[UK-CONTEST] 9G5XA in BERU

[Alan Ibbetson]

Gents,

I'm all set up for BERU this coming weekend. Conditions down here in
Ghana aren't great, especially to the west, and for the first hour 20
will be closed and 15 probably not really open. I'll be in the 12hr
section so I may save my time and not operate for the first hour
unless I hear mults from the east. I'll be on 15 most of the day but
I'll keep checking the 10M beacons in case there is a miracle and the
band opens. 20 has been good to G from 15Z and again 8-9Z in the
morning (so please don't just beam LP to VK!). There's not much on
between 18Z and 20Z so I may take a break then unless I can hear
Caribbeans. 40M has been good to the far east from 20Z and EU from
21Z. 80 has been noisy and all I've heard and worked so far is 5N, a
few hundred miles away, but I'll give it an hour or so from 23Z.

It's pleasing to see the 2 band Moxon beam I designed for 20+15
actually works. Isn't EZnec wonderful? I have an AL811H linear but
using it, on my 40M doublet especially, has given me Worked all TVs in
the hotel in very short order. I'm using the doublet with feeders
strapped for 80, tuned against a single counterpoise. It tunes OK but
my tiny ATU flashes over if I run more than 250W. Lack of space
precludes decent LF aerials.

Please remember to beam south from the UK once in a while to give Team
Africa some customers.

Thanks,

Alan G3XAQ/9G5XA