[3830] WPX SSB K7VIT SO(A)AB HP

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                    CQWW WPX Contest, SSB

Call: K7VIT
Operator(s): K7VIT
Station: K7VIT

Class: SO(A)AB HP
QTH: OR
Operating Time (hrs): 23

Summary:
 Band  QSOs
------------
  160:    0
   80:   20
   40:   77
   20:  191
   15:  227
   10:   23
------------
Total:  538  Prefixes = 365  Total Score = 481,070

Club: Willamette Valley DX Club

Comments:

We need to send an invitation to Mr. 10m to come to the party. Another weak
showing by 10m ... and everyone is awaiting the grand performance this cycle.

It was a rough weekend for me with a respiratory bug doing "chair-time" in my
lungs. <Cough cough>. 15m and 20m definitely came to the party. I worked at
least 2 new ones for me, one on multiple bands. <Smile!> It was outstanding to
hear plenty of EU and AF signals coming into what we left coasters think is
also a "black hole" of propagation in the Pacific Northwest.

I have a couple of questions for anyone who has an answer to satisfy my
puzzlement:

1. For the second weekend contest this month, I experienced a skewed heading
for ZL-land. In the WPX-SSB and either the BARTG RTTY or maybe the ARRL DX SSB,
I tuned a station while at the 224 degree heading for OR/K7toZL. Because of weak
signal strength I could not complete the contact, so I turned back through 180
deg. (South, ala Yaesu rotor's 450 deg. rotation) where on both occasions I
found the ZL signal many S-units stronger at about 180 degrees hence the
contact was completed. (No the ant. hasn't slipped on the mast--the headings
are good.) I have experienced skewing on VHF but not such pronounced
directionality and skewing on HF as on these two occasions.  Does anyone have
an answer for this skewing of the signal path?

2. On the second day of the WPX (March 25, 2012, at about 2200 UTC), I
experienced continuous noise at an S-9 level on 10m, 15m, and 20m making all
but the loudest signals uncopiable. Yes, it could have been local electrical
noise I suppose, but I have rarely experienced such a noise outburst in this
locality. There was NO precipitation for rain static on the antennas or power
line/insulator problems. On one occasion, we did have quite an increased noise
level due to solar activity; but I didn't see any indications of such solar
activity on this occasion. This noise continued for the rest of the contest on
15m and on 10m. After 1.5 hours, the noise reduced somewhat on 20m so I
finished there.  Did anyone else experience this noise? Does anyone have an
explanation for this occurrence othere than a local RF random noise source?

Thanks to all who answered my hoarse croaking calls.
73,  Jerry


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