[UK-CONTEST] G0MTN CQWW SSB report

[Lee Volante]

Hi all,

Better late than never...

I've entered SO AB for the past few years in the LP and HP categories. One 
consistent disappointment has been the lack of multipliers worked compared 
with some of my peers.  This year, trying the Assisted section, the 
multiplier scores were similar. So perhaps I should take some comfort that I 
wasn't missing too much through operator error, misunderstanding the 
propagation, or not shouting long / loud enough.  Nearing the end of the 
contest, the band maps showed I'd worked almost everyone calling CQ, with 
remaining mults being tagged in the inaudible or impossible category (CW 
should allow more of these to be worked.)  Instead, my new focus should be 
"why aren't my antennas better / higher so I can work these extra guys" 
rather than beating myself up for my on-air performance (unless I really am 
a lid op!)

Also, it's a mistake believing that all mults need to be searched for. There 
will be some very rare guys with 100w and a wire etc. who will be mostly, or 
exclusively Search and Pounce. Some stations I've spoken to mentioned 
running a pileup with single and double multipliers all calling them at some 
stage.  I believe there is a saying "Let the mults come to you" (for some of 
them at least!) which requires being loud.  There have also been comments on 
some blogs that unless you possess, say, monobanders at least 60 feet and 
quite a bit of power, running on 20m will be nigh-on impossible (cliff edge, 
rare DX stations excepted.) Any flaw in station location, antennas, power 
output is shown up for CQ WW phone. The CW contest, or any less busy contest 
is far more forgiving.

And QSO volume is important - especially DX volume, and I need to call CQ 
for that.  15m, and especially 10m on the Saturday morning allowed some of 
this, but mostly to EU.  I noted I had twice as many QSOs with the USA on 
15m as 20m, as I could actually call CQ there, whereas the big USA M/M 
stations saw most traffic back to G on 20m.  CQ'ing on 40m was actually most 
productive in the mornings when most folk have already moved up to 20m and 
15m.  There was room to call, and still enough EU traffic on 40m to be 
hoovered up to at least get some QSOs / rate in the log, even if they were 
all 1 point.  When 20m collapsed for me early Sunday evening, and 40m was 
not generating QSOs, it was time to go to 80m. It seemed very early, but I 
think I need to be on bands early and late before the hordes arrive.

I 'only' did around 40 hours as a semi-casual operation - allowing myself an 
extra hour in bed on the Friday night, sat down for dinner with the YL, and 
had a reasonable sleep on the Saturday night. (Actually, I turned off two 
alarm clocks and went back to sleep without any memory of it happening. I 
think this has happened before too - new contest tip will be to move alarm 
clocks so they are out of reach of my bed !)  So I wasn't too tired after 
the contest as I have been previously, but then going into work overnight 
for a further night with hardly any sleep took it's toll.

So overall it was a bit of a struggle as expected, but considering 
conditions and my station I don't think I should have been expecting much 
more. (I have worked more on 160m / 80m / 40m in the past though.)  Not much 
from Zone 3, Zone 25, and well from half the planet really from looking at 
the summary.  But no other SSB contest will generate as many QSOs overall, 
nor to so many DXCC entities.  Other events may allow me to run more, and 
have higher peak rates, but the overall volume would not be so high at the 
end of 24 / 36 / 48 hours.

Congrats to everyone - big scores or small - who took part.

SOAB(A) HP (well, medium power if we're honest)   Still mostly S+P,  80% EU.

            QSOs        Zones    Countries      Multipliers   Score
160m:       57          4        25
80m:        232         7        46
40m:        199         10       52
20m:        423         22       77
15m:        441         20       86
10m:        312         12       48
Totals:     1664        75       334              409          964831

73,

Lee G0MTN