For many, the CW event of the year is Straight Key Night (SKN). This is the time of year that you dust of the straight key and hit the bands with fellow hams who are using the most time-honored tradition  for sending CW.

Regardless of your sending and receiving skills on CW, SKN has a lot in store for you. Since this is a non-contest event, fellow operators are more patient with making contacts and more likely to rag chew. For many, this is the first time they’ve used their straight key since the previous year’s SKN, thus CW speeds are more comfortable for the novice across the band.

Straight Key Night is held every January 1 from 0000 UTC through 2359 UTC. 

The ARRL has a great article about SKN–check it out and get pumped for a full day of straight key bliss.