[3830] SS CW K4RO Single Op QRP

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                    ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, CW

Call: K4RO
Operator(s): K4RO
Station: K4RO

Class: Single Op QRP
QTH: TN
Operating Time (hrs): 24

Summary:
 Band  QSOs
------------
  160:    0
   80:   86
   40:  322
   20:  222
   15:   86
   10:    9
------------
Total:  725  Sections = 79  Total Score = 114,550

Club: Tennessee Contest Group

Comments:

Another Cw Sweepstakes has come and gone.  
This was my tenth year operating CW SS, and 
all but one of those years have been full-time
efforts. 2005 marks my fourth year competing 
in the QRP category, which I started doing at 
the urging of W4PA.  After placing 8th in 2002 
and 4th in 2003, I finally won the contest last 
year.  Scott said now I had to repeat the performance 
in order to prove that last year's win wasn't just a 
fluke.  Well Scott (and Mike NZ) I tried my best.
We'll see how the numbers fall out.

I feel that QRP CW SS is the one major contest that I 
can actually win from my station, so it gets more of my
attention. This is something that the major DX contests 
lack in my opinion. Unlike SS, the vast majority of 
participants in a DX contest simply don't have a prayer 
of competing for the top awards. It's less appealing to 
the average station owner-operator who wants to compete.
I guess that's why we have the NAQP, Sprint and Sweepstakes 
contests.  I love operating all contests, but having a shot 
at winning from my own station makes the CW SS contest even 
more interesting to me.

It felt like I worked much harder this year for a lower 
score.  The station played great and the operator was on 
his game, but the conditions were tough, especially at QRP.
The deadly tornadoes and associated storms in KY and IN meant 
that our domestic low band advantage here in TN was pretty much
gone.  The myriad of SMC and W9'ers were all under tremendous
QRN static crashes.  Eighty meters was pretty useless at QRP,
unlike last year when Alaska answered my 5 watt CQ calls.
I heard VY1JA Saturday night on 20m, but could not break the
pileup despite 15 minutes of focused trying (and no other QSOs.)
Never heard J again the entire contest, despite very agressive 
searching and beaming CQ's Northwest. No sweep this year.
Thanks for being there again J!  Maybe catch you next year.

Saturday night was so tough that I was almost 150 QSO's down from 
last year's score at 0800z. I thought of quitting, but that's not 
what CW SS is about to me.  Conditions improved enough on Sunday 
that it felt like less of a grind than usual.  Forty improved a 
lot as the contest went on, and I felt loud on that band.  The 
rotatable omega-matched boom dipole and wire yagi NE really play 
well with five watts of power. The last 90 minutes brought the 
best run of the contest, including a few TCGers who got on at 
the last minute to hand out some points.  It was a great way to end.

Thanks again to everyone for toughing it out and hanging in 
there with me for each QSO. I know how tough it is to be on 
the receiving end of a QRP QSO.  Thanks to all of the great 
operators and competitors. It's a great little game we have here.

73

-Kirk  K4RO            http://www.k4ro.net


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