[3830] TBDC K1LT Single Op HP

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                    Stew Perry Topband Challenge

Call: K1LT
Operator(s): K1LT
Station: K1LT

Class: Single Op HP
QTH: EM89ps Ohio
Operating Time (hrs): 14

Summary:
Total:  QSOs = 656  Total Score = 2,501

Club: Mad River Radio Club

Comments:

The Stew Perry W1BB Topband Distance Challenge is my favorite contest.
There should be a 2 day version of this contest, but I don't think we
can squeeze another contest into the calendar.  Maybe Congress can
move New Year's Day later by a week so the TBDC can always fit between
Christmas and New Year's Day.

The power line noise that appeared just before the ARRL 160 contest
has been fixed.  I used an MFJ-852 to isolate the noise to a single
power pole about 1500 feet from element 2 of the phased array (the
other elements are all slightly further away).  The power company
fixed it within 3 business days of my call.  I spent quite a bit of
time talking to the power company noise guy about the cost versus
benefit of fixing noise problems.  According to him, the only benefit
the power company gets is better customer relations.  He reports that
most noise complaints come from hams, and that they are not always
successful in fixing problems.  I'm hoping to maintain a good rapport
with this guy so I can get other noise problems fixed in the future.
After his crew finished swapping out a "combo" lightning arrester and
service disconnect switch, he came by the property for a quick tour of
the antenna systems.

Both instances of the Northwest noise (a near one and a distant one)
both stayed away until sunrise.  Along with the lack of thunderstorms,
the band was very quiet with just a bit of static after midnight.

Since hunting through all of the receive antennas after each CQ is
such a chore, I added a 2nd beam and receiver to the phased array
receiver system.  The 2nd beam can be directed independently of the
main beam, as long as both are in the same half of the azimuth (east
or west).  The signal searching tactic this year was this: 2 east
directions on the phased array receiver and 2 west directions on the
K3 in diversity mode.  Note that the phased array receiver is
inherently diversity mode.  After each CQ, I would listen for about 2
seconds east, then through the audio switches to the K3 and listen
fore about 2 seconds to the west.  Nevertheless, there are still blind
spots in this arrangement, so if your signal is not strong enough to
overcome a null, I won't hear you.

Some day I must finish the "signal searching" software that I started
a couple of years ago and then abandoned.

Conditions were unusual.  Propagation to the east was very spotty and
generally weak.  Both UU7J and UW2M came right back easily when
called, yet I could only solicit a K1? from RL3A and LY7M.
Propagation to the west seemed good, but maybe that was an illusion
because normally propagation to the west from here is obscured by
power line noise.

I made a few more contacts and points that last year, but last year
the noise problems were much worse.  Here is an interesting table:

        raw     raw    points  cooked  cooked  points   ratio
year   QSOs    score  per QSO   QSOs   score  per QSO

2005    491     2033    4.14    483     2439    5.05    1.22
2006    604     2224    3.68    didn't submit log in time
2007    691     3712    5.37    669     4293    6.42    1.19
2008    633     3328    5.26    617     3895    6.31    1.20
2009    761     4006    5.26    737     4871    6.61    1.26
2010    642     2477    3.86    623     2931    4.70    1.22
2011    656     2501    3.81

Note that the "scored" points per QSO includes the multiplier for
working low power and QRP stations and removes the points attributed
to busted calls.  Nevertheless, the final score is just about 20%
greater than the raw score.

Worked 259 grids and 62 DX contacts: CE, DL (9), E7, EA, EI, F (4), FM
(2), G (6), GW (2), HA (2), HI, HP, I, KH (3), KL (2), KV (2), LY, OH
(4), OK (3), OM, ON, P4, PA (2), PJ2, S5, SM (3), UA, UR (2), XE, and
YL.  FN20 was the most popular grid.  I only worked one other instance
of my grid, EM89.

Equipment: K3, ETO-91B (thanks Jeff), 65 foot "T" with 75 radials, 6
2-wire center-fed Beverages, 4 element broadside array of 2 element
end-fire arrays steerable via software radio (see Dec. 2009 QEX), and
Writelog.


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