ARRL DX Contest, SSB - 2019
Call: N9NB
Operator(s): N9NB
Station: N9NB
Class: SOAB HP
Cabrillo Category: Single-Op All-Band Non-Assisted One-Transmitter HP
QTH: VA
Operating Time (hrs): 36
Radios: SO2R
Summary:
Band QSOs Mults
-------------------
160: 52 40
80: 151 61
40: 353 82
20: 574 86
15: 76 21
10: 2 2
-------------------
Total: 1208 292 Total Score = 1,058,258
Club: Potomac Valley Radio Club
Comments:
First, I wish to thank Steve, NR4M, for letting me use the "Goat Farm"
super station for my first ever serious high power single-op ARRL DX phone
contest. He was very kind to reconfigure his multi-multi station to support my
single operator effort, and he and his wife (and their dog Lucy) were wonderful
hosts. Thanks, too, to Lar, K7SV for coming over Friday afternoon to add some
moral support, as well.
Despite poor conditions, this was a fun experience for me, both in getting to
see the impressive Goat Farm contesting set up, as well as becoming more
familiar with SO2R, phone contesting in general, learning about WAV files in
N1MM+, and experiencing the propagation conditions at the bottom of the sunspot
cycle.
Things went extremely well for me during the contest. There were only two things
that occurred which impacted my score, and only one of these were under my
control. First, I took a 2 hour nap in the middle of Saturday afternoon,
thinking that if 10 meters would open, it would open later in the day (say,
around 3 pm local time). Well, I goofed! Apparently the only significant 10
meter opening to South/Central America occurred around 1 pm local time on
Saturday -- and I slept through it!
The second issue occurred on Sunday morning at 2 am local time. I was prepared
to have a good run into the EU sunrise on 80 meters, and the opening started
well. However, due to freezing rain and ice that hampered several contesters in
the VA/MD/DC region, the RX noise level rose by several S-units, and this cut
short my good run to EU on 80 meters, just as it was getting fun. I figure this
probably cost me 50-100 QSOs.
The "contest within the contest" for me was trying to bust the FR4NT
pileup! During the weekend, I found that many DX stations do not regularly
identify their station, and this practice may be less efficient for the DX
station (and for those waiting for a station to identify).
In a contest setting, everyone would do well to identify more often, since time
is of the essence, and wasting time and transmissions (QRM)should be avoided.
Sometimes, I find it easier to bust a pile up, and to ask for the call sign as
part of my exchange, and create a 'dupe' (if it turns out the station is one I
worked before) rather than to wait for a station to identify after working many
(typically more than 5) consecutive stations. I, like many others, do not rely
on the spotter or RBN network during unassisted contests (...part of the fun for
me is discovering things as they happen, and being surprised). Thus, many of us
have no idea who a station is when happening upon a pile up.
The other "contest within a contest" was trying to decipher call signs
through the various global speech accents, something I am simply not accustomed
to since I have not done serious phone DX contesting before. By the end of the
contest, I actually was getting pretty good at it. I found it odd and
frustrating how some DX stations would slow their speech and extend their
transmission when they perceived i was having RX problems, rather than speeding
up to take advantage of the fleeting few seconds when all the splatter would
magically stop, and allow me to copy what they were saying! That could be a
good topic at Contest University.
Due to the very poor propagation (I never heard a JA on any band, nor did I hear
any EU on 15 or 10), so this contest seemed to turn into a North/South America
contest by Sunday afternoon. I was really impressed and grateful to so many DX
stations who were wiling to change bands to try and give me a QSO/multiplier.
That is how I was able to get my lone 10 m contacts on Sunday afternoon, and
build up the multiplier count. Given the slow QSO rates due to the poor
propagation, other DX stations were perhaps more receptive to to moving, but in
general, I think this is a testament to the contester community -- DX stations
willing to help a participant if they can. This became a big part of the fun for
me during the contest on the 2nd day: to QSY with other stations to fill in the
holes in the multiplier count on certain bands.
All in all, I had a blast. It was fun to see the amazing engineering at NR4M,
and to experience the NR4M super station from behind the wheel. It was also
amazing to experience operating with an amplifier! I noticed much fewer repeats
and much fewer aborted QSOs.
Thanks to everyone for the QSO's, and to ARRL for sponsoring the contest, and to
NR4M.
I hope to hear you in the next one!
73 ted n9nb
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