[UK-CONTEST] [Fwd: Commonwealth G6PZ(GI0RTN) Open-24 HP]

[Gerry Lynch]

Sorry, should have sent this last week.  Needless to say, I had a ball!  
Thanks, Paul.

                    RSGB Commonwealth Contest, CW

Call: G6PZ
Operator(s): GI0RTN
Station: G6PZ

Class: Open-24 HP
QTH: Somerset
Operating Time (hrs): 24

Summary:
 Band  QSOs
------------
   80:   67
   40:  117
   20:  120
   15:   90
   10:   24
------------
Total:  418  Total Score = 8,050

Club: 

Comments:

298 total bonus.  (By band - 57/82/79/61/19)

Ants: 2 stacked SteppIRs, a MonsIR and a 4 square on 80).

Firstly, thanks to Paul, G6PZ, for use of his fine station and his hospitality.
 It's great to operate somewhere which really is plug and play, to the extent of
Paul getting up early on a Saturday morning to wind up the MonstIR tower and the
4 square.  The only thing I need to worry about is getting the cheapest possible
Easyjet fare from Belfast to Bristol.  Where else would you get hospitality like
that?

Don't a few tiddly sunspots make a big difference?

Yes, 80m was noisy and yes, polar conditions deteriorated steadily during the
contest, but we had great openings on 15 to the West as far as VE6, and to the
east as far as VK4, a nice Africa opening on 10 to start the contest and a nice
opening to VK6, VK3 (!!!), VU and 5B4 to end it.  But the real difference to me
was extending the time we can work Canada on 40.  It was great working VEs,
right out to Alberta and BC, in the wee small hours on 40.  The second half of
this contest wasn't as sloooow this year as it has been of late, although the
pre-dawn hour and a half or so remains difficult.

In contrast, I found conditions to ZL quite difficult, except for the early
afternoon short path on 20.  Even the evening 40m short path to the Antipodes
was well short of its best, and while I did manage to get mini runs to VK and
ZL on both 40 and 80 on Sunday morning, except for the big guns the signals
were fluttery, weak, and hard work to copy.  But each QSO was 25 point gold
dust and greatly appreciate!

Also disappointing was southern Africa on 40 and 80 around their dawn.  I
worked a clatter of those guys last year, but I couldn't seem to get them to
bite this year despite much time with both the MonstIR and the 4 square to the
south.

Paul's new 4 square on 80 gets out like a cannon!  We had it up and running of
sorts for CQ WW, but Paul has continued to work on optimising it and his work
paid off.  I felt loud on 80!  Working 2 VE6s and VE7 on 80 was a first for me
in this contest, and 8 ZLs were a gratifying haul in less than ideal
conditions.

Thanks for QSOs on 5 bands not only to GB5CC as usual (thanks for that QSY to
10 for a relatively long distance tropo QSO, Chris), but also to 9J2BO (hell,
yeah!), C4Z, H2E and P3J.  I think I could have managed 5 banders with VU2PTT
and VU2BGS as well, had they noticed an opening to India on 10 in the last few
minutes of the contest.

I'd worked VQ9LA on 10 on Saturday morning, but bizarrely missed him on 20 for
a lost 5 bander!!!  I missed VP8NO on 10, depsite a failed move and G4BUO
managing to work him; and I also missed him on 80, where I worked him last year
and which should have been easy with the 4 square.  I also missed VK6LW on 80
for a 5 bander, despite hearing him call other people, and VK6BN on 20 (rolled
eyes) for another one.

Unlike other contests, the universe of potential QSOs in BERU is definitely
finite, at least from G, and the skill is to wring every opening absolutely dry
of QSOs.  I left a few on the table, but that's where the challenge for me to
improve is in future.  When 10 opens properly, I think 500 QSOs from G is just
about manageable if activity trends hold.  The increasing VU participation is
particularly noticeable.  The golden era of the Commonwealth Contest is just
beginning!

Many operators in rare call areas make a special effort to get on for this
event.  Manners and courtesy are always great in BERU and I particularly
appreciate the many people who moved bands to give me another a bonus,
especially when they weren't serious participants themselves, and even more to
the people who volunteered to do QSY before I asked!

There were a lot more non-Commonwealth stations calling me that I've ever
noticed before.  I can understand it with a BY, XE or W6, but do amateurs in
Europe really need a QSO with a G station *that* badly?  The one thing that hit
me when spinning around a wide open 15 in the hour before the contest is just
how many Chinese amateurs are QRV on CW these days.  There were about a dozen
BD and BG stations CQing away on Saturday morning.  While it's not relevant to
BERU, it is great news for contesting in general, especially given the decline
in JA participation in recent years.

73

Gerry GI0RTN


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