[3830] Rus DX K5NA SO Mixed HP

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                    Russian DX Contest

Call: K5NA
Operator(s): K5NA
Station: K5NA

Class: SO Mixed HP
QTH: Texas
Operating Time (hrs): 24

Summary:
 Band  CW Qs  Ph Qs  Countries  Oblasts
----------------------------------------
  160:   47      2        9         0
   80:  107      2       40         0
   40:  193      3       47         8
   20:  362    346       74        36
   15:   48      5       18         0
   10:    1      1        1         0
----------------------------------------
Total:  758    359      189        44  Total Score = 893,089

Club: Central Texas DX and Contest Club

Comments:

This is the first time that I have done the RDXC Contest. I realize that I
picked a bad year with low sun spots for my first try, but it was still a lot
of fun. 

I did some CQ MIR Contest efforts many years ago from New York and found that
the RDXC Contest format to be very similar. I used to enjoy CQ MIR and got much
pleasure from the fancy certificates, lapel pens, and medallions that they would
send. I still have a box of them somewhere around here. Remembering CQ MIR was
all the experience I had to go on while getting ready to give the RDXC a try.

With no prior history in this contest, I had no idea until it was over if I was
operating wisely or not. With band conditions very poor, it is easy to be
seduced by the high rates of working other USA SSB Stations. I did some of that
to build up my QSO count, but was always anxious to get back to working DX and
watching for Russian openings. That is just the DXer in me.

Activity from Europe was great. But I was disappointed that so few JA stations
were operating in this contest. Maybe some public relations in Japan would
raise their activity level for next year’s event.

Lately we have had a serious line noise problem here at the Radio Rancho.
During a M/S for the ARRL DX SSB Contest, the operators had to struggle to copy
weak signals because of it. I have since traced the noise source, I think, to a
14.4 KV wire splice about ¼ mile from our house. I tried to get the power
company out to fix it before the RDXC, but they march to their own drummer.
When you can see a wire splice glowing like a 25W light bulb after dark, you
know there must be a problem. 

The noise point source is SE of the house and was grinding away for about 80
percent of the contest. I found on some bands I could work around the noise
part of the time by compromise selections of antennas and directions. Some
bands, like on 40M, it seemed I could do nothing to help matters. The noise
would usually vary in intensity and at its worst, there was nothing I could do
except take a short break and hope it would be less noisy when I returned.

I actually don’t think that I ran enough on the low bands, 40M especially.
But I was usually afraid that I would get a lot of callers below the line noise
level. Also I am a DXer by nature and I enjoy chasing packet spots and
especially finding a new multiplier that hasn’t been spotted yet.

I think I did about as well as I could under the current conditions, both local
noise and propagation circumstances. I enjoyed this contest enough to try to
return and do it again next year. Thanks to everyone for the QSOs.

73, Richard – K5NA


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