[UK-CONTEST] CQ WW CW GM0F SOAB HP

[Cooper Stewart]

      Call:      GM0F (GM4AFF)
      Category:  Single Operator
      Power:     High Power
      Band:      All Band
      Mode:      CW 
      Country:   Scotland
      Zone:      14
 
      BAND     QSO   QSO PTS  PTS/QSO   ZONES COUNTRIES
 
 
      160      291      319     1.10      8      50
       80      515      749     1.45     15      55
       40      730     1289     1.77     27      85
       20      790     1438     1.82     21      78
       15      609     1156     1.90     29      80
       10      455      997     2.19     21      75
     ---------------------------------------------------
 
     Totals   3390     5948     1.75    121     423  =>  3,235,712
 
Equipment:
TS940S + ETO 91b
TS420S + Collins 30S1
Top Ten DX Doubler
CT 9.74 on a 486 (yes, a 486)
160m - dipole at 60ft
80m - delta loop with apex at 60ft
40m - Cushcraft 402CD 2 ele at 50ft
20m - Force12 EF420 4 ele at 60ft
15m - Homebrew (YO) 5 ele at 45ft
10m - Create CL10 5 ele at 30ft
(useless) Beverages to NW and SE
 
Comments:
I like reading contest reports. I hope others do, 'cos this is quite long.
I'm writing this, oblivious of how well, or how badly I did, having seen
nothing to compare my score with, yet. I approached this contest with a
completely open mind. I didn't want a repeat of the despondency that
overtook me following my miserable performance during CQ WW SSB. This was
caused, in the most part, by my inability to last even 12 hours. This time I
tried to follow all my own rules. Check the (updated) article on my web page
(http://www.qsl.net/gm4aff) about lasting 48 hours. Unfortunately, I'm
better at talking about it than doing it! This time I only left the radio
for about 18 minutes during the first 26 hours. I managed to continue a run
at around 130 Q's whilst eating a roast chicken dinner. I also tried to
focus on the objective, which I still found hard. I checked a band on the
second radio, worked a few mults, found a freqency then sat on it until it
dried up. I am very poor at this, normally jumping from band to band a lot.
As usual, on Sunday morning I did not have the mental ability to receive
more than 3 or 4 letters in a row, and had to operate standing up for times,
making it very difficult to generate a run at all. However, I percevered.
Apologies to all who tried to work me around that time. I drank my first
caffeinated drink (for some time) at 0930 on Sunday and it boosted me for
only two hours. Nevertheless, I am prepared to be thrashed. It seems that no
matter how much effort is put in, it's always more difficult to do well than
I think. That's what comes of being an optimist!
Overall, conditions appeared to be quite bad on Saturday. Sunday was a lot
better. As usual, I will have suffered from the higher latitude location,
making it a real slog most of the time. I found myself working some stations
on 10m using a form of ESP. High points included being called by AH2R on 40m
and XT2DX on 160m. Low points included instability in the TS940 which
resulted in me hastily installing a fan to keep the thing cool. If the shack
temperature went above about 26 deg, the instability started. My TS850
already gave up the ghost two weeks ago - no output on any freq above 80m,
and the TS940 which I normally borrow has a duff power supply. So I did the
event with a TS430 and a crocked 940 - not exactly state of the art. Oh for
a nice radio! A more general moan is my dislike of stations who jump on your
freq and seem to think they have a right to take it. I will not move for
anyone! Especially big European MM's! (You know who you are.) And what is
going on here: two stations respond to my CQ. I ask (say) the 'KR' station
to send their call again and both stations transmit. I ask again, and again.
Each time both stations respond. Once again MM's seem to ignore normal
protocol. "I'm bigger, so you'll hear me anyway." And why do weak QRP
stations add /QRP to their already weak and unreadible callsigns?
All the equipment and aerials were ready last weekend, so I was prepared in
good time. I spent Friday running out my beverages, which I had had to
dismantle the previous week so the farmer next door could cut the hedges.
Whether water got in to the switch box on Friday evening, or some other
gremlin appeared, I don't know, but when I tried it at 0030, it failed to
work. I hastily wired up some coax which allowed me to use the 80m delta
loop on receive on 160m as it was less noisy than the dipole.
After every major contest I write down a list of 'things to sort out' for
next time. As time passes, I notice that these things become less radio
related. This year, the big thing to 'sort' is a decent chair. I am now
permanently deformed, and shall probably never walk again! Perhaps, like
CT1BOH, we should have a masseuse available to help recover from these
events (check his web site if you don't understand).
 
 
Stewart Cooper 
ODL ITCS 
Tel: 01224 628006  Fax: 01224 643325 
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