CQ Worldwide DX Contest - SSB
Call: M4R
Operator(s): G4AXX
Station:
Class: SOSB/15 LP
QTH: Debden Airfield
Operating Time (hrs):
Summary:
Band QSOs Zones Countries
-------------------------------
160:
80:
40:
20:
15: 885 32 119
10:
-------------------------------
Total: 885 32 119 = 233,899
Club/Team: Granta Contest Group
Comments:
Despite the typically gale-force seasonal wx for CQWW, HF
conditions this year were truly excellent.
I set up the 15m barefoot station,(FT1000MP, generator,
3-element monoband yagi, 486-33 PC) at the airfield on
Friday and found the electric winch wasn't working. I
phoned Strumech and work for help, but couldn't get
the mast up, so I left it at 30 feet.
The trailer mast door handle had been modified with four
long M6 bolts through the door, so it was, at last, possible
to properly slam the door shut from the inside (without the
handle coming off in my hand!).
The band was not open at all at 0000Z, so I got some more
sleep before getting off the starting blocks at 0500Z.
Colin G4CWH came to help with the winch on Saturday
morning and dismantled the electrics. After a while he
got it working by hitting the motor with a hammer. The
motor had seized.
As the band conditions were so good it was decided it
was definitely on for a good effort even with the
antenna at 30 feet, and it was better to keep the
mast low with the predicted gale-force winds.
Saturday was a day of S&P and checking my rate against
last years HP log. Saturday ended at 2123Z with 495 Q's.
The winds had whipped the rain cover off one of the tent
pegs and exposed my tent's inner mosquito netting to the
rain. The tent was flooded and my sleeping bag was
soaking. I slept very uncomfortably on a wet Lilo in a
puddle, fully clothed wrapped in a blanket!
Sunday started at 0500z, I warmed up, had breakfast and a
hot shower from a thermos flask! Propagation was brilliant,
at 0800Z I could hear Eu stations working JA's but I couldn't
hear them, then at 0900Z the JA's came booming in at S9+.
I spent most of the day on 21.175MHz calling CQ. It was near
the bottom of the S&P LF->HF sweep (as you do in USB).
Stations called in, in little waves, at a rate of 1/minute
(never a pile-up, not with 100W) and my Q total steadily rose.
By mid-afternoon I knew for sure I had beaten M0BJL Shaun's
1999 all-time UK 15m LP record. I worked VK on both days,
and 119 countries!
S9 Rain static affected me around 1700Z on Sat and 1900Z
on Sunday. Interestingly it was raining heavily before and
after the static, I guess some clouds are charged and some
just aren't, hi. As the static died down I could hear
individual charged raindrops discharging into the the
antenna, (the tower was grounded with jumper cables
and a guy stake)
2 hours after sunset the W's became unworkable, and the
band opened up to South America. I just called CQ and
was called by S.Americans, some of which were new
country multipliers!
Andy G4KNO called me at the tail-end of the very last
QSO as the band faded out. We exchanged news and had a
discussion about the new SSB Field Day rules.
The Army got so used to me phoning them up to open the
gate (eight times in all) that they gave me the number
of the combination lock on the gate.
The claimed summary then is:
Band Call Score QSO Zn Co Year
L21 M0BJL 199,206 764 33 120 1999
L21 M4R 233,899 885 32 119 2000
Total fuel consumption 32 liters.
73 Mark
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.hornucopia.com/3830score/
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