[3830] CQ160 CW KH7A(JA5DQH) Single Op HP

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                    CQ 160-Meter Contest, CW - 2023

Call: KH7A
Operator(s): JA5DQH
Station: KH6ZM

Class: Single Op HP
QTH: VOLCANO, HAWAII
Operating Time (hrs): 26

Summary:
Total:  QSOs = 254  State/Prov = 47  Countries = 13  Total Score = 150,660

Club: 

Comments:

First I want to thank Max KH6ZM for once again allowing me to use their
wonderful station.
This is the fourth year in a row that I have participated in this contest under
my Hawaiian callsign KH7A.
Reading the post here on 3830, I saw that the conditions were relatively good on
the first day, but at least from my side, I felt that the conditions were the
worst I have seen in my 50+ years of 160m experience.
About an hour or so before sunset in Hawaii, there are long stretches of time
when I can hear the mainland US stations but get no response at all. This
happens every year, but this year it was especially bad. This condition often
lasts until sunrise of Europe. During this time, they rarely look toward the
Pacific Ocean. Also, since this contest scores domestic QSOs, they work hard to
make domestic QSOs as if it were a domestic contest. I have to have a very
strong signal to beat them from the Pacific.
I was so skeptical that there might be something wrong with the equipment here
at Max that there was no response. I called and called, but there was no
response at all. I even checked several times to make sure the equipment and
antennas were working properly. The system here is the best we could think of,
with a dedicated 85-foot tower for 160 meters, a 10-meter band 3-element goat
mounted as a capacity hat, wire mesh on the ground, and over 70 1/4-wavelength
radials. Perfectly tuned matching system. Three reflectors are strung in three
directions from the tower, providing a small but gain. This can be switched to
six different directions with a switch. Everything works perfectly. The
reception has four directions, one for NA, for Europe, for JA, and for south,
which are also working perfectly. However, both TX and RX seemed clearly not as
good as usual. KH6AQ, which is only a few dozen miles away, has excellent TX
and RXing. He quickly and easily QSO'd stations that I had been calling for 10
or 20 minutes with no response. I was so stunned by the difference that I often
listened to his QSOs and CQs for a long time. What is the difference? One
conclusion came to my mind. He must be operating on a beach somewhere with a
good location. The difference in signal between him and me always seemed to be
10 to 20 dB. A difference of this magnitude is unthinkable in a normal
location.
I have been on many large DXpeditions to Pacific islands in my younger days. For
example, Kingman Reef, Palmyra Atoll, and Spratly Islands. I was assigned as CW
on the low band. Without hesitation, I set up the highest vertical I could on
the beach and threw the radial into the ocean. I know how well a vertical on the
beach works, and as you know Ken K2KW and his crew have had great success with
vertical antennas on the beach from all over, including 6Y as Team Vertical.
Reading KH6AQ's post on 3830 after the contest, I was relieved to learn that my
guess was entirely correct. The difference in signal strength between his and my
ears was still convincing. I would like to commend KH6AQ for his excellent
behavior and results in this contest.
This year's contest was very hard for two days. I could not QSO a single station
in Africa, I could not hear VK, I heard many HLs and BYs, but no matter how many
times I called them, they never responded. The number of stations, countries,
and S/Ps were much lower than usual, The number of stations, countries, and S/Ps
were much lower than usual, but I was happy to end the contest with two stations
from Zone 16 calling just before sunrise on the second day in Hawaii. It was
also a relief to know that the equipment and antennas were working without
problem.

I want to thank Max and Kathy for their warm welcome as always. I will be back
next year.

See you again everyone in the contest !

KH7A @KH6ZM Station
FTDX-5000, KPA1500 amplifier 1.5KW Output
TX ANT; Vertical with bunch of Radials
RX ANT; Beverages

73,  Aki  KH7A  aka JA5DQH


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