[3830] CQWW CW NS3T SOSB/40 LP

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CQ Worldwide DX Contest, CW

Call: NS3T
Operator(s): NS3T
Station: NS3T

Class: SOSB/40 LP
QTH: MDC
Operating Time (hrs): 9

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Zones  Countries
------------------------------
  160:                    
   80:                    
   40:  122    19       56
   20:                    
   15:                    
   10:                    
------------------------------
Total:  122    19       56  Total Score = 23,025

Club: Potomac Valley Radio Club

Comments:

Murphy really crushed me this weekend.  This CQWW CW was different, because I
was prepared.  There was no last second antenna work before the contest. 
Everything was set and tested.  I had time to put up extra antennas just for a
single band entry on 40 meters, and I was ready to go.

You could tell that conditions weren't the greatest in the 48 hours before the
contest started, and that continued through the weekend for me on 40 meters.  

I managed to get a few EU stations in the log in the first 45 minutes, and that
was it from that part of the world until the last few hours of the contest for
me.  I never even heard any stations from EI, ON, PA, SM, OH, OZ or LA.  And it
was a struggle to get any zone 15's in the log even at the end.  I never was
able to even get a zone 20 station in the log.

But the conditions weren't the biggest problem, as just about 0230z on the
first night, my main radio went belly up.  No warning.  No sign of any issues. 
It just stopped transmitting.  Wouldn't even work with a dummy load.  The backup
radio should have been fine, but it was balking at the antennas that worked
great for my regular rig.  So, the first night turned into hours of swapping
out cables and cords and more, in search of something that would work.  I never
really fixed that, so I limped on through the weekend with a backup rig that was
putting out maybe 60-70 watts at most.

Once it was over, I was glad that I didn't quit, even if my score was low.

Lowlights included the usual - stumbling on some juicy double mult and not
getting a "?" at any point.  Just not enough low power juice to get
zones like 18, 26, 29 and 32.  And I never heard a JA.

Highlights included breaking through pileups with my bad radio for something
new, and as well as hearing HS0ZAR from zone 26 for the first time.  Fred K3ZO
said their 40 meter antenna was much improved, and he had a howling pileup on
Saturday morning to prove that - but I couldn't get through.  I did snag VK2DX
well after sunrise,  so that was a keeper.

Hope your weekend was better!

73 Jamie NS3T


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