ARRL June VHF QSO Party
Call: W9ZRX
Operator(s): W9ZRX
Station: W9ZRX
Class: Single Op LP
QTH: Birch Knob, VA - EM8
Operating Time (hrs): 24
Summary:
Band QSOs Mults
-------------------
6: 214 92
2: 42 24
222:
432:
903:
1.2:
2.3:
3.4:
5.7:
10G:
24G:
-------------------
Total: 256 116 Total Score = 29,636
Club:
Comments:
Overhearing others, I got the impression that they thought 6M conditions were
pretty good. Unfortunately you couldn't prove that by my performance. This
was my worst 6M score in the last three outings (missed 2007). We got behind
during setup because of strong thinderstorms, and then hurried. Normally we
get the tower up Thursday and the Mast with the PAR Loops up Friday. But we
had to do most of the work on Friday.
That's when I found that a dead tree would prevent using the 5-el 6M Yagi. I
had to drop back to a 3-el yagi and I think in my haste, two of the elements
were swapped. Then the first time we erected the tower, a limb of the same
dead tree snagged and bent the mast. After we lowered the tower, straighteded
the mast, and shortened the spacing, this limb still caught the 2M beam and
skeded in on the mast by 20 degress. However compensating for this was easy.
The openings I everienced on 6M were brief - a short one to the far NE (Maine &
etc), a decent opening to TX and CO, and then a very brief opening to the
Pacific Northwest which I fear I did not exploit. I just could not get runs
going - and that makes for a LONG Contest.
This was mt first try at 2M and it was a pleasant surprise. I expected to hand
out a few QSO's on request, but I did not expect finding myself switching to 2M
to see if I could pick up some other Grids. A "W9" in "EM87" often did not
"compute"!!
Once again, my xyl of 45 years served as crew. This time she climbed up the
aluminum tower to find out wheich wires I'd reversed to the rotor. More
fallout of the weather and hurried assembly. There are advatages to being
dimunitive. The old man would have bent the rungs!
I told her that we can't quit now that we are on the cusp of the learning
curve!! So if we can get permission to dispense with the tree before next
year, perhaps we will try again year ......
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.hornucopia.com/3830score/
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