This year, as in the past, I decided to try to maximize my station's
contribution to the YCCC club score by going Multi-2. Due to family
commitments, I couldn't stay in the chair all weekend, so I invited a couple of
guest ops to help fill in. KB1NOW had been to my station before in previous
CQWWs, and he invited his friend KB1OSD to help. 'OSD had done a few Field
Days, but never a CQWW.
At the beginning of the contest, I started at one station while 'NOW and 'OSD
worked together on the other. I have a two-tower station, with all bands on a
single tower, plus a triband quad on the other. Switching, filters, and stubs
make it possible to run QRO on any two bands simultaneously. 'NOW and 'OSD
started off gradually, with 'OSD learning the ropes from 'NOW. I wasn't sure
about the commitment level from these guys, but I figured every Q on the second
station was one more than I would have had if I had gone single op.
As the weekend progressed, the second station gradually picked up speed and
expertise. They had a 'multiplier bell' and I heard it ring often. 'NOW and
'OSD took some off time, with 'OSD going back home to his family each night and
returning the next day. By mid Sunday afternoon, we had beaten last year's
score, and I was done for the contest. 'NOW came over to my seat, with 'OSD
having gotten far enough up the learning curve to 'fly solo'. In the last hours
of the contest, my two guest ops kept both transmitters going and added almost
a quarter meg points to our score.
As Paul Harvey used to say, '.here's the rest of the story.'
Taylor, KB1NOW, and Brian, KB1OSD, are each 13 years old.
They are already busy planning for ARRL Sweepstakes!
-Tony, K1KP
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