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                        ARRL SWEEPSTAKES -- 1998
      Call: NP3A                      Country: Puerto Rico, KP4   
      Mode: CW                       Category: Single Operator Low Power
      BAND     QSO    QSO PTS   SECTIONS
      160        0        0        -
       80        0        0        -
       40      267      534        -
       20      224      448        -
       15      333      666        -
       10      255      510        -
     -----------------------------------
     Totals   1079     2158       79
               Score:  170,482
Exchange: NR# A NP3A 92 PR
Power Output: 90 watts     Hours of operation: 22
Equipment Description:
 FT-990
 10-20 X7 @ 10ft over 60ft rooftop
 40  3el Wire Yagi @ 10ft over 50ft rooftop
Excuses:
Doing some kind of K7BG-style rationale, this are
my SS QSOs in the past year: 
         95      96 97  98
====================================
160       0       0      0     0
 80       2       0      0     0
 40     562    621  0 267
 20     253    233  0 224
 15     440    436  0 333
 10       0      0  0 255
 =================================== 
       1257    1290      0     1079
Rate sheets (available at PRCC home page: http://kp3z.isla.net)
shows the rate bands were 40 and 15 in past years. My strategy
for the first night was very simple: Start on highest band and 
follow MUF and couple of hours after sunset, move to THE BAND: 
40M. Stay there until 0400z...  
I started on 10M with my personal best first hour on SS CW: 126.
I was excited! I was thinking this is my year! 75 on the second 
hour making 201 Qs on the first 2 hours on 10M. Then I followed 
MUF to 15 and 20 as planned.
Everything was ok until I QSYed @ 01z to 40M Saturday night. 
What a weird conditions! Stations from the northeast were very 
weak and drifting just like a Doppler effect. For a moment I 
thought my radio was drifting. I realized my radio was ok when 
W5/W6ers called with no drifting. My $#@$%^#^$ error was to 
assume 20M was closed (based on past years) without QSYing
(ohhh my God!) and keep running on 40m.
What about Sunday? Terrible! 
Interesting points:
 126 QSOs + 1 DUPE on the first hour.
 What happened to VEs? My log shows 27 VEs Only !!!
 After asking WP3R who was the Op, I realized why so many people
 were saying "Hi Rich NR123...". The rest said "Hi Pedro NR123...".
 How many of you logged NP4A with a CK of 92? 
 Funniest exchange was W2SEX with a ck of 69!
 Hard to find sections were: 77-WTX (????) 78-MB 79-NL
 Unusual large amount of WY, AK, PAC
 201 out of 255 QSOs on 10M were done on the first two hours.
 Listening N0SS and ignoring him. After a while I answered to
 discover he was a REAL participant! I am sorry N0SS...
73 Eric, NP3A
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