Topband: Stew_Perry & CQ_callers

[Greg - ZL3IX]

> The good news is that a DX station (other than JAs) can get a nice clear
> frequency on 1832 or so.  Obviously, in the old days when we all worked
> split (because the JAs had a small window up the band) this problem did not
> exist.
>
>   
I tried calling CQ in the window at various points during the contest, 
but only in the last hour and a half did it yield any results.  I 
thought that, although 32 appeared clear to me, there were probably 
little pistols CQing that I couldn't hear, but were masking my signals 
in NA.  In a private discussion with WE3C however, John told me that the 
window was pretty clear for most of the test.

At the same time as I was not getting results in the window, I could 
move off in S+P mode, and usually be heard by the guys I called, so I 
seemed to have propagation.  I must say, however, that the Q often 
started with the other guy hearing something, sending ??, my repeating, 
and gradually building the contact from there - not exactly armchair copy!

So why did I have no results from calling in the window?  I can't 
explain it.  Just put it down to another of the oddities of this band!

When I did finally achieve some results by calling CQ on 32, my rate was 
the best of the whole test - 14 Q's in the last hour compared with just 
under 9 per hour averaged over the 9 hours of darkness.


Greg, ZL3IX