NA Sprint CW Contest
Call: VA7ST
Operator(s): VA7ST
Station: VA7ST
Class: Single Op LP
QTH:
Operating Time (hrs): 1.25
Summary:
Band QSOs Op Time
---------------------
80: 0 0
40: 2 0.1
20: 32 1.15
---------------------
Total: 34 Mults = 15 Total Score = 510
Club:
Team:
Comments:
Well, I had fun for a while -- but lasted only an hour and 14 minutes before
melt-down. I was on pace for a very modest but presentable score, well outpacing
last year, but just couldn't hold up against the intense action.
My-fault issue 1:
Contending with wall-to-wall S9+20 signals so close together was just too much
for me and the rig. The stock FT920 has a rough time with nearby big signals,
without narrow, sharp filters installed. The result: front-end swamping enough
that I couldn't hear many weaker stations well enough to finish even the
lightning-speed Sprint exchange. Must address that before next year's event.
INRAD has the answer to that problem.
My-fault issue 2:
Despite running just fine in pre-contest checking, the shack's slow computer
(P200) decided to start sending punky CW. It got better but was still not quite
right even after I pushed the software's priority to realtime. Next time, I'll
haul out the fast laptop.
My-fault issue 3:
This one was all in my head. I can copy CW at an adequate speed -- to 35 wpm or
so (faster than I can send) -- but I got a bit addled with lots of signals in
the same space. Those filters are an absolute necessity for me now. Kudos to
everyone able to handle the competing CW action -- to me, it was like trying to
drink from a firehose!
I could have held out the entire 4 hours, but as I chased around for tailend
opportunities, I found myself getting frustrated and figured contesting should
be so much fun I don't notice the hard work -- and it almost always is :)
The low DF4SA-designed homebrew Spider beam seemed to play all right on 20M for
the 32 QSOs I managed to log there. A few fills required, but with LP in the HP
fray, I was happy.
Year-over-year stats:
Year Hours QSOs Mults Points
---------------------------------------------
2002 3.50 45 15 675 (just 14 in first 1.25 hours)
2003 1.25 34 15 510
Will definitely be in there next year. 1,000 points or bust :)
73,
Bud, VA7ST
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.hornucopia.com/3830score/
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