[3830] CQ160 CW K7KU(K0KR) Single Op HP

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                    CQ 160-Meter Contest, CW

Call: K7KU
Operator(s): K0KR
Station: K7KU

Class: Single Op HP
QTH: Wyoming
Operating Time (hrs): 

Summary:
Total:  QSOs = 360  State/Prov = 52  Countries = 10  Total Score = 53,320

Club: 

Comments:

This was to be a contesting weekend.  It turned out to be a trouble-shooting
one.  I didn't realize until the contest began that the west element of the TX
antenna had become slyly intermittent.  Soon enough, the element failed
entirely, elevating the SWR on the remaining portion of the array.  The elusive
nature of the problem drove me to set a personal record for January tower work: 
twelve trips up the tower, mostly in the teeth of gale-force winds.  But, at
long last, I succeeded in achieving a diagnosis -- after the end of the
contest, of course.  The center conductor of one coax line had opened
internally.  How often does that occur?  

Without the use of a proper TX antenna, I had to settle for plinking for a few
Q's, mostly with low power.  That was fun enough, but not nearly as satisfying
as finally unraveling a challenging antenna mystery.  To those who managed to
hear me, thanks for the Qs!


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