CQ 160-Meter Contest, CW
Call: KV4FZ
Operator(s): KV4FZ
Station: KV4FZ
Class: Single Op HP
QTH: U.S. Virgin Islands
Operating Time (hrs): 21.5
Summary:
Total: QSOs = 1106 State/Prov = 58 Countries = 72 Total Score = 960,180
Club:
Comments:
The CQ 160 CW, since its beginning by Chas W2EQS 50 years ago, is still the best
of all contests, IMHO. Even with the fact that DX stations with top ops a few
hundred miles south of me get 10 points per NA USA QSO's, which is double of
what I get, and even are closer to much of the US due to my far east 64.7W
location, I find the challenge every year for a better performance. The
excitement and challenge is always there. Murphy is always there. But somehow
many stations that need the VI for a new country got in the log, regardless.
My goal this year was to break 1000 Q's which was a first for me. My next goal
was to break a million points but didn't make it due to cockpit error of not
being aware of the new start time and wheeling into the shack a few minutes
before 0000GMT. By that time everybody had pick their turf and even the strong
Europeans then were working each other. Things started slow but then an hour
later it was wall to wall for me, especially the many Europeans standing in
line for a contact. The first night was great but on Saturday Murphy paid me a
visit with my best EU Beverage, a 40degree DXE Reversible, just quit in one
direction. I was able to flip between the two 20 degree and 90 degree KD9SV
WD1-A beverages to keep going and the EU QSO's kept piling up. The 90 degree
KD9SV fed WD1A Beverage is 900 foot long and has an awesome rejection of NA
signals. When things with Europe got slow I did some listening on the 270
degree
and the 360 degree Beverages both with KD9SV boxes, to snag NA callers. For
some reason my NW 320 degree DXE fed antenna failed as well. This has happened
tome in the past and I have found that passing DC over RG-6U into a small relay
creates some real issues. DC currents in the box in the tropics attract fire
ants to live by the thousands and I don't know how they got in, inexpensive
RG-6 center conductors copper plating is destroyed, and the relay hangs up as
well. In my case the DXE fed antennas worked in one direction but not the
other. (I had the problem before and had asked DXE for a schematic of the
board so I could by pass the relay properly and wire directly from the
F-connector to the ferrite coil. They refused to allow a rendition of the
schematic so I could fix the problem in the field.) The key to contests is to
learn by past mistakes and I will now do what I should have done before the
contest and replace all my reversible boxes with KD9SV's potted 75/450 ohm
versions.
I might have made up the difference in a few more Q's and multipliers to reach
a million points but on Sunday evening the city power went out. I have time to
put on the back up generator......but I was more interested in trouble shooting
the Beverage problems out in the former hay field as wasn't even aware that the
city power had gone off. When I got back to the shack and learn about the next
problem, I decided that Murphy had won for sure an began planning for next year
I was pleased with what I had done even though 100 countries and/or a million
point score was a dream not to be fulfilled. Also missed ND this year....and
the regulars from my place of birth were not to be found.
I guess the CQ 160 Meter CW Contest is like Forrest Gump's comment; "It's like
a box of chocolates...you never know what your gonna git."
73,
Herb Schoenbohm, KV4FZ
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.hornucopia.com/3830score/
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