[3830] ARRLDX CW 7J1AAI(W1NN) SOSB/40 HP

[webform at b41h.net]

                    ARRL DX Contest, CW

Call: 7J1AAI
Operator(s): W1NN
Station: JH1GTV

Class: SOSB/40 HP
QTH: Koganei, Tokyo
Operating Time (hrs): 25

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Mults
-------------------
  160:           
   80:           
   40:  822    50
   20:           
   15:           
   10:           
-------------------
Total:  822    50  Total Score = 123,300

Club: North Coast Contesters

Comments:

Thanks again to Shige JH1GTV for allowing me to use his excellent station in the
western suburbs of Tokyo.  His hospitality makes operating there a great
pleasure.

This was the third time I’ve done the ARRL DX CW from the JH1GTV station and
I was able to increase my QSO total by about 125 Q’s this year, as a result
of good conditions and a couple more hours in the chair.  

40 M SOSB from Japan in the ARRL DX is fairly easy on the body.  Activity
begins around 1:30 PM local (0430Z) when the west coast starts to be workable
(at 8:30 PM their time) and ends around 12-13 hours later about two hours after
west coast sunrise.  (There is a long path opening in the 2100Z hour but I’ve
never been able to work more than a couple of stations.)  We have nearly 12
hours off and there is no need to push yourself to stay awake all night long or
operate long hours with no sleep.  On the other hand, doing well requires a lot
of patience and willingness to put up with very low rates.  My overall rate
this year was just about 30/hour and a couple of hours were in the single
digits!  

Normally the 1200Z hour, when the sun is rising in the eastern US, produces the
best rates, with 1100Z and 1300Z also being pretty good, but on Saturday this
year my best rates came in the 0600Z and 0700Z hours (rates of 73 and 79),
while the 1100-1300Z block was very poor.  I’m not sure why.  Signals from
the northeast were especially poor both days this year, and very few W1 and W2
stations made it into the log, perhaps because they were already busy running
on 20 and 15.  Sunday was much more like the normal pattern, and some signals
from the Midwest (W9RE and N8TR) were very strong.  The 0600Z and 0700Z hours
on Sunday only produced 29 and 20 contacts, respectively.  For some reason, on
both days, signals from FL and GA were very strong.  NQ4I, K1TO and K5KG were
very loud.      

Dupes remain a big problem for me.  This year they numbered 49, about 6% of all
contacts.  I believe this is because some stations copy my call as ZJ1AAI, but
another factor may be that sometimes Caribbean stations which I cannot hear end
up on my frequency and we are both working the same stations.  During a large
part of the contest, I believe that that Caribbean stations and JA station are
probably of similar strength into the Western US, which may set the stage for a
lot of dupes.  When I suspect this is happening, I try to QSY a little, but the
band in Japan is usually so crowded that it’s impossible to move very much. 
Sometimes I ask a station to repeat his information just to confirm that he is
actually working me.  In such circumstances I always appreciate it when
stations send my call so I know they are calling me.

Multipliers were pretty tough this year.  I was hoping to reach 52 or 53 but
that was not to be.  After day one, I had 44 and still needed ME, VT, CT, DE,
DC, WV, ND, NE, and all of Canada except for BC and ON.  Day Two finally
brought NE, CT, VE2, SK and MB (thanks VE4EAR) but despite working an unusually
large number of eight area stations, I never did manage to work a WV station. 
As I entered the 1600Z hour, ND still eluded me.  KC0W/M had given me the ND
mult in several contests during 2010 and I kept CQing in hopes that he would
call in.  Finally at nearly 8 AM ND time, a very weak /M station called and
after one or two repeats I confirmed that it was him.  What a thrill!  The mult
total turned over from 49 to 50 and the score jumped by nearly 2,500 points. 
Many thanks, Tom!  

This is one of the best weekends of the year.  Thanks to everyone for the
contacts. 

73, Hal 7J1AAI (W1NN)


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