TopBand: Anecdote from ZS

[Larry Menzel]

Gene,

I'm sorry the ragchewers didn't sieze the day, but if you'll refer to the
solar/terrestrial indicies from last night, I think the reason the band was
quiet is attributable to numbers like SFI=89  A=25  K=3....awful for dx, ok
for ragchewing.  All that absorbtion results in DX AIN'T.  I'm amazed you
heard anything at all last night.

73 and look forward to working you often this year.

Larry N0XB
Northfield, MN



At 09:06 AM 10/2/97 +2, gsmith wrote:
>Went into the shack at 0327z this morning, and tuned from 1815 to 
>1835.  Nothing heard.  Up to 1851 to listen to the Differential GPS 
>"beacon" in Eu.  Much weaker than normal.
>
>Back down to the CW end, but wait, that sounds like SSB on 1850.
>Possibly a local farmer?.  Switch to wide filter (CW filter is only 200z
> wide).  Sure enough, ragchew, but with NA accent!
>
>Tried a call.  It went something like this.
>
>        Ragchew
>        Ragchew  (A solid 57)
>        Pause
>        QRZ from ZS5K
>        That sounded like a DX station.  Who's the DX from KD3PX?
>        KD3PX from ZS5K, ZS5K, over.
>        It's a bit weak, doesn't sound like DX anyway.
>        Ragchew
>        Ragchew
>
>I do appreciate that not all folks are interested in DX on topband, 
>but it seems a helluva waste of an opening, especially as nothing 
>else at all was heard this morning.  OH2BUA only had two topband 
>postings between 00z and 0530z!  The fewest I've seen since being on 
>the band.
>
>Do these localized openings often occur?  A couple of weeks ago, I 
>worked 12 stations in the morning lift, and they were all 8's, 9's & 
>0's.  Time was 0320 to 0350, so no special time in NA.
>
>If any of you guys in PA know KD3PX, you might like to tell him he 
>was 57 in ZS.  His name is Eugene, but has no E-mail registered with 
>QRZ.
>
>73 de Greg, ZS5K
> -
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