[3830] CQWW SSB W6QU(W8QZA) SOAB QRP

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                    CQ Worldwide DX Contest, SSB - 2020

Call: W6QU
Operator(s): W8QZA
Station: W8QZA

Class: SOAB QRP
QTH: San Diego, CA
Operating Time (hrs): 24.8

Summary:
 Band  QSOs  Zones  Countries
------------------------------
  160:    1     1        1
   80:    8     5        5
   40:   18     6        5
   20:   30     8        7
   15:  104    20       32
   10:   29    12       11
------------------------------
Total:  190    52       61  Total Score = 54,579

Club: Southern California Contest Club

Comments:

STATION W8QZA:

Radio: Elecraft K-2, 5 Watts.
Radio: Yaesu FT-817, 5 Watts

Antennas:
  10-15-20 Meters: 3 el Stepp-IR up 32 feet
  40 Meters: 1/4 wave vertical with 3 radials
  40 & 160 Meters: DX-LB trap dipole up 30 feet
  80 Meters: Inverted L with 2 radials
-----------------------------------------------

After years of having trouble free contest operations from my station, Murphy
finally struck. Midmorning on Saturday I started to get reports of audio
distortion and I wasn't able to work stations I'd ordinarily work. Finally, I
switched to my Yaesu FT-817 and it seemed to work. After 4 hours of struggling
with the tiny dial and display, I went back to the Elecraft K-2 hoping for the
best and it worked! Then, with 1/2 hour to go, the problem returned. I switched
back to the FT-817 in time to make one last Q with ZM4T at 23:59 Z!

Thank you to John, K6AM, for helping me to trouble shoot the problem immediately
after the contest. Now I'll see if I can fix it. It will be hard to know if it's
fixed since it only shows up after 15 or 20 hours of op time. I HATE these
damned intermittent problems! 

Conditions were quite good for much of the contest. I started out working about
20 JAs in the first two hours including two on 10 Meters!! I haven't done that
in years! But I still had trouble getting into Europe and only got 5 EU Qs in
the contest.

My best Q was BI4WOP made on 15 Meters an hour before the end. I rarely work
China in contests. 

My most frustrating non-Q was not being able to work RT0F on 40 Meters despite
his having a 40-50 db over signal, and my calling him numerous times over both
nights. My 5 watts just couldn't make it.

160M Thank you to ND7K for working me on one call from AZ! I always get a thrill
from making the 160 double mult Q with my feeble antenna!

80M JA0JHA somehow pulled my signal out of the noise for my only Asia on 80.

40M Pretty normal stuff here.

20M Pretty normal stuff. 15M was open so much that I didn't spend much time
here.

15M BI4WOP was a great surprise. Also worked VE2IM for Zone 2 plus the 5
Europeans. 

10M I was AMAZED to work my first JA in years, ..and then got another!

DXCC was only 34, down from 38 last year. I attribute this to the marked lack of
Caribbean activity due to COVID-19. WAZ was 21, up from 18 last year so I had
better coverage of the globe.

Off continent Qs were 127 up from 83 last year. In fact, all my indices were up
25 to 50% except DXCC.

For sleep, I had 4 1/2 hrs the first night and 5 hours the second. Op time shows
24.8 hours, but this is an under estimate by several hours. Other than sleep,
eat, and an hour or so for exercise, I was in the chair the rest of the time.
The radio switch done three times and several periods of poor propagation with
no Qs were counted as off time, of course.

Well this is late because I had "Grandpa duties" all today.  I love
these contests and do the 8 major contests each year. See you in the CQ WWDX CW
next month.

73,   Bill Parker  W6QU - W8QZA


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