Behavior in pileups

Discussion in 'The DX Zone' started by N5CM, Feb 8, 2019.

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  1. KP4SX

    KP4SX XML Subscriber QRZ Page

    I only stuck around that pileup last night for a short while. What a mess. It's like someone tossed fresh meat to the wolves.
    WF4W likes this.
  2. WF4W

    WF4W Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    listnening to a SSB pileup on 17m for 9q6BB - another mess.... especially the guy calling him "JAPAN THE NUMBER SIX , THE NUMBER EIGHT...'
  3. WB5YUZ

    WB5YUZ Ham Member QRZ Page

    That's probably because the DX didn't stick to his guns.

    Say he heard the last two letters of my call (which wasn't going to happen; I, too, quit trying after a few minutes) and sent, "UZ?", and others, too slow to pick up on what the DX wanted, dropped their calls on me. If he wanted to retain order in the pileup, he should have immediately sent "UZ ONLY UZ ONLY KN." (Yes, I know it's repetitive. But a lot of the unfortunate people who behave this way in pileups aren't able to figure things out without some repetition.)

    Mind, it's perfectly okay for someone whose call contains a U or a Z to try again, even if they don't have UZ in that order. But those who don't have a U or a Z at all should certainly stand down for a few seconds.

    Of course, it wouldn't have worked the first time; those not smart enough to understand (and that's most people who only know how to shout and shout until they get what they want) would have kept sending their calls. But after two or three rounds of "UZ ONLY UZ ONLY," and not answering anyone else, it would have become apparent even to the least perceptive that NO ONE was going to get their contact until they let the DX decide who's next.

    Once the mentally inadequate ops who insist on just sending their calls over and over again finally comprehend that it won't work, they will stop, because, slow as they may be, they do want the contact, and the DX can then work many more stations per hour, benefiting even those who have a kilowatt and a yagi and no common sense.

    Once the DX gives up and starts responding only to the loudest, though, we end up with what we saw last night.

    And of course, it's pointless to expect ops who behave so badly in pileups to change their behavior without such prompting from the DX. They simply lack the mental acuity to understand that they will actually get the DX faster by letting the DX run the pileup.
  4. N3PM

    N3PM Ham Member QRZ Page

    I had an old school experience on 160 cw last night. A 5B4 showed up and worked one or two, then 3 of us sent our calls, in rotation, for several cycles. None of us worked him but, the courtesy was there.
    Mike N3PM
    W7DCM and N5CM like this.
  5. WF4W

    WF4W Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    i finally just got 7p6 on 40m CW but it was a slog! their CW Q rate has got to be abysmal
  6. W2AAT

    W2AAT XML Subscriber QRZ Page

    Sometimes in a pileup you will hear a guy make a phone contact with the dx station, sign and then start calling the dx station using his buddy's call! So much for honor amongst dx hunters.

    Ever notice how crazy the dx hunters get when a dx station is called by a friend and they grab a few minutes to chat...
  7. WF4W

    WF4W Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    i dont mind if they're friends. It's the non-friends who break the pileup just to say "Worked you yesterday and the day before too. Just wanted to let you know you sound good again today!"
    W7DCM, WU8Y and W2AAT like this.
  8. W7DCM

    W7DCM Ham Member QRZ Page

    Over the weekend I heard a Brazilian dealing with a pileup. In spite of him saying (for example) "the whiskey tango station only" on more than one occasion, he would get calls from other stations. And I'm thinking, why would this station want to be on the air with this kind of reception?
    WU8Y, N3AB and N5CM like this.
  9. K1TGX

    K1TGX Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    As a matter of fact, in almost 60 years of dxing, I've never heard that happen.
  10. W2AAT

    W2AAT XML Subscriber QRZ Page

    I've encountered it many times in my 60+ years of hamming ... Perhaps you were too focused on your making the contact and not on the others trying to do the same;)

    Actually, there are occasions when I've made contact with a dx station and the station has several other operators listening in. He then asks you if you can hear the other station(s) and if so, he asks if I would contact them... Often the station has a strong signal and the others are running lesser power. Fun to do this...
    Last edited: Mar 24, 2019

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