CQWW WPX Contest, CW
Call: YJ0PO
Operator(s): K2PO
Station: YJ0PO
Class: SOAB LP
QTH: Vanuatu
Operating Time (hrs): 35
Summary:
Band QSOs
------------
160:
80: 6
40: 423
20: 805
15: 789
10: 103
------------
Total: 2125 Prefixes = 693 Total Score = 5,191,263
Club: Willamette Valley DX Club
Comments:
In the end, it turned out to be a fine first dxpedition, but Murphy wanted to
make sure it wasn't easy...
It started smoothly - my cousin has a year-long work contract in Vanuatu, and
was able to help in getting my YJ0PO license, and smoothing our way thru
customs. And he'd warned me of the hazards of island time...
The intended station location was a beachfront bungalow used in past years by
other hams, but which had fallen on hard times. I made arrangements with the
new owner in November, who assured me that all the planned renovations and
improvements would be done long before May.
Not.
My wife and I arrived on Wednesday to find our finished bungalow in a busy
construction site, with dozen of workers, circular saws, dump trucks, a backhoe
digging a restaurant foundation, etc., etc. We spent one night before giving up
- the last straw was a jackhammer in the bathroom to repair the plumbing.
Fortunately, we found another north-facing beachfront site. All it lacked was
screens to keep the jungle insect life out, but whatever...
The contest started fine, at 11am local time. Then the monsoons came -
sheeting downpours that hammered our tin roof for hours. Even with the AF and
RF gains maxed out, the radio audio was just a whisper in the din. I quit for a
90 minute nap at 3am local time, with 1100 contacts in the log.
I woke with excitement - looking forward to the main south pacific opening to
Europe. However, the computer didn't wake. First it was a fan error. Then
multiple blue screens of death. Finally a screen simply full of exclamation
points. After that it didn't even try.
Skipping lots of details, I finally tracked down and borrowed my cousin's
laptop. But I made lots of mistakes in hurriedly finding and installing all
the required software (forgetting, e.g., the different usb drivers required for
the prolific and winkey serial adapters) - made all the more difficult by lack
of sleep and lack of widespread Internet. (We made repeated trips, down
flooded, potholed dirt roads, to get a 9600 baud data connection, 'in town.')
7 Hours after the anticipated Eu opening, I was finally back on the air. But
my cousin required his laptop for work Monday morning (the contest ends near
noon on Monday here). Knowing I had to surrender the laptop 5 hours before the
end of the contest meant I had to work without break if I was to get most of the
permitted 36 hours in the log. So I worked the doldrums hours that I would
have normally skipped, and missed the contest finale.
In the end, I was pleased to break 2000 qsos, and 5m points - topping the
Oceania low power record set last year by ZL3IO (subject to log checking). But
I worked Holger early in the contest, and expect he was gunning for his old
record.
It was fun to be on the other end. (I couldn't have done it without my
ever-helpful wife Kristen!!)
I look forward to doing it again sometime - perhaps with less company from
Murphy.
73,
Bill, K2PO (YJ0PO)
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