ARRL 160-Meter Contest
Call: K1ZM
Operator(s): K1ZM
Station: K1ZM
Class: Single Op HP
QTH: MA
Operating Time (hrs): 19.5
Summary:
Total: QSOs = 1444 Sections = 81 Countries = 39 Total Score = 418,200
Club: Yankee Clipper Contest Club
Comments:
Comments:
A wise man named VE1ZZ once told me “Jeff, Cape Cod is a pretty good location
�" but it’s **not** as good as here!”. And someone named Murphy once
advised me that with Rx antennas no longer than 160 feet, hearing weak Dx on
Topband is ridiculously difficult, if not impossible…. ! Jack Leahy was
right �" K1ZM Cape Cod is no VY2ZM and there is no escaping that fact
�" no matter how motivated or capable a 160m operator you think you may
be. And station capabilities usually will determine the outcome of an amateur
radio contest �" despite the capabilities of the individual operators
manning those stations.
FCC New York Office, revisited �" July 1973 �" the REST of the
story….
Yes, as K3ZM reported, it was Mr. Finkelstein indeed that day in July of 1973
and it was quite a day �" but there is more to the story. You see, Mr.
Finkelstein nearly swallowed his cigar (the one he used to smoke right down to
the SPIT) �" as he was reviewing my 20wpm extra class code test sheet.
He then asked me where I had learned the code like that. I told him I was a
high speed code operator in the US Navy and while at CT-R school at Corry Field
in Pensacola, Fla. that I had managed to copy 750,000 characters of morse code
taken over 6 months without a single error on a classified typewriter with keys
not even in the English language!
What K3ZM also did not reveal was the part about how the written test for the
Amateur Extra class exam turned out that day in July. In those days, one had
three hours to complete the written exam and I finished mine in a little over
an hour. Peter was at the back of the room and sweating profusely over the
exam and actually took the full three hours of allotted time before handing in
his written exam.
I handed mine to Mr. Finkelstein in his office and he took out his overlay
plastic grading tool, placed it over my answer sheet �" and in about 2
seconds time announced “YOU PASS!”. I do not know if he actually even
really looked at it at all �" all I knew was that I was delighted I would
never again have to take an FCC exam in my ham radio lifetime thereafter and for
that, I was truly grateful.
I started to exit the office �" but then stopped �" and turned
around to Mr. Finkelstein and said “Excuse me �" Mr. Finkelstein
�" may I have a moment?” “Yes Briggs” he said…I said, “Well,
Mr. Finkelstein, - do you see that kid in the back of the exam room �"
the one sweating all over his answer sheet? �" well, he is my brother and
we came down here together to take our Extras today…” Mr. Finkelstein said
“Oh that kid back there is your brother �" right?” I said “Yes sir
my brother and I know he really hopes he passes today…..” Mr Finkelstein
didn’t really reply, he just acknowledged my comment with a nod…
When Peter handed in his answer sheet about two hours later, Mr. Finkelstein
again took a quick look at it and again came the “okay kid �" you
pass!” And so it went. I have always wondered about that day…but what
mattered was Peter and I both became extra class licensees that day in July.
Now, back to the contest……
Actually, Peter was absolutely right in his pre-game analysis �" this was
his contest to win and from my postage-sized lot here on Cape Cod, all I could
have ever hoped for was to keep it close, so he might think he had some real
competition �" but in the end, unless some kind of total calamity
happened down in Matthews, Va �" Peter was probably headed for his first
outright win in ARRL 160m on a national level.
Truth be told �" I worked as hard as I could the first night �" I
managed to stay awake and alert throughout and somehow worked 74 EU stations
along with 80 ARRL US/VE sections. By daylight I had something like 1020
qso’s in the log �" so I suspect I was trailing Peter at that point,
but not by all that much, so I was buoyed by what I thought was a pretty good
effort - all things considered. Every European qso was at or below my noise
level �" coupled with a cacophony of “monkey chatter” created by
something like the 40db of preamplification that is required to make my short
Rx antennas function at all. On a quiet band things work fine �" but
when my Rx front-end avalanches from all the strong local signals on 160M, well
�" if you have ever experienced this yourself, then you know what I was
listening through…and it got even worse the second night when the band
started to open to EU.
What Peter did not mention also was that I am down here in the USA because my
xyl Miriam broke her leg at Ski Dubai on 06 November and while I might have
preferred to have been in my more familiar digs up North on PEI �" it was
actually fun to try a 160M contest once again from down here in the states
�" I do not think I have done so since early 2000 if I remember
correctly. (And VE1ZZ was correct about this as always �" the lower 48
states are definitely not the Maritimes �" and even a fine New England
location just cannot compare with almost (07) seven degrees of longitudinal
difference between South Orleans, MA and the Atlantic coast of Prince Edward
Island.
The second night began well for me after serving Miriam an early dinner and
salad. I probably worked more EU’s at sunset than Peter did and picked up my
last ARRL section of the night when KP3W called in. Again European signals were
incredibly weak and plagued by “monkey chatter” from excessive preamp gain
�" but I still managed to snare 114 more of them along with ZS2DL and
ZS6EZ who had really loud signals. For some reason, the best EU signals copied
here were either from Italy or from the UK �" everything else from UA4 to
all across Europe and between (except for HB9AMO) were basically in my noise
�" rising from “nothing” to about 339 on peaks for a few seconds
�" and with MANY MANY repeats, I managed to put quite a few of them in
the log.
I am pretty sure I was something like 5% behind Peter by 0700z �" and I
had intended to iron-man it out in the chair right until the end �" just
to see where I might place overall. However, the old man’s disease struck
about 0700z and I just nodded off in my chair (without even realizing it) until
about 0715z. I got back at it but then managed to nod off again from 0745z
until 0848z. After hanging in there the second time until 1000z, I crashed
again for the last time from 10z until 1145z which was right after my sunrise.
When I awoke for the last time �" I just decided to turn off the radio,
get some sleep and then congratulate my younger brother on a great effort
�" which he surely deserves. (As we all know, “father time” catches
up with us all at some point �" and I need to figure out how to avoid
this falling asleep stuff in the next one �" but even had I managed to
stay the course throughout, I think Peter still would have had me at the end
�" as his effort was just too strong this time out and his station just
too good…..
As to whether Peter actually wins this thing, well I hope he pulls it off - BUT
we have not yet heard from K1LZ as of this writing �" so it is not fully
over with until the FAT LADY sings �" HI. I think I noticed also that
K3ZM seems to have bested the W2GD multi-operator score this time out �"
& if I read that right, well that is quite a good effort I would think.
As for the JEDI knight and the OBI WAN KENOBE stuff �" well, all I can
say is that Yes �" Obi Wan tried to train you well �" and you
listened and have passed the test. Even Darth Vader and the dark side of the
force probably could not have won the day this time out - so hearty
congratulations to Peter on a really fine effort! Well-done mate…!
73 Jeff K1ZM
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