ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, CW
Call: K8CC
Operator(s): K8CC, KT8X, N8NX
Station: K8CC
Class: Multi-Op HP
QTH: mi
Operating Time (hrs): 24
Summary:
Band QSOs
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160: 0
80: 206
40: 525
20: 322
15: 65
10: 128
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Total: 1246 Sections = 80 Total Score = 199,360
Club: Mad River Radio Club
Comments:
Heading into the contest, with the threat of flares and other sorts of
propagational chaos, it was hard to look forward to operating. The threat of
making the rare northern sections (NWT, NL and maybe AK) even harder to get
surely weighed on our minds. However, the dreaded propagational catastrophe
never appeared.
SS from Michigan is very challenging from the standpoint of finding propagation
to the activity centers. The easy choices are 7 MHz during the day and 3.5 MHz
at night. However, with good high band condx, in recent years it seems everyone
goes up to 14 MHz and above during the day and leaves 7 MHz vacant. What to do?
I'll often hear midwest stations up on 21 MHz or 28 MHz CQing and wonder why
when we're having higher rate on the lower bands? Obviously there is a tradeoff
there that's not always obvious.
For the first twelve hours, this was a typical SS for us. For the first couple
of hours the S&P rate on fresh bands was higher than CQing, then by sunset we
had worked our way down to running on 7 MHz. It was funny that even well after
sunset, 3.5 MHz was vacant - I mean, empty of any stations in the CW portion for
long periods. 3.5 MHz is a great SS band for W8s - with a high antenna and full
power, you can really make hay as long as the QRN is reasonable. Eventually,
that band filled up too and we ran until bedtime.
One problem we had that although we were in the multi-op category, we were in
reality single-op for at least one fourth of the contest. For the first two
hours, the two hours before the sleep break, and the last two hours there was
only one op on hand (K8CC). With only one op on hand, our ability to work two
bands simultaneously is taken away and makes us less capable than a good SO2R
single-op. This can be seen on the rate sheet - when the 2nd op goes away, the
rate drops.
Because of this, we quit earlier than usual - right at 08Z - and were back on at
12Z. Once we got going, Sunday morning seemed to go better than usual and we
took no off times until a lunch break. After lunch, we saw that 20M was short -
WNY stations and points east were often over S9 so we parked a station there
CQing for the entire afternoon while the other radio snatched up QSOs on the
other bands. Usually we take 30 minute off times on Sunday afternoon but this
year the rate seemed to hold up better, so knowing that we would be single-op
again at the end we decided to save our last 90 minutes until then.
Let me just say here that our two stations are absolutely interlocked so when
one is transmitting, there is no possible way for the other to transmit. We
comply fully with the ARRL rules.
Despite being taken over by the "propagational paranoia" regarding the northern
mults, we had very little trouble in this regard. We waded into the VY1JA
pileup on 28 MHz the first evening and got through with reasonable effort. We
went to bed needing only NL. Sunday morning I pointed one of the power-split
20M yagis NE and after about 45 minutes was rewarded with a reply from VO1MP.
Later, both VO1HP and VO1TA called in as well and we shared a bit of sympathy
for those frantic for NL on the PacketCluster.
Speaking of PacketCluster, it was a tremendously useful tool for keeping the
rate up. However, the PacketCluster was marred by a certain individual berating
people who did not put the section in the spot comment. It's interesting to
note that according to QRZ, the callsign this person was spotting under is not
issued. Some of his comments were way out of line. Ordinarily I am not one to
propose Gestapo tactics, but in this case its not too hard to track down were he
was connecting in (and who his home node is) so he should be locked out.
Congrats to the K9NS multi-op team, who were everywhere and did a tremendous
job! Just about the time we get discouraged with W8 propagation, we see what
these guys do and it inspires us.
73,
Dave/K8CC
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