Very unlikely, particularly since France has had better access to the band.
I'd say the chances of finding a contest station are low, tending towards zero, unless you prime some suitable candidates.
With the better stations having in excess of 100 contacts, and many contacts of over 400kms, despite the poor to bad conditions, I suspect it will only be the likes of the far north of Scotland who will bother with digital modes.
They're likely to use high power, and JT6M MS in attempt to get the sort of distances that can give.

I'm not suggesting you don't bother but that a bit of pre work might be order of the day.
As will be required, to a lesser extent, for MS.

Cheers

Tony

Understood, not too worried.

Maybe I will let ZS know and hope for a miracle

Not many people would even be set up for PSK31 anyway, let alone be bothered!

It's a mode I've never transmitted on, although I have monitored once or twice, but never above 30MHz.
The same goes for JT65.

I have tried several others, over the years, so it's not that I'm anti trying something.
I used to dabble with packet, RTTY - lost interest when it became computer driven, although I did use a BBC B for a while.
SSTV and others.

Most activity now is SSB, with some JT6M/FSK441 and the companion modes for MS.
An exploratory look at EME, which I'll probably revisit, when the weather is warm enough to sort out a suitable antenna system.

Cheers

Tony

Some of us still have mechanical machines stored away, mine being a Creed 444, and an old homebrew terminal unit, for when they become all old "retro" back in fashion!
I even have the swap of gears for it, so I can choose 50 baud, or 45.45 baud, (45 and a half to most! ), as well as the workshop manual and spring pullers and circlips poppers toolkit!
Ahh the days of clatter clatter!
As for packet, I do have a Tiny 2 Mk 2, but that hasn't been hooked up in anger for quite a few years!

Data does absolutely nothing for me as even during that 2m transatlantic effort I hooked up an interface, downloaded the software then ran it for half an hour before saying bollocks to that!

The patience that's required for some data modes sits well with patience required waiting for a weather front to change giving enhanced tropo, or waiting for an Aur path to shift towards you.
Or, even, waiting for that elusive combination of conditions that results in a transatlantic 4M contact and, eventually 2M.

None of it is about hurrying, and even less about quantity of QSOs.

Cheers

Tony

I love seeing the waterfall light up in WSJT when playing MS, band closed but I can make QSO with a chap in Germany, the longest try was 1 hour for me but that said I only have a HB9CV just now so once my 5 ele is built it should make a world of difference.
6 meter's has always been a band I enjoy, nothing more exciting than hearing those TV carriers around 48.250MHz riding the QSB knowing the band is about to explode with SSB activity.

To tell you the truth had they stuck with "phone" even thought the chances of achieving it were far more remote I wouldn't have had a problem sitting listening to nothing more than hours of atmospheric changes in background noise but I found looking at WSJT's software was about as exciting as watching paint dry and I would've had bother convincing myself any successful QSO was more down to the work of K1JT than it was me.

PSK31 has several times been the answer I need.

In SA with a noise level determined by the rig, and a ZS call sign, SSB was not difficult, but I don't know where all the Italian and American calls are located in the UK, because that is where they seem to think they were. No problem on PSK31, much better manners and behaviour.

Then when I came back here, I couldn't see how amateurs could operate, such tiny gardens and restrictions on antennas. PSK31 came to the rescue

Lately with local solar panel installations, again PSK31 is much easier than SSB when there is noise from them.

Many would say the same with CW.

When PSK31 was first around, quite a few of my friends found the programmes then confusing and hard to get going on, that is why I wrote WO-PSK, so not only did I enjoy the mode, I had quite a bit of time invested in it, all of it fun more than investment though.

I am not really into other digital modes, sometimes RTTY, never PC generated or read CW. And I think that 31 is the ideal speed, narrow bandwidth, as fast as most people can type, no doubt I will redo my software for the faster versions one day, it is on the to do list, but keeps getting knocked down.

I worked more countries on Oscar 10 than SSB, and I ran two packet BBSs, ZS0HFS and ZS0HWK, but in 1990, packet was useful, no cell phones for SMS!


So, for the contests, I may well call on PSK31, if no one answers, does it matter?

One of the interesting things, with JT6M is when prolonged activity reveals a build up in meteor activity that results in an SSB MS contact.
Something that would have required much more patience, and dedication, with a far slimmer chance of success, if attempted just on SSB.

It's much the same with AR.
Lots of waiting, for the right moment, then a few minutes of possibility followed by searching for another possible target.

All these things are just tool to be understood, and made use of.

Cheers

Tony