[3830] SS SSB K0HC(W0BH) School Club HP

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                    ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, SSB - 2020

Call: K0HC
Operator(s): W0BH
Station: K0HC

Class: School Club HP
QTH: KS
Operating Time (hrs): 23.2
Radios: SO2R

Summary:
 Band  QSOs
------------
  160:     
   80:  230
   40:  559
   20:  563
   15:  163
   10:     
------------
Total: 1515  Sections = 84  Total Score = 254,520

Club: Hesston College ARC

Comments:

This year has challenged all of us. It was really disappointing to not have a
Hesston College student Sweepstakes team this year, but safety took priority. I
still wanted to put the School category on the air, but going from having the
students operate almost the entire contest to no students was a shock. One hour
at a time!

It seemed unusually hard to find a frequency at first and 15m was open, so I
started out there for 15 minutes before moving down to 20m. My second call on
20m brought VO1KVT, so I hoped MAR and the new PE section would come easily,
too. Same hope for the Caribbean stations. KP2M was easy to work in the VI, so
PR should be easy, too. Wishful thinking.

Several hours in and still on 20m, VE8NSD called in and gave me contact #28.
It's really appreciated when the rare sections search and pounce. This might be
a good strategy given the incredible pileups on the PE and PR stations I tried
to break and couldn't. The first time I heard VY2WW, he was S9+15 on 40m, but I
didn't even get close to breaking the pileup. I know he was frustrated, too. I
ended the day missing PR, MAR and PE.  At least I heard PE.

Sunday is usually predictable. It starts relatively fast, then goes downhill
from there with lots of unanswered CQs. It did start relatively fast, but the
real slowdown never happened. I logged some of the best Sunday rates we've ever
had on Sunday afternoon. Over the last 16 years of Sweepstakes, we've averaged
46 Q/hr the last six hours. This year our average was 59 Qs/hr.

On Sunday early afternoon, it was really nice to operate 15m and get away from
the constant QRM. For a two-hour period, 15m was open to both coasts, and I even
worked NE, OK, MO and IL on backscatter. I did hear some stations on 10m, but it
never really opened here in Kansas.

It was great to hear WP3R on again from PR and fun to give him the S precedence.
We even chatted a bit. I couldn't buy a MAR on Saturday, but a number of them
called in on Sunday, so that left PE.  I found VY2WW on 20m still with a big
pileup, but the beam got me through. It was fun to thank him for the Sweep. To
my surprise, VY2NA also called in and gave me contact #8 via a well-coached op!

This year, seven other School stations made it into our log: K7UAZ W4AQL W5YM
K9IU W9YB W6BB W0EEE. It was fun to chat a bit with each one. A special welcome
back to W6BB (Berkeley)!

We hope 2021 will allow us to once again field a student team. Let's all hope
that's NOT just wishful thinking.

73, Bob, w0bh
trustee, k0hc
Hesston College ARC


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