ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, CW
Call: WI9WI
Operator(s): WI9WI
Station: WI9WI
Class: Single Op QRP
QTH: WI
Operating Time (hrs): 23
Radios: SO2R
Summary:
Band QSOs
------------
160:
80: 165
40: 196
20: 137
15: 119
10: 15
------------
Total: 632 Sections = 80 Total Score = 101,120
Club: Society of Midwest Contesters
Comments:
This was my 25th consecutive CW SS operation. I operated in 3 contests from
1959-1961 then took a 19 year hiatus until 1980. I decided I was going to try
SO2R operation for the first time in about 10 years. The last time was a
disaster, I made a homemade switch box which worked, but only succeded in so
confusing myself that I gave up after about 2 hours and no second radio QSOs.
This time with a DX-Doubler and automatic switching filters I felt I'd be more
successful. I wasn't sure what class I was going to operate, but it was clinched
when I couldn't get my filters to operate properly. I took them out and went
QRP. I was a bit more successful this time, everything else worked and I made
the astounding total of 7 second radio QSOs. I'm sure that's laughable, but I
feel it was at least somewhat successful in that it was 7 more than last time,
it was 7 QSOs I wouldn't have made otherwise, I got a feeling for what I was
supposed to do, and even when I wasn't even trying to make extra QSOs I
practiced listening to the second radio.
Things started out real well with S & P rates up to 50 in the first 2 hours.
Forty was excellent but very long very early, and 80 was the best I've heard it
in years for SS on Saturday night with strong signals and low noise. I was even
able to make some QSOs CQing on 80 which I find tough to do ordinarily with 5
watts in SS. The flare Sunday morning and aurora that night really put the
kibosh on day 2. I had reasonable rates until about 0100 when I took some time
off. When I came back to the radio the bands were dead. I made a few QSOs on 15,
then went to 20 which was the only usable band here. With high absorbtion it was
like 40 during the day with strong signals out to about 500 miles and not much
else. My last 3 hours were 19, 8 and 13. I had 3 sections to go early Sunday
morning, VE4, VE6 and the always elusive and rare South Florida section. I got
the sweep early in the afternoon working VE4VV. This is only the third "sweep"
I've ever thought I had. I lost one before I even sent in my log when I saw I
obviously hadn't copied the information correctly on a section in which I only
had one QSO. I lost another in log checking when I again lost a QSO with a one
QSO section. Hopefully this one will stand up.
Reviewing the log I see I made 196 QSOs CQing, more than I thought. Runs ran
from 3 or 4 QSOs to a max of 28. I pressed F1 403 times and with repeat CQing I
probably called CQ about 4000 times, so it's a low return thing to do, but you
have to do it some or you'll never work a lot of stations who don't CQ much if
at all. If I didn't get a reply in 2 mins or so I'd go back to S&P or go to a
new frequency or band.
For those interested in such things as how much is a dB worth this is the 12th
time I've operated this contest with the same location and radio and antenna
configuration. Operating HP with 1000 watts to the feedline I average 1000-1050
QSOs in 24 hrs, LP with 100 watts (10 dB down) about 800-850, and QRP with 5
watts (23 dB down) about 600-650. Maybe some day just for the hell of it I'll do
it with 1 watt, but that'll wait until the spots come back up.
After the test was over I went outside and saw the most spectacular aurora I've
ever seen. It ran all the way to the southern horizon with curtains,
searchlights and streamers, mostly green, but some red and white. I hooked up my
IC-706 to my 13 element Cushcraft beam and in the next few hours worked 11
stations on 2 meter aurora. Best DX was FM20 in New Jersey, about 950 miles. Not
bad for 10 watts.
73 and thanks to all for the QSOs and the patience to pull out my signal.
Jim
WI9WI
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.hornucopia.com/3830score/
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