[3830] CQWW CW GW6W(GW0ETF) SOSB/40 LP

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                    CQ Worldwide DX Contest, CW

Call: GW6W
Operator(s): GW0ETF
Station: GW0ETF

Class: SOSB/40 LP
QTH: 
Operating Time (hrs): 36

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Zones  Countries
------------------------------
  160:                    
   80:                    
   40: 1531    25       98
   20:                    
   15:                    
   10:                    
------------------------------
Total: 1531    25       98  Total Score = 300,120

Club: 

Comments:

Resisted the temptations of 10 or 15m to see if I could improve on last year's
40m low power effort with the same vertical/doublet combo. 

Found conditions here very variable and particularly poor on Sunday. Very quiet
in the middle part of both days which I presume was due to high D-layer
absorption; at times there were very weak and watery near-EU signals amongst
some louder morning DX which was weird, 40 certainly is an interesting band!
Began really well and I soon imagined I could achieve a 50% increase in my QSO
tally from last year until the daytime doldrums kicked in - good for a bit of
eat/sleep though. When the hoped for appearence of the post lunch casual
contest gang from the US/VE failed to materialise on Sunday evening here, it
was clear I wouldn't be on course for anything dramatic. At that point I
resorted to dozing with the auto CQ and the occasional S&P trawl but it was
depressingly non-productive by then. On the other hand if this is all I have to
moan about then life can't be that bad!

High points:
The good start, breaking some pile-ups which in a contest with low power is
mainly timing and judicious use of XIT, and finding a couple of unworked 3
pointers in the last 5 minutes which wound my score counter just past 300k.

Lows:
Just the one - key clicks! When oh when will many of those A list stations
restrict their rf to where it's supposed to be? Towards the end of the contest
it seemed particularly bad and was very wearing; on one occasion I couldn't
copy a weak NA caller because of atrocious clicks from a station several Khz
away. In these days of SDR and contest recording it would be nice for those
easily identifiable culprits to be penalised for what is afterall a breach of
their licence conditions.

Memorable moment:
Being trapped in my garden shack when a particularly strong gust of wind blew
the external door latch shut! Fortunately it wasn't the middle of night so my
mobile phone call to the xyl brought her stumbling from the house to rescue
me....  

Equipment - K3 and a choice of 1/4 wave vertical with 2 elevated radials and a
30m long doublet at 10m. N1MM software and Winkey

Thanks for all the QSOs, this is one contest where you know all the preparation
will be justified....


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