[3830] CQWW SSB ZD8O(N5ZO) SOAB HP

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                    CQ Worldwide DX Contest, SSB

Call: ZD8O
Operator(s): N5ZO
Station: ZD8O

Class: SOAB HP
QTH: Ascension Is
Operating Time (hrs): 48

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Zones  Countries
------------------------------
  160:    5     4        4
   80:   35    14       19
   40:  371    22       71
   20: 1259    33      109
   15: 1378    31      112
   10: 2962    32      119
------------------------------
Total: 6010   136      434  Total Score = 10,182,480

Club: Southern California Contest Club

Comments:

This was my 3rd time to the "rock" and I had high hopes after suffering antenna
failures during the contest in past two years and wasting operating time on
fixing those.  Objective was to make it to top ten finally from this low band
challenged location.

I arrived to Ascension on Thursday morning more than week before the contest. 
Every time the operation is complete field day set-up since there is nothing
permanent related to ham radio on the site, and one of the biggest jobs is
already the hauling all the gear to the site as well as packing it up
afterwards.  This year we planned operations so that I set up the station and
antennas and operate SSB and we leave station up until CW and Oliver W6NV
operates CW and then takes stuff down and packs the station.  In Ascension one
does not have much supplies available so it is necessary to understand to last
screw and connector everything that goes into station but after doing it
already twice I had pretty good understanding of what was there or needed to be
taken with me on rather luggage constrained flight from UK.

By late Monday I had set-up majority of the station already, which consisted
this year of 2 small A3S tribanders on separate abt 30 ft tall push-up masts,
40 m vertical and fanned inverted-V for 80/160  raised on tree.  I had planned
for some further improvements and wires for later on the week, but that did not
happen.  When straightening last radials of 40 m vertical on steep slope, I
slipped on old, wet stone stairs and sure enough next day x-ray done at islands
small clinic revealed fracture on my left wrist.  I knew already then that
contest operation was going to be far from easy if I was even going to operate
at all. I was actually somewhat surprised that the doctor did not send me off
the island on that Tuesday night on scheduled flight.  Also, he did not cast my
arm either as he told me RAF would not let me board on flight back with cast on.
 Instead he gave me what they had, ie wrong hand and couple numbers too small
splint to wear on injured arm and some anti-inflammatories and painkillers and
he said fracture was in "rather good location and had not moved too much" and
that I could try to operate my contest and return on flight week later.  I did
also make personal decision then to proceed with operation instead of trying to
get on plane back to UK that night.  If there would have been "spare" operator
on the island, I would have actually taken the flight out, but it seemed like
shame after all the work not to put ZD8 as well as zone 36 on air especially as
the doctor did not seem to object me on proceeding with the operation.

On Thursday night before the contest I had really tough time to get sleep until
very late, the arm was bothering me too much and seemed to be always in very
uncomfortable position on that junk splint. Finally I did sleep and was
actually able to snooze until around 11 am, and that was actually my last sleep
until after the contest.  During Friday my arm kept bothering me and I started
to notice some more swelling on it, and I knew that contest was going to be
difficult. Ascension is on GMT time, so contest started at mid-nite and
conditions seemed excellent on high bands and rather poor on all low bands.  It
was going quite well until half way, I had about 3950 QSOs at mid-point, which
was much better than last year.  It was total one hand operation from beginning
to end, as I was not able to do anything, not even turn VFO or RIT with my left
hand.  I somehow got thru 2nd night and had been able to at least get basic
multipliers worked on 40 and few on 80 as well.  160 was pretty useless this
year again.  But when 2nd morning arrived my arm got better of me, pain and
discomfort was just too much to handle and I started to loose my focus, I was
too exhausted and had really tough time to stay awake and on chair almost rest
of the whole contest.  By Sunday morning my left arm had swollen to twice the
normal size due to fluids accumulating on it and I had to remove the splint and
I tried my best to rest the arm on pillow that I placed between myself and
operating table.  Also, since I did all keyboarding and everything else with my
right hand, it also started to bother me.  Anyway, I did manage the contest to
the end by taking lots of small brakes, but my operating was rather incoherent
for rest of the contest I'm sure.  I'm also sure the medication with sleep
deprivation did not help.

I left the island then on Tuesday after the contest and had 2 long and very
uncomfortable flights from Ascension to UK and then to California, making it
home for Thursday night.  On Friday I then spent most of the day at hospital
where the wrist that had already started to heal was actually "set" to right
position and casted from elbow down for next 4 weeks which will then be
followed by smaller cast for another 2 weeks.  The doctor here says that hand
should eventually be very close or same as before the injury.  But it does look
like it will be best to cancel my original CW contest travel plans now.  I had
plans to collect new zone 16 this year on CW, but I may have to execute my
ultimate back up and operate from zone 3 instead, tbc.  Maybe for next year I
will make another effort from ZD8...

There is lesson on my injury which is that it could really have been much worse
and one should always have at least someone to get help if some accident can
happen when working on station set-up.  Note that I was working on radials and
not even climbing towers.  When I fell, I also hit my head, my back in couple
places as well as also my other hand.  Should any of those other parts of my
body been also injured, situation would have been very dire.  It was the end of
the day and I was on mountain totally alone without anyone coming to visit
around the area until sometime next day.  Since QTH is rather high, it is cold
and rainy all the time.  I could in worst case have been unable to make it to
cottage without help and it would have been very uncomfortable night outside. 
At the end I was lucky !
73 de Marko N5ZO / ZD8O


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