[CQ-Contest] Be careful

[Kelly Taylor]

Hello all,

Whenever the 'big antennas put me at a disadvantage on a city lot' argument
comes up, I always think back to ops who have achieved incredible things
from modest stations.

VE4GV: Low-power phone SS record. From a single-tower station that doesn't
even have effective 80-meter capability 'cuz his lot is too small.

K6LL: Perennial SS top tenner. From a single-tower station on a city lot.

VE4VV: one-time SS CW LP record-holder. At the time, from a single-tower
station on a city lot.

ZF2NT (N6NT): set an ARRL DX CW record on a beach in Panama with a single
vertical. A friggin' radiates-poorly-in-all-directions vertical!

Heck, I did top five in SS Phone LP one year from a city lot station with a
42-foot tower, TA33 and G5RV @35 feet, a year after missing top ten from
behind WB0O's Alpha feeding twin TH7DXXs and four squares on a 300-foot
hill.

There's more to winning, and losing, than hardware. None of these folk has
ever complained about being disadvantaged.

73, kelly
ve4xt

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Bill Coleman" <aa4lr at arrl.net>
To: "Richard Detweiler" <rdetweil at hotmail.com>
Cc: <k-zero-hb at earthlink.net>; <CQ-CONTEST at contesting.com>
Sent: Friday, December 31, 2004 9:05 AM
Subject: Re: [CQ-Contest] Be careful


>
> On Nov 30, 2004, at 11:55 AM, Richard Detweiler wrote:
>
> > Some of us ,  really don't have that kind of funding, land or local
> > permissions, even we may have the skills.
>
> I doubt it.
>
> Seriously. Back in 1995, I thought I was a pretty good phone operator.
> The late W4AN invited me to take the helm of his budding superstation
> in Dahlonegah, GA for SS Phone. I thought it would be the answer -- I'd
> no longer be station-limited, and I'd be able to show off my skills.
>
> Boy, was I wrong.
>
> I was completely inadequate. I couldn't use the superstation to its
> full effectiveness.
>
> We often harp on geographic, station and propagation inequities in
> contesting. The reality is, there's a heck of a lot more skill involved
> than any of us is willing to admit. Just look at WRTC! Here are the 100
> best operators in the world, and yet their scores reflect a 3-4 fold
> difference!
>
> It's better to embrace the limitations. Just how well can you do with
> your limited budget, land or permissions? Can you beat last year? Can
> you beat your personal best? Can you beat that guy upstate with a
> bigger budget, land and no restrictions? Are you using your modest
> station to its fullest potential?
>
> Bill Coleman, AA4LR, PP-ASEL        Mail: aa4lr at arrl.net
> Quote: "Not within a thousand years will man ever fly!"
>              -- Wilbur Wright, 1901
>
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