K3ZO comments on ARRL CW DX Contest

[AA6KX at aol.com]

In a message dated 96-02-20 12:09:49 EST, you write:

> And
>how about that booming signal on 160 from KH6CC at sunrise?  He
>sounded like a W9.  

That was Jack Wheeler, in person.  W6CYX and I were there for the contest and
did all the operating except for a couple of "special" times like the one you
mentioned, when we recruited Jack to show his stuff on 160.  He was really
something to watch--just a straight key and a pencil and paper, yet he had a
rate of over 250/hour (on 160!) for some good stretches.  Jack managed to get
322 QSOs with a mult of 50 for us.  He has a 127' vertical with 50+ radials
under it.  His QTH is at about 2000' on the northeast side of Mauna Kea
(total height almost 14000') on the Big Island.  From his tower you look
straight down the slope of the volcano to the ocean and then it's a straight
shot off to the US. Jack is such a 160 fanatic that he doesn't even have
commercial power out to his place--he uses a 16KW generator instead.  The
generator generates no electrical noise at all, but the rumble of the engine
forces you to wear some heavy earphones.  Jack's XYL has decreed that there
will never again be a 48 hour contest effort from her place because of this
generator noise!  

Having now visited Jack Wheeler's station and watched him operate, I can
truly say I have seen a real (tm) old-time contester in action.  His
home-brew amp uses pre-WWII tubes, and they do glow like nothing I've ever
seen before.  Jack only operates 160 and some limited AM (!) DXing.  The
walls of his shack (and it is a REAL shack) are covered with CQ-160 contest
plaques.  I think Jack said he has won every CQ-160 phone plaque ever awarded
for Oceana.  He will definitely be on this weekend in the phone contest,
determined to win the '96 plaque.

Bruce, AA6KX  

>From n2ic at drmail.dr.att.com (LondonSM)  Thu Feb 22 18:53:17 1996
From: n2ic at drmail.dr.att.com (LondonSM) (LondonSM)
Date: Thu, 22 Feb 1996 11:53:17 -0700
Subject: What REALLY makes you good?
References: <825003643.921808.GARLOUGH at TGV.COM>
Message-ID: <9602221153.ZM624 at dr.att.com>

I agree 100% with that genius, Trey Garlough.  I'll add a few more...

Steve London, N2IC/0
n2ic at dr.att.com

On Feb 22,  7:40am, Trey Garlough wrote:

> 		"There are no secrets!"
>
> It turns out, as with most things is life, that skill and hard work
> pay the most reliable dividends in the long run.
>
> Now for some specific advice.  None of these things are mandatory to
> win, but collectively they really add up:
>
> o Know the code.  50 WPM conversational is a nice milestone --
>   note:  don't try this at home with pencil and paper.

Well, my CW dies somewhere between 45 and 50 WPM.  What is really important
here is to be able to copy a call, the first time, in your head, at 40 WPM.

>
> o Know the bands.  Nothing like knowing the right band to be on
>   to improve your score.

With the current state of the sunspot cycle, this isn't too difficult.  Once we
get sunspots, it's easy to make serious mistakes.  Consult your favorite
expert/hero.

>
> o Know your station.  Knowing whether or not your station has the
>   gusto to run people or crack pileups under given conditions
>   on a given band is a real time saver.

A corollary is to not underestimate your ability to run.

>
> o Stay in the chair.  You can't be the loudest station on the air
>   if you are not on the air.

o Know the callsigns of stations in the target area.  This is strongly related
    to the "operate a lot" advice.  Familiarity with the common callsigns is a
      huge plus.

o Strive for accuracy.  Be extra careful of any call that does not appear with
    Super Check Partial.

o When you are running, REALLY dig for the weak ones.  Don't get lazy, no
matter   how tired you are.  Inability to pull through a calling station is a
personal    defeat !

>
> And now for some general advice:
>
> o Operate a lot.  Experience is king.  I learn something every time I
>   operate.

Even when condx stink, don't give up !  Consider it a learning experience that
will reap dividends in the next contest.


>From Susan M. King" <ku2q at austin.ibm.com  Thu Feb 22 19:23:13 1996
From: Susan M. King" <ku2q at austin.ibm.com (Susan M. King)
Date: Thu, 22 Feb 96 13:23:13 -0600
Subject: Top 10
Message-ID: <9602221923.AA16610 at lucifer.austin.ibm.com>

For Secret #10 of Kris I. Mraz, please substitute:
10. Have a spouse who supports your way of life and
    helps you do the things that are important to you.
Susan  ku2q at io.com
------------------------------------------------

>From millersg at dmapub.dma.org (Steve Miller)  Thu Feb 22 20:09:04 1996
From: millersg at dmapub.dma.org (Steve Miller) (Steve Miller)
Date: Thu, 22 Feb 1996 15:09:04 -0500 (EST)
Subject: Personal Heroes
Message-ID: <m0tphK5-00029eC at dmapub.dma.org>

WA8YVR wrote:
> A very inspiring message from Trey ...
> 
> It makes me think of who my personal heroes are in contesting.  There
> are many.  Most were added to the list in my younger years.  Nowadays
<snip>
> For gentlemanly, classy, professional, stylish operating, its gotta be
> W4KFC.  Nobody else is even close.
> 
> My hero for running a pileup is K1GQ.  Hearing him when he was at
> KH6RS was the best lesson I've ever had in how to transform an unruly
<snip>
> K8MFO is the best guy I've ever heard getting through a pile.  I remember
<snip>
> For seriousness and dedication its gotta be N4AR.  Who else do you

A great list causing me to reflect upon my early contesting years - I'd 
like to add the late KH6IJ, who was also my first QSO with KH6. Accolades 
for Nose's operating is better left for the old timers to describe as I 
would omit far too much of his pre-1980 activity. The last time I worked 
Nose was late one night on 20m SSB after his stroke. His speech was poor 
and he was of noticably lesser acuity than before the stroke. He gave me 
a 59 and I gave a 57 to 58 report (non-contest QSO). He told me to wait then 
proceded to tune up his amp. He came back to me saying "I should be 
louder now". The delight in his voice was obvious as I gave him a 59+ 
report. A few weeks later he became a Silent Key. I'd worked Nose dozens 
of times in my contesting career - I'll always remember that he left the 
airwaves in the true contest spirit - on the air and as loud as possible.

-- 
Steve Miller  WD8IXE
millersg at dma.org

>From Swanson, Glenn,  KB1GW" <gswanson at arrl.org  Thu Feb 22 20:36:00 1996
From: Swanson, Glenn,  KB1GW" <gswanson at arrl.org (Swanson, Glenn,  KB1GW)
Date: Thu, 22 Feb 96 15:36:00 EST
Subject: What REALLY makes you good?
Message-ID: <312CD407 at arrl.org>



     Greetings,

     To pick up just *one* of the comments posted by Trey, specifically,
     "o Know the bands.  Nothing like knowing the right band to be on
                   to improve your score.", here are just *two* observations 
I've made
     recently. They may serve to demonstrate that some folks *work* at
     being "highly accomplished contester[s]." And, just  maybe, a
     "secret" or two will be revealed in the process. What *really* makes
     you good at contesting (or anything else, for that matter)? My 2-cents:

     An experience from just last evening comes to mind. While tuning
     around on 160 meters, I came across Matt, KC1XX, who was in the
     process of comparing his recent ARRL DX CW log with another
     contester who, apparently, had entered in the same class (multi-
     single) as Matt. One (paraphrased) snippet of this QSO: "Okay,
     what time did you make your first contact with Europe on [band]
                   meters?" Answer, "Lets see, we worked EA8XXX at XX:XX 
UTC.
                   And judging by the other call signs in the log from that 
time, it looks
                  like the band was open to southern Europe at that time. 
And, "Okay,
                  our first one was at XX;XX UTC, so you switched to [band] 
meters
                  about X minutes before we did."

     Were they worried about who switched to that band first? Maybe,
     but the main thrust here is that they were going through their logs
     to *study propagation.* What band was open and to where--based upon
     their logged contacts. Who switched to what band, and when, is 
certainly
     more work, this time they are attempting to  *study strategy.* Does all
     this work (study) pay off? Well, let's see who's rumored to be at the
     top of the multi-single category from this contest--well, I'll be, it's 
none
     other than KC1XX. How about that?  Secret: Analyze past 
results/efforts.

     One more quick story. While sitting next to Dan, K1TO, at a multi-multi
     station *prior to* a contest, I observed him sitting off in one corner 
of
     a room adjoining the main station setup. He had a stack of papers in
     his lap and was intently reading them. What was he doing? *Studying*
     sun rise/set tables (as published in the ARRL Operating Manual) to
     *learn* where the sun would be setting or rising at various times. 
Later,
     when he was operating, I watched as he consulted the tables--and
     made (quick) "notes" as he made contacts. Sure enough--he pointed
     out to me just how close (in minutes) the tables had predicted sun
     rise/set times for various areas of the world and how call signs from
     those areas were appearing in our log.  Secret: Study propagation.

     Hope I did not bore you! Nor offend or embarrass Matt or Dan--they
     are however, strong candidates for my personal "hero" list, to be sure! 

                   I can say that I know of no "list" of secrets--there is 
no such thing.
                   Nor, do I believe there are any "secret societies" of 
contesters.
                   I do believe that there may be some things known to those 
that have
                   put in the effort to study, learn, ask questions and work 
towards
                   excellence--and they have *earned* the rights to any 
"secrets" they
                   *may* have uncovered during the process--if any. Secret: 
Work hard;
     and you will be rewarded for your efforts! ("The American Way," No?)

     Whew, and that was two examples--from just one of Trey's points! HI
     A great question--with no 'simple' answer, however.  CQ Contest!

               73, Glenn, KB1GW
               A "second-tier" contester.