[3830] WPX CW VY2ZM SOSB160 HP

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                    CQWW WPX Contest, CW - 2020

Call: VY2ZM
Operator(s): VY2ZM
Station: VY2ZM

Class: SOSB160 HP
QTH: PEI
Operating Time (hrs): 18

Summary:
 Band  QSOs
------------
  160:  364
   80:     
   40:     
   20:     
   15:     
   10:     
------------
Total:  364  Prefixes = 248  Total Score = 430,280

Club: Yankee Clipper Contest Club

Comments:

First - congrats to OK6W on a superb score!  I heard his signal over here 1 hour
BEFORE my sunset and for at least 2 hours both mornings after his sunrise in OK
land.  WOW!  That is one fantastic performance.....

By way of background, we remain on total lockdown here on Prince Edward Island. 
No one but essential travel is allowed to come here and I cannot leave the
island - and it is still unknown when I may one day be able to return to the USA
to see my family there. This stringent restriction has helped us though with
COVID 19 to be sure as we have had only 27 cases here on PEI and NO DEATHS.  PEI
thus has the lowest VIRUS numbers in all of Canada except for VY0 and VE8/VY1. 
Ontario and Quebec have had the worst numbers as far as I know - and even
Canadians who own vacation homes here on PEI have not been allowed to come here
since the outbreak.  All cruise ship scheduled stops here on PEI have been
cancelled for this season and, as with many other places, restaurants are
closed.  All local businesses have suffered to be sure - Hell, I cannot even go
play a round of golf!  That too is still not allowed - which means I have had a
lot of time for tower work and antenna repairs.  (HI)

This situation I assumed would prevent K6LA from coming here to activate his
station over at VY2TT on the other side of the island - and that meant that
perhaps I might be the only VY2 really in the contest this time - which I hoped
would be a draw to those operating assisted in NA and elsewhere.

However, WPX and WPX SSB and WPX SSB on 160m are quite unique contests though
with some curious factors:

1) WPX is a RATE RATE RATE contest and most NA stations elect to stay on 20m
during the daytime and on 40m at night.  Some venture to 80m at night but few
really bother with 160m in WPX.  It is almost ALWAYS a "throw-away
band".

2) QRNN levels on 160m in MAY are quite high in NA and the USA which usually
means that very few stations even bother to tune 160m even when they are SO2R -
so any hopes that I might get serious numbers from the USA were quickly dashed.

3) WPX is a challenging contest on any band (perhaps more so than CQWW) because
one needs to pay real attention during qso's in order to exchange and confirm
QSO serial numbers accurately.  In other words, WPX demands real accuracy from
those competing in order to avoid fairly high score reductions.  

Bottom LINE?  Operating this contest (even on CW) on 160m during late May is
really challenging - you gotta be somewhat NUTS to want to do this....


Anyway - It was alot of fun to try to work into EU and I did as well as I could
when we had common darkness.  Except for EU DX, there was really damned little
activity from anywhere else outside the USA.  For example:  No Africans, NO KH6,
etc.  I did manage to work two PY's, a J68, HI8, WP3R and two ZL's at my SR the
first morning.

USA participation was down for sure & only a few of the highest NA scorers
tuned 160m at all but some probably did come down to 160m for a minute or so in
order to work me for the VY2 prefix.  I can imagine that MANY USA entrants did
NOT get the VY2 prefix in this contest - unless there was some local VY2
resident  activity that I am unaware of.

Anyway, I had fun and it was a good test of the station once again and I am VERY
GRATEFUL to all those who I worked this past weekend.  Thanks for calling me and
for being there on Topband.  Hope to CU in the next one - & have a safe
summer...

73 JEFF   K1ZM/VY2ZM

Email:  K1ZM at aol.com


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