[3830] BARTG VA7ST SOAB HP

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                    BARTG HF RTTY Contest

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

Class: SOAB HP
QTH: BC
Operating Time (hrs): 14

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Countries  Call Areas
-----------------------------------
   80:   50       2         12
   40:  124       5         15
   20:  178      30         20
   15:                        
   10:                        
-----------------------------------
Total:  352      37         47  Continents = 6  Total Score = 177,408

Club: British Columbia DX Club

Comments:

* FT2000 + SB221
* N1MM Logger + MMTTY
* 3-element CL33 tribander at 45'
* 40M -- twin half-square array E-W
* 80M -- twin vertical array E-W

SFI = 69 | A = 7 > 4 | K = 4 > 1

Conditions were truly horrid (again) this weekend. Third-worst outing in BARTG
HF since 2003, and worst HP outing so far.

Flew all day to get home from Atlanta, arriving home at 0330z to find 40M
rather dead and not much action on 80M, so I shut 'er down at 0440z. Got up to
see if anything was happening at 1000z, made one 80M contact and went back to
bed until 1600z. Expected to bag at least one EU for the continental mult but
not a single one heard, so I played in RDXC for a while (where a lot of RTTY
ops must have been on Saturday). In and out of 20M RTTY all day Saturday, but
only managed 32 Qs in four blocks of a few minutes each through the day.

Saturday morning didn't produce any EU opening at all -- just a lot of noise.
Sunday morning was better, but still wasn't much of an opening. Signals were
really poor, though I was able to work an occasional EU station through the
morning and even had an OH and a G call me mid-afternoon while I was working
South America.

Sat at 5 continents until Sunday afternoon. Aimed at South Africa and called CQ
for ages around local noon, but no luck. Later, I watched for AF spots but very
few African stations showed up. Finally, an EA8 appeared up the band -- I
jumped and had #6. Later, found J5 Guinea-Bissau for insurance and a new one.

Sure was happy to hear Ed VE4EAR on the air. Last weekend, his heliax was
severed by someone in the neighborhood with an ax to grind (well, it was sharp
enough). To keep the cable-cutter from doing something even more stupid, Ed was
running essentially QRP on 20M when I worked him, but on 40M he was very loud so
either he had more power running by then or his 2-el yagi is a flamethrower into
B.C. I needed VE4, as we all did, so kudos to him for getting on the air under
trying circumstances.

Countries and call-areas were way, way down from last year, as were QSO totals.
That's due in part to RDXC diverting activity for the first day, and bad
propagation all weekend.

I always enjoy this contest -- the continent multiplier can be easy some years,
and have you on the edge of your seat in other years. With bad propagation, the
NR + UTC exchange was a bit of a challenge requiring more than the usual number
of fills.

Next year should be a lot more fun with 15M and maybe 10M in the mix.

Year-over-year comparison:
 
      QSOs  DX  Areas   Conts   Points
2003   155  26     36       5    50,375 LP
2004   293  46     67       5   164,980 LP
2006   328  26     49       6   147,600 LP
2007   432  55     47       6   264,384 HP
2008   705  63     57       6   501,840 HP
2009   352  37     46       6   177,408 HP


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