Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio

I’m joined by Randy Thompson K5ZD, Chris Hurlbut KL9A, and Bill Fehring W9KKN for a Contest Crew conversation that starts with one of the most humbling experiences in amateur radio: opening your CQ WPX log checking report. Note: this episode was recorded before Dayton Hamvention 2026, and another brand-new Contest Crew episode—recorded after Dayton—drops tomorrow. Randy breaks down what contesters should actually ...

Mark Pride K1RX is a seasoned contester who sees Parks on the Air and contesting as two sides of the same coin, sharing skills, instincts, and a natural path between them. In this final episode of the contesting fundamentals series, Mark makes the case that many POTA operators are already doing contesting in all but name. They manage pileups, operate under real-world constraints, and make fast decisions with limited resources. The ...

Kevin Thomas W1DED is one of the newest board members guiding Parks on the Air through its next chapter — but his connection to ham radio stretches back nearly 50 years. Licensed as a teenager in 1977, Kevin grew up around Heathkit gear built by his father, WA1YOA, before life, career, and raising three children pulled him away from the hobby for decades. Yet even after his license lapsed, he carried the radios, logbooks, and...

Nick Hacko VK9DX is one of ham radio’s most colorful voices, an elite contester, watchmaker, refugee-turned-builder, and unapologetically opinionated character who somehow manages to be equal parts philosopher and entertainer. Broadcasting from Norfolk Island, a tiny speck in the South Pacific with a population of just 2,000, Nick joins me for a conversation that ranges from Cold War-era Yugoslavia to CQ WW strategy, remote i...

Mike Case W8MSC is one of the key figures behind Parks on the Air, helping transform a one-year, ARRL-sponsored park activation event into a lasting global program. Mike’s path into ham radio started later than most. Licensed in 2014 after a chance encounter reignited his technical curiosity, he brought a background in IT and a love for the outdoors. Field Day was the spark, but it wasn’t enough. He wanted more than a o...

Tom Morton K2GO is a Navy fighter pilot turned airline captain turned global aviation mentor—and through it all, a relentless ham radio operator who always found time to get on the air and meet new friends.

In Part II, Tom’s story widens from cockpit to command. He rises from top-of-class Navy aviator to instructor, then to carrier-qualified pilot and Landing Signal Officer, racking up nearly 200 carrier landings. His p...

Seth Jones NU1D is a young contester who just got a front-row seat to big-league contesting, operating from J62K in St. Lucia during CQ WPX SSB, and discovering that the view is only half the story. It was also his first trip outside the United States, which adds a layer of awe you can’t fake. The pileups were real, but so was the moment. What begins as an application email turns into a months-long audition. Essays, Zoom call...

Ron Koenig WV4P is the guy they told “that won’t work.” He built it anyway and started winning. Licensed during Field Day 2017 because he was “bored,” Ron followed his competitive instincts straight into contesting. Alongside his wife Trina NR4L, that drive quickly escalated from wire antennas to a seven-tower station in Savannah, Tennessee. This was not a copy-paste superstation. Ron challenged long-h...

Mark Pride K1RX is a veteran contester who makes the case that your biggest leap in ham radio might not come from upgrading your station, but from joining someone else’s.

In part six of this contesting fundamentals series, Mark shifts the focus from gear to people. For operators constrained by space, budget, or HOA realities, the multi-operator (multi-op) station becomes a kind of accelerator. It is not just about bigger ante...

Nick Hauser, KT0W, is a young contester proving that the future of ham radio isn’t just alive—it’s remote, hybrid, and remarkably competitive. Licensed in 2016 alongside his father, Nick’s early spark came from National Parks on the Air, where rapid-fire pileups introduced him to rate and rhythm. That gateway led naturally into contesting, with mentorship from local operators like W0SD and opportunities at p...

Michael Kalter W8CI is the voice and steady hand behind the Dayton Hamvention, serving on its executive committee and as official spokesperson while also helping lead the Dayton Amateur Radio Association.

What he describes is not just a convention, it is a phenomenon. With attendance pushing past 30,000 and every booth and flea market space effectively sold out, Hamvention has become something closer to a global pilgrimage for radi...

Mark Pride K1RX is a veteran contester who believes the real upgrade isn’t your station—it’s you. In part five of this contesting fundamentals series, Mark shifts the focus away from gear and toward operating skill—the subtle, often overlooked craft that separates competent operators from great ones. His message is clear: improvement happens in the chair. Through short contests, special events, and deliberat...

Larry Langs VE3LRL is helping lead one of Canada’s longest-running on-air events, the Ontario QSO Party, and this year he’s focused on a simple goal: get more operators on the air and keep them active. Now in its 29th year, the Ontario QSO Party returns the third weekend of April, with activity kicking off Saturday at 1800Z and continuing through Sunday afternoon. The format remains a classic. CW and SSB span 160 meters...

Tim Duffy K3LR is the CEO of DX Engineering and one of the central architects behind contesting’s biggest gatherings, from Contest University to the legendary Contest Dinner at Dayton.

In this conversation, Tim lays out the sheer scale and evolution of Contest University, now in its 17th year, with over 20 presentations, global livestreaming, and a growing emphasis on youth. A standout moment: operators under 25 attend free,...

The Contest Crew Europe returns to break down a CQ WPX SSB contest that promised records but delivered something messier. Filipe CT1ILT pivoted midweek from a planned multi-two to a single op effort—and still topped Europe. For a day and a half, 10 meters was electric; North America poured in until late evening. Then Sunday hit like a switch flipped. Signals vanished, beams pointed the “wrong” way, and what felt l...

The Contest Crew is back—and this time, it’s all about a CQ WPX SSB weekend that didn’t quite go to plan.

Randy Thompson K5ZD is operating from V47T, where preparation starts strong and immediately go sideways: a shack full of amplifiers, and only one survives. What follows is a stripped-down station—one radio, one amp, and a relentless chase against Tom at 8P5A. The result? A second-place North America fini...

Tim Shoppa N3QE is a seasoned contester chasing a different kind of edge, packing a competitive station into a carry-on and heading deep into the Everglades for a Parks on the Air activation during the Florida QSO Party. What began last year as a spur-of-the-moment detour, rebooking a flight, grabbing a painter’s pole at Home Depot, and improvising an inverted V in a remote campsite, turned into one of his most memorable oper...

ohn Ford AB0O is a 45-year ham, engineer, and the quiet architect behind Parks on the Air’s North American mapping system. Licensed in Canada in 1981 under a now-defunct “digital” license—years before packet radio was mainstream—John’s path into amateur radio began with curiosity and a willingness to dig into emerging ideas like ALOHA networking. But his operating heart was always in the field. L...

Dr. Jose “Otis” Vicens NP4G is the 2026 Dayton Hamvention Amateur of the Year—a Puerto Rican orthodontist, DXpeditioner, and president of INDEXA who has spent years turning big radio dreams into real-world action. Otis first got licensed at 16 after a CB contact nudged him toward amateur radio, and the hook was simple: the thrill of talking to someone far away. That early spark carried him from Purdue’s W9YB...