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[3830] ARRLDX SSB VA7ST SOAB HP

To: 3830@contesting.com
Subject: [3830] ARRLDX SSB VA7ST SOAB HP
From: webform@b41h.net
Reply-to: ve7ask@rac.ca
Date: Mon, 9 Mar 2009 00:40:17 -0700
List-post: <3830@contesting.com">mailto:3830@contesting.com>
                    ARRL DX Contest, SSB

Call: VA7ST
Operator(s): VA7ST
Station: VA7ST

Class: SOAB HP
QTH: BC
Operating Time (hrs): 15

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Mults
-------------------
  160:    0     0
   80:   27    18
   40:   41    28
   20:  312    68
   15:   36    16
   10:           
-------------------
Total:  416   130  Total Score = 162,240

Club: British Columbia DX Club

Comments:

* FT-2000 and SB-221 amplifier
* N1MM Logger
* 3-element Mosley CL-33 tribander just 25' high
* 40M twin half-squares
* 80M twin verticals
* 80M short Beverage (~270')

2009 -- SFI=69 | A= 1 | K=1>3
2008 -- SFI=69 | A=19 | K=2

Went in with a singular goal: beat my first-ever totals from 2008, which were
modest: 207 Qs, 98 mults, 61,000 points. I only put in 12 hours last year;
managed about 15 hours this year with much better results due to conditions and
low-band antenna improvements.

Got a late start with the first 1:49 lost to a long list of to-dos at work
Friday, but at last I got out of the office with nothing on my mind but DX :) 

Hit 40M and worked Caribbean and SA first. Could hear EU stations off the side
of the half-squares, but nothing to point that way. Other than an OM3 with
great ears, I just had to listen to 'em all. Saturday I raised the 40M EU
verticals, but alas Saturday's afternoon/evening 40M EU opening just didn't
happen here. Could have been a great mult year on 40 if it had.

80M didn't offer a lot of contacts, but some good stuff from VE7 with CU2 in
the mix (huge signal), and a short string of JAs. Signals were strong and noise
low on the Beverage, other than a few static crashes -- spring is awaking
somewhere, at least. Finished the first night with just 50 Qs and figured the
weekend would be a long, hard grind.

Saturday morning got up just in time for a powerful 20M EU opening that began
at 1600z or so (might have missed a few minutes of it) and provided a seemingly
bottomless well of Qs over the pole. Calling CQ felt like it was raining
skittles :) 

The tribander hates the phone bands (gain falls off above 14.200 and SWR is 3:1
up there), so I just parked way down low in the .130 area and ran as long as I
could -- band built nicely then rather suddenly died off to EU around 1820z.
What a rush to work many dozens of stations running 100W and even a bunch with
25W and 10W.

Got up for 1400z Sunday morning with fingers crossed that EU would open earlier
than it had on Saturday. It didn't. Heard TM9R at 1456z but didn't hear more or
work any EU until 1534z. Signals were lousy and I couldn't generate any runs,
so was mostly S&P until the opening died away around 1730z. Definitely poor
conditions compared to Saturday's opening.

20M EU opening comparison
Hour   Sat.    Sun.                     
1600z   86      17          
1700z   76      41  

WX forecast called for high winds and heavy snow this weekend - got the snow in
blinding whiteout conditions Saturday morning during the EU opening, but strong
winds only lasted a few hours. 

Despite Saturday's strong EU opening, I remain mult-challenged on 20M with just
68 worked. I think I got most of the EU mults that were available to a yagi just
25 above ground (see wind warning, above). The 300' terrain advantage to EU, NA
and SA helps the very low nested-tower antenna punch above its weight, but to
Asia and Oceania the terrain is a disadvantage and that's where I suffered the
most both in rate and mults. 

                 Mults
       Qs  15M  20M  40M  80M
EU    238    0   33    2    1
NA     65    7   15   15   11
SA     62    8   10    6    4
AS     35    1    5    1    1
OC     15    0    2    3    1
AF      3    0    3    0    0
      ---   --   --   --   --
      418   16   68   27   18

"Cool moments": PS0F, 4Z4, 6W1 and OY on 20M, VP8 on 40M. Fun working pileups
on 20M with a semi-rare British Columbia mult.

Managed 80 unique entities (up from 52 last year). Top countries worked...

England     29
Japan       29
Germany     27
Italy       26
France      23
Spain       20
Netherlands 19
Brazil      19 
Belgium     16
Scotland    15
Hawaii      12

          2008           2009
 Band  QSOs  Mults    QSOs  Mults          Change
------------------    -----------   --------   ----------
  160:    -     -        -      -
   80:   18    13       27     18   +   9 Qs   +  5 mults
   40:   23    18       41     28   +  18 Qs   + 10 mults
   20:  121    44      312     68   + 191 Qs   + 24 mults
   15:   44    22       36     16   -   8 Qs   -  6 mults
   10:    1     1        -      -   -   1 Q    -  1 mult
------------------    -----------   ---------------------
Total:  207    98      416    130   + 209 Qs   + 32 mults
         
Very slow going Sunday afternoon. I walked up and down 20M working anything new
I could find. JA and SA were going great guns simultaneously, both afternoons,
and as usual I spent WAAY too much time rotating to cover these diametrically
opposing directions. Managed to work a few "off-the-back" but mostly just
stacked these mults on the N1MM Logger bandmap as I combed through either JA or
SA. I know I lost out on mults by not reacting quickly enough. Eagerly watching
for Mike et al at Fluidmotion to release the new DB18. It looks like the
tailor-made solution to the most pressing performance bottlenecks here --
bandwidth,  bidirectional reaction time, and good 40M gain -- on the same 18'
boom length I have now.

Had to work hard for TG9 way up high in the band where the CL-33 yagi's CW
settings don't work. In my final few minutes on, I found a loud 6W1, then T46
(weak even with a KW) and struggled to get through. Heard JAs off the back so
turned the beam and worked a very weak DU fairly easily, hunted around for a
few unworked JAs, then laboriously turned back to the Caribbean, picking up
KL7AIR on the way, and finished with TO5A. 

Pulled the plug at 2310z and went to watch my son's season-final hockey game.
After a losing season, they tied their arch-rivals 11-11 in a nail-biter. We
had fun in the stands. He didn't, being the goalie.
 
Had a great time in the contest, got plenty of rest, and learned a thing or
two. That's a good combo. Last year I wrote, "next year the bands will
definitely be much better with a lot more to work." I was wrong, but will
chance it again: Next year the bands will definitely be much better with a lot
more to work.

Thanks and see you all again soon. British Commonwealth stations, dig out those
keyers for BERU next weekend!

-- Bud VA7ST


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