[3830] ARRL 160 NN3W Single Op LP

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                    ARRL 160-Meter Contest

Call: NN3W
Operator(s): NN3W
Station: NN3W

Class: Single Op LP
QTH: VA
Operating Time (hrs): 6

Summary:
Total:  QSOs = 339  Sections = 64  Countries = 8  Total Score = 50,544

Club: Potomac Valley Radio Club

Comments:

I've always liked 160, but have never had a real antenna for the band.  In prior
years I tried to use my 80 meter quad and let the tuner do the loading. 
Clearly, the tuner is eating all the power and I'd be lucky to work a station
in Missouri.  My rule was that is the station wasn't at least 589, they would
not be likely to hear me.  No more!

Had an epiphany on the Thursday before the contest.  While surveying the yard,
I totally missed the obvious radial/counterpoise system - my neigbor's wire
mesh (2" x 4" squares).  It is about 150 feet long in each direction and the
tree that I would use meets it at th point where it makes a 90 degree turn. 
Used the handy slingshot get the wire up the tree, pulled it across the yard,
launched it over two intervening braches from other trees and then roped the
end off over a final tree.  The "apex" is about 50 feet up and the end, angles
down to about 30 feet.  Will try to find a higher branch for CQWW.  The
counterpoise is connected using a heavy duty alligator clip.

Conditions seemed very good.  I3MLU might as well have been in Connecticut he
was so loud.  I worked most everyone that I could hear and had some very decent
runs (yes you can run with 100 watts to a low inverted L - you have to be brave
enough to try and realize that working them one a minute is much faster than
S&P on day 2 where you work them at a rate of one every 2.5 minutes).  I missed
several sections that I heard and could not work one that I tried to work:
Idaho.  I heard North Dakota, Oklahoma, and VE6 but missed them.  Totally
missed WTX, NNY, some of the VEs, KH6, KL7, and most of California.  Is 160 not
popular out there anymore?

Looking forward to CQ160.


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