DXCC award
I am sure many of you newcomers to ham radio have wondered about the DXCC award and how to obtain one, or gain membership in this elite club?
DXCC is open to any licensed radio amateur to gain this award it is necessary to submit some positive proof of your claimed contacts.
This may be in the form of qsl cards, or verification via ARRL LOTW.
In order to obtain any award, or submit evidence that you have actually accomplished this feat it is necessary to log your contacts.
In fact, an accurate log indicating call letters of the station worked, date, time, band and signal reports exchanged are all necessary for completion of verification.
If you are only interested in DXCC then log your dx contacts only. The F.C.C no longer requires ham operators to keep a logbook for every contact. You need not log your local contacts on two meters, or even your rag chews on 75 unless you wish.
Becoming an award hunter requires keeping accurate records of your activities, one can claim anything on the air, but by obtaining an award such as DXCC you have positive proof of your claims.
In my case, I claim I have worked all but one country on the DXCC approved list of countries I can produce a card for every country with the exception of North Korea. I have the DXCC certificate plus an honor roll plaque hanging proudly on my shack walls.
I can also claim I have obtained honor roll status, a cw DXCC of over 325 confirmed and a SSB DXCC of 350 confirmed. I can produce qsl cards for anything claimed I have worked. No empty claims, or exaggerated claims such as claiming I have worked over 400 countries. No, you have not since there are not 400 countries on the DXCC list!
So how do you join the elite DXCC club?
The basic membership is for 100 countries, you may submit qsl cards to ARRL or use the LOTW system. Endorsements exist in the form of stickers issued by the league and for each progression you have a sticker added to your certificate.
If you are a real old timer you can use cards dating back to November of 1945, I for one began my dx chasing in 1962 and have cards for A.M. contacts on 15 meters.
Another alternative if you do not wish to use the LOTW system, or obtain qsl cards is to join EQSL. However, ARRL does not accept verifications via EQSL. But, EQSL has its own award program, so if you confirm 100 countries via this system you will be issued an award to hang on your wall.
The ARRL DXCC has existed for many years and is considered the accepted standard of DX hunting. Of course if you are not a supporter of the league and really do not care a thing about their requirements, then EQSL may be your second choice for an electronic exchange of qsl cards.
For all details on DXCC you can find this on the ARRL web site, print out the rules and requirements. Also, obtain a list of the approved DXCC countries list, and while you are there also obtain a list of the International Prefixes
During certain contests, many countries will use prefixes not often heard, however each country has been assigned a block of prefixes and the more common prefix is listed on the DXCC country listings. Then armed with this information you will know what you are hearing and leave nothing to guess work.
Example of this is the normal prefix for Spain is EA 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 7. But Spain has several possessions. Namely, EA6 is Balearic Islands, EA8, Canary Islands and lastly EA9 as Ceuta. The last three counting as separate entities, so one needs to observe and listen closely. The entire prefix block for Spain is EAA-EHZ, so during some contests you might copy, or work ED1E, or EH8C, etc. By having the proper information you can figure out what you heard and of course work them if you are in need of contact with the country represented.
Dxing is fun and challenging, but observe the “Good op” rules and follow the directions of the dx station. In other words, do not be a LID; there are some out there.
I would encourage you to give Dxing a try, just because you do not have a large beam and 1500 watts there are many stations working DX with a dipole and 100 watts. You might be surprised at what you can work on ten, fifteen and even twenty on good days of propagation.
If there are any questions, feel free to ask..
