TopBand: Topband Newsletter (Part 1)

[Don Field]

>From Don G3XTT, NK1G (g3xtt@compuserve.com):

My apologies to those of you who are still awaiting the Topband Newsletter
which should have been published some months ago. I have had most of the
material ready for some time now, and am grateful to all who submitted
input. Unfortunately Roger, G3RBP, who holds both the mailing list and the
funds, has not been in a position to handle the printing and mailing as he
usually does. In the meantime, I have decided that I can at least post the
material here, though I realise this is a second best, especially as I had
intende to include some photos in the newsletter this time (one from
OK1DOT, and one I took at the Topband gathering at Dayton last year). I
still hope we can get a paper copy out to those on the list, but this
depends on Roger, as does the question of whether we can and should
continue with the newsletter into the future.

Anyway, here is the first extract from the material I prepared. More to
follow in later postings:

Once again we have benefited from some excellent 160m conditions, and the
DX activity to go with them. Here in Europe we have enjoyed superb
conditions during the early part of the winter season, with a number of
people finally completing WAS. Asian DX has included some nice ones like
XZ1N, A92GD, A61AJ, HS0AC, XX9X, YB1AQS, V85HG and others being worked.
Tougher, but available at times, were XU6WV XV7SW and BV4ME. From Africa,
ZS8IR put in a very welcome, but all too brief, appearance on the band
before extreme weather conditions damaged the Battle Creek Special. Let's
hope he can get back on very soon. 9X4WW has also been a regular, and there
has been activity from TU4FF, VQ9SS, TT8BP, 5X4F, 3V8BB, D68 (by a German
group), ZD7VJ (G4ZVJ), 6W1JX, 5V7A, TO0R (the Heard Is. team from Reunion),
TN6X (DJ6SI), several ZS stations, and a number of others. Those of you in
the US, Oceania and Asia enjoyed lots of Pacific DX to work, including ZK1,
KH8, KH9, C2 and many others. I particularly want to thank Carlos TI2CF for
his efforts as TI9CF as well. He did a great job working Europe, and many
of us caught him on 160 on both CW and SSB, as well as on several other
bands. A great one-man show.
More  recently, the VK0IR expedition was an object lesson in how to make
(almost) everybody happy on 160. They even worked many of those parts of
the world that, from a propagation point of view, they might not have
expected to. Rather like us in Europe being able to work an expedition to
A3 or T3 (which never happens, of course!).  Of over 1500 topband QSOs,
over 130 were with W1 through W4, which is pretty good going! And as I
write this the German team who activated VK9 Cocos and Christmas Islands
last year is QRV as S21XX doing a great job on 160 and the other low bands,
before heading for P2 (now that will be a tough one from western Europe!). 
Conditions during the Phone weekend of the CQ Worldwide Contest were
disappointing for most of us, but nevertheless an outstanding new record
was set by IG9/IV3TAN, operating from Zone 33, and breaking the 100
countries barrier on 160 for the first time. This operation demonstrated
what can be achieved on the band from a good location - the operator was
hearing even very modestly equipped stations in ZS, the USA and elsewhere.
The CW leg of the contest was much better for those of us farther from the
equator, and OT6T, operating in the multi-single category from the
excellent station of John ON4UN, broke the 100 country barrier. Of course,
one of the benefits of being multi-single is that they were able to line up
topband skeds on the other bands, but this in no way detracts from a fine
achievement. As a single-op assisted on 160 I was able to work over 90
countries, which I would not have thought possible, and I certainly never
expected to work XZ as a contest multiplier on 160!
In the ARRL 160 metre contest conditions were good enough to allow large
numbers of  DX QSOs, with European stations able to work most parts of the
US and Canada.  
Looking back to earlier last year, Roger and I were delighted to join the
Topband crowd and Dayton, not least to renew acquaintance with old friend
Dave G3SZA, now better known as AA0RS. But it was also good to put faces at
last to some of those very familiar 160m callsigns.

(news from contributors to follow in Part 2)


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