[3830] SS CW N7XU(K4XU) SO Unlimited LP

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                    ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, CW

Call: N7XU
Operator(s): K4XU
Station: N7XU

Class: SO Unlimited LP
QTH: OR
Operating Time (hrs): 23:45
Radios: SO2R

Summary:
 Band  QSOs
------------
  160:    0
   80:  130
   40:  243
   20:  399
   15:  253
   10:   19
------------
Total: 1044  Sections = 83  Total Score = 173,304

Club: Central OR DX Club

Comments:

Knocked off all the usually hard ones early: NL, YT, VI, MB, but sweated out
ONN, VT and NNY. It was impossible to break the pile on the only NNY I could
find. So I went way up the band on 20, found a cozy spot between two loud east
coast stations and resolved to be a CQ'n machine for the rest of the day. It
took about two hours to get them all.
My computer is on 24/7. I had N1MM up for the NCCC Thursday night sprint and
before I left it, I set up the SS, forgetting that I had been previously
wandering around on 20CW and was connected to VE7CC. With the telnet and the
bandmap windows closed for sprint, it wasn't until several hours into the SS
that I decided to use the bandmap and mark all the worked stations calling CQ.
The bandmap opens up with all these skimmer spots... long and short of it, I
was really a U. 
I decided it would be a learning experience. It's very nice for finding places
to CQ. When the rate slows down, you can see new stations pop up on the band -
and so can everyone else! You can just see Joe average ham thinking he'll get
on Sunday afternoon and make a few Qs in SS. He calls CQ once and has an
instant pile-up. Some could handle their five minutes of fame and some not.
My Q score is virtually the same as last year. It felt as though there were not
as many stations on. Even with 10m nearly dead there was very little fighting
for frequencies. Maybe the wider use of Skimmer helps in that regard.
I a little preparing: Spent an hour Saturday morning hanging the club's 2el 40m
wire delta loop up in the front yard Ponderosa. The #%@!! squirrels had it on
the ground Monday morning but it worked through Sunday evening. 80m was quiet
except for the neighbor's plasma TV. Why they're not illegal evades me.

Rigs: K3 and Omni6+, u2R SO2R controller that can't handle dueling CQs. :-(
HF: TH6 at 75', TH3 at 35'
40m: 2el delta loop with the top at 80', orthoginal dipoles at 60'
80m: Inverted V at 73' 

Thanks to all for the Qs.  My hat's off to all the guys in Sandy's path who
showed up regardless, stalwarts W2GD and N2NT running on generators to make NNJ
available.

73,
Dick   K4.. er, N7XU


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