[3830] 10 meter contest Phone Only/SO/HP

[Ed Gray W0SD]

1997 ARRL 10 Meter Contest
W0SD  Phone only/single op/high power

1717 Qso's   92 multipliers   score=315,928
35 DX Multipliers
57 State/Prov. Multipliers


Antennas:Stacked 105 CA's at 55' and 120' both rotatable
         TH-11 at 70 feet
         TS-950SDX
         AL-1200

First I want to say great job to K5TR on a great job in the phone only
category!!!

Comments(LONG): Over the years I have been blessed to have a very
understanding wife, I have been able to invest a goodly amount into the
hardware and I have had some wonderful friends that have helped install it.
 Getting W0SD as a call many years ago is generally helpful except with
weak signals and the language barrier and living in South Dakota helps with
the people calling.  I will say any contest skills in SD are self-taught!
Most of all we(multi and guest op's) have had a lot of fun!

The following I write for those that are progagationally dis-advantaged!

I know lip service is paid to what I am about to say and I assure you there
are no "SOUR GRAPES" here but I just have to say it after 30 years of
contesting!  I'm a big boy and I chose to live here in South Dakota but the
plain unbiased truth is that after all the above blessing I told you about
I have done one thing very wrong.  This "BIG WRONG THING" is where I chose
to live as far as making the top 10 nationally!  

We can compete in SS during the low sunspot years and during the high
sunspot years if the "SKIP" doesn't get to long we can do OK.  During the
years going up and coming down when 10 and 15 are very marginal here we
really struggle. I will say over-all looking at the results we in northern,
central USA and even Canada have a real shot at this one!

The ARRL RTTY contest has DX in it so as the cycle goes up the east coast
and southern USA takes over!  We do have a real shot during the low years
of the cycle but obviously not as good as SS!

When it comes to the 160 contest we have a chance to make the top 10 but
someone winning it from here would be a miracel!  It would have to be a
terrible DX night because if the DX is anything to Europe we can forget it!
 If you are farther west it just gets worse!  Also NM and west can forget
this one!

When it comes to DX contests it is the east coast.  Only during the
absolute peak of the cycle can the Northwest work so many JA's they have a
shot at it for a couple of years.  That is not great odds, 2 for 11 years
in a sunspot cycle!  In the DX contests and the 10 meter contest as one
goes south of here it gets better and as one goes east it gets better!
Right now south is the answer!!!  In DX contests LP is good out of the
southwest but in no way does that compare with what the east coast has for
DX contests.

Nothing comes easy from here and it gets worse as you go north because of
all the land mass around us and especially the auroral effect!  West of
here is worse for most contests other that the mentioned JA factor for a
couple of years!  Not only is it propagation but we are a long ways from
ham population centers and a long ways from nultipliers.  It really hurts
on the low bands and we don't get the propagation on 10 and 15 many years
and even at the top it is two hops to multiplier heaven not one hop!

So what is the point!  The point is that the people who end up in the top
10 in all these contest are very, very deserving.  They are very, very good
and they have done an awesome job of assembling hardware!  What they should
always remember though is they should be humble and understanding toward a
large part of the USA who it would not matter if you spent a million
dollars and imported the hottest Texas, Louisiana, Florida(any progagation
blessed state) or east coast operator they could not win one of thses
contests from many locations!!!

When you gaze at they well deserved plaque and shine it up just remember
part of it is where you live and remember there are a lot of hams that have
worked as hard or maybe harder on the hardware and are just as good or
better operator than you are but they will never have a plaque because of
where they live!

I will say that over the years I believe what I have just talked about is
quite well understood but I think it bears repeating as this 10 meter
contest really showed me again that I could of spent a million dollars on
my station and had the world best operator here and not won!  Is that sour
grapes, no it is just the "TRUTH"!  This same truth goes for a lot of other
stations in the USA.  Is the way we do top 10 going to change, NO I'M SURE
IT IS NOT!  The answer is move to a propagationally blessed state or live
with it!  I understand that!  Like I said this is not a "SOUR GRAPES" comment!

So why do so many that probably will never win a national contest or even
make it in the top 10 work so hard at it?  It has to be for the personal
challenge of being the best you can be from where you live!  For many of us
it is personal competition to do better than we have ever done before as it
is hard to find a yardstick to compare to!

I for one do not find the regional break downs all that exciting!  The idea
is great but even in the regions the progagation is very, very different!  

So continue to be a gracious winner and if you could find it in your heart
to say a few kind words about some fantastic, gutty efforts from the
"PROPAGATIONAL DIS-ADVANTAGED STATES AND PROVINCES" over the years I think
it would be a great credit to you!  To the winners congratulations because
make no mistake you are GOOD!!!

CONTEST COMMENTS:

SO what was exciting!  The fantastic sporadic e opening on the first night!
 Who knows if I operate these LONG ENOUGH I might win it on sporadic e
sometime during the low part of the cycle.  The second thing was on Sunday
what I think was F2 out toward Africa or otherwise very intense double
sporadic e as the scatter signals for other USA stations were like sunspot
peak years.  I had to chuckle that some people were telling me how good I
was off the back or side of their beam!!!  I did not want to take the time
to educate them about scatter and that in fact if they moved their beams
off the ionization out toward Africa signals would drop or go away!  The
pro's knew what was going on, anyway we all learn over the years!  Third I
only missed VT, OR and NV for all 50 in one weekend so 10 meters is
definitely on the upswing.  Worked ON (5 stations) & I out of Europe and
several Africa so better than last year!  BTW congrats to those of you who
worke LP on 10 meters.  No small feat no matter where you live!

I had a 207 first hour and 208 4th hour which was a personal best for me!
I will have to confess for us northern yankee's getting those KX5xxx calls
which often were copied without phonetics and a southern accent correct as
I am not going to guess makes over 200 an hour tougher!  Also a lot of
these people were new to amateur radio and contesting as they can only
operate on 10 meters.  I thought they did a fine job!

Hope to see you in the ARRL RTTY ROUNDUP!  We just keep pluggin away!
Thanks so very much to all who worked us!!!  I will have to say the 10
meter contest is my favorite contest!

Last THANK YOU! to all the hams who have made logging software what it
is!!!  I was telling my wife it is a "SNAP" compared to the OLD DAYS with
Digital Voice Recordings and logging software!  I think I can do this for
another 20 years yet!

73, Ed-W0SD


Ed Gray
Rt. 2, Box 151
Salem, SD 57058-9110 USA
w0sd at rapidnet.com
http://www.rapidnet.com/w0sd
605 425 2242 office
605 425 2787 office
605 425 3144 office FAX
605 425 2354 home

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