se poursuit et nous voulons nous assurer que tous les participants au concours d’hiver de Canada de RAC, le samedi 18 décembre, participent au concours en toute sécurité.

Le comité du concours de RAC demande donc à tous les participants au concours d’hiver de Canada de RAC 2021 de suivre les directives fournies par le gouvernement et les responsables de la santé de votre région respective pour toutes les catégories « multi-op » activées dans le cadre du concours.

Si vous effectuez une opération dans l’une des catégories « multi-op », veuillez indiquer dans votre soumission de journal que vous avez suivi vos directives applicables localement pour la taille des groupes et la distanciation sociale (physique). Nous espérons vous entendre en ondes pour le concours : 0000 UTC à 2359 UTC le 18 décembre 2021).

Nous tenons à remercier nos commanditaires pour leur appui aux concours de RAC.

Download (PDF, 569KB)

New RAC Contest Log Submission System Nouveau système de soumission de journaux de bord pour les concours

By

English | French | RAC Contests webpage | RAC Canada Winter Contest Rules
For immediate release:

RAC Canada Winter Contest: December 18, 2021

The Radio Amateurs of Canada Contests and Awards Committee (RAC-CAC) is pleased to announce the implementation of a new contest log submission system which began on July 1 for the RAC Canada Day Contest 2021.

This system is designed to allow you to directly submit a Cabrillo-based log file as your official contest entry form for both the RAC Canada Day Contest and the RAC Canada Winter Contest.

The system follows the key principles for log submission that are now highly common in radiosport contesting.

The web-based application and its homepage interactively walks you through the process of submitting your log. The system also provides a helpful Frequently Asked (FAQ) questions page for those that need additional instructions about entry categories and answers to general questions regarding those categories.

If you would like an early look at the log submission system, it can be found at https://contest.rac.ca/

For the 2021 contesting season we will still accept email logs via the published email addresses but will be looking to phase that method out in 2022.

Should you encounter any issues with the system, please report any issues directly to Bart Ritchie, VE5CPU at

RAC Contest Sponsors

Nouveau système de soumission de journaux de bord pour les concours

Concours d’hiver de RAC Canada : le samedi 18 décembre

Le Comité des concours et prix de Radio Amateurs du Canada (RAC-CAC) est heureux d’annoncer la mise en place d’un nouveau système de soumission de journaux de bord (“logs”) pour les concours qui a débuté le 1er juillet pour le Concours de la fête du Canada de RAC 2021.

Ce système, basé sur le système Cabrillo, est conçu pour vous permettre de soumettre directement, sous forme de fichier, un formulaire d’inscription officiel pour le Concours de la fête du Canada de RAC et le Concours d’hiver de RAC Canada.

Le système suit les principes de base préconisés pour la soumission des journaux de bord, qui sont couramment appliqués dans les concours de radio amateur organisés de nos jours.

L’application Web et sa page d’accueil vous guident de manière interactive tout au long du processus de soumission de votre journal. Le système prévoit également une page de foire aux questions (FAQ) utile pour ceux et celles qui ont besoin d’instructions supplémentaires sur les catégories d’inscriptions, ainsi que des réponses aux questions générales concernant ces catégories.

Si vous souhaitez jeter un coup d’œil au système de soumission des journaux de bord, veuillez visiter la page https://contest.rac.ca/FR-index.php

Pour la saison de concours 2021, nous accepterons toujours les journaux de bord soumis par courriel via les adresses électroniques déjà publiées, mais nous comptons passer progressivement à une autre méthode en 2022.

Si vous rencontrez des problèmes avec le nouveau système, veuillez le signaler directement à Bart Ritchie, VE5CPU à

RAC Conference 2021: Competitive Amateur Radio VHF+ Contest Roving and Microwave Hilltopping | LiFePO4 Batteries

By

VHF+ Contest Roving and Microwave Hilltopping

Russell Beech, VE3OIL Roving
Russell Beech, VE3OIL
Russell Beech, VE3OIL

I obtained my Amateur licence in high school progressing to Advanced while attending university. My interest in Amateur Radio was triggered by a combination of the magic of signals from other places to me and an interest in building equipment.

Amateur Radio supplemented both studies and career. The body of knowledge that came from radio added context to some lecture material.

Since graduation I have held a number of roles in electronic research, development and manufacture serving companies in instrumentation, automation, test, aviation and financial technology (fintech).

Over time my interests drifted into contesting, particularly VHF contesting. When the rover category was made competitive in 1991, I entered to address the lack of a home station. I have remained a rover ever since. 

Answering the question “How can I improve?” inevitably leads a VHF operator to consider more bands. This has led me to be active on 10 GHz and above.

Presentation:

My rover presentation will explain what a VHF Rover and a Microwave Hilltopper are. 

I will provide some contrast to HF operations and what can reasonably be expected on the road. 

A summary of when and how to rove will be provided with guidance and boundaries based on my experiences gathered since I started.

LiFePO4 Batteries – Comparisons and Applications

Scott Williamson, VY1SW
Scott Williamson, VY1SW
Scott Williamson, VY1SW

I have been an Amateur Radio operator since 1991 and have been very active with the Yukon Amateur Radio Association (YARA) since moving to the Yukon in 2003. I am currently serving as the YARA Vice-President and I am also a Past-President. 

The Yukon Amateur Radio Association (YARA) is a Yukon registered society with about 25 members throughout the Yukon. This is about half the authorized Amateur Radio operators in the Yukon.

Members are active in the community and often travel to hamfests in other areas. We are involved in real and simulated emergency communications situations. We practice our skills through our daily “emergency preparedness net” as well as through communications in support of community events like the Canada Winter Games, the Klondike International Road Relay (“KRR”) and the Kluane Chilkat International Bike Relay (“KCIBR”). YARA provides support for communications for other community organizations.

I have been a part of the team that has built our linked repeater network, which currently consists of 21 sites covering the southern half of the Yukon, into British Columbia, and as far south as Juneau, Alaska. 

I am an expert on 12-volt systems – especially remote repeater sites and RVs – and I am also an avid outdoor adventure seeker, competitive curler and certified curling coach.

Presentation:

The presentation will provide a detailed study of the pros and cons of the more recent development of Lithium-iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries vs the more common sealed lead acid (AGM) batteries for 12-volt applications.

For more information visit: http://yara.ca

RAC Canada 2021 Conference and AGM is this Sunday!

RAC Conference 2021: Competitive Amateur Radio Leading Canadians at the World Radiosport Team Championship (WRTC 2023)

By

World Radiosport Team Championship 2022-23 logo

The World Radiosport Team Championship (WRTC) is an on-site Amateur Radio competition held every four years. The next WRTC event will be held in Italy in 2023 after being postponed from 2022 as a result of the global pandemic.

Previous WRTCs have been held in Seattle (1990), San Francisco (1996), Slovenia (2000), Finland (2002), Brazil (2006), Russia (2010), Boston (2014), and Germany (2018).

Gilles Renucci, VA2EW and Todd Bendtsen, VE5MX

Gilles Renucci, VA2EW Conference WRTC
Gilles Renucci, VA2EW
Gilles Renucci, VA2EW

My passion for radio and electronics started when I was 12, leading me to get my first call sign F6FFM at 17 and graduating as an Electronics and Software Engineer at 24. 

I discovered contesting at my Engineering school where an alumni team activated the F3TV school call sign. Professionally, thanks to this technical passion, I created several high-tech companies.

In 2004, I moved to Canada as VE2TZT and later VA2EW. I am very involved in DXing and participated in the TX4T and VP6T DXpeditions. 

I am also active in contesting and have organized many multi-ops at my home station as it is now my turn to transmit the contest virus to newbies.

I have been involved a lot with the Montreal Amateur Radio community and have served for three years as the President of the Union Métropolitaine des Sans-filistes de Montréal (UMS), a major local radio club, and later the president of the West Island Amateur Radio Club (WIARC). I have enjoyed the excitement of several Field Day organizations in both clubs among other activities.

Listening to signals, sometimes very weak, coming from very far away with my own ears at a point that my mind can literally visualize the surrounding HF environment, like a parallel world, and then interacting with it when transmitting has always fascinated me. That’s why despite being a high-tech guy, CW and SSB are my modes versus digitals.

I also like to work on antenna improvement as well as developing some middle complexity electronic gears, including software, to improve the efficiency of my station.

During the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) HF Championships 2013, I operated in Boston with one of the WRTC-2014 volunteer test stations as a team with Victor, VA2WA. For the WRTC-2018, we volunteered to go to Germany as referees. 

Further to the AF Area Team Leader last-minute withdrawal,
I upgraded my position as the newly created Wild Card #6 Team Leader and competed with his Teammate Arno, DL1CW. 

This was such a great experience that on the day after the competition I was already planning with Victor, over a couple of beers, our participation as a full Canadian team in 2022. 

For the WRTC-2022 (2023), I worked very hard to get the #1 NA2 position which provides me with the opportunity to be the Team Leader for this area. I can now go to this competition by the main entry with the good preparation, a trained team, and the chance to put not only Canada on the map, but also Quebec for the first time ever.

In this short presentation, I’ll share with you how I see things about the WRTC selection process when you’re “David versus Goliath” as well as the contrast with the WRTC competition itself which is more an even playing field. 

Todd Bendsten, VE5MX Conference WRTC
Todd Bendsten, VE5MX
Todd Bendtsen, VE5MX 

I developed an interest in radio as a 13 year old listening to far off AM stations at night. 

From there a gift of a radio with the shortwave bands provided the spark that introduced me to both the Shortwave Broadcast bands as well as Amateur Radio. 

My first experience with Radiosport came in the form of Field Day in 1984. It would take another six years before I earned my licence but the contest bug bit hard right away. 

I have been lucky enough to operate with many great Amateurs from all over western Canada and North Dakota. The wonder of radio has not diminished any and I still love the rush of tuning the bands and wondering where the next signal is coming from. 

I am also an avid antenna builder and have been working on growing an antenna farm near the city of Weyburn, Saskatchewan. 

I am looking forward to the adventure when it comes to WRTC as this will be my first time attending. 

For the WRTC 2022 presentation I will focus on my trip through the qualifying process, how I prepared and executed my plan to become the Team Leader for the North America #8 qualifying area.

Additional information about WRTC:

WRTC event organizers are selected by the WRTC Sanctioning Committee. Each organizer is made up of volunteers that come together just for that event. As a result, WRTC event information is scattered all over the internet.

The WRTC.info website is dedicated to collecting information from all World Radiosport Team Championship (WRTC) events.

Main website: https://wrtc.info/

WRTC 2022-3 Italia: https://www.wrtc2022.it/

RAC Canada 2021 Conference and AGM is this Sunday!

Straight Key Century Club’s New “Canadian Operating Event” Runs from September 1 to 30

By

Straight Key Century Club's new Canadian Operating Event

Inaugural VE9SKCC Event: September 1 to September 30

Courtesy of the SKCC Canadian Operating Event Committee:

The Straight Key Century Club’s new on-air event promotes the club’s many Canadian members. At this time the SKCC Board wanted to extend the fun of hand key CW throughout the year.

VE9SKCC is the special call sign that has been granted for this “KEY” event. We refer to the event simply as the “Canadian Operating Event.”

VE9SKCC runs from September 1 through the 30. It’s a perfect time to introduce or reacquaint Amateurs to the fun of hand-keyed Morse code sent with straight keys, bugs and side-swipers.

Members and non-members alike are welcome to hunt the Canadian based VE9SKCC. Non- members are encouraged but not required to use straight keys for their VE9SKCC contacts. This year we hope to field VE9SKCC operators in all Canadian Provinces.

You can track your progress working the event stations by referring to the Stats section on the Canadian Operating Events page. Check for regular updates in your standings for Number of Areas, Bands and VE9SKCC operators to document your success.

Earn a QSL card by making at least one contact with any VE9SKCC event station. Work all Provinces for a basic sweep; check the Op Schedule and Operator Map links to find where and when the VE9SKCC stations are operating.

For SKCC members VE9SKCC is a great opportunity to make lots of progress toward various club awards. Contacts with VE9SKCC stations are valid for SKCC awards purposes. Also, by signing up as a VE9SKCC Operator you can readily log dozens or hundreds of award-eligible QSOs with other SKCC members.

Would you like to sign on as one of our VE9SKCC Operators? You can try it for just an hour or two. Or reserve a series of time slots throughout the month. Code speed and station sophistication are not important. The on-air exchanges tend to be fairly relaxed. Please contact the Regional Coordinator in your area for more info. He or she will be eager to sign you up. Our VE9SKCC Operators are key to a successful event!

Be sure to listen for our VE9SKCC operators during September and work ’em when you hear ’em!

For more information please visit:

SKCC – Straight Key Century Club (skccgroup.com)