ARRL 10-Meter Contest
Call: CE1/K7CA
Operator(s): CE1/K7CA
Station: CE1/K7CA
Class: SO CW HP
QTH: Huasco
Operating Time (hrs): 33:29
Summary:
Band QSOs Mults
-------------------
CW: 2537 163
SSB:
-------------------
Total: 2537 163 Total Score = 1,654,124
Club:
Comments:
Great conditions this year. The band was actually open all 48 hours of the
contest to some parts of the world. There was long path to Europe both nights
with Friday night/Sat AM the best. In fact, around 6 AM local, 0900z, signals
were coming from both short path and long path with about the same signal
strength depending on which way the European station had the antenna pointed.
I used 2 yagis with one pointed SP and the other LP and if I heard too much
echo for good copy the signal would usually clear up when I switched
directions. This is the first time that I can remember in my 55+ years of
operating that I heard a distinct change of frequency when listening to a
signal SP and then switching to LP. I was so surprised that I just kept
switching back and forth listening to the change in tone on the signal. There
was no echo on that signal either. It was just on one station (I don't recall
who except it was a European). I wonder if he was using two different
transmitters/antennas sending signals short path and long path at the same
time. A sweet surprise was having 5T0JL get through a pileup at 7pm local
(2200z). His signal was coming long path. Another interesting propagation was
working a VR2 at about midnight (0300z) short path and then the next day he
called in long path when I was working Europeans but he then realized we had
already worked so said sorry. I wonder if he was caught by a bad cluster spot.
More on that later.
This year the pileups seemed pretty well behaved, especially the European
ones, compared to previous years. Maybe they are getting a bit smarter and
realize that doing what the run op says is the fastest way to work him.
Fortunately, there was usually enough bandwidth to hear stations calling
plus/minus about 100 cycles (HZ for you newbies) and in the larger pileups I
used that spread with great results. I remember that in one huge pileup I
couldn't copy a single call on frequency but had no trouble copying calls in
the clear about 100 to 150 cycles down.
I must say something about using the cluster to automatically switch
frequencies to a posted call. I could easily tell when my call got posted wrong
because there would be several stations calling that I had worked before. I
would work a couple then when I got the third one in a row, I would give my
call and ask if this was a dupe? Then I would give my call several times after
each qso and that would usually do the trick. One fella gave my call as CE2/K7CA
which would show up as a new call on the cluster.
Another thing I'd like to mention is that when a station throws out a couple
of ?? between qsos he almost always blocks copy on a station I'm trying to
work. I will never give my call until I get the call I'm trying to work so it
just takes more time until I can give my call. It does take a lot of extra
time to give my call after each qso (If I had a call like D4C it would be
different) so during pileups I give my call every third qso. If I'm calling cq
and hear 2 stations come back I'll give my call after working both on them. So
if you hear me work a station and not give my call and you put out a ?? it will
be QRMing someone else. Please have a little patience and be respectful of the
little guy. I agree that when a run op doesn't give his call for 5 or 10 qsos
that is not right. But 3 qsos max should not take much time at all. It's not
easy having a call with / in it. One XE station refused to work me because I
wouldn't give him my state even though he finally got my call right. He asked
for my qth and I kept saying either CE1 or Chile but he was only looking for a
state. Maybe I should have said CA.
One last bit of trivia. I wonder why stations give leading zeros in their
number. Several times it would be very confusing trying to get a weak stations
number when he used leading zeros. If he was sending 031, and fading in and
out, it was hard to tell the difference between 031 or 310. I worked 3A2MW who
was fading in and out and an EA5 kept calling over him. I kept asking for his
NR and he kept sending 001 or 100. I got lots of zeros and 1s and hope I made
the right decision but if no one used leading zeros it would have been an easy
decision. It never made any sense to me since many stations make more than
1000 qsos. Why not send 3 leading zeros in that case.
All in all a really fun contest. Hope to see many of you in a couple of
weeks in the SP contest, my all time favorite because of the really fair
scoring. I'll miss this QTH as it is being sold and I probably will not do any
more operating from CE after this season. 73, Al CE1/K7CA
Station:
Elecraft K3
Ten-Tec Titan amp 1200 watts
5 el homebrew yagi on 27 ft boom up 30 ft(60 ft over looking the ocean)
3 el Steppir yagi up 30 ft(60 ft over looking the ocean)
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.3830scores.com/
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