Hello. Rebecca VA7BEC here. I'm contest coordinator for the British Columbia QSO Party. The 2025 running is just a few weeks away. BC operators are truly the life of the party. BC stations can have QSOs with anyone anywhere. We are in the spotlight. The more BC stations on the air, calling “CQ BCQP”, the more opportunities there will be for QSOs with operators within BC and beyond. Participants outside the Lower Mainland and the Island are a real rarity. It would be great if more operators in your neck of the woods got on the air calling "CQ BCQP".

Event Info

February 1, local time, 8am to 8pm AND February 2, local time, 8am to 4pm (that’s UTC 1600z Feb 1 to 0359z Feb 2, and 1600z to 2359z Feb 2).

The most important thing to know is the date and time of the 2025 event: two blocks over the Feb 1-2 weekend. That’s the first weekend in February.

Rules, tools, FAQ, in-depth event analysis/reports and scores from past years, examples of the lovely photo-based certificates and plaques... all available for viewing from links on the BCQP page of the Orca DXCC website. Go to http://www.orcadxcc.org/bcqp.html and click on the appropriate link in the menu on the left side of the page.

Updates for 2025

Expanded certificate program for BC stations (Note 1)
Announced operations (Note 2)
Rally on 80m, 160m (Note 3)
No change to BC multipliers (federal electoral districts) (Note 4)
New log submission format (Note 5)

1. Expanded certificate program for BC stations

Unofficially implemented in 2024 but now officially part of the award structure. The chance to capture a lovely photo-based certificate is higher than ever! Certificates recognize top scores in all classes of entry in each federal electoral district in BC.

2. Announced operations

I’m putting together a list of announced operations again this year. This should raise awareness of activity in BC and help operators near and far find you, as they will be better able to align antenna direction with your district and know to listen for you.
If you plan to be on the air and want to be on this list, send me the callsign you will be using, the mode(s) you plan to work, and the federal electoral district that you will be activating.
The list will be posted somewhere on the BCQP site. I will send out an email with a link at the end of January, so if you want to be on the list, let me know by Jan 27.

3. Rally

The rally idea worked really well in 2024, and we’ll do it again in 2025.
Last hour of Saturday segment. This creates a concentration of CQers and stations looking for BC.
Rally Schedule
80m CW at 0315z
160m CW and SSB at 0330z
75m SSB at 0345z

4. BC Multipliers

Federal electoral districts — NO CHANGE from last year The electoral map was recently redrawn to reflect changing population numbers across Canada and, with predictions of an early federal election, I expected new district names to be in place and the respective abbreviations for BCQP purposes to be used in BCQP 2025. I even prepared a new multiplier list. However, no election has been called and, according to Elections Canada, the new electoral map won’t actually go into effect until an election is called. So for BCQP 2025, we will use the existing electoral map.

*PDF maps: https://orcadxcc.org/content/pdf/electoral_areas.pdf

Confirm your federal electoral district here:
https://www.elections.ca/home.aspx
In the center of the page, you’ll see Voter Information Service. Type in your postal code or the postal code of the place closest to where you plan to operate if not at home.

5. Log uploader — IMPORTANT!!

Given the increasing popularity of BCQP and a sustained high number of submitted logs above 300 over the past few years, we will be asking participants to upload logs electronically to a special portal in 2025. Check the rules for the log uploader address and associated details.

Helpful Hints

Bands and time of day

BCQP is one of very few regular events — maybe THE ONLY ONE — that puts BC in a spotlight. In this party, BC stations can contact anyone anywhere, including other BC stations, while stations outside BC are on the hunt for you. Calling "CQ BCQP" will definitely attract attention even when band conditions are terrible. Just keep in mind time of day — daytime is better for the high bands (particularly 20m, 15m) and evening is better for the low bands (80m, 40m) — and antenna direction.

Concurrent events

In recent years, a factor that has spurred greater interest in BCQP from outside the province is the State QSO Party Challenge.
Details at http://stateqsoparty.com/
This competition is separate from BCQP but the organizer has included BCQP in the list of official events.
The SQP Challenge continues to be extremely popular with QSO party enthusiasts, fuelling wider attention for all QSO parties. But a fantastic advantage for us in BC is that the challenge kicks off on BCQP weekend, with BCQP as well as the Minnesota QSO Party and the Vermont QSO Party. This means a lot of stateside operators will be looking to maximize QSO opportunities across all three parties.
BC operators should absolutely take advantage of SQP Challenge interest to call “CQ BCQP” and maximize QSO potential. Remember to identify “BCQP” or “British Columbia QSO Party” so other operators know which party you are in. This will make exchanging information smoother. Also remember the stations in Minnesota and Vermont may want to trade a QSO. If you are calling CQ and someone in a different event calls and gives you an exchange that is incompatible with BCQP, work the stations for BCQP points first, enter the required information so it’s in your BCQP log, and then give the other operator what is needed for the other event. Usually your name or “BC”.
It can be confusing with different QSO parties happening at the same time.
Use the handy same-weekend schedule
(http://orcadxcc.org/content/pdf/2025_sked.pdf) to help you prepare the necessary exchange info.

I know this message could be relegated to TLDR (too long, didn't read) status, so if you've reached this point... thank you!

If you still have a question about BCQP, I’m just an email away.

73,
Rebecca VA7BEC This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Contest Coordinator for BCQP, Orca DXCC

https://www.rac.ca/rac-basic-and-advanced-courses-winter-2025/

For immediate release: January 11, 2025

Radio Amateurs of Canada is pleased to once again present the following two Amateur Radio courses: Basic Qualification Course and the Advanced Qualification Course. Registration is now open for both courses. Please see the course information provided below.

RAC Basic Qualification Course (see below for Advanced)

https://www.rac.ca/rac-basic-qualification-amateur-radio-course-winter-2025/

The Winter 2025 RAC Basic Qualification course will be starting on January 30. Registration is now underway.

Radio Amateurs of Canada is once again offering an online Amateur Radio course so that individuals from all across Canada can obtain their Amateur Radio Operator Certificate with Basic Qualification.

Course information:
The course will again be conducted with the assistance of the Annapolis Valley Amateur Radio Club (AVARC) of Nova Scotia.

This course prepares students for the Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) Basic Qualification Level Operator Certificate exam to operate on allocated Amateur Radio frequencies.

It is open to everyone across Canada and even abroad. Classes will be recorded, so occasional absences are not a problem.

Schedule and Cost:
Date: The Basic course will be held on Thursdays and Sundays commencing on Thursday, January 30 and ending on Sunday, April 6.

Time: Classes will be held on Thursday evenings from 6 pm to 9 pm (1800 – 2100) Eastern Time and Sunday afternoons 1 pm to 4 pm (1300 – 1600) Eastern Time. There may also be a handful of additional classes if necessary.

Cost: The registration fee for the course is $50 plus GST/HST. The cost of the Basic Study Guide is extra and an order link will be provided upon completion of payment.

Read more…

RAC Advanced Qualification Course for Maple Leaf Operators

https://www.rac.ca/rac-advanced-course-for-maple-leaf-operators-winter-2025/

The Winter 2025 RAC Advanced Qualification course will be starting on January 19. Registration is now underway.

Radio Amateurs of Canada is once again offering an online Advanced Qualification Amateur Radio Course so that individuals can upgrade their qualifications.

With your Advanced Certificate, you can run higher power, operate a remotely-controlled station, obtain operating privileges when travelling overseas, set up repeaters, be the trustee for club stations and even become an Accredited Examiner (AE) if you have the Morse code qualification.

Course information:

Course material pertaining to all topics covered in the course syllabus will be provided to all registered students. Please see the Advanced Course webpage for more information.

Note: You need to be a RAC Maple Leaf Operator Member to register for this course. If you are not already a RAC Maple Leaf Operator Member, you can upgrade easily. A registration form will be provided but you will need to be a Maple Leaf Operator Member to be able to see it and to register.

Schedule and Cost:

The course will be 10 sessions in length and each session will be two hours long.

In order to offer maximum flexibility, we will be running two Advanced courses so students will be able to choose one of the following two options:

Courses are offered on Sunday afternoons or Monday evenings and are two hours in duration.

Sunday afternoons at 1 pm Eastern Time (10 am PT / 2:30 NT) starting on Sunday, January 19 and ending on Sunday, March 23

or:

Monday evenings from 8:30 pm Eastern Time (5:30 pm PT / 10 pm NT) starting on Monday, January 20 and ending on Monday, March 24

Read more…

Other Amateur Radio Courses

Amateur Radio Basic and Advanced Qualification courses are also now being provided both online and in person by Canadian Amateur Radio Clubs and organizations. Please visit the Amateur Radio Courses webpage for more information at the link provided below.

https://www.rac.ca/amateur-radio-courses/

Assisting at the Winter Carnival Parade is good fun and a critical club public service event. Our participation creates great PR for the club. A new parade route means a large number of volunteers will be really helpful this year.

For those new to the club we help ensure parade participants get to the right spot in the staging area and leave to join the parade in the right order. The only equipment needed is a 2m handheld with a charged battery.

Please mark the February 8, 2024 date in your calendar.

If you are able to assist with this event, please sign up now by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

For members living in the "frozen north" of Armstrong and points north of there, there are weekly Wednesday morning coffee meet-ups. 

They take place 10am Wednesdays at Jonnie and Lily’s Diner, 3460 Okanagan St, Armstrong, BC.

Any questions please contact Paul VE7PDE or Bud VE7KBK directly.