[3830] Commonwealth G3LET Restricted-24 LP

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                    RSGB Commonwealth Contest, CW

Call: G3LET
Operator(s): G3LET
Station: G3LET

Class: Restricted-24 LP
QTH: Pease Pottage, UK
Operating Time (hrs): 24

Summary:
 Band  QSOs
------------
   80:   46
   40:   95
   20:  100
   15:   66
   10:    2
------------
Total:  309  Total Score = 5,965

Club: Horsham Amateur Radio Club

Comments:

Rig:  TenTec Orion II barefoot, 100 watts
Antenna: BiggIR vertical (40 to 10) and 250ft sloper (80 and sometimes 40)
Antenna Tuner: Racal MA144
Keyer: ETM9C
Logger: Paper and Pencil.  For BERU, I use dupe sheets that also indicate
which
bonuses have been worked and which are missing on each band.  This event seldom
allows anything in the nature of a high speed run and so keeping these sheets up
to date is a fairly relaxed affair.

With improving HF conditions, I set some fairly ambitious targets to provide
motivation and chart progress against previous years.  Without availability of
directive antennas, I chose the Restricted section which limits power to 100W
with single elements antenna(s).  

This decision usually means that general attempts at running are pretty much a
waste of time and CQs were mostly targeted affairs, aimed at attracting the
attention of a bonus station who had just called into an adjacent Big Gun. 
Many of these relatively rare guys either feel that they don't have the assets
to get a run going themselves, or feel uncomfortable handling a pack of
callers.  With limited fire-power selective, short, strategic CQs are often the
only option.  

This year I kept a hit record of these: out of 22 attempts, 8 secured the
desired result, which I was pretty happy with.  Successes included VP9BO on
both 40 and 80, although the fact that I can recall first working him more than
50 years ago may have something to do with this pleasing result!  An added
benefit can be the occasional unexpected response, which this year included
VA3RKM with his 5 watt K3 - a most satisfying bonus - thanks Robert!

Based upon results in earlier years, I chose stretch targets of 320 QSOs and
6000 points for 2010.  Neither of these were met of course (they wouldn't be
"stretch" otherwise, would they?), but not by that much, so I was fairly happy
with my result.  The main lesson learned was not to spend the last 40 minutes
of the contest fruitlessly chasing VQ9LA on 10m, against the rest of the world
who mostly will have had at least some sort of directive antenna. I'd already
made it with VK6LW and V51YJ before their pile-ups had developed and found
Larry quite early, but not early enough.  So - don't get hooked on unlikely
odds and learn to give in gracefully - not exactly my forte!

I had no idea where J2 or V8 were, but they sounded plausible prefixes and so I
called them anyway while they were quiet - a 50% result!

The log still has to be entered into Paul EI5DI's SDC logger, but as the dupes
and bonuses are already counted the following result is probably not far off.

 BAND  QSO  BONUS    PTS
------------------------
   80   46     32    870
   40   95     66   1795
   20  100     72   1940
   15   66     49   1310
   10    2      2     50
------------------------
TOTAL  309    221   5965
========================

Very many thanks to all who made the Commonwealth Contest of 2010 (still known
as "BERU*" by its afficionados) another memorable event!  

Finally, if anyone would like an .mp3 file of our QSO(s), I have the whole
affair taped - an email will do the job. 

73, Peter G3LET

*Originally titled the "British Empire Radio Union" event, it was first run in
1931, when it was scheduled to last for a week.  The less than fully PC "BERU"
tag is still quite addictive on the key!


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