ARRL 160-Meter Contest
Call: NX5M
Operator(s): NX5M, CLUSTER
Station: NX5M
Class: M/S HP
QTH: TX
Operating Time (hrs): 18
Summary:
Total: QSOs = 1111 Sections = 78 Countries = 40 Total Score = 286,622
Club: Central Texas DX and Contest Club
Comments:
Multi-op just because I decided to connect to the packet cluster early Sunday
morning. From that I only grabbed maybe 5 or so calls from the bandmap.
Arrived at the station about an hour after the actual start of the contest and
found that the NW beverage was dead so I started thinking that I would just
make a few q's and quit. But, if something is broken I typically like to go
ahead and fix it so I do not have to worry about it later.....and time was
limited because it was about to get dark. After about 45 minutes the problem
was resolved but by that time I had already lost the first couple of hours. I
also had concerns about my NE beverage since the last 400 feet of it was down
and it was not terminated....but, it seemed to work well enough even at the
shorter length.
I operated off and on for a while and finally settled in about 0200z. At 0700z
the first night I quit and went to sleep and did not set an alarm because at
that point I did not care if I work up before sunrise or not. As it turned out
I opened my eyes at 1100z and headed back out to the shack for 2 more hours only
to shut down just after sunrise.
The second night I got back on the air at 2200z and did not get out of the
chair until 0830z. Again I slept until 1100z and put in just over 2 more hours
of operating time.
I had no goals until after the first night. I set a goal of 1000 q's after
logging 650 in that limited first night. I reached 1036 when I went qrt at
0830z so I decided to get to 1100...but that would have to happen in the last 2
hours I was going to operate. Hit 1100 about 20 minutes before sunrise so set
myself a new goal. Get to 1111 and quit....and that was that.
Had a few requests that I move down or up. But where do you go when you are on
a 250Hz filter and there are already people within that bandwidth? I was on
1817.65 I think at one point and was asked if I could move down. Could not do
that when a W2 decided to start cqing on 1817.50.....without even asking if the
frequency was in use. Other cases....hearing some send "qrl?" once, likely
listening toward EU and not listening in other directions to make sure no one
is there. I guess this will never change. I may have done similiar things but
I do send "qrl?" more than once and listen in other directions. My apologies to
a well-known N4 for accudently bumping the vfo the wrong direction and ending up
zero beat on his frequency. Actually, when I decided to go to bed Sunday at
0830z I moved up and told him that I was going qrt so he could move down a
little.
Next year I will hopefully have the REAL 160m stuff up!!
See you all (I hope) on the other end of the HF spectrum next weekend.
Bob NX5M
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.hornucopia.com/3830score/
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