CQ 160-Meter Contest, CW
Call: K3ZM
Operator(s): K3ZM
Station: K3ZM
Class: Single Op HP
QTH: Virginia
Operating Time (hrs): 30
Summary:
Total: QSOs = 1358 State/Prov = 57 Countries = 57 Total Score = 688,218
Club: Potomac Valley Radio Club
Comments:
At the start of the contest, the sunset opening produced almost no EU contacts,
so I concentrated on building a QSO total. As a result, my QSO rate was higher
than usual the first few hours. Then there was a little EU run starting at
about 0100Z. At EU sunrise, I was able to put some ten pointers in the log but
it was very rough going. QRN was quite low but there was still some sort of
band noise about S3 and signals from EU were dismal. The QSB peaks and valleys
were astounding. I worked very hard and somehow managed to have 155 EU's in the
log by bedtime Saturday morning. At that point, I had 865 QSOs, 48 countries
and 56 States and Provinces.
Saturday was better but still rough going at times. I found the signal levels
to be mediocre at best. The EU sunrise Saturday night was productive. When
all was said and done, I had worked 392 EU's versus 544 last year. Total
multipliers this year was down 6 from 2013. I was actually delighted to keep
my QSO total within 90 of last year's total of 1,445. Worked one JA Sunday
morning but no VK or ZL or KH2. Only worked two KH6, and KH6LC was quite weak
when he called me Sunday morning. Never heard KL7.
I would like cordially to thank the 13 or so stations who worked me between
0900 and 1000Z Sunday morning!
Missed MT, VO1, VO2 and the mythical VE8 stuff.
Owing to outside matters, I wasn't sure I would be able to make this contest
right up until Thursday afternoon, so I am very glad to have been part of the
big gathering this year and grateful to the XYL for supporting me. I had
worked extensively before ARRL 160 making improvements and getting everything
working and I definitely had all my dogs barking by the time this competition
started. I am so happy I could make it.
Thanks for all the contacts.
73,
Peter K3ZM
"Training the YL to be an XYL," by K3ZM
Candidate Selection
Ideally, you should search for a prospect who will have a natural interest in
ham radio, as well as skills that will be useful in constructing antennas. An
engineer would be nice, but there are not many of these. Someone whose dad is
an engineer is a good possibility. Alternatively, you could look for someone
who has at least attended an e-school. It may be useful to attend mixers at
someplace like Carnegie Mellon or VA Tech. Desired skills include a background
in construction. This will be helpful when it's time to tram up your yagis and
raise your towers (note use of plural). Another useful talent is the ability
to tie good knots. Look for a YL who has spent time sailing. In summary, an
ideal candidate would be a lady who graduated, say, from Lehigh, worked in
construction, and was a member of a sailing club. You get style points if you
find someone whose brother writes for CQ Magazine.
Another relevant consideration is birthdays. Events such as these are
extremely inconvenient and can disrupt your contest season. K3ZM has observed
that birthdays in a family tend to be clustered around a certain time of year
as opposed to being randomly distributed. Consider someone whose parents and
siblings were born in the late summer. This also improves the possibility that
your own offspring will not be born during contest season.
Bringing the Candidate to Your Place
The first time you bring your YL to your house, you will probably be thinking
about getting lucky. Steady on, DX Boy! There are more important matters at
hand. You need to establish the program for the future. The most important
thing is this: you need to have a tower in the backyard, with some kind of
yagi on it. If you don't have one already, you need to put something
temporarily in the air. The height is not important. Thirty feet of 25G will
be fine. Don't worry about connecting a feedline. How's she going to know?!
This is such a high priority that each contest club needs to have a tower and
beam ready to be loaned out at a moment's notice to any club member who starts
dating. A few rusty sections and an old TA-33 would be ideal. Don't worry
about a rotator. When she comes down your driveway and sees the tower and yagi
in the yard, you will have established a precedent. In legal terms, she will
have "assumed the risk."
Ham Radio as a Chick Magnet
Explain to the YL how important it is for a ham to tune the radio and search
for DX. Women like guys who are good listeners, right? We should rule! Also,
make sure you have her watch you work CW. Chicks get excited by watching a guy
send code with a paddle. Trust me.
Establishing Priorities
One of my brothers could not attend my wedding because he had to be out of the
country representing the U.S. in WRTC. You might think I was bummed. Au
contraire. He was doing me a favor! Even before the YL and I got married, the
message was clear: major ham radio contests take precedence over weddings, etc.
This will become very useful later. Practice saying something like this:
"I am so sorry I cannot come along to watch your sister perform her violin
solo with the Boston Pops, darling. But, you know, that weekend is the ARRL 160
contest."
Even after 12 years, my XYL still does not know that I secretly expressed a
preference for setting our wedding date to coincide with the IARU contest.
(Don't tell her this)
The Language of Ham Radio
It can be boring for the XYL to listen to you talk with your ham friends. Part
of the reason is the language barrier. Thus it is useful for you to introduce
ham radio terms to her early, perhaps even on the first date. You might
consider telling your prospect, "I’ll pick you up at your QTH at
seven." If this seems too much too soon, you can start with more
innocuous language such as, "Standby one, Darling." She will
appreciate this in the years to come.
Going on Your First Trip Together
This one is really important. The first time you guys travel together, it
needs to be somehow related to ham radio. Consider this: tell the YL that you
would like to take her to Hawaii the last full weekend in October. Just explain
that you will be a little busy on Saturday and Sunday. Seriously, who could be
disappointed by a trip to Hawaii? Yes, you should refer to it as KH6. Well
played, OM!
Christmas Presents and Other Gifts
Ideally, you should make all gifts to the YL somehow related to radio or
electronics. One of those old RadioShack Weather Radios would have been
perfect. "I know how much you like to follow the weather, Darling!"
Or perhaps a lovely Grundig radio for listening
to music - which just happens also to have shortwave bands on it.
I hope these tips have been helpful. If you have any questions, feel free to
contact my good friend Bill, K4XOM. Not only is he an avid contester, but he
also is the attorney who handled my latest divorce.
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