Florida QSO Party
Call: NO5W
Operator(s): NO5W
Station: NO5W
Class: SOABCW LP
QTH: TX
Operating Time (hrs): 19
Summary:
Band CW Qs Ph Qs
--------------------
40: 91
20: 140
15:
10:
--------------------
Total: 231 0 CW Mults = 67 Ph Mults = 0 Total Score = 61,908
Club: Central Texas DX and Contest Club
Comments:
K3, 20/40 dipoles at 25 ft, CQ/X version 1.7.7.8
Another in a long line of great FQP events with a number of outstanding ops and
great participation both inside and outside of Florida. This year I wasn't able
to recruit a driver or co-operator to do my usual mobile operation in the FQP
so I thought I would go all out and try for the sweep which I had never been
able to accomplish in the years before I started operating mobile in FQP.
So Friday night I was sitting at the computer going over the big spreadsheet of
mobile activity (thanks - K0RC) trying to determine the "critical paths", and
counties needing the most attention. With the rig tuned to around 7028 I
thought maybe there would be some FQP ops doing some testing and looking for a
signal report -- maybe one would issue a test signal. Sure enough about that
time came a VVV to which I responded 5NN -- hmm perhaps the recently installed
K3 telepathic accessory is working. Well a brief chat with K5KG, who was
testing out the K4KG mobile (probably loading the box ejection device) with Jim
VE7ZO, indicated that 40m was in fine shape. A QSY to 20m indicated the same for
that band. So I thought a sweep was well within reach with good signals from
FQP-land all weekend.
Well that wasn't the case as signals into the Houston area were very weak on
20m which seemed to be long and the band of preference almost all day Saturday.
It wasn't until the action moved to 40m Saturday evening that signals picked up
and the end of the Saturday session found me needing only thirteen more for the
sweep. Interestingly the two (Monroe and Miami-Dade) that K0RC had marked in red
due to planned activity only on Saturday were in the log in the first hour
Saturday.
Reviewing the list on Sunday morning it looked like the tough ones were going
to be Escambia and Walton. A quick QSO with NF4A just before the Sunday start
revealed that he would be in Escambia but it would be his last one of the day
rather than the first one -- it looked like the sweep wouldn't be in the log
any time soon. But good things sometimes happen when you least expect them and
KC4HW appeared in ESC with a good signal and no pileup around 1545 and K4O
appeared in WAL with the same conditions about an hour later. So by 1700 it
looked like the sweep was within reach with only OKE and CLR remaining. The
last one, OKE, went in the log at 1802 and actually was the easiest county all
weekend in terms of time in the pile since I had had time to track N4O down the
east coast and was waiting for him before the OKE pile had a chance to assemble.
The most difficult county in terms of time in the pile must have been LAF, where
K5YAA was working the LAF-DIX county line. I must have stayed in the pile for a
good half hour on that one. Of course shortly after finally working Jerry I
found another LAF station. All but the following counties were worked with at
least two Qs: Baker, Walton, Washington, Calhoun, Holmes, Madison, Nassau,
Hamilton, Gadsden, Glades, Gulf.
Thanks to the FQP mobiles who were simply outstanding accounting for over 60%
of my Qs with the following numbers: N4O(24), W1NN(17), K4OJ(15), K4KG(15),
K5YAA(14), N4EEB(12), W4AN(11), N4PJ(9), N4AO(7), W4MY(5), NF4A(5), AD4ES(4),
K4O(4), KC4HW(3).
The most amusing thing that happened to me at the QSO party illustrates that
its important to listen, to be a frequent entry in the mobile logs, and to be
in the right place at the right time. I was listening to the big pileup on a
mobile as he entered LEE and was trying to determine what my calling strategy
would be -- call high/call low, call early/call late, etc. I hadn't made a
single call to the station in LEE but was about to hit the pounce button when,
at the end of a roaring call by the pile, the mobile station sent NO5W 5NN LEE.
I was stunned but quickly released the K3 telepathic QSO button and sent my
exchange. It made my day just as the FQP did my weekend.
Thanks FCG for hosting a great party,
73/Chuck/NO5W
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.hornucopia.com/3830score/
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