The ARRL Contest Update for June 10, 2026 undefined

 

 

 

 

June 10, 2026

Editor:

iCom

 

In this Issue:

Upcoming Contests – Things to Do

On the weekend of June 13, why not get on the air for the . Starting at 1300 local time for East Coast hams, there’s time for mobile stations to get to high locations that have a good shot at population centers. The exchange is the grid square, but remember that you can exchange grid squares on CW, FM, and SSB in addition to the FT modes. Some amateurs have been . Another example: set up a web page for each VHF contest to publicize their operating plan, then coordinate their rover operation via 2-meter frequencies and live mapping functions — whatever it takes (within the rules) to make the contact.

 

As we swing into the summer season and experience the shortest nights in the northern hemisphere, 160 meters is not really top of mind. However, the contest must go on, on June 20! Show the southern hemisphere top-banders some potential love during their prime top band season and give it a go on 160-meter CW.

 

The event is also on June 20. This event happens twice a year and is an opportunity “give on-the-air experience to young people and hopefully foster interest in getting a license of their own. It is also intended to give older hams a chance to share their station and love for amateur radio with their children.”

 

Other options for the weekend of June 20: The and QSO Parties; for some DX, try the , and the , where everyone works everyone.

 

Busted QSOs

There was a race of emails to my inbox last week, and a few corrections are in order for the last issue. Thanks to Doug Grant, K1DG, Tim Duffy, K3LR, Jack Brindle, W6FB, Dave McCarty, K5GN, for their review and follow-through to send me email about these.

 

The item on the had some incorrect speaker names! Jack Brindle pointed out: “The one attributed to Fred was actually titled “Effective Antennas for Contesting” and was presented by Fred Lass, K2TR. The next was "Design Approach & Lessons Learned in Building my New Contest Station” by Randy Thompson, K5ZD, describing his move from Massachusetts to Ohio. Jack suspected the AI I used to “watch” the video to generate the speaker list was hallucinating.

 

“Paul Young, K1XM, is one of the Contest Hall of Fame inductees this year” wrote Doug and Dave.

 

Tim, in addition to catching my (well, the AI’s) speaker confusion, noted that registration will open for the Hope Hotel, site of next year’s , on June 15, 2026.

 

 

Contest Summary

June 11, 2026 - June 24, 2026

 

See the "Contests" section below for complete contest information.

 

Note: Contest dates and times are in UTC. This means that a contest that is listed to start on a Saturday at 0000z, for example, really starts on a Friday night in US time zones.

 

June 11

June 12

June 13

June 15

June 16

June 17

June 18

June 19

June 20

June 21

June 22

June 23

June 24

 

RigSelect Radio Switch SO2R Controller

 

News, Press Releases, and Special Interest

Orbiting ? It sounds like something you’d see 007 involved with, but real scientists are proposing the use of satellites that can dump hundreds of tons of gas or even saltwater to blunt the effects of strong solar storms.

 

Training Track #1 at the , AKA Huntsville Hamfest, is a Mini Contest University: “This marks the first time Mini Contest University (CTU) is coming to Huntsville … This Mini CTU will appeal to new and veteran contesters alike who are looking to hone their skills. Presenters (will) cover general contest operations, contesting skills, and many resources and tools to get more out of contesting. The Mini CTU Track Leader is Tim Duffy, K3LR. Presenters TBD. This training is sponsored by .” — From the ARRL Letter, May 28, 2026, John Ross, KD8IDJ, Editor.

 

Flexradio has released version . According to the announcement, “This version supersedes all previous SmartSDR releases and is available to all users.” The urge that PC users uninstall previous versions of the SmartSDR software before installing this version, as the software drivers have been updated.

 

The RAC Canada Day contest coming up on July 1 has a new “feature” — Team Competition. , “The new team competition component of the contest allows the creation of teams of two to four amateurs to compete for a certificate for the top three team scores from around the globe. Participants in any of the Single Operator categories can form part of the team whose individual scores are added together to produce a team score. There are no club membership, distance or meeting requirements for a team entry. Teams must be registered prior to the start of the contest. The team’s registration form can be found at website — look for the menu.”

 

Word to the Wise

“In-Band Station”

 

Additional station(s) on the same band as a Run station in a multi-op. You can find out more about these in the by Bill Fehring, W9KKN, at .

 

Club Focus

The is an operating event for club members that have moved out-of-area to keep in on-the-air touch with other PVRC members. It’s also a club activity that counts towards an intra-club award, and increases PVRC on-the-air visibility.

 

Sights and Sounds

Tim Duffy, K3LR, writing in CQ-Contest: “There are 360 photos taken at the Dayton Hamvention by K8CX at . Others are welcome to send their Dayton photos to K8CX for the gallery.”

 

Results and Records

Bud Trench, AA3B, had this announcement on the CQ-Contest email list: “The . This year, 5,617 logs were received, containing 2,511,231 QSOs. The raw scores are calculated prior to log checking. This should give participants a good indication of their category placement at the World, Continent, or Country level. Score reductions of 2% to 15% (or more) are possible, so the log checking process must be completed before final results are announced. Please check that your entry is in the correct category. Report any errors or questions (via the webform at) . Do NOT resubmit your log to 'fix' any problems!”

 

Bud notes the raw scores were released in “less than 6 days after then end of the contest” due to the effort of K5ZD, PA3AAV, K1LT, and K3WW.

 

Operating Tip

This tip is from Bob, N6TV, from his 2026 presentation at Contest University (CTU) “.” Switch between the CW and CW-R mode that many radios have when Searching and Pouncing a signal that has interference. Doing so could position the desired signal inside the RX passband, while the interfering signal is outside. See slide 9 of his presentation for more details.

 

Technical Topics and Discussion

ESP-32 modules are the basis for many amateur radio projects these days. They’re inexpensive and available from many sources. A new tool may make them even more accessible to those that aren’t necessarily coders: ESP-Claw, from Espressif, the makers of ESP32 hardware. talks about the tool and what it can, and cannot, do.

 

Sometimes your IQ-data streams generated by your hardware don’t match the IQ-streams accepted by the software you want to use. A new tool, , can resample, filter, shift, and correct your IQ-streams. (from ).

 

Chad, WE9V, runs a spotting node for the RBN; he has issues with his TX signal being received everywhere by his SDR-based skimmer node: “I also run a QS1R, co-located with my station, with its antenna about 150' away from the closest TX antenna. For years I have grounded the QS1R antenna at any time either of my SO2R radios transmit … I get a bunch of mutilated derivatives of my call being spotted. My solution was to go into Aggregator's Bad Call section and add the ~20 different versions of my bad call that were generated while transmitting.” (from )

 

Here’s a "fun" one! Your computer installs some drivers, or updates some drivers overnight. All of a sudden, your digital-mode waterfall is showing a bunch of lines, as if you had a bunch of new noise sources. What might have happened is that an “audio enhancement function” has been turned on for your sound card driver. According to a , the way to remedy this is to find the settings in the Playback->enhancements tab, and the Recording->Advanced and disable “enhancements” and “audio enhancements.”

 

Your local library may have resources to help you with your projects, beyond books. In our area, our library system has one branch set up with a “makerspace” for 3D printing, CNC machining, laser cutting, sewing, and hand tools. Independent makerspaces may have all of that, and more. You don’t need to go it alone, and it can be more fun and faster to learn as part of a class.

 

OpenHFTA, an “open-source reimplementation of the acclaimed HFTA (HF Terrain Assessment) software … is now .” — the Rio DX Group’s . “A few years ago Rio DX Group members learned with concern that Dean Straw, who was facing a serious illness, had lost the original source code files for HFTA. This posed an imminent risk of the permanent disappearance of this historic tool. In a digital preservation task force, a team of specialists led by Dr. Paulo Matias, PY2UID, and Dr. Paolo Oliveira, PU7OLV, initiated a meticulous reverse-engineering process of the software. During the project's development, the community mourned the passing of Dean Straw. What began as a support effort quickly transformed into a mission to honor and safeguard his legacy for future generations. OpenHFTA is the direct result of this effort. It is a complete rewrite that reproduces HFTA’s original behavior with 100% fidelity, using the same equations and simulations.”

 

Conversation

I’ve been in New England for the past 10 days, and I’ve been reminded to take additional precautions when working outside on antennas. Ticks have been especially bad this year here, and the trend seems to be that they’re getting bad all across the continent with these potential disease carriers being found outside their traditional ranges. Just like it’s a very bad idea to not don all of the tower climbing safety gear to make that “small change that will only take a minute,” it’s also a bad idea to ignore precautions for this longer-term danger. A friend of mine thought he’d checked everywhere after working outside and having on appropriately treated clothing, but he missed the small tick hiding and feasting under his watch, which required a round of anti-bacterial medication.

 

That's all for this time. Remember to send contesting-related stories, book reviews, tips, techniques, press releases, errata, schematics, club information, pictures, stories, blog links, and predictions to .

 

73, Brian, N9ADG

 

Contests

June 11, 2026 - June 24, 2026

 

An expanded, downloadable version of QST's is available as a PDF. Check the sponsors' website for information on operating time restrictions and other instructions.

 

HF CONTESTS

 

, Jun 11, 0300z to Jun 11, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 13.

 

, Jun 11, 0700z to Jun 11, 0800z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 13.

 

, Jun 11, 2200z to Jun 12, 0100z; CW, SSB, RTTY; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; PVRC Member: 1st year of membership + name + (state/province/country) + callsign when joined PVRC, non-Member: name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 26.

 

, Jun 12, 0100z to Jun 12, 0130z; FT4; Bands: (see rules); 4-character grid square; Logs due: Jun 14.

 

, Jun 12, 0145z to Jun 12, 0215z; RTTY; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 14.

 

, Jun 12, 0230z to Jun 12, 0300z; CW; Bands: (see rules); Serial No. + Name + QTH; Logs due: Jun 14.

 

, Jun 12, 2000z to Jun 12, 2100z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Maximum 20 wpm, Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 14.

 

, Jun 12, 2300z to Jun 13, 0200z; CW, SSB, RTTY; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; PVRC Member: 1st year of membership + name + (state/province/country) + callsign when joined PVRC, non-Member: name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 26.

 

, Jun 13, 0000z to Jun 13, 2359z; SSB; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; YB: RS + "ORARI", non-YB: RS + "DX"; Logs due: Jun 20.

 

, Jun 13, 1100z to Jun 13, 1300z; SSB; Bands: 20, 15; RS + Serial No.; Logs due: Jun 20.

 

, Jun 13, 1200z to Jun 14, 2359z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6; RST + (state/province/country) + Name + (SKCC No./"NONE"); Logs due: Jun 21.

 

, Jun 13, 1200z to Jun 14, 1200z; CW, SSB; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; CT: RS(T) + District, non-CT: RS(T) + Serial No.; Logs due: Jun 30.

 

, Jun 13, 1500z to Jun 14, 1500z; CW; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; RST + CQ Zone No.; Logs due: Jun 30.

 

, Jun 15, 0000z to Jun 15, 0200z; CW, SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: RS(T) + (State/Province/Country) + Member No., Non-member: RS(T) + (State/Province/Country) + Power; Logs due: Jun 17.

 

, Jun 15, 0000z to Jun 15, 0100z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Maximum 20 wpm, Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 17.

 

, Jun 15, 1300z to Jun 15, 1400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Jun 18.

 

, Jun 15, 1630z to Jun 15, 1729z; CW; Bands: 80, 40; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Jun 19.

 

, Jun 15, 1900z to Jun 15, 2100z; FT4; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Signal report; Logs due: Jun 16.

 

, Jun 15, 1900z to Jun 15, 2000z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Jun 18.

 

, Jun 16, 0100z to Jun 16, 0159z; SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6; RS + age group (OM, YL, Youth YL or Youth); Logs due: Jun 17.

 

, Jun 16, 0300z to Jun 16, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Jun 18.

 

, Jun 16, 1200z to Jun 16, 1300z; SSB; Bands: 40; RS + age; Logs due: Jun 21.

 

, Jun 16, 1930z to Jun 16, 2030z; CW; Bands: 80, 40; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Jun 17.

 

, Jun 17, 0030z to Jun 17, 0230z; CW; Bands: 80, 40, 20; RST + (state/province/country) + (NAQCC No./power); Logs due: Jun 20.

 

, Jun 17, 0230z to Jun 17, 0300z; SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15; NA: Name + (state/province/country), non-NA: Name; Logs due: Jun 19.

 

, Jun 17, 1145z to Jun 17, 1300z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: RST + Name; Logs due: Jun 22.

 

, Jun 17, 1300z to Jun 17, 1400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 20.

 

, Jun 17, 1700z to Jun 17, 1759z; CW; Bands: 40; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Jun 19.

 

, Jun 17, 1800z to Jun 17, 1859z; CW; Bands: 80; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Jun 19.

 

, Jun 17, 1900z to Jun 17, 2000z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 20.

 

, Jun 18, 0000z to Jun 19, 0300z; CW; Bands: 20; Maximum 13 wpm, RST + (state/province/country) + Name + (Member No./power); Logs due: Jun 25.

 

, Jun 18, 0300z to Jun 18, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 20.

 

, Jun 18, 0700z to Jun 18, 0800z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 20.

 

, Jun 18, 1900z to Jun 18, 2000z; CW; Bands: 80, 40, 20; NTC Member: RST + Member No., non-Member: RST + "NM", Less than 25 wpm; Logs due: Jun 22.

 

, Jun 19, 0100z to Jun 19, 0230z; CW; Bands: 20; RST + (state/province/country) + name + power output; Logs due: Jun 20.

 

, Jun 19, 0100z to Jun 19, 0130z; FT4; Bands: (see rules); 4-character grid square; Logs due: Jun 21.

 

, Jun 19, 0145z to Jun 19, 0215z; RTTY; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 21.

 

, Jun 19, 0230z to Jun 19, 0300z; CW; Bands: (see rules); Serial No. + Name + QTH; Logs due: Jun 21.

 

, Jun 19, 2000z to Jun 19, 2100z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Maximum 20 wpm, Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 21.

 

, Jun 20, 0000z to Jun 20, 2359z; Feld Hell; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6; (see rules); Logs due: Jun 24.

 

, Jun 20, 0000z to Jun 21, 2359z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; RST + 2-digit age; Logs due: Jul 1.

 

, Jun 20, 0000z to Jun 20, 2359z; SSB; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; RS + Serial No.; Logs due: Jun 27.

 

, Jun 20, 1200z to Jun 21, 2359z; CW; Bands: All, except WARC; RST + (state/province/country) + Name + 4-Character Grid Square; Logs due: Jun 28.

 

, Jun 20, 1500z to Jun 21, 1500z; CW; Bands: 160; 4-Character grid square; Logs due: Jul 6.

 

, Jun 20, 1600z to Jun 21, 0400z; CW, SSB, Digital; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; WV: RS(T) + county, non-WV: RS(T) + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jul 13.

 

, Jun 20, 1800z to Jun 20, 2359z; SSB; Bands: 80, 40, 20, 17, 15, 12, 10, 2m repeaters; name + age + QTH + favorite color; Logs due: Jul 20.

 

, Jun 21, 2300z to Jun 22, 0100z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; RST + (state/province/country) + (Member No./power); Logs due: Jun 27.

 

, Jun 22, 0000z to Jun 22, 0100z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Maximum 20 wpm, Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 24.

 

, Jun 22, 1300z to Jun 22, 1400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Jun 25.

 

, Jun 22, 1630z to Jun 22, 1729z; CW; Bands: 80, 40; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Jun 26.

 

, Jun 22, 1900z to Jun 22, 2000z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Jun 25.

 

, Jun 23, 0100z to Jun 23, 0159z; SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6; RS + age group (OM, YL, Youth YL or Youth); Logs due: Jun 24.

 

, Jun 23, 0300z to Jun 23, 0400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Name + QSO No.; Logs due: Jun 25.

 

, Jun 23, 1930z to Jun 23, 2030z; CW; Bands: 80, 40; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Jun 24.

 

, Jun 24, 0000z to Jun 24, 0200z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6; RST + (state/province/country) + Name + (SKCC No./"NONE"); Logs due: Jun 27.

 

, Jun 24, 0230z to Jun 24, 0300z; SSB; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15; NA: Name + (state/province/country), non-NA: Name; Logs due: Jun 26.

 

, Jun 24, 1145z to Jun 24, 1300z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: RST + Name; Logs due: Jun 29.

 

, Jun 24, 1300z to Jun 24, 1400z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 27.

 

, Jun 24, 1700z to Jun 24, 1759z; CW; Bands: 40; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Jun 26.

 

, Jun 24, 1800z to Jun 24, 1859z; CW; Bands: 80; RST + Serial No.; Logs due: Jun 26.

 

, Jun 24, 1900z to Jun 24, 2000z; CW; Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10; Member: Name + Member No./"CWA", non-Member: Name + (state/province/country); Logs due: Jun 27.

 

VHF+ CONTESTS

 

, Jun 11, 0000z to Jun 11, 0500z; FT8/4; Bands: 432; 4-character grid square; Logs due: Jun 16.

 

, Jun 13, 1400z to Jun 13, 1800z; CW; Bands: 144 MHz, 432 MHz; RST + "/" + Serial No. + "/" Power class + "/" + 6-character grid locator; Logs due: Jun 21.

 

, Jun 13, 1400z to Jun 14, 1400z; CW, SSB, FM; Bands: 6; RS(T) + Serial No. + 4-character grid square; Logs due: Jun 22.

 

, Jun 13, 1800z to Jun 15, 0259z; All; Bands: 50 MHz and up; 4-character grid square; Logs due: Jun 24.

 

, Jun 17, 1700z to Jun 17, 2100z; FT8/4; Bands: 1.2G; 4-character grid square; Logs due: Jun 20.

 

, Jun 18, 0000z to Jun 18, 0500z; FT8/4; Bands: 1296; 4-character grid square; Logs due: Jun 23.

 

, Jun 20, 1400z to Jun 21, 1400z; CW, SSB; Bands: 50 MHz; RS(T) + QSO No. + 6-character grid square; Logs due: Jun 24.

 

, Jun 20, 1400z to Jun 21, 1400z; CW, SSB; Bands: 6; RS(T) + QSO No. + 6-character grid square; Logs due: Jul 1.

 

, Jun 21, 0800z to Jun 21, 1400z; SSB; Bands: 6; British Isles: RS + serial no. + WAB square, Other: RS + serial no. + country; Logs due: Jul 1.

 

Also, see , , , and , above.

 

Log Due Dates

June 11, 2026 - June 24, 2026

 

June 11

June 12

June 13

June 14

June 15

June 16

June 17

June 18

June 19

June 20

June 21

June 22

June 23

June 24

 

 

 

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