CQ Worldwide DX Contest, CW - 2019
Call: VK9CZ
Operator(s): GM3WOJ GM4YXI
Station: VK9CZ
Class: M/2 HP
QTH: Cocos Keeling
Operating Time (hrs): 43
Summary:
Band QSOs Zones Countries
------------------------------
160: 30 13 15
80: 311 31 69
40: 878 34 107
20: 1531 34 124
15: 1528 29 118
10: 46 15 21
------------------------------
Total: 4324 156 454 Total Score = 7,684,170
Club: North of Scotland CG
Comments:
This is a bit late but we had no opportunity to write this until the long trip
home.
We arrived in Cocos (Keeling) on Tuesday evening 12th November and we were QRV
on all bands excepting 10m by early Friday 15th. We encountered a number of
‘unexpected’ problems despite this being our third trip to this QTH. These
included a lot less space for antennas (the degree of coastal erosion and loss
of beachside land, even in the two years since our last visit is really scary),
consequent inter-station QRM and a lot more noise. For the latter we suspect a
large new solar panel and LED multi-floodlight installation at a neighbouring
property. Propagation and demand made us focus more on the low bands but our
receive antennas – all three options taken with us – proved useless.
Come the contest weekend, we were more than half way through our DXpedition,
consequently we were fairly exhausted at the start of the event, but it did
provide us with a great excuse NOT to be on FT8! The Friday daytime before the
event was spent replacing the 12m vertical Moxon with our 10m version, and
making and erecting a second 40m vertical to give us options to help with
interstation QRM problems. All this effort meant we could operate on any two of
the contest bands simultaneously, but did sap remaining energy levels. With only
two of us (and neither of us are in our first flush of youth), an expedition
focusing on low bands is a tough challenge, as is an attempt at the multi-two
category. But we are both contest nuts and love operating!
The contest began for us an hour after our sunrise. One station ran on 20m for
about 15 hours with rare visits to 10m whilst the other did some multiplier
hunting on 40m before running 15m. First day pile ups were intense from JA and
then EU, even through the normally dead zone a couple of hours either side of
our local midday. As 15m died that station moved to 40m whilst the 20m seat did
some time on 80m and 160m. During the preceding days we had very good long path
opening to North and South America on 80m and 40m around our sunrise and so it
was for our first SR during the contest – several East Coast NA, VE and mid
West plus several LUs worked on 80m. Lots more on 40m including many Caribbean
mults. Many of these Caribbean stations were very close to our antipodes – a
long way from VK9C – but had excellent signals. Mostly we got through the
pile-ups and some guys had incredible ears when they were not so loud with us.
Some, however, missed out, despite many calls from us.
When we hit the dead zone on day two, rest was needed. We had kept at least one
station, and usually two, going for over 25 hours but we had to stop for a
little over 3 hours but figured in terms of the contest at least, there was
relatively little to miss at this time. The restart saw the same running on 20
and 15 whilst keeping an eye on 10m. Eventually we decided to try a few CQs on
10m and were rewarded with 5T0AA and D4C amongst others. 40m was again good into
NA at our sunset. We spent more time on 80m over out last night and picked up
some good multipliers like KH6, AH2, ZL and KL7 as their sunrise approached.
JT5DX took a long time to raise. 160m was also a little better for us that
second night into EU. 40m was again good into the Caribbean and East/Mid US
prior to our sunrise but on 80m, with the notable exception of ZF9CW who was not
loud and actually took me by surprise when he answered my call, there was
nothing like the LP opening we had the morning before. 20 and 40m were both
running until the end.
Finished with 4324 scoring QSOs for a little over 7.6M points. Hopefully we had
made a lot of ops happy with a cool multiplier. Thanks for all the QSOs.
Sleep and then on with our DXpedition…………………
Keith GM4YXI and Chris GM3WOJ @ VK9CZ
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.3830scores.com/
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