[3830] ARRLDX SSB E51YNB(N6NB) SOSB/15 HP

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                    ARRL DX Contest, SSB

Call: E51YNB
Operator(s): N6NB
Station: E51YNB

Class: SOSB/15 HP
QTH: Rarotonga, S.Cook Is
Operating Time (hrs): 11

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Mults
-------------------
  160:           
   80:           
   40:           
   20:           
   15: 1442    58
   10:           
-------------------
Total: 1442    58  Total Score = 250,560

Club: Southern California Contest Club

Comments:

This was my first real DXpedition ever--unless you count operating in Mexico
about 15 miles from the U.S. border in 1983.  After 55 years on the air, this
was overdue.

Carrie (W6TAI) and I went to Rarotonga in the South Cook Islands mainly for a
vacation, but we took along an IC-7000, a small THP amplifier and a 2-element
Yagi for 15 meters.  The antenna and a 15' mast were broken into short pieces
to fit in a 30" rolling duffel bag.  We stayed at the same motel where the E51Z
group operated CQ WW SSB last fall and benefited greatly from their experiences
on the island.

I obtained the E51YNB license as a member of the E51Z team but decided to
reschedule my trip because Carrie couldn't go then due to work commitments.  We
chose travel dates that included part of the ARRL SSB DX Contest weekend even
though we knew we couldn't be there for the full contest.  There's only one
flight each week from Rarotonga to the United States--and it's on Saturday
night.  We couldn't stay an extra week and the only other way to get back would
have involved flying south to New Zealand and then backtracking past Rarotonga
to the US (a 4,000-mile detour).  Carrie opted to concentrate on hiking and
bicycling instead of getting an E51 license, so I was in the single operator,
single band category, operating a total of 11 hours Friday afternoon and
Saturday before packing up to catch the plane.

I was astonished by what I heard during the contest.  The pile-ups were huge. 
This doesn't happen much on 10 GHz or even two meters, the bands where I
normally operate!  Having to dig calls out of the bedlam made for a really fast
introduction to DX contesting 101.  Most of the operators on the domestic end
were patient and cooperative.  THANKS!  

All of the United States and Canada were loud at the same time all day long. 
The suitcase station seemed to work really well and conditions were excellent. 
I made 1,442 contacts in 11 hours over distances that ranged from 4,600 to 8,000
miles.  I think a more experienced DX contester could have made twice that many
Qs in the same amount of time under those circumstances, but it was a memorable
experience for me.

73,

Wayne, N6NB/E51YNB
(K6YNB, 1957-77)


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