ARRL DX Contest, SSB
Call: KQ2M
Operator(s): KQ2M
Station: KQ2M
Class: SOAB HP
QTH: CT
Operating Time (hrs): 23.1
Summary:
Band QSOs Mults
-------------------
160: 0 0
80: 0 0
40: 18 14
20: 1062 106
15: 1590 103
10: 72 32
-------------------
Total: 2742 255 Total Score = 2,081,565
Club: Frankford Radio Club
Comments:
Feeling a bit better for this contest - managed 10 hours straight of SSB
operating! Still plagued by severe line noise and lots of broken antennas,
antennas/rotators without indicators, etc. It's still Winter in New England
and we still have 12"-15" of snow on the ground, so lots of downed wires
still
frozen solid in the ice. You can tell which bands I had some working
antennas
on. :-)
Here is description of the ARRLDX contest at the KQ2M qth....
Pre-Contest:
Cndx look good and 15 probably going to rock. Antennas/rotators did not get
fixed so this will be a part-time effort to gradually re-learn how to
operate
contests with one radio (starting modestly) and see how I hold up.
0000z
15 pretty much dead and 20 sounds good but my top antenna is wind rotated
and
point at South Pacific - not very motivating. The 40 meter wire beam is in
pieces and 80/160 in the ice. I'll get some sleep and get up early for 15.
12z
20 is rocking but antenna still pointed at South Pacific - not very helpful
for
an EU run. I bypass 20 and to 15 which is OPEN BIG! I go up the band to
21247
and start a run. The line noise is AWFUL and I can't filter it. Very hard
to
copy the EU stations calling - lots of repeats with rapid QSB thrown in. I
make the best of it and have a 212 hour on 15 SSB and work 400 stations in 2
hours. Deep pileups but very few Northern EU stations and Russians calling
in.
JY5CC, 7Z1SJ and YB0MWM are the most notable DX stations.
14-15z
The rate keeps dropping on 15 to 157 and then 121 as the absorption begins
to
set in. Lots of central/western EU stations but little heard farther North
despite what appear to be good cndx. V51YJ calls in @ 1551z.
At 1630z I qsy to 20 with 15 still open but dramatically fading. Now I
realize
that 15 opens and closes repeatedly and I am probably giving up a lot of
potantial q's, but I have not been on 20 yet and more importantly, the wind
has
rotated the top 20 back to EU, so I better take advantage of this "gift"
while I
can.
I'm fresh meat on 20, so when I open up on 14189 I gets lots of calls, but
stations are not too strong and there is lots of qrm. The line Noise is not
as
bad on 20 and that makes it a bit easier to hear. At 1700, TF3AO calls in
REALLY LOUD! but I am hearing very few Russian and Northern EU stations. A
"head-scratcher" for sure.
At 1745z the run starts picking up but the fan noise on my Titan 425 has
gotten
so loud that I can now hear it through the headphones! I wonder if that
means
anything?
At 1750z, the fan noise COMPLETELY goes away. That's cool! But wait, that's
kind of weird! What does it mean? It doesn't take long to find out....
1752z SMOKE! Lots of it coming out of Titan. DAMN! I shut the amp off
and
take the back-up Titan out and replace the smoked one. The smoke is really
nasty and probably toxic. I better clear out of here. I open the windows
and
come upstairs.
After an hour, the air clears. Let's hook up the backup Titan...
POP!!! DAMN! 2nd Titan out of action. Hmmm.... Now what? Do I hook up
the
old SB220? I decide to take another break. My head hurts, I am really
tired
and really disappointed.
I eat some lunch, lie down for a while, and then emboldened by a fresh cup
of
coffee, I decide to hook up my Ameritron AL-1500 that has not been used in
almost 10 years!(even though it has a fresh tube with less than 100 hours on
it!). Will it work or will it blow also? I nervously turn it on and smell
something "funny" coming out, but no "POP!" this time. Let's see what
happens
when I tune it up. Seems to work, ok let's find a spot to "CQ Contest".
14154 is open @ 2024z and not many stations are on - probably 15 is still
open
to EU. A few callers greet me and then 5X1NH calls in @ 2026z followed by a
few more EU and then JA1BPA calls in @ 2037z - a bit early for here -
possibly
a good sign..... @ 2038z someone "flips the big switch" to the BAND OPEN
position and a pileup of EU/JA starts! V51YJ calls in @ 2110z and then JA's
and Eu stations alternate. The wind rotates the antenna East and the rate
drops. Time to try 15. Lots of mults @ 2148z on and the JA's on 15 are a
solid 57 but only a few of them. I work the available mults and go back to
20
@ 2330z where the antenna is now pointed SSE and work the SA/CA countries
and
then pick up a few JA/UA0 staions off the back of the beam. They must be
really loud if you can point an antenna right at them!
@ 0030z the gusty winds drive the antenna back North and it gets stuck
pointed
at 0 degrees. GOOD TIMING! I park on 14186 and call cq with BD4SS, RW0CV
and
2 KL7's calling in. Not much else though and I try 40 with the remnants of
the
wire beam (the one that was shredded during ARRLCW weekend). EU is loud and
stacked 2-3 deep - I work 2 stations and decide that it isn't worth the
struggle. I take a break and eat dinner.
At 02z I come back downstairs and park on 14190 and have a GREAT RUN!
BD9TX,
VU3DJQ, UN8GV, HS0ZEE call in with a lot of US9's/UA0's. WOW! THIS IS FUN!
The run continues with lots of JA/UA0/KL7 and and UN2E and UP5P. The run
peters out at 0245 and I try 40 again. I work a few more EU and SA/CA and
Caribbean stations but I am too tired to deal with the crud/intermod and
"hand-to-hand" combat of 40 phone. I go back to 20, work a few more SA
stations off the back of the beam and pack it in. The geogmagnetic field is
quiet and no flaring is evident so Sunday should be fun! The AL-1500 is
working like a champ and it is nice and quiet and not too hot. I am psyched
for Sunday!
1030z
I pick out 14202 - away from "Multi-land" and decide to get a good run going
before the crud moves up from the 14150 region. I quickly hear a "buzz" of
EU
stations calling and they are NOT waiting patiently. I call for a G3 and a
UX1
and an IW2 come back. I try it again and this time an LZ2 joins the chorus
of
callers. Perhaps I am using the wrong accent and not being understood? Or
maybe I am speaking the wrong language? :-) The pileup continues to grow
and
rates top 250+ for the "last 10". I am hearing Northern EU and UA9BA is the
first UA9 @ 1100z. Willy isn't very loud but then I haven't hear any other
UA9's either. By 1110z, I have worked 6 more UA9's and @ 1118z JT1BV calls
in
with a solid S7 signal! Yes, the band is OPEN! Now we get to the time when
20
alternates between being long and short. At 1120z the band goes short and I
hear mostly Central/Westerm EU and at 1135z the band goes long again with a
few
JA's calling in with BD7IS, VR2XMT and BD4QH all calling un the next 7
minutes.
In the following 15 minutes, the band alternates again between short and
long a
few more times but with decent sunspots, the band finally stays long - EU
gets
weak and VK6HX, VK6DU, BH7PFH, HS0ZCW, VK6HAD and lots more JA's call in. I
know that 15 is probably screaming open now, but 20 is too much fun too
leave!
The 11z hour was a 164
hour and I decide to stay a bit longer...
1200z and it is getting late for 20 but the rate is in the 200+ zone and
7X2BK,
BA4DL, DU9RG and a dozen other JA's call in follwed by HS0ZDX. At 1225z I
move
to 15 and am amazed to find 21206 open. I call cq and BEDLAM!
200++ with HS0ZDX calling in on 15 now S9 and louder than most of the EU
stations! By 1230z the last 10 minute rate gets up to 292.7! and I narrowly
miss having a "7" minute! Although the rate is excellent there are very few
Russians calling in, however, the Northern path is still somewhat open as
HS0ZIN calls in @ 1354z. 7X5AV follows at 1357 but they are sandwiched by
almost all EU stations. 15 slows down to a 120-140 hour pace due to the
combination of severe line noise, constant cq interlopers and the usual
idiot
tuners, whistlers and whiners. I learned long ago to ignore these people -
you
never acknowledge them and they eventually go away. They go away especially
fast when you get a roaring pileup going and work 3 per minute right through
them. This deflates them quickly. Usually I am concentrating so hard that
I
forget that they are there.
14z was a 128 hour and as Central EU gets louder, I start wondering about
10?
HZ1PS calls in @ 1451z and when some Russians start calling in about 1515z
(cndx clearly improving since I did not hear them earlier!) I decide to try
10
@ 1530z. Before I go, A92IO calls in VERY LOUD!
1530z 10 is OPEN! Not very well and not many stations, but the band should
open better in a little while. I work some SA and TJ3AY and hear an
outrageously loud SV9CVY - almost 59+20! SV1CQN is 59+ and a few other SW
EU
stations like CT1EVE are also 59 but little else. I tune up the band (no
packet here) and work a loud 3V8SS and GM7R who is also S9+20! I decide
that
10 HAS too open and call CQ on 28532 and am greeted immediately by ZS6ANZ
and
TF3ARI calling in who is S9! WOW! I call cq and then the run starts - G's,
EA's, SV's - a great run for *8* minutes. DARN! Another 10 meter
"run-tease".
I tune some more and find and work a VERY LOUD ST2AR! I just KNOW that 10
will
open again later but 15 is hot and there are lots of stations yet to be
worked.
At 1634z I resume my run on 21215 - Germany is loud now so the rates shoot
up
to 200+ again. 17z is a 121 hour with TF3AO calling in and at 1803z, 5X1NH
calls in. The band stays open but there are not many loud stations left to
work so the line noise swallows the up. ZA1E calls in @ 1823z and it is
time
to qsy back to 20. There is a "hole" at 14173 and I start running there
with
HZ1PS calling in @ 1841z. At 19z I have a 116 hour and 4S7BRG calls in @
1917z. I try 40 briefly @ 2003z and work TM9R but he is the only EU station
that hears me and I go back to 15.
As I thought, 15 has reopened to EU and I have an excellent run of G's mixed
in
with PA's and a few weak DL's. The line noise is deadly so it is back to 20
on
14156 @ 2107z for another hour of EU with an occasional JA and VK but then
the
wind picks up and rotates the top antenna to another direction and the rate
falls.
At 2226, I decide to try 15 and see if the band will open to JA. Most of
the
band is "empty" - probably everyone on 20 and 40. 21203 is open and I call
cq.
Although the rate is slow, I am called by a steady stream of JA's and VK's.
DU9RG calls in @ 2256z and YC9AOS calls in @ 2309z. The opening gets better
and the JA's get louder. BV1EK calls in @ 2327z followed by BD4QH @ 2330z
and
DS5TOS @ 2337z. It was clearly a good idea to leave 20 and come to 15! I
finish the contest on 15 with a 62 hour - mostly JA but with a few UA0's,
and
SA stations thrown in with the mults noted above. The Auroral Oval was @ 6
(out of 10) in the last hour, so the heavy absorption in the polar region
explains why I did not have a better JA run to end the contest.
I was surprised to work more than 2,650 q's on 15 + 20 (1,590 on 15 alone!)
despite missing MANY prime-time hours on both bands. I was also pleased at
the
106 mult on 20 and 103 on 15 with very little time spent looking for mults.
I
felt that my 15 and 20 meter totals compared very favorably to the big
multis
with the limited time that I had and major antenna/rotator problems.
I did miss another - and better - opening to EU on 10 around 17z about 30
minutes after I left the band. Operating Unassisted without the benefit of
packet/DX Summit, etc., and without a 2nd radio, I had no way of knowing for
sure that 10 was open and runnable. I missed it. But I did catch the GREAT
JA/Southeast run on 15 at the end of the contest. It has been 6 years since
that happened and it was most enjoyable and welcome!
The AL-1500 performed like a true champ - quiet, cool and powerful! I was
thinking of selling it (since I had not used it in 10 years), but now I
think I
will keep it! :-)
I was very happy that I was able to operate for as long as I did. SSB is
TOUGH
to operate for long periods of time under normal circumstances, but after
what I
have been through for the past 5 months, I had no idea what my body could
handle, even with one radio. It did take me about a week to fully recover
from
the 23 hours of operating, and I still have a long, long way to go with this
nasty illness, but to be able to operate this much was a very encouraging
step
for me.
Tnx for all the qso's and mults! GO CYCLE 24!
73
Bob KQ2M
kq2m at kq2m.com
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