PLS dear chasers, if an activater is asking for HB9C?? don’t call with 9A4… or G4… only HB9C?? was asked. I know this problem also as activater and it is unfair and no hamspirit of all who protract the activation, especially if the weather is bad, cold and windy… So please listen who an activater is calling again for correct callsign.
everybody will be contacted, have patience!
Thanks Peter
In reply to HB9CMI:
Hi Peter,
Those are good operators, so I would guess that they did not understand your message from QSB/QRM/QRN. Happens when you are operating just above noise level.
73, Jaakko OH7BF/F5VGL
In reply to HB9CMI:
Also, if chasers hear a /P station in the pile-up calling for “Summit-to-Summit”, it is surely good manners to give priority to the S2S QSO. It only takes a minute or so!
Today, I was calling Kjell, LA1KHA/P on 10 MHz at 1345 UTC with S2S from G/WB-012, but I could not get through the pile-up of fixed stations … so the S2S QSO did not happen.
73,
Walt (G3NYY/P)
I noticed cases when one particular chaser from HB9 - land makes QSOs with activators on completely blind method. I lose at least 5 minutes on every activation to deal with him. His is calling on blind, don’t copy my answer, and than he is calling again, again no copy of my coming back to him, an so on several times. On the end, he blindly gives me a signal report. I’m always happy on this point because he finaly quit calling me. But, he is again in action when I QSY to another band (for another 5 minutes torture - hi).
I apology to majority of excellent HB9 chasers (and activators), but this case is very specific and deserves to be mentioned here. If someone from HB9-SOTA management team is ready to address him directly I’m ready to give his callsign on private e-mail message.
Every new chaser is welcome, and I’m sure that even those with less skills will become a good SOTA chasers.
Vlado, Z35M
In reply to G3NYY:
exactly that is what i mean, the activater heard a call, not completely, and he is asking for (in my example) “PSE HB9C?? agn” and now, other stations, with no “HB9C” in callsign, are calling. The same as in your example “S2S” i think. you are calling, the SOTA station only picked up “G3” and is now aking for you again, but no chance, other stations with no “G3” in call are calling and much stronger now! So this is my request, other stations please wait until the station in demand is worked and then you could call again.
Your example (no chance to contact Kjell), i’m always waiting until the “big pileup” is over and then i call for s2s, another way hihi 
73 Peter and cuagn
In reply to Z35M:
Vlado, I know exactly who you mean, his long slow calls over the top of other peoples overs are extremely annoying, but I do not see what the Management Team could do about him. We cannot prevent him from calling, any more than we can stop the deliberate QRM from other people, presumably pirates.
73
Brian G8ADD
In reply to HB9CMI:
Peter, unfortunately this is becoming more and more bad practice, not only in SOTA, just listen to actual DX Pileups. The number of permanent callers has become a great deal of annoyance, and they don’t even stop when the DX station already has picked up a specific call and is desperately trying to complete the QSO. I have seen quite a few DX stations announcing “qrt, due to lids” which always is at the expense of the serious chaser though. The current practice of excessive spotting on the DXCluster is not very helpful either. Some people seem to start calling as soon as they get aware of a spot, regardless whether they can hear the DX or not. I have noticed this decline during the last 5-6 years or so and it is not necessarily the newcomers that behave badly.
73 Bernhard DL4CW
I think to call at the wrong time happened every chaser in the past. Me, too.
In reply to G8ADD:
I work him, 599 and goodbye.
But yesterday he uses a new trick, after 20 minutes or so he called a 2nd time. So I think, he tunes over the band and where he discovers a pile up he HAMMERS his S9++++++ HB9… without knowing whats going on
What is the right policy? Ignore? work him quick, for a free qrg?
In reply to G3NYY:
Hey Walt, I think you did something wrong You know, Kjell works qrp§ and he broke yesterday my big pile up for S2S …
have fun, Mario
In reply to ALL:
Nothing to do about indiscipline! For sure! In my case, once a HAM bores me ! calling and calling over everybody, several times his callsign! I took his call and answer for example “Fxxxx NIL NIL” and i do not register in my logbook ! The chaser believe that the qso is done because doesn’t listen nothing ! And you have the peace !
If you received the QSL, it is not valid ! and on the database the chaser is pleased because the qso gives him points ! but you ve got the peace during trafic in portable!
I had to do this very rarely anyway (two times)! this is when i am very angry !
This is the fair return of the Cluster which capt all the station that do not copy you !
Now we can make a classification of the person most undisciplined !
best 73 to all
soon from National park of Mercantour
Bob
What I even find equally annoying is what I experienced last week.
I was /p and worked a station. After the 1st QSO he came back to make another QSO with “his second call”. After checking QRZ.COM turns out this second call was from another station from the same city and had a different address but certainly not him. So he was making a QSO with someone else’s call because that OM was not QRV at that time. You can’t contact them all you know :0)
Now if that is not cheating I don’t know what is. Of course BOTH calls were deleted from my log.
Peter
In reply to ON3WAB:
Hello Peter…
Are you sure that it was the same OP?
For instance we came back with Mike DL3VTA from our tour on thursday.
We sitting in my Shack and hear a SOTA station calling (i think it was G3NYY)
So first i work him and then Mike…same station, same signal (I hope) but 2 OP´s. How will you know if it was the same Operator?
To the other comments…Yes…the disciplin in SOTA is not the best…
Mike break down his operation from SX003 because of the bad callers.
I tried to call weak stations by fragments of the call, but it was sometimes not possible.So all the qso´s take more time then normal. It´s possible that the battery is down before all chasers get a call. So sorry for that, but with more discipline it ist possible to make more contacts…
best 73 Tom
DL1DVE
In reply to ON3WAB:
Hi Peter
Just a thought but could one of the calls have been a club station or some other group call?
I hold two calls for the radio club I belong to and when we have a field day or put on a special event like JOTA or TDOTA for the Guides/Scouts and I manage to contact a SOTA station or WAB station that I need under my own call I’ll sometimes follow the club/special event station QSO with a call from my personal call. Normally I let the other station know what’s going on but it’s not always possible.
Worth checking this out.
Damian M0BKV
Yes, Tom, I am sure. I first had a QSO under his own callsign and directly after that he said: “and now for my second call…”.
It happened twice on 2 different occasions.
Damian, being QRV from a clubstation is a different matter. Of course you want to work with the callsign of the club AND your own, but that is completely different from working with another OM’s call because he cannot be QRV. And the second call was no Club as I worked that station many times before.
73
Peter
In reply to Z35M:
Vlado, same happened to me last week on my GW/MW expedition. It sounds like the same station. He kept calling me, even after I responded with a report several times. Eventually I sent his callsign NIL NIL. I moved on to the next couple of stations and then suddenly he just sent 559 559 TU dit dit while I was in QSO with someone else. He didn’t go in the log as he obviously couldn’t hear me at all!!
It’s sad for him. He may claim the points but he doesn’t get the satisfaction of a genuine contact like all the other well-mannered and patient ops. He doesn’t earn our respect like they do.
All the many excellent CW ops on SOTA can feel proud they have waited their turn, listened hard, sent at the appropriate time and earned their points in the true spirit of amateur radio and SOTA, especially the QRP or QRS stations who often have to wait a long time while the big signals get their points.
At first I found the pile-ups while activating very intimidating, but now if it all gets too much, I take my hand off the key and count to ten. It soon goes quiet and it is easy to pick out one station’s call and start again.
Sometimes it is not easy to be a good CW op on a summit. Lack of time, cold fingers, bad weather, inquisitive walkers are some of my excuses, but I find on the whole the chasers understand and are patient and courteous.
The odd one who isn’t will not spoil my enjoyment or lessen my sense of achievement!
73,
Ian GW8OGI
In reply to GW8OGI and all:
He may claim the points but he doesn’t get the satisfaction of a genuine contact like all the other well-mannered and patient ops.
Now the database soft is working fine and fast.
Don’t you think useful to implement again the little star (*) which confirms the contacts ?
Without this confirmation, is the SOTA award scheme realy credible ?
Now, having a look from the activator side, is it useful to upload the QSOs of a SOTA expedition bringing me 0 points, while the checking star does not exists ?
LOTW seems more appropriate.
73 Alain F6ENO