[3830] ARRL 160 N3UM Single Op HP

[webform at b41h.net]

                    ARRL 160-Meter Contest

Call: N3UM
Operator(s): N3UM
Station: N3UM

Class: Single Op HP
QTH: MDC
Operating Time (hrs): 15.6

Summary:
Total:  QSOs = 700  Sections = 68  Countries = 13  Total Score = 117,531

Club: Potomac Valley Radio Club

Comments:

In the 2012 ARRL 160 I did much better than last year 
(when conditions were terrible), and my claimed score 
was just a hair short of 2010: I got 66 more QSOs than 
in 2010, but 7 fewer mults.  The first night, I heard very 
few west-coast stations: there was "spotlight" propagation, 
with westerners and EUs popping in and out.  The second 
night was a bit better, but still spotty.  I wound up missing 
ND, WWA, NV, MB, NT, NL, and 5 CA sections as well as PR, AK, 
HI, and DELAWARE, next door!  Found 7 EU countries  
plus 6 more DX in NA and SA.  Around 8 PM local time the 
second night, SWR went up: ant. resonance moved 25 kHz 
higher.  Easy to adjust the antenna tuner, BUT when I switched 
to the Beverage, power would leak thru the rig's PIN diode ant.
switches and upset the power control loop, sending TX power 
above max. and crowbaring the power supply.  An inspection  
Mon. showed 30 feet of wire broken off the end of one 
elevated radial by a falling tree limb: the asymmetry dumped 
power into the nearby Beverage (small lot!) and moved resonance.
I didn't panic, because an earlier antenna (inverted L with 
one elevated radial) had caused the same problem years ago. 
But, it was annoying to either do without the Beverage for 
western stations or risk dumping the rig and losing a QSO, 
which happened a few times until I got careful enough.


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