ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, CW
Call: W1WEF
Operator(s): W1WEF
Station: W1WEF
Class: Single Op HP
QTH: ct
Operating Time (hrs):
Summary:
Band QSOs
------------
160:
80: 264
40: 524
20: 358
15: 2
10:
------------
Total: 1148 Sections = 80 Total Score = 183,680
Club: Yankee Clipper Contest Club
Comments:
SS CW 08 W1WEF
After all the time I spent on antenna work this summer, I think I was looking
forward more than ever to this CW contest season. In preparation for SS CW, I
decided to give SO2R another try, with the plan being to CQ on 40 all day
Sunday on the second radio, while S&P on the high band(s). I went so far as to
buy a second radio with just this in mind, and an amp so Iâ??d be loud on 40. I
would use my lower 40-2CD fixed Southwest (guy in the way if West) on the
second radio.
In checking out Plan A above, I could not easily clean up the main radio QRM on
20 with the second radio antenna on the same tower, so I reverted to Plan B
that worked before. With a 6BTV vertical to the North of the tower for the
second radio, it was perfectly cleanâ?¦with NO stubs or filters. Although
signals were way down on the vertical, compared to the top 402CD at 116 ft, I
should be able to do some goodâ?¦shouldnâ??t I?
The DOS computer was still in place from CQWW SSB so I decided to use my
favorite logging programâ?¦CT. It is still simple to use and works flawlessly
for me. Iâ??ve used most of the othersâ?¦but guess I like KISS (ing) bestâ?¦hi
(Keep It Simple Stupid)
Lots of talk before the contest anticipating that a sweep will be tough with J
in the middle of a move from Whitehorse to VE8. The one guy mentioned who
might be on was VY1EI, an inexperienced but willing to try CW op. Itâ??s always
been a goal for me to get a sweep no matter what, to the extent that Iâ??ll
waste time beaming North or looking for that last mult. This year I even
entertained (very briefly) the possibility of a last minute trip to put club
station VY1DX on the air, but the thought of a possible aurora wiping all the
bands quickly put that to rest. Sure would be fun with good condx. Just as well
thoughâ?¦saw it was 9 below zero in Anchorage the other day.
Tried to sleep a bit before the four oâ??clock start. Couldnâ??t get more than
a few winks, so fired up the station early, and worked a bunch of guys before
the opening bell. One drawback to doing that is you then confuse who you
already worked before the contest with who you hear during the contest. Iâ??ve
been doing SS since I was a teenager (except for my 18 year hiatus), and SS
always starts on Saturday afternoon at 4PM. My wife even knows that. NOT this
year! With the change in Daylight Savings time that resulted in our lower
electric bills (not mine thoughâ?¦wonder whose?) SS started at 5PM local this
year. I could have TRIED to sleep for another hour!
Started on 20, and got a great run going on 14025. I donâ??t like to exclude
the non extras (whatever theyâ??re called these days) so for the most part I
work above 025 in SS. Thity six minutes into the contest and VE8EV calls in
with his number 3! What a terrific surprise and way to make my day! By the
0700 hour Iâ??ve been on 80 and 40, and was ahead of all the New England
single op big guns I worked. They usually beat me (as they would again), but
it felt good for the time being. Even though I have no idea if they had gotten
a late start, or were setting up SO2R, or had a neighbor complaintâ?¦it felt
good to have a higher number than K5ZD ( I still wonder if it was the real ZD
op?), K1ZZ, NN1N, K1RM, N1LI and even N6BV @ K6TA â?¦but WHO IS KT1D??? He had
a huge number and I donâ??t recognize the call from EMA. I wonder if Randy or
K1EA was playing games? Hi
Anyway, without going thru the whole log and making a long story longer, I quit
for the first OFF time of almost 5 hours at 0643Z. Would have been nice if I
slept but it didnâ??t seem like I had when the alarm went off and I was already
awake. I only had an hour and 12 minutes OFF time left, and took them in two
pieces, and then at the end. Uh Oh! I just realized I screwed up my OFF time
record and took too much time off! I wish I could count on the computer to
accurately track it, but IT said I had taken the whole 6 hours after the first
break. Oh wellâ?¦ I was tired.
A funny thing happened when I came back from the second OFF time. There was
VY1EI CQing and listening UP 1, but having a hard time copying anyone. I had my
VE8, and only needed Ak, so I didnâ??t bother calling him. Almost on top of
VY1EI, KL7AF starts calling CQ. I tried to tell him to go down 3, but who
answered his CQ? VE8EV! I never did work KL7AF at that time but did later,
after about 4 more KL7s.
This wasnâ??t my best CW SS, but for the most part it was fun. The last 2 or 3
hours had more guys coming back to CQs on 40 and 80 than I can ever remember.
There were times when I was so tired I had to fight back to stick with it while
sleep almost won out. With three hours to go, I kept telling myself that these
are the hours that can make the difference. My best CW SS score was in 97, when
I had 1226 Qs and 193,708 (raw), and that was when there were only 79 sections.
As for SO2Râ?¦new radio (570DG), new amp (SB200)â?¦I made a grand total of 9 Qs
on the second radio. I have to hand it to those who can do it. As Iâ??ve said
before (about other things)â?¦SO2R is too much like work for this retiree. I
like to just sit and listen to the music of my CQSS
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.hornucopia.com/3830score/
______________________________________________
3830 mailing list
3830@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/3830
|