[3830] WPX SSB KT8K SOAB QRP

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                    CQWW WPX Contest, SSB

Call: KT8K
Operator(s): KT8K
Station: KT8K

Class: SOAB QRP
QTH: EN82cg SE Michigan
Operating Time (hrs): 29:25

Summary:
 Band  QSOs
------------
  160:    0
   80:   18
   40:   90
   20:  104
   15:  177
   10:   18
------------
Total:  407  Prefixes = 296  Total Score = 289,488

Club: Mad River Radio Club

Comments:

I build a 15m half square for this contest and aimed it at Eu, placing it just
below the top of the hill on the NE side ... but the 550' horizontal loop still
beat it almost all the time, and a few times the half square equaled it, but
that was all ... I disconnected the half square on Sunday.  The 20/40/80
inverted vee did a great job on those bands and the loop worked great on 15 and
10m, and the unused antenna was always feeding the secondary receiver in my
right ear - diversity reception is GREAT!  (Anyone want a very stealthy 15m
half square?  You can have it for the taking - I guarantee your neighbors will
have a tough time seeing it and so will you - I used 18 gauge magnet wire!)

CQ3L has great ears - pulled me out under terrible QRM & QSB.  (Thanks!)

20m was a wall of noise most of the time - found myself looking for holes in
the wall.  Lesson learned:  SSB stations don't work too well at 1kHz spacing

1st day propagation not great - signals never got very strong on 20m and up,
15m was the place to be, noise levels were mostly up on all bands here.
2nd morning the EU opening was lousy - I was hoping for 300 Q's but I could
only get 30 in 3 hours after 20 & 15 opened late (and 10 basically didn't)
1230Z Sunday 20m still was not open to Eu ... so I went to 15m and made 2 Eu
Q's right away  .. weird!  How did that happen?
1400Z Sunday Eu was still very weak on 15 & 20m and 10m had only a few stations
via TE mode - not so great - I took what I could get.
2nd day 0425Z - I noticed ops voices were sounding foggy and slowing like a
record slowing down - fatigue was taking a big toll
Then, the last 4 hours or so, I was suddenly being heard on the first call
almost all the time and under the worst conditions on 20 and 40m.  It was like
magic!  Now THAT's fun!

Run stations who don't acknowledge at the end of the contact lose points - If
they get my exchange or call wrong I don't have a chance to correct them, and
then the pileup prevents me from getting their attention again.  Too bad.

20m was so overcrowded and noisy that when I took off my headphones my ears
were smoking ... 

Thanks to all who stuck with me to pull my weak signal out of the QRM.  There
were many amazing moments when someone heard me under QRM so severe I almost
couldn't hear them ... and I bet they were using a lot more power and a lot
better antenna than I was.  
I am looking forward to seeing everyone (possible) in the Michigan QSO Party,
and then in the WPX CW (my favorite).  73 & best rx to all de kt8k - Tim


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