ARRL June VHF Contest - 2020
Call: K9DR
Operator(s): K9DR
Station: K9DR
Class: Single Op LP
QTH: DN62 - WY
Operating Time (hrs): 10
Summary:
Band QSOs Mults
-------------------
6: 194 98
2:
222:
432:
903:
1.2:
2.3:
3.4:
5.7:
10G:
24G:
-------------------
Total: 194 98 Total Score = 19,012
Club:
Comments:
For ladder points as I was at my Wyoming QTH.
I'm still a novice at this 6 meter thing, but was amazed at how alternately good
and bad the band was over the contest period. YMMV, but these comments pertain
to my Casper, Wyoming operation. Saturday, two hours into the contest, someone
turned the propagation switch to the OFF position, where it stayed until 0400Z.
Then a two hour spotlight opening to the Great Lakes region. It was 2:00 AM on
the eastern edge of that area when I quit for the night. Next morning, I worked
every station that owned a 6 meter rig in SE Texas and western Louisiana...or so
it seemed. Then, about noon local time (MDT) the prop switch went into the OFF
position again. After dinner with my family this evening, I returned to find 6
meters wide open to the Northeastern U.S. I experienced an opening to DM33, DM43
and much of Arizona only during the first few hours of the contest, using FT8.
I worked a few Outlaws, but could not complete QSOs with others due to quick
fading. The pipeline between DN62 and DN33/43 that had been there a few days
before had dried up!
I am a bit ashamed at not taking Gary's advice on switching to CW/Phone earlier
in the contest. I went full CW during the very last 45 minutes of the contest
and made 31 QSOs. I doubt my best hour doing FT8 was better than 15. I spent
about 20 minutes playing with FT4, and while it was possible to make a quicker
QSO, there were so few using the mode that I gave it up after only 7 contacts in
two sessions. No serious DX was made in any mode. No JA or EU even heard
here.
I may have to cede the Wyoming Section June VHF contest trophy to another this
year. No more winning the Section with just a few QSOs. WY7fD, WY7AA, WB7CBO
and N7DGI were just the ones I know were on and there were probably others.
Rig here is a barefoot K3/P3 combo. For antennas, I used my 80 meter inverted
Vee as a makeshift omni and a new Cushcraft 6M4 LFA Yagi at 55'. I found that a
decent omni antenna, at this location, is a must and will be upgrading soon.
The F/B and sidelobes on the LFA are so good that you probably aren't going to
hear or work the guy, if you're not pointed at him. Properly pointed, it's a
killer and it looks like it will survive the winter winds here.
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.3830scores.com/
______________________________________________
3830 mailing list
3830@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/3830
|