Topband: Thanks to KA1J

[Jim Brown]

A big thank you to Gary, who hung in to make a very tough QSO with my 
QRP rig Saturday night to give me #45 in my Topband QRP WAS effort. I 
was using our club call, KU6W.  Friday night I used K9YC with a 
different radio.  N0NI heard me on the first call both nights, and much 
earlier in the evening. Toni has a great station.

Conditions were stinko Saturday morning - I heard almost no one in Zone 
5, and not very good Sunday morning. I can usually get at least a QRZ? 
from NO3M on the first call, but struck out with him both nights.

The time when I can work the states I still need  -- VT, KY, WV, SC, and 
MS -- is the two hours before their sunrise and a bit after. All of 
these guys must have gone to bed by then.

I heard a BD4 calling CQ around 1200Z Saturday, pretty good signal, 
fired up the KPA500 (instant on) and Ten Tec Titan (3 min timer) to call 
him. He didn't hear the KPA500, and by the time the filament timer in 
the Titan let me TX, he was gone. That would have been a new one. Oh well.

73, Jim K9YC