[3830] CQWW SSB K4LY SOAB(A) LP

[webform at b41h.net]

                    CQ Worldwide DX Contest, SSB

Call: K4LY
Operator(s): K4LY
Station: K4LY

Class: SOAB(A) LP
QTH: SC
Operating Time (hrs): 34

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Zones  Countries
------------------------------
  160:   30     7       12
   80:   90    16       40
   40:  113    22       61
   20:  311    31      100
   15:  432    32      114
   10:  119    15       33
------------------------------
Total: 1095   123      360  Total Score = 1,450,932

Club: Carolina DX Assn

Comments:

This contest turned out very different than my expectations.  Last year with a
new K2 and tribander, I was very motivated to be competitive in the QRP
division and actually was #1 USA. This year, following 6 weeks of awful
headaches, ear aches, and throat discomfort (diagnosed as trigeminal neuralga)
that made listening and talking almost impossible, I decided to operate LP
Assisted for as many hours as I could bear.  I was in remission from the
neuralga, but still feeling weak.  My expectations were to operate maybe a
dozen hours or so.  As it turned out, I felt pretty good and operated 34
hours!

Perhaps because the assisted category was so easy (and an eye-opeing novel
experience for me) using N1MM contest software and a telnet connection to the
Carolina DX Assn cluster, I didn't have to strain to listen much.  The S + P,
my strength as a contester, was mostly visual- using a mouse click to go to the
frequency of an unworked station.  I had set up the telnet connection before
with my trusty old TS-850, but not being a DXer, I didn't appreciate its value.
 I was amazed at how easily it worked.

We old-timers remember when all contacts were S + P.  As a novice in 1955, we
were all crystal controlled.  And when I got my General in 1956, the common
phone expression was " CQ CQ CQ... and tuning the band."  Since I have always
operated QRP or LP in contests, I've always done 95% + S + P, usually 100% like
this weekend.  The assissted  S + P is quite different- a single mouse click of
either the incoming spots or the bandmap spots which show only stations you
need, and you're on the frequency of the needed station and usually in the
middle of a pile-up!  I spent a few minutes Sunday afternoon doing traditional
S + P, finding some needed stations and mults with almost no pile-ups, so
assissted does have its disadvantages. Another disadvantage was that on a few
occasions I mindlessly clicked on to an out-of-band station and called. One of
my contacts was out-of-band.

I'm lucky to live on a great hilltop QTH where rather modest antennas are
competitive- an inverted L on 160, a Hygain hytower on 80/40, a 40M dipole at
60' (between two 65' towers), a little tribander at 70', all 200'+ above
average terrain.  

As it turned out, I enjoyed the assisted category and contributed a lot more
points than expected to my Carolina DX Assn club.  In fact, I seem to have a 
competitive score in the new LP Assisted category and didn't even realize there
was such a category until after the contest.  Conditions seemed a little worse
on the low bands than last year, but 15 and 10 more than made up for it.
With some upcoming weekend comittments, I think I will only dabble in the SS's/
CQWWCW/10M and put in a good effort in the 160M test if I get the top of my
inverted L up to 85' or higher by wrestling with a 25' bamboo pole.  The top of
the inverted L is at about 64' now, below the top of the tower and 6M and 432
yagis which I can't rotate when I get it higher. Having passed 70, wrestling
with a 25' bamboo pole on top of a 65' tower is not as easy as it used to be! 
Hope everyone had as much fun as I did.
Doug


Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.hornucopia.com/3830score/