Topband: FT5ZM from South Dakota

[Ed Gray W0SD]

All I can say is to not give up.  I have heard "ZERO" from FT5ZM on 160 
meters up until tonight and have been there every morning and night 
since they got there.  Tonight I heard them for 28 minutes and for about 
14 minutes about S-5-6 with a K3.  I would say a couple of S-units above 
the noise. That reading was with the pre-amp off on the K3.  They have 
been good on 80 meters which made it so frustrating I can not hear 
anything on 160M.

Tonight I could hear them best on my 190 foot high drooping dipole, next 
on my NE beverage and last on the vertical but of course the vertical 
had more QRN.  I worked them using the vertical and listening on the NE 
beverage because at that time I had not figured out I could hear him the 
best on the high dipole.

Obviously I was very excited and started calling as soon as I could copy 
calls.  Anyway I won't go into the details of working him but just 
wanted to encourage people to hang in there. He has been coming in from 
the north according to others and tonight my NE beverage was the best 
beverage of the 4 I have so they were coming from the north.  The 
difference for me appears to be the polar absorption on the path from here.

Ed W0SD