[3830] XE RTTY VA7ST SO1R LP

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                    Mexico RTTY International Contest

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

Class: SO1R LP
QTH: 
Operating Time (hrs): 

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Pts  Mults
------------------------
   80:   39  114     2
   40:   43  130     6
   20:  151  454    36
   15:   38  118    11
   10:    0    0     0
------------------------
Total:  271  816    55  Total Score = 44,880

Club: 

Comments:

FT920
N1MM Logger and MMTTY
3 ele. tribander @ 45'
40M Delta loop
80M Delta loop

Activity surprised the heck out of me this weekend. Last year, I struggled to
make 74 Qs and 4,500 points. 

Worked 200 more Qs and 10 times the points (nearly 45,000) this time out and the
only difference was some antenna height, a better hilltop QTH and a pair of
tight filters.

I have a very serious S-7 noise problem on 20 through 10 any time the beam is
pointed between 30 and 150 degrees, which wipes out pretty much all of North
America, except for stations that are truly S8 or louder. My apologies for those
I couldn't hear well enough to work. 

At least the damn noise drops away completely at 30 degrees (at 40 degrees it's
back at S7), so I was able to work even weaker EU stations. Quite a few NA
stations called from off the side and back of the beam, though. Thanks to all.

Could not believe how strong 40M was early Saturday evening. W4s were like next
door. KP2D was booming in here. Wasn't till I went to 80M that I discovered I
had been using the 80M delta loop on 40M. A pleasant surprise -- it played as
well or better than my 40M delta. Will try it again for WPX next weekend.

80M was in pretty good shape but in and out from here.

Got up for a final run at EU on 20M Sunday morning. Glad I did as I added 22
country mults during a very good opening from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. Pacific. I ran
stations a bit too long, and it wasn't till the final minute that I went up the
band to discover CN8 and a bunch of other mults working down to the wire. Didn't
get to work them before the buzzer sounded. 

Looked like a few stations were rubber-clocking past the top of the hour (my
computer clock was a minute slow, too. I checked WWV right at my 1100z just as
the 1102z beat sounded... fortunately, I didn't work anyone in the extra minute
or so).

Had five or six dupes; usually I work dupes anyway unless I know for sure the
other guy has me confused with someone else (calling VE7ST, for example). A
noise burst can do that easy enough. 

Looking forward to a great time in WPX next weekend. Noise or no noise, it'll be
lots of fun like this contest was.


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