The North American Sprint contest is one of the most challenging events in amateur radio. A short four hours in length, it includes a unique “QSY rule”, that requires a station to move at least 1 kHz after making one QSO in response to having called CQ. The log-checking is quite stringent, and with an exchange that contains a serial number, name, and location, accuracy is critical. Many of the top CW operators consider this their favorite event. Top scorers have surpassed 400 QSOs in four hours. Error-free logs are acknowledged as “Golden Logs”, and some operators have exceeded 350 QSOs without a single copying error.
Curiously, no plaques are offered for this event. Plaques and certificates were awarded in the past, but that practice vanished at least ten years ago.
A few years ago, Ken Adams, K5KA, quietly began awarding medals to the top scorer in the CW Sprint. Some of the winners consider these medals their most-prized radio contest award.
In 2009, K5KA became a Silent Key. Larry “Tree” Tyree, N6TR, who does the log checking for the Sprint, approached the WWROF to see if there was interest in funding the medal program so that it can continue. The WWROF Board has approved this funding request, and the CW Sprint medal program will continue.
