[SCCC] CQWW CW W6PH SOAB HP

[W6ph at aol.com]

CQ Worldwide DX Contest, CW

Call: W6PH
Operator(s): W6PH
Station: W6PH

Class: SOAB HP
QTH: Lone Pine CA
Operating Time (hrs): 39

Summary:
Band  QSOs  Zones  Countries
------------------------------------
160:  26    12       15
80:  134    24       65
40:  343    33      103
20:  544    35      111
15:  337    30       94
10:   76     16       31
-------------------------------------
Total: 1460   150    419  Total Score = 2,326,072

Comments:

IC-781 AL-1200 CT-DOS 9.57

Antennas:  (Field Day style except A3S)
160m  Inverted L 
80m  Half slopers (NE and W from 60 ft AB-577 masts)
40m  40-2CD at 60 ft (AB-577 mast)
20m  3 el yagi at 60 ft (AB-577 mast)
15m  5 el yagi (WD8IXE/N8SM design) at 55 ft (AB-577 mast)
10m  A3S on permanent 40 ft Rohn 25

This is about as much fun as you can have with your clothes on.

As has been noted, the low bands were in great shape.  For me to
work more than 30 countries on 80m is a challenge.  It was a real
rush to get answers from European stations.  I changed 80m antennas
to slopers this year and they helped a lot.  There was definitely
discrimination between the two of them.

I don't usually operate this many hours but there were no slow times.
It started spitting snow on Saturday night about 7 pm and all of the 
sudden I got some S9+ static from power line noise (moisture on the
dirty insulators) and decided to catch some sleep.  I went back out 
to the radio shack which seventy feet behind the house about 2:30 
am and it was completely quiet again as the precipation had stopped 
around midnight.

Most of my operating is starting at one end of the band and working
every new station I hear.  The multipliers kept coming.  

I got on 20m in the morning as soon as the band opened and 
checked 15 m to see when it opened to Europe to be sure to be 
there as the band would only be open for an hour.  Despite 
that I was able to pick up a bunch of central and southern 
European stations but no zone 16 or Scandinavia.  As soon as the 
band started closing I went back to 20 meters to work the end of 
the European opening.  Then it was up and down 20 and 15 all day 
while checking 10 meters frequently.

Not much happening on 10 meters on Saturday but Sunday was good 
with short openings to a lot of the Caribbean and west Africa and all 
day to zone 11, 12, and 13.  The only other openings were to zone 1 
late Saturday and catching KH6ZN Sunday afternoon with the A3S 
pointed west.  

I usually spend the last hour on 20 meters filling in needed multipliers 
but I already had over 100 countries there and decided to call CQ on 15 
meters which resulted in an endless string of JA callers as well as five 
new multipliers.  

I should have called CQ more often but I thought S&P was more productive.
I really need to rethink that in the future.

I was happily surprised at the great conditions even though the
solar flux number was lower than it had been.

I echo the gripe about stations not signing their call signs.  I 
congratulate 8P5A and VP2E/K1XM who signed after every QSO.  
My patience grows short after five contacts without signing.  I'm 
always reluctant to move on and I seem to end up sending "CALL?"

I spent the days before Thanksgiving putting up my temporary
antennas for the contest and I was very happy with the way they
worked other than 160m.  (I don't have the space for the K2KQ
double L.)  They will all come down when the wind lets up and 
stay down until next year.  I'll see everyone from VP9 in both 
ARRL's.

73, Kurt, W6PH