[3830] ARRLDX SSB N4TZ/9 SOAB LP

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                    ARRL DX Contest, SSB

Call: N4TZ/9
Operator(s): N4TZ
Station: N4TZ

Class: SOAB LP
QTH: IN
Operating Time (hrs): 40
Radios: SO2R

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Mults
-------------------
  160:   34    28
   80:   80    48
   40:  152    60
   20:  248    80
   15:  342    87
   10:  903   101
-------------------
Total: 1757   404  Total Score = 2,129,484

Club: Society of Midwest Contesters

Comments:

BAND   Raw QSOs   Valid QSOs   Points Countries
 __________________________________________________________
 160SSB        36           34      102        28
  80SSB        81           80      240        48
  40SSB       152          152      456        60
  20SSB       249          248      744        80
  15SSB       342          340     1020        87
  10SSB       908          903     2709       101
 __________________________________________________________

 Totals      1768         1757     5271       404

    Final Score = 2129484 points.

                            2014 ARRL-DX-SSB N4TZ
                                 Continent List

                    160    80    40    20    15    10   ALL
                    ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---
      USA calls =     0     0     0     0     0     0     0
   Canada calls =     0     0     0     0     0     0     0
       NA calls =    19    23    29    32    40    44   187
       SA calls =     6     6    14    31    34    55   146
     Euro calls =    10    47    93   167   239   744  1300
  African calls =     1     2     2     5     6    14    30
    Asian calls =     0     0     2    11     4     8    25
    Japan calls =     0     2     9     0    11    29    51
    Ocean calls =     0     1     3     3     8    14    29

    Total calls =    36    81   152   249   342   908  1768

Conditions were great!  Unfortunately, my station didn't keep up
with them. Friday morning, one of my radios wouldn't boot.
Couldn't find the problem, so moved it out of the console and
put the  back-up rig in.  (Today, the offending rig seems to 
work ok.)

After the cw weekend, I noticed that the TIC ring
on the lower 20 was about 100 degrees off - that is how much
calibration it lost during the contest, so that at the end
of the cw weekend I had it pointed for minimum signals.
I was able to climb the tower and recalibrate the antenna 
before the fone weekend.  However, during a storm we had in
between, my bottom 15 meter yagi lost its reflector, and
the weather didn't improve enought to drop it and fix it.
The 160m antenna is hung from a rope and pulleys on the tower;
during one of the storms, the rope (a continuous loop
through pulleys at top and bottom) had sagged about 10 feet.
I tightened the rope up Friday afternoon.  Just before the
contest I had to drive to the city to pick up some tickets
for a Irish dance program for my wife (last minute request).
Got back just before sundown, and turned the top 10/15 toward
JA for the beginning of the contest. I noticed the control
box meter stopped turning and the motor didn't kick off.
I ran outside and found the top 10/15 had caught in the 
support rope for  the  160 meter antenna.  I loosened the
rope, and the antenna element released, but with a huge
bend so it wouldn't clear the guy wires any more.  I
turned it back to the NE and parked it for the weekend,
and raised the 160m antenna as the sun set.

Then, during the night, I noticed that the prop pitch rotor
for the top 20 and 40 had stopped at about due north.
I thought it had frozen from the cold, so turned on the 
heater, but even an hour of heating didn't thaw it. I 
tried from time to time for the rest of the contest, but
as of this writing it is till pointed Due North.
At this point I was down to two rotating antennas:
the 10/15 at 42' and the 20/40  at 61'.  I was afraid
to turn the lower 20/40 any more than necessary so
just turned it from time to time from NE to SE.  At the
end of the contest it was still pointing in the correct
direction, but it was almost impossible to work EU on
40 Sunday afternoon with that antenna, while the top
antenna pointed Due North didn't even raise a reply.

I spent a lot of time and energy Sunday trying to figure
out any way to get the top antenna turned back to EU
again, but the weather forecasts for a major storm
kept me from trying any outdoor solutions. The storm
did not materialize.....

I did have some good times.  I had a 60 minute hour
with 150 QSOs Saturday morning (10 meters).  TR4W did
fine keeping up with the recorded audio files at that
rate.  As has been the  case in recent years, the
computer has done my talking for all of the QSOs.

Sure wish I could have given N5AW and W9RE a better
run for their money.  Did finally edge Marvin in 
multipliers.

I need to find a way to have better redundancy on the
antennas.  Perhaps a second tower might be in order.


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