[3830] ARRL 10 EI2CN SO CW Unlimited HP

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                    ARRL 10-Meter Contest

Call: EI2CN
Operator(s): EI2CN
Station: EI2CN

Class: SO CW Unlimited HP
QTH: Ireland
Operating Time (hrs): 20

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Mults
-------------------
   CW: 1381   141
  SSB:           
-------------------
Total: 1381   141  Total Score = 778,320

Club: 

Comments:

Friends,
     This is one of the very best contests not just about the best ARRL
contest.   I wish the 160M ARRL contests also allowed all participants to work
everyone in the world with all QSOs counting the same.   This is not to take
from Stew Perry or CQWW which are also excellent.    The activity on 10M is
much improved because of this test   Small stations in Europe can get on and
work Europe if that is all they hear but when North America is coming in of
course they work North America.   I guess that this also benefits USA
operators.   

      I am a believer in the casual contester who gets on as it suits and makes
QSOs which might otherwise be difficult to achieve.   These people furthermore
provide maybe the bulk of the contesters contacts.   So this is win-win.    

     It is interesting that some of my friends who are not confident enough yet
at CW to make regular QSOs get on with Morse readers and canned messages to use
CW as a digi-mode, which for them it is.   Great it keeps CW alive and
persuades some to further develop Morse skills.

     I was tempted to treat this contest as a casual operation having just come
off a major contest two weeks past.   However, I got sucked in and put in twenty
hours.    On the second day I was ready to throw the towel in as I felt punk but
last years score was in sight and I wanted to at least best it.   This year my
claimed score is 778,000 which may beat last years score of 750,000.   We shall
see.

    Conditions were not as good on ten meters for this contest as others
earlier in the year.   Previously this year I have hit around 140 DXCC entities
on ten meters but this time it was a lowly 85; with 56 states and provinces as
well.   I just found conditions were down though there was no lack of activity.
  Only one JA was worked and this was on long path, no ZL or HL are in the log. 
 Of course China is easy these days and so too is HS.   Thankfully ham radio has
become more popular in these countries - the world changes.   

    I had my normal pipeline to the western USA including of course the west
coast but signals were weaker considerably weaker.   Oh it is nice to have my
fellow Europeans to the back of the beam and for them to slide into darkness so
much earlier.   The second day was worse than the first day and I suppose this
was due to a minor solar disturbance.   On day two the band seemed to die by
18:30 a good hour earlier than on Saturday. 

    It is interesting to work so many USA stations just riding above the noise
as was the case at the later end of Sunday.

    Ten meters is such a lovely band you can move up to 28.073 or such and
avoid much of the QRM.   Many were much higher.   I learned the trick of moving
up the band from OK1TN years ago watching him on TB whilst he was operating from
EI.  It just makes sense to be able to copy without so much crap on the side and
often on the same frequency.   I pray that I see 10 open again in my life time.

     I worked straight through on Saturday and felt dreadful by 20:00.   On
Sunday I took two 45 minute breaks and did not feel so bad.   I feel that my
XYLs head cold has made the jump.    This was not a good score to my mind.   As
stated I found conditions good but certainly not great.    Still in a couple of
years the dream of this year will be a fond one.

K3 and P3
Acom 2000A at 1500 W the EI contest power limit
4 element SteppIR Yagi at 24M or 80 feet
micro Keyer II
WinTest 

          73 & Happy Christmas Doug EI2CN


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