[3830] CQWW CW C4Z(5B4AIZ) SOSB/20 LP

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                    CQ Worldwide DX Contest, CW

Call: C4Z
Operator(s): 5B4AIZ
Station: C4Z

Class: SOSB/20 LP
QTH: CYPRUS
Operating Time (hrs): 26

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Zones  Countries
------------------------------
  160:                    
   80:                    
   40:                    
   20: 1212    35      105
   15:                    
   10:                    
------------------------------
Total: 1212    35      105  Total Score = 443,182

Club: 

Comments:

After gaining 2nd place Asia in the same unassisted category last year from a
semi-serious entry with a lot of time outs I wanted to hit nr 1 spot this year
so gave it my best shot.

Band conditions down on last year plus later opening/earlier closing times gave
an inevitable drop on mults worked although I did improve the q's count by 20%.
I had a target of 0.5M pts, didn't make that, but hopefully if the CQ milling
machine doesn't decimate my score I should beat last years score of 348k pts.

20m was hard work, propagation to eu was patchy with band fading in and out,
contacts with west eu very much down compared to norm, it was like the 10mtr
sporadic effect although the high power stns were maintaining contacts I would
have 3/4 minutes running 2/3 per minute then nothing for 2/3 minutes, very odd
for 20mtrs. Also very poor propogation due east and west. Usually get good sigs
from Carib/central America, this time it was a struggle and mults from that area
very much down. likewise not much heard from south east Asia/Oceana.
On the other hand sigs from JA & USA were very strong and I can't recall W7's
sounding so loud before. Having said that W6 was thin on the ground and poor
cndx too to W8/9 who normally come through very well in the later afternoon
here.

Highlights, double mlts from CE3DNP, HC8A, ZL2CV all of whom were the only stns
wkd in those areas.

Lowlights, The equipment and antennas all performed well with no problems and
logging by SD was flawless. There were no thunderstorms either, so all in the
garden was rosy but Murphy just cannot stay away can he? A domestic crises cost
me 1.5 hours loss of primetime operating at local noon Sunday (z+2hrs)
Pileup chaos caused by the cluster. As a LP op we have to move on and try back
later (if they are still there) when we come across this situation but never
previously have I had to move on so often and certainly never had to do so
without having a clue who the dx stn was because even after a few minutes I
never heard the c/s through the continuous calling and that is not to include
the poor dx ops who do not give their callsigns. And - what is this dit dit
business at the end of the qso?, often undetectable through a pile. At least a
good op with the savy to call a couple of hundred hertz up from the cluster zoo
has a chance to time a call if he hears TU. Ok I am sore as I lost 3 mlts due to
continuous callers over the top when the dx stn only got my partial and I was
only able to find one of them later. I don't blame the dx ops for giving up on
the qso after several tries as copy was marginal but this pileup behaviour is
reaching unacceptable levels of bad operating and bad manners. As a european
politically, although now living just outside europe physically I have to hold
up my hands and say that eu ops must take the blame. I say to those poor ops
just take time to listen to a pile from JA or USA, notice the difference, how
orderly but particularly note how improved is the rate at which the dx op works
off the pile - more q's for everyone - makes a lot of sense.
I would personally like to see the cluster closed down for big contest
weekends, ok scores would drop but does that really matter, is it important for
increases year on year, especially when due to technological advances and with 
even less need for operator skills. Spotters will need to work for their corn,
any idiot can read a cluster screen and on this note closing the cluster would
rid us of these moron blind callers who don't read code. CW is an operator
skill not a digital mode as many try to argue.

The hobby cannot continue to sit on it's hands and shake it's head and do
nothing, minds of those who matter and can exert some control need to be
concentrated on working towards a solution before we start to lose entrants to
this greaat contest!

Rant over may I say thanks to all for the contacts and company and despite the
above grumble I thoroughly enjoyed taking part and being amongst your community
for most of the time. See you next year.

73  Brian 5B4AIZ.


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