They say that CW is for those hams who don’t have much to say but prefer to take a
long time saying it. Maybe that’s why I like it. Or maybe I’m just weird that way. Ever
since I got my license a year and a half ago I’ve been more interested in CW than the
other modes. I started out well by taking the CW Academy course. But I’ve struggled
since then to get from the 15 wpm plateau up to 20 wpm.
Steve Parks offered to help. He set up a schedule with me a couple weeks ago for
Wednesday nights on 40 meters. The first week was pretty rough but I somehow got
through it and Steve was gracious enough to agree to a second week.
So on Wednesday night I fired up the rig and listened for his call. He called and I
answered. He called again and I answered again. He called again… and it dawned on
me that something was wrong. Then I realized — as I was sending, I heard my side
tone but also continued to hear my receiver. That shouldn’t be! It meant I was not
transmitting.