[CCF] OH8X - CQWW SSB 2015 - SB 15m

[pasi at luoma-aho.fi]

                     CQ Worldwide DX Contest, SSB

Call: OH8X
Operator(s): OH6UM
Station: OH8X

Class: SOSB/15 HP
QTH: Arcala
Operating Time (hrs): 39
Radios: SO2R

Summary:
  Band  QSOs  Zones  Countries
------------------------------
  15:   4187    38      153  Total Score = 1,810,107


Club: Contest Club Finland


Comments:

I decided to face the potential propagation risk and operate SB 15m instead of
my usual SB 20m.  This final ("last minute") decision was very much
encouraged by the fact that the existing OH 15m SB SSB record has  
lived already
for 27 years! (OH5BM, 1988)

The start wasn't good and I went to bed for a couple of hours.  And then,
with the sun came the propagation!  Yezz!  Great JA runs followed by even
greater US runs.  Even both at the same time!  And much, much less QRM than on
my looong time favorites 20m and 40m.  I love this band!  (Beware Toivo, ES2RR
!) :)

The existing 15m SB OH record was passed already on Sunday morning  
(05z).  Next
target was to beat last year's zone 15 winning score.  This was reached some 6
hours later (11z).  What the heck is happening here?  I seem to be  
doing pretty
well.  What¡¦s the zone 15 record?  No idea.  Who cares?  I got Hungry!  How
far is the EU record?  Really?  It's only some 400 kPts more than my score
now and I've still got 13 hours to go!  Piece of cake that is!

If only the propagation gods had agreed with me...

The band started going down on Sunday afternoon and for the last 4 hours the
band was practically dead for me. :(  I finally struggled up to only  
some minor
30+ kPts behind the existing EU record.  But hey -  I did already smell it! :)

Well - you can't always get them all, can you.  Yet, I'm very happy to claim
both a new OH 15m SB SSB record and a new zone 15 record, the latter also with
a nice marginal to another "oldish" existing one (9A9A, 2003).

BIG TNX to the Radio Arcala team, and especially to my good old friend Veijo
OH6KN, for making this yet another great radio contest weekend up in the North
possible for me!  Contest and friendship IS!


73 es cu in CQWW CW

de Pasi OH6UM/OH2IW