Hello All,
Very pleased to hear of this initiative, heard via FISTS newsgroup thanks to G4FAD/Rich.
After many years trying to "support" the hobby via Contests etc, I've become so alienated by the plethora of contests nowadays which mean that "the average op." who may only have a rig and a basic antenna finds in increasingly difficult to enjoy the hobby at weekends and increasingly on weekday evenings.
I have withdrawn from a prestigious CW Club as it was becoming more and more contest and hard-core DX orientated and there seemed little place for the op. who likes to actually communicate via CW and enjoys real QSOs.
Anything that can be done to "defend" those who prefer to converse via CW rather than give out meaningless numbers and 599 reports is to be welcomed. It is a shame that the power in the hobby lies with the "mine's bigger than yours" brigade where big linears and beams allow them to crush the "average" radio amateur off the bands.
Resisting the dumbing down of the hobby into mere computer games on the air has my backing.
Looking forward to meeting up on 30M CW for a real QSO, Vy 73
Tony G3ZRJ FISTS 7727 SKCC 3492C RNARS 889