[3830] ARRLDX CW W9RE SOAB HP

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                    ARRL DX Contest, CW

Call: W9RE
Operator(s): W9RE
Station: W9RE

Class: SOAB HP
QTH: IN
Operating Time (hrs): 44.75
Radios: SO2R

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Mults
-------------------
  160:   78    43
   80:  300    60
   40: 1151    88
   20: 1315    87
   15: 1164    98
   10:   45    19
-------------------
Total: 4053   395  Total Score = 4,723,000

Club: Society of Midwest Contesters

Comments:

Below is my prep for this contest due to very minor ice and system failures. I
estimate that I spend around 24 hours outside on towers and ground work.   I
need to have everything 100% to psychologically prepare me to put in a full
effort.  With my line noise problem on 160, I begin the contest thinking that
if I feel I am handicapped by this noise I will quit.

January 16-during NAQP my 15 meter system develops an open coax
Temp is below freezing and coax junctions are at 50 and 100’ on tower
Temp remains below freezing for most of month (10 to 15 degrees below normal
temps)

January 25-develop short in top 40M OWA yagi, bottom antenna is fine.

February 1 – fixed 15 meter coax-still don’t know what was the problem
(removed 50’ LMR jumper from Heliax to StackMaster and reset control plug at
SM).

February 4- the only day above 30 deg I went to top of 40M tower (200’) to
fix 40 M yagi.  Split DE is completely shorted.  Took 2 bolts that connect coax
to element halves out and that fixes short (not sure how something inside
element could short DE)

February 5 –rain/snow/ice/wind  

February 6 – SE Beveridge and 40M Zepp come down from combo of ice and wind. 
One end of the Zepp is tangled in a 10 meter yagi with the end wrapped around a
guy wire, and other end (attached to a tower is wrapped over a 402CD.

February 9 – worked 3 hours outside in 30 degrees to fix Beveridge and short
verticals top hat wires.

February 10 to February 16 sick with sore throat virus (numerous trips back and
forth through about 9” of snow is quite fatiguing).

February 17 worked in over 12” of snow depth (drifts to 24”)  to free  Zepp
off guy wire and out of 10 M yagi (sure could have used snow shoes).

February 18 fix top hat wires on short rx verticals

Snow did not start to melt until February 20.

A line noise problem from a 138KV line that I have had 98% of the time the last
couple of months disappears starting Friday evening due to higher temps.  I
started the contest on 160 because I didn’t know if it would stay away or
not.  In retrospect this was a mistake because it didn’t bother me the whole
weekend as temps were in the 30’s.  Lower then that brings the noise on
continuously.  But I didn’t want to gamble and loose out if the noise came
back as it always has.

What a rate fest!  These were some of the best hours I’ve ever had.  Rates
were so good I had little chance to find mults on the second radio.  Had 16
hours over 100.  It seems like some of the pileups were 10 to 20 stations deep,
it was like being DX!  Thanks to all the DX participation and all the patience
in repeating calls.  Especially on the 2nd day SO2R can be a real distraction,
seems like my brain won’t shift quickly back to run radio.

Worked 13 JA’s on 80, 62 on 40M, 75 on 20M and 138 on 15M.

Congrats to N2IC for a super score from out west.

IC-7800 Alpha 87A
IC-781  Alpha 87A

160M- ¼ Vertical, 8 short vertical rx array, 2 Beveridges SE and NE
80M- 2 ele. Yagi @ 150’, temporary 4 Sq.

40M- 2 stack of 4 ele. OWA’s @ 100’, 200’, 402CD @ 90’

20M-3 stack of 5 ele. Yagis, @ 55’, 110’ and 170’, fixed 4 ele. Yagi SE
204BA @ 60’

15M-4 stack of 4 ele. Yagis, @ 40’, 80’, 120’ and 160’, fixed 4 ele.
Yagi SE @ 60’

10M-3 stack of 6 ele. Yagis @ 40’, 75’ and 110’, fixed 4 ele. Yagi SE @
60’


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