Field Day 2026 Report: WFARC Steps Up to 5A, Posts Best Field Day Score Yet
Field Day 2026 marked a new high-water mark for West Fork Amateur Radio Club. This year the club stepped up from a 4A entry to a full 5A operation — one more transmitter station than last year — and the extra capability showed up directly in the numbers: an official score of 8,021 points, roughly 2,400 points higher than the club's 2025 entry.
Fourteen members participated, operating as W5T with W5FKN as the GOTA (Get On The Air) station, out of the North Texas (NTX) Section. All stations ran on generator, battery, and solar power, earning the 2X emergency-power multiplier and the full 500-point bonus for 100% emergency power.
On the air. Log analysis compiled by Topp (KI5LET) shows the team put in a full 23 hours and 47 minutes of near-continuous operating time, logging 2,078 QSOs across six bands — from 40M and 20M workhorses (774 and 818 contacts, respectively) down to a single 2M contact. Stations reached 15 DXCC entities, including Quebec, Puerto Rico, Guantanamo Bay, and Hawaii, and logged contacts into 314 grid squares.
Bonus points made the difference. The club swept nearly every available bonus category for a total of 1,805 bonus points:
- 100% emergency power — 500 pts
- Media publicity, public location, and a public information table — 300 pts
- Formal message to the ARRL Section Manager/Section Emergency Coordinator — 100 pts
- W1AW Field Day message — 100 pts
- 10 formal messages handled (including Winlink traffic) — 100 pts
- Natural power QSOs completed — 100 pts
- Educational activity — 100 pts
- Youth participation — 40 pts
- Safety officer — 100 pts
- Social media — 100 pts
- Satellite QSO — 100 pts
- GOTA Station and GOTA Coach — 115 pts
- Entry submitted via web — 50 pts
Locking in the final score took a little extra legwork after the initial submission: Darty (KF5RHG) caught that Winlink message-handling points hadn't been credited, and Rich Carlson (AI5R) — who compiled and submitted the club's entry — tracked down the documentation to add the missing 100 points.
For a sense of just how competitive this year's operation was: had this score been posted in the 2025 season, it would have ranked #4 in the country among all 5A entries nationwide. It's a strong signal of how much the team has grown heading into a full 5A class.
"That is a pile of bonus points — well done all!" said Jay (KT5E), summing up the club's reaction.
Thanks to everyone who operated, staffed stations, and helped compile the bonus documentation — including Topp (KI5LET) for the log analysis — and a special thanks to Rich Carlson for pulling together and submitting the club's official entry to ARRL. Scores are preliminary pending ARRL adjudication, but it's an outstanding result to build on for Field Day 2027.
See the full Field Day 2026 photo gallery: https://wfarc.nolimitz.io/photos/field-day-2026