[CQ-Contest] CW Sprint Ramblings & Questions

[Doug Klein]

I think the big barrier for me is my CQ being heard by people 
cruising the band.  I know I am guilty of tuning the band and
stopping on the LOUDEST signals.  The weaker CQ's get skipped over (or
maybe covered by adjacent qrm?).   I'm one of the 
weaker ones who got passed up alot last night.  I bet 20% or less of  
my CQ's were answered last night.  On 20 meters where my wire was a 
weak sister, it was nearly 0%.

Perhaps we need to focus on building Sprint antennas that are optimized for 
the Sprint, not the DX contests.  I submit that (from this part of the 
country) the best SS and Sprint antennas are the ones that are 
very efficient, low and with some VERY high angles of
radiation.   Not 4 over 4 at 120'.

Next Sprint, I am going to put up one of the 2 element
wires beams... you know, the ones with the reflector UNDER the
radiator.  I'll let you all know if it improves my luck on CQ's.

>From Kentucky, on 20 meters very FEW of the people in the large population
areas
(W1,2,3,8,9) are in our skip zone.  They're too close.  There are simply
not enough W6's and W5's to hit 100 qsos on that band.  

But, this could all change under different conditions.  The sun sets here at
about the start of the sprint.  The skip is very long.  I was hearing UA1's
and 
SM's 10 minutes before the start.  If you throw in some sunspots, there 
could be some short skip, or better backscatter on 20 meters.

The Sprint is a game of angles... angles of radiation, that is.

Enough of my ramblings for now...

Sure enjoyed the sprint. 

vy 73, 

Doug K4LT (ex - WD8AUB)


Doug Klein, K4LT  K4LT at fuse.net




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