Doug Smith wrote:
So I copied the 20 WPM without flaw and then started pumping out the
CW on the hand key with what had to be the world's worst fist. I
hadn't used a hand key in 20 years! About half way through, she said
- and I quote: "That's just not fast enough". <GASP> So I cranked
up the speed and she somehow managed to get a minute's worth of text
out of the gibberish I was sending and passed me. Actually, I think
she just took pity on me. Heh..
<LOL> I had a similar experience when I took the Amateur Extra in 1977 at the
FCC office in Los Angeles. I had brought in my trusty Vibroplex bug, but in my
nervousness, I had forgotten to check where the weight was set before I
started. As it turned out, the last guy I had worked with it was apparently
pretty slow, because I had the weight set all the way down to the bottom of
the reed. About half way through the sending exam, the examiner says, "You're
going to have to speed it up." I panicked. What should I do, stop to readjust
the weight, or just try to squeeze the characters out faster by shrinking the
spacing? Should have readjusted the weight, of course -- I had plenty of
time -- but I opted to just press on. Stupid, because now my code sounded like
crap. It was a close thing, but he passed me. :-)
The guy I had, truth to be told, was anything but that legendary "steely-eyed
FCC examiner." In point of fact, he looked like he was still badly hung over
from the night before, and would rather be doing just about anything than
giving a bunch of pimply-faced geeks their ham radio exams. :-) That was the
last ham exam I ever took, of course. Kinda wish there was another higher
level I could go for, just for the excitement of it!
Bill / W5WVO
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