CQ 160-Meter Contest, CW - 2021
Call: K1LT
Operator(s): K1LT
Station: K1LT
Class: Single Op HP
QTH: Ohio EM89ps
Operating Time (hrs): 27.5
Radios: SO2R
Summary:
Total: QSOs = 1466 State/Prov = 60 Countries = 56 Total Score = 594,384
Club: Mad River Radio Club
Comments:
As I type this I can see the empty band-map on the monitor across the
room. I am waiting for the usual small flurry of activity at the tail
end of the contest. I typically work about 35 more stations in the
final 90 minutes.
I operated 'assisted' again but with the foresight to turn on the
spotting stuff at the beginning of the contest instead of after Friday
night.
I had planned to have the new phased array receiving system completely
operational but I got sidetracked by several other projects and I
didn't spend enough time finishing the software. Also I have
encountered a problem that seems to be a lack of CPU power in the
dedicated computer when running all 3 phased arrays. Nevertheless, I
had the system on so I could try out the 2x2 north/south array on real
signals.
Since the 2x2 phased array consumes the 2 verticals I normally use for
full-duplex operation, I tried a different scheme. I used a 'pickup
coupler' to extract a reduced level copy of my transmit signal and
phased that with my Europe Beverage. The phasing process was quite
finicky to get working but it seems stable. The 'pickup coupler' is a
gadget that looks like a 't' connector except the stem has an
adjustable gap in the inner conductor. 1500 watts on 160 does not
send much signal across the gap but I must remember to remove the
coupler before I transmit high power on 10 meters! This scheme works
well enough that it might be worth reproducing on another Beverage.
The full-duplex Beverage let me listen to weak European stations while
transmitting so long as I stayed more than about 4 kHz away from my
transmit frequency. With this mechanism I could also observe that I
have a micro-arcing problem in my transmit antenna somewhere that
becomes apparent when I operate at full power for an extended time.
Operating at half power seems to avoid the issue.
I stayed up all night the first night using the recliner trick. I
think I dosed off only once since I suddenly noticed the radio was
quiet (no CQ noise) and the last QSO was still in the logger entry
window. I don't think I was out very long.
It was nice to work ZM4T easily the first night instead of desperately
hoping for long distance DX the second night. I saw spots for JAs and
I think I could hear JH4UYB but he was just not strong enough to copy.
I slightly delayed starting Saturday afternoon so I would have the
option of staying at the radio all night and still have a little time
for the last hour. I also took a 30-minute off times early Saturday
evening as part of this strategy.
Saturday evening in assisted mode was bizarre. The pattern settled
into a tedious rotation of chasing domestic spots on the K3 using the
Beverage (fast frequency change - click and call), then chasing DX
spots using the phased array receiver (slow frequency change - twiddle
the frequency digits through the clumsy GUI, press keys to force the
TX to sync, then call), and CQing (find a run frequency, turn on the
2nd VFO syncing program, readjust after someone yells QRL after 2
QSOs). But the rate achieved with all this work was comparable to
CQing forever and tuning for new stations on the 2nd VFO.
Around 0530z the DX spots were thick enough to consume all my time.
Around 0630z I found myself on 1816 with an empty frequency. So I
called CQ. That began a run of about 75 stations, of which about 50
were 10-point QSOs. Most of the DX required numerous repeats until
enough of a call emerged to be recognized. This run mode hasn't
occurred for a couple of years. But it feels nice to have the DX
answering my CQ rather than calling the loud ones that got spotted.
At 0800z I decided I was sufficiently tired that I didn't want to risk
having a bad Monday, so I set up a 3-hour nap which required 4 hours.
At 1100z I returned to the radio and cleared the backlog of spots and
noted that all of the JA spots were inaudible here. Some Iowa RBN
station seemed to be the easternmost edge of JA propagation except for
a couple of Southern US stations. The 'chase spots and CQ' rotation
continued until about 1330z.
Now I am writing this text awaiting the final push. I'll update the
QSO counts at the finish but I don't expect any surprises. Update: 35
QSOs in the last 2 hours, most in the last 90 minutes.
DX worked: 4X, 5B, 9A (5), 9K, CM (2), CT, CT3, CU, D4, DL (41), E7
(2), EA (6), EA6, EA8, EI (5), F (8), FY, G (24), GD, GI, GM (5), GU,
HA (6), HB (3), HI (3), HK, I (9), IT9, KH6 (3), KP2 (3), KP4 (2), LA
(2), LY (3), LZ (2), OE, OH (2), OH0, OK (15), OM (6), ON (9), OZ (3),
PA (15), S5 (13), SM (4), SP (10), TI, UA (2), UA2, UR (5), V3 (2), XE
(4), YO, YU (6), YV, ZF (2), and ZL for a total of 56 entities. There
were 1094 2-point QSOs, 105 5-point QSOs including 84 VEs and 235
10-point QSOs.
Normally I operate 'unassisted' because of the appeal of the 'I did it
all by myself' mentality. The really good operators are said to be
able to work everybody without having a machine direct them to the
next contact. On the other hand, I am not a really good operator and
working everything that is workable, especially the most distant
station, has great appeal and keeping up with the insane number of
spots was very hard work! I am a station builder type of ham, and
working long DX proves the station.
Running yearly comparison:
__ Year QSOs States DX Hour Raw score Ops Asstd Pts/QSO
__ 2021 1466 __ 60 __ 56 _ 30 __ 594,384 __ 1 __ y ____ 3.50
__ 2020 1392 __ 58 __ 82 _ 30 __ 826,700 __ 1 __ y ____ 4.24
__ 2019 1408 __ 58 __ 62 _ 30 __ 588,720 __ 1 __ n ____ 3.48
__ 2018 1275 __ 60 __ 62 _ 30 __ 498,004 __ 1 __ n ____ 3.20
__ 2017 1308 __ 59 __ 52 _ 29 __ 460,095 __ 1 __ n ____ 3.17
__ 2016 1210 __ 58 __ 54 _ 28 __ 456,848 __ 1 __ n ____ 3.37
__ 2015 1274 __ 59 __ 42 _ 30 __ 374,609 __ 1 __ n ____ 2.91
__ 2014 1199 __ 58 __ 48 _ 30 __ 367,820 __ 1 __ n ____ 2.89
__ 2013 1329 __ 58 __ 58 _ 32 __ 536,140 __ 2 __ y ____ 3.48
__ 2012 1297 __ 59 __ 47 _ 30 __ 396,016 __ 1 __ n ____ 2.88
__ 2011 1471 __ 59 __ 67 _ 30 __ 670,320 __ 1 __ n ____ 3.62
__ 2010 1559 __ 58 __ 75 _ 39 __ 776,587 __ 2 __ y ____ 3.75
__ 2009 1416 __ 59 __ 71 _ 30 __ 757,510 __ 1 __ n ____ 4.12
__ 2008 1350 __ 58 __ 64 _ 38 __ 553,758 __ 2 __ y ____ 3.36
__ 2007 1063 __ 58 __ 68 _ 32 __ 422,100 __ 1 __ n ____ 3.15
__ 2006 _ 764 __ 58 __ 47 _ 26 __ 260,505 __ 1 __ n ____ 3.25
Hopefully the underscores keep 3830 from messing up the formatting.
The running comparison above is useful to gauge conditions. The
points per QSO seems to track how much DX is available which seems to
track conditions and participation. However, sometimes global
pandemics cause a decline in DX availability as much as propagation.
Editorial insanity: the terrific participation the last couple of
years is wonderful for keeping the rate high but I miss the ability to
just plop down on a frequency a call CQ without having to squeeze
between other stations. Going way up the band works, but then one
gets trampled by annoyed SSB ops. I can't have QSOs and work them
too, to severely abuse a cliche.
Equipment: K3S/100, P3, K3/100, P3, Alpha 8410, 2x3 BS-EF phased
array, 2x4 BS-EF phased array, 2x2 BS-EF phased array, 60-foot "Tee"
over about 75 radials. Several Beverages of which only 3 were used.
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.3830scores.com/
______________________________________________
3830 mailing list
3830@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/3830
|