[3830] ARRL 160 KC0W/M Single Op HP

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                    ARRL 160-Meter Contest

Call: KC0W/M
Operator(s): KC0W
Station: KC0W/M

Class: Single Op HP
QTH: North Dakota
Operating Time (hrs): 

Summary:
Total:  QSOs = 15  Sections = 11  Countries = 2  Total Score = 1

Club: 

Comments:

What a major disappointment.

 I installed a 160 meter antenna on top of a 3900' butte which has 45+ mile
views in all directions. Antenna was a 1/2 wave dipole suspended as a flat top
between three broadcast towers at the 230' level. It took me 2 days of working
in 50+ MPH gusts, ice coated towers & temperatures well below -0 F to get the
antenna up. The contest started very well with East Coast stations being
received here in North Dakota at 20+ over.................Until QSO #3.

 One leg of the dipole snapped and grounded out against one of the towers. SWR
shot to infinity to one & the contest was over for me with the exception of
another 12 Q's with SWR reading off the charts & the radio folding back to 10
watts. I at least had to make a few Q's Friday night after all that work on the
two previous days getting the antenna up.

 Seeing what could be be done Saturday morning to fix the problem only
confirmed my worst fears of major icing on the towers which would make climbing
them again to the 230' level a real suicide mission.............Long story
short, Murphy won this time but I will get that SOB next time!!! 

 I'm presently constructing arrays of 4-Squares on 80 & 160 meters here in ND.
There is a good possibility I'm gonna change horses in midstream and revise
this plan to 9 antenna Circle Arrays on 80 & 160. See my QRZ.com bio for more
information.    

 
 Setup used from on top of the butte for this (very short lived) contest:     


 Flat top 1/2 wave dipole at 230'
 K3
 Acom 2000 Amp
 Large portable industrial generator for the Acom
 670' Beverages oriented SE & SW  



 Tom KCØW


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