Difficult going with only 100w from this little island in the Indian Ocean and the recent
propagation does not help. Too difficult for my circumstances on low power.

This was my first ARRL Digital contest. I had lots of power outages. See you next year. 73 Urgent
7Q6UJ and Don 7Q6M (K6ZO)

Thank you to everyone at the ARRL for making this contest possible. Your efforts are appreciated.

I just want to let you know that I was only able to participate in the contest on the 10-meter band,
since I only have an antenna for that band.
About a month ago, we had winds of over 120 km/h, and at the time, that was the only setup I had
available. 
I am attaching the LOG in XLS format for the record. Thank you very much, 73 CX7AT Gustavo

CU in the next Contest

First ARRL contest for me. Had a good time, thanks! 73!

QTH: Torrejon de Ardoz
Locator: IN80GL
Transceiver: Yaesu FT-817ND
Power: 5 W
Antenna: wire (8 m long) + remote tuner (LDG RT-100)
Software: WSJT-X

Propagation closed on 10 meters. Very few QSOs on 80 meters and
only one on 160 meters. Break from 00:59 to 04:46 and from 21:44
to 23:59. Total activity 24 hours.

I enjoyed the contest.

I enjoyed the contest.

Radio: YAESU FT-817ND
Antenna: Mobile Whip

I enjoyed the contest.

I enjoyed the contest!

I enjoyed the contest.

I enjoyed the contest.

FT-817ND  IC-905XG EH DP Yagi LW

TNX everybody !!

I enjoyed the contest.

Thank you for listening to my weak signal !!

Having my portable hex beam at 30 ft on a 10 degree downward slope toward Europe and SA worked
beyond my expectations at my cabin in Northern Vermont

Always fun to work an Asian or Oceania station for big points!

We decided to QRP it again!
Last year we won this category and had a reasonable amount of fun.
This year we had twice as many operators, so less time burden on
any one person, and more total time on the air. Despite poor
band conditions and maybe less activity by others, we greatly
increased our score. We improved our focus on distant contacts,
and were on the air for more late afternoon working of YBs and
JAs.  But of course THANK YOU to the South Americans and USA
who filled the log.  We only worked 11 Europeans, conditions
were that bad. The mountaintop remote station worked well, just
a few internet freezes. The station plays so well, especially
into Pacific and Asia that ops say "it doesn't feel like QRP."
Ops also report "FT8 slow, with occasional outbreaks of three
things happening at once."
Thanks for the QSOs!

K6UFO (K6TD NN6U ND2T K6UFO @K6MTU)

Flex 6700 at 5 watts
SmartSDR, Writelog and Digirite software
JK Mid-Tribander at 95 feet high
JK 4 el 40m yagi at 110 feet
80m 4-square array

Firsts time to get qso's on all 7 contest bands!

Operated a portable QRP station at a local park.
8 hours split between two days was a comfortable limit.
Came equipped for 6, 10, and 15m but only 15m seemed busy.
Worked FT8 at the bottom of the recommended sub-band.
Was never forced to move higher by overcrowding.
With 5W, 3/4 of my QSO distances were less than 2K km.
This made longer distances a cause for great celebration!
Thanks to everyone who took the time to work my QRP station,
and thanks to ARRL for organizing this contest!

Was a great time even though i had to work this weekend. I did get a few hours in between work. Had
a hard time remembering how to upload my log but think I got it figured out. This has to be my
favorite contest 73 KB9HGI

FT-7610 with fan dipole at 30'

Great FUn working DIGI for the first time

Good contest result even if the QSO count was lower than expected from last year. I needed to swap
out a xcvr partway through so there were not as much of 6M contacts. Will do certainly do this
contest again next year.

This was my first Digi contest and my first serious effort at a contest.  I was operating out of my
apartment, trying to prove a concept.  I would say it went well, my score was better than I thought
I would do.  I am looking forward to the results to see how I did in my class.

Converted from QRZ ADIF. Review category/header fields before official submission.

1st contest.

I am antenna ERP challenged with only an EFHW 10-40 at 15' across
the ground floor apartment courtyard. Saturday evening around
0000-0200 UTC greyline time 40m was working decent stations even
a UA6. Sunday band conditions were poor all day, a big contrast.

ic-7200. Deltaloop

IC-9100 and Hexbeam antenna

First time participating in the ARRL IDC as LT3V. Thanks to the organizers. 73 and good DX!

This was my very first attempt at a contest and am very grateful for the WSJT-X contest mode and
ARRL for hosting the event. I’m based in Leeds central UK

I used a simple setup of an ic7300 running below 100watts and the antenna is an AERIAL 51 MODEL
404‑UL ULTRA‑LIGHTWEIGHT MULTI‑BAND DIPOLE. It’s meant for portable use but been up two
years now and all I will say is it works. 

I managed to work China Japan Russia EU Chilie Peru Brazil and North America with no problems 

Can I take part in the field day too? 

73
Robert
de M0RCX

This was the first time that I have entered a international contest like this one. It was a lot of
fun and I'm so happy that I entered. I have just one issue, I thought I had read the rules front to
back, inside and out. BUT I missed something and because of this I believe that I have lost around
70 QSO's. I kept seeing strange exchanges between stations no signal reports. This worried me and I
kept going back into the rules and couldn't see anything. It was only when I googled it I realized
that I needed to go into advanced settings and make some changes that I realized what was going on.
If I did miss it in the rules then this SOAPBOX is my bad and I'm sorry. I have held licence for a
little over 2 years and I admit I am very much still learning I just wish that somewhere in the
rules in big BOLD letters it said "HEY NEW GUY YOU NEED TO MAKE THESE CHANGES".....Anyway sorry for
the rant, I will be back next year

All QSOs FT4, why so many on FT8 for this contest???????????

Still feeling the effects of the recent CMEs.  Kept checking MUF charts prior to trying a band.
Still a fun time. Thanks for the contest.

Converted from ADIF.

Nothing good to say about this contest. I have nicknamed it "digital
lids international". Sooooo many ops returning to my CQ on my direct
frequency, and then staying there to continue to CQ once the Q was
completed. Big surprise to at least a dozen of these ops when results
are published, as they wil be "NIL". I actually had one op, HA8LHT,
answer my CQ on my freq, then answer two another ops calling him, while
on my freq, leaving me hanging to finish our contact. Once he finished
our original Q, he continued CQing on the freq I had occupied. I
experienced several "big name" contesters hijacking a freq I occiupied,
when answering my CQ. One op in particular, KC7V, who obviously wanted
a contact so badly from another op that answered my CQ on my direct feq,
busted in on our Q on same freq and called the other op before our exchange
was copmplete. I finally gae up on the Q attempt, but listened on that freq
briefly to watch both of them CQing on alternate sequences. Ironically,
KC7V is a member of FOC! Contesting used to be fun...not anymore...
So disappointing the amount of errosion which has happened to the "class"
of opertators in the 50 years I've been a ham.
Gene N9TF, Limited Antenna, 6BTV on the ground, 100 watts.

tnx fet the qso. gd dx 73

QRP (tr)uSDX + longwire antenna with unun 9:1.

End fed half wave

TNX 73

TX/RX : SunSDR2DX

TX 5 Watts, Ant Magnetic Loop (indoor)

Log generated from MSHV ADIF export

73!

This is my second year for the IDC, It was a lot of fun

Another enjoyable contest but hard going. Cold start with 5C (41F) at my QTH. The shack is in the
shed with no insulation so I rugged up as best I could. Starting time for VK4 was 4am and finish
time 10am the following morning. Both start and ending were very quiet, trying to eke out any QSO I
could.

Only the 3 bands operated, 80W on both 20 and 15 meteres and 40W on 40 meteres. I don't operate 80
and I saw nothing on 10. Using a DX Commander but wishing for a directional antenna. Watching other
VK's work stations I couldn't even see on the bands is very disheartening.

Changed logging software to N3FJP. Worked flawlessly and couldn't be happier. Linking the software
to Live Contest Score Server / Contest Online Scoreboard and HamDash was a breeze. Seeing your score
against others I believe makes you work harder and gives you an idea where you stand in the mix.

Not that I would compete in this section but I do believe there should be a high power category for
this contest (just my 2C worth). Looking forward to next year.

first licensed 12/10/2025

A thunderstorm interrupted me when the bands were getting really hot.

Wish I could have spent more time this year with my newish FT-710, but due to storms on Saturday
night, my computer power supply fried and I had to go replace it Sunday morning. SSB bands have been
TOUGH lately so this was a nice change of pace. Got a new country and had fun!

Operated only on 20 meters.  When we realized we had been single
band for most of the constest we decided not to changebands for
the last part.  -W8EDU

First time operating the ARRL International Digital Contest using SO2R. Operated from FN32, remote
from K1TTT.

Finished with 1,003 QSOs (net) and a claimed score of 12,125 on 40, 20, 15, and 10 meters.

After reviewing the log, I realized I spent much of the contest thinking about rate when I probably
should have been thinking more about distance. I knew this ahead of time since I did the contest
using SO1R in the past, but my contest muscle memory got the best of me.

There is a thrill to fast run rates but a greater thrill to win. I am grateful to be able to operate
and reflect back on this.

This is a reminder to myself for the 2027 ARRL International Digital Contest. Unlike most contests,
every QSO is scored by distance. A station in Europe may take about the same amount of time to work
as a station much farther away, yet the point value can be dramatically different.

In 2026, Europe provided the volume and Brazil provided consistency, but some of the highest-value
QSOs in the log came from Australia, Indonesia, Japan, Thailand, Africa, and the Middle East. The
longest paths approached 17,000 kilometers from FN32.

Looking back, I found myself asking a simple question: how many additional minutes is a
16,000-kilometer contact worth? A VK, YB, or JA station may require more patience to complete than a
nearby caller, but the scoring potential can be substantially greater.

My takeaway from my first SO2R effort is that this contest may be as much about deciding where to
invest operating time as it is about maximizing rate.

My second lesson came after I turned the station off.

Notes to self:

I went off the air too early and took a six-hour break so I could sleep because I was concerned
about giving myself jet lag. The tradeoff was that I missed an excellent run on 40 meters during the
European sunrise period as well as opportunities with VK, ZL, and JA stations. I was actually in 2nd
place in North America on the Contest Scoreboard before going to bed (behind 686 points), but when I
woke up I was more than 1,000 points further behind and I never caught up.

In hindsight, I missed out on meaningful contacts on both 80 and 40 meters. I could have slept until
1100z and not missed a thing.

In both cases, I traded potential distance for something else.

Next year I’ll still be watching the rate meter, but I’ll also be paying closer attention to
where the high-distance opportunities are developing.

73,

Jeff Pulver, WA2BOT

When I first saw "CQ TEST" last year, I though "Aw, he's testing whether FT8 works or not. I'll help
him out... WHY ISN'T HE GIVING ME MY SIGNAL REPORT"

RIG is Kenwood TS2000
Antena KLM-34 beam

RIG: FT-950
ANT: Mosley TA33JR