Parks On The Air (POTA) CW exchanges explained

Sorry for the off-topic question, but what radio is that? I love the simple layout.

At 75 , dusted off my old straight key, and working to get into CW. Thank you for this excellent guide for exchanges for POTA.

Thanks Thomas! I have a grand total of 4 CW POTA QSOs so far :) but these were my first CW QSOs since I was a novice in 1987! I've decided to hunt more CW and eventually try a CW activation! This video was a big help in understanding what is expected as a hunter and activator! de N7BBQ dit dit :)

So it's normal to NOT give your park number when working a hunter? Only give park number when working P2P? I've worked voice POTA so I am used to using the park number constantly.

Hi, very instructive! Can you explain the meaning of "44" one more time please?

I did 3 CW in my previous activation and there were some things you've explained that tripped me up. I'm getting it though, thanks!

Wow, I watched you yesterday and your sending speed was too fast for me. After a while I figured out most of your responses, but got lost lots. I was going to request a video on the message structure. It appeared today; awesome! You taught not only me but many interested amateurs everything. I have a sbitx, V3 and am interested in getting back into cw after over 30 years. C-19 started me listening to cw every night. I just need a battery and I'm ready to get on the air. TU WD0DUD . .

Here's a sub because you don't care.
The begging for subs is such a pathetic and overdone thing.
Also I'm an ancient ham who is going to go POTA in order to get my CW back together. 73

Good video - thanks, getting back into CW after many years away. We used to live in Troutman, NC and rode bikes at LNSP and launched our boat there too. Can you tell me what the white radio is in the video and several pictures on your blog? Still looking for a POTA CW radio. Currently, I use an FT-991A for SSB but have not tried it with my paddle yet. 73 de AF1US. dit dit

Thank you, Tom!

Your videos are great! Thank you for taking the time to share with us! 73 DE KE8BGX

Thanks for clearing that up for me. I have been inactive for many years and just getting back on the air. I keep hearing "cq pota" and figured it was a contest and I am not a contester at all. Now I will take the plunge and give a qrp call back to a activator and perhaps someday I will take my HW-8 rig to a park and give it a try 😀 73 de WA4JAT se coastal NC

Super handy. Close to getting on the air or attempting. biggest draw is grabbing a few of those hard to reach states via CW.

Love your videos Thomas, this one is especially helpful in understanding CW conversations! Thank you and keep the great content coming.

What radio is that?? Thanks.

Thomas, what do you do in cw about that pesky 'hyphen' or 'dash' between the letter K and the numbers in the park number? I wish POTA would just drop it, so park K-1234 would be K1234, which is the way it's spoken, anyway. Thank you.

Hey Thomas, this is great info and very helpful for me as I am just beginning to learn CW. Thank you for the great content.

When I hear a “P2P” in a pileup, I respond “P2P” and wait for him to respond with his call. I then respond with the RST and my park # then BK. After receiving his info I always respond “R TU Kind Regards dit dit”. I think the R is important to let him know I got it and he’s in the log

Your videos have been (are) a colossal resource in my CW journey. Thank you, Thomas.

Excelente clase, cada dia es un nuevo apredizaje TNX 73

Thanks

100% Thomas... but always dit-dit and always respond with dit-dit too. I mean, we are the last vestiges of courtesy and decency and the last remaining examples of what it is to be a Gentleman on the air.. I really believe that. The spirit, the courtesy and the fundamental decency of human intercourse is alive and well on CW. It is our job to keep that going...

DD means “this is”
BK means “break”

I don't do CW yet due to nervousness so this helps greatly

Thanks Thomas! That was really great information. I have a much better understanding of this, now.

as someone just learning CW, this is immensely helpful!

Older CW operator here. I recently returned to ham radio after a 25-year break and have heard of POTA/SOTA. I don't understand the brevity in POTA CW QSO's. Why the rush? The rapid operating style, and lack of prosigns, just seems to encourage bad CW operating habits.

This is excellent. Thank you! 73 de KK4UZK

Great video! I do a lot of CW POTA hunting, and you video is exactly the way it is done. Thanks for your time producing a fine POTA intro using CW!

thanks Thomas - appreciate this info - one question -do u not state ur state in ur reply ? also i see a CW Morse paddle on the bench - i have one and find it fairly sloppy no matter how i adjust it - is urs like that of did i get a bad one - thanks 73

Great video thank you. Was someone raking?

Thanks a lot! Being new to POTA I have one question: On a P2P contact you don't actually send the dash in the park designator e.g. K-6856 or do you? 73!

Thank you, Thomas. Very informative. I recently completed the Basic class of CW Academy. This will help me once I feel confident and comfortable to try POTA using CW. 73

Great help. Thanks very much!

Another great, detailed video Thomas. Subbed. My first pota activation was cw / qrp, and was successful in spite of my lack of knowledge on how it actually should have been done!

Thanks, my next job! Get POTA Activation to do what you do!

I've watched quite a few of your videos now and your use of dit dit at the end of a QSO confused me but clearly not any of the hunters who always seem to respond in kind. Thanks for explaining it!

I'm a new ham on hf and the only operating I do is cw SOTA activations. S2S is the hardest

You did not overtalk this. :) Thank you for this - I hunted my first parks yesterday by CW and this guide was extremely helpful!! Thank you! kq4cwk

Courtesy is a must.

Very helpful info Thomas. Thanks, and 73!

Very well done video. de WW9L

Thanks for this video. I am getting ready to attempt a CW activation and was wondering how to handle a P2P! KD9VAN

Thank you Soooo much for doing this video. I refer to it often as I continue to learn CW. Your channel is an awesome reference and keeps me inspired to copy CW better. Got my second CW park QSO today.

Nice video and thanks for posting! I watched this last year, and then posted a question on the POTA FB page asking this exact question and someone was kind enough to tell me about this video. I had totally forgotten about it. This is a good little primer for the exchange. I plan on writing a little cheat sheet for when I activate for the first time in the 2023 season just to get back into the swing of things. 73

So, I have not heard of sending the BK at the beginning? This is new to me. I just copied at 15 wpm with no spacing this evening so thats a HUGE step forward for me. If you're out there thinking you will never get it, keep going, I really surprised myself tonight.

Thanks for the rundown on the POTA system and how it works not on with CW yet but following the Ham Whisper morse course and enjoying it this is about my 3rd try. I am also now trying to copy morse on your channel to try and get the new paths in the brain to connect the dots or should I say the Dits and Dahs. :)

Thanks! This was extremely helpful. I just made my first CW contact today, and I've been wanting to hunt some POTA (eventually I want to activate on CW, but that'll be a while). Knowing what to expect in the exchange is very helpful, especially for a CW newbie like myself.

Goo vid to help know what to expect. Especially for those like me just learning. Still takes me about 3 tries to get a good read on a transmission.