[3830] CQWW VHF W9RM SOAB HP

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                    CQ Worldwide VHF Contest

Call: W9RM
Operator(s): W9RM
Station: W9RM

Class: SOAB HP
QTH: DM58
Operating Time (hrs): 20

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Mults
-------------------
    6:  377   157
    2:   25    16
-------------------
Total:  401   173  Total Score = 73,871

Club: Grand Mesa Contesters of Colorado

Comments:

Well, wasn't THAT special...

Not a single sporadic-E QSO all day on Saturday and the normal mountain west 2M
activity, in other words, nil. Had reasonable success overnight on meteor
scatter, using the by-the-rules chat. I didn't solicit schedules like in June
and worked all contacts by calling (and answering) CQ's, as I wanted to compare
the two different approaches to digital operations. It seems they are roughly
equivalent.

My log had a total of 56 contacts when the clock turned over 1600Z and all hell
broke loose, with 6M suddenly tearing open to the southeast and midwest. There
was very little warning here. Slighly before 1600, I had gotten back in the
chair, as 6, which was still only 'scattery', started to sound 'different'.
Within a few minutes, different had turned into bedlam, with openings
coast-to-coast and VE5 to the Gulf states and, for the next 5 hours, I was
kicking myself for putting off that second 6M antenna. There were times when 3
or 4 would have been better. This was a great example of not having 'too much
antenna', as my little 5 el with nominal directivity and broad front lobe was
able to work 'round the compass without having to constantly rotate. Many
openings were skew path or backscatter/sidescatter, so it was always a guess
where to point.

After stringing together a number of 100+ hrs, what only a few hours before
seemed a utter disaster actually turned into a decent performance, considering
this was really a 4-5 hour contest.  

Oh, I'm pleased to be N0JK's single contact.


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