[3830] SS SSB K5NA Multi-Op HP

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                    ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, SSB

Call: K5NA
Operator(s): K5NA, K5DU, K5YA, SHARON MOWERS
Station: K5NA

Class: Multi-Op HP
QTH: STX
Operating Time (hrs): 20

Summary:
 Band  QSOs
------------
  160:     
   80:   60
   40:  260
   20:  309
   15:  691
   10:  106
------------
Total: 1426  Sections = 80  Total Score = 228,160

Club: Contest Club Finland

Comments:

We had originally not planned to have a phone Sweepstakes entry from the station
this year. The usual SSB operators were not available.

But when Sharon, K5YA's XYL, mentioned to Susan K5DU that she was interested in
getting a ham ticket and also interested in contesting, Susan invited K5YA
(K5YA), and Sharon over to the K5NA station for the weekend and to do the phone
Sweepstakes.

We had a great time visiting and doing the Sweepstakes. Dennis (K5YA), who
usually hates phone contests, showed us that he could do one if he just HAD to.


Meanwhile we started Sharon off very easily. First she sat and listened for
several hours to the others making QSOs. After that, we put her in the operating
chair. 

She was nervous, but we had written down the CQ, QRZ, and exchange words, right
in front of her. Susan sat beside her and handled the computer logging and she
was ready to start. Sharon gave her first "CQ SS this is K5NA" and immediately
worked her first station. After that she took to it like a duck to water and her
nervousiness quickly disappred.

She did this off and on for the rest of Saturday and once, when asked if she
wanted to stop and rest, said, "No, let's keep going". Later I took over the
logging chores from Susan who was getting tired but Sharon kept on trucking.

On Sunday, we gave Sharon the additional responsibility of handling the
keyboard. Because we were networking the log on two computers, the control
operator could make corrections on-line without slowing things down. It is hard
for a brand new operator in SS to know that "North Florida" isn't NF (Counted as
NL by Writelog) and about West Central Florida ("That's WCF?") and that Oregon
is OR and Orange is ORG.

We worried that Sharon might suffer burnout from overexposure to contesting. But
as they were leaving Sunday afternoon, I heard her ask Dennis, "How about
operating the 10M Contest. You could do CW and I would do phone." I think she is
hooked now on ham radio and contesting.

It was a great weekend watching this unfold.

73, Richard - K5NA


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