Topband: WAS is "Easy?"

[Jim Brown]

On Fri, 8 Dec 2006 11:46:38 -0600, Ford Peterson wrote:

>I find it interesting that AK seems to be more workable out east than 
>it is in the Midwest.  

Having operated for 50 years from W9 with mediocre antennas and six months 
from W6 with decent antennas, I have several observations. 

1) EU and AF are tough are about as tough from W6 as JA, DS, and VK/ZL are 
from the midwest/east coast. I never heard DS in Chicago on any band. I work 
it easily from W6 on any band (when the band is open). 

Likewise, EU and AF is about as easy from the east coast as VK/ZL/JA/DS are 
from W6. 

In three years of being pretty active on 160 from a Chicago city lot, I 
never heard AK or HI. Part of that was undoubtedly my noise level and lack 
of dedicated RX antenna. From W6, I can work AK and HI much more easily on 
160 than W1, W2, or W3. 

East coast stations have a huge advantage in 160 contesting as compared to 
west coast, thanks both to proximity to population centers (number of Q's) 
and Europe/Carribean (number countries). The Midwest (especially W8) is 
roughly even with east coast respect to number of Q's, but at a distinct 
disdvantage with respect to EU.  

No matter where you live, if you have high noise and limited antennas, 
you're playing with one or two hands tied behind your back. And QRO helps a 
lot if the other guy has noise. Based on the difficulty of making our 
exchange, there's no way I would have completed the RI QSO 1 dB less than 
the 1.5 kW I was running! 

73,

Jim Brown K9YC