After 30 years, it appears that the Capitol Hill Amateur Radio Society
will disband this spring, and club stations W3USS will be dismantled.
As I turned the key in the shack door after the ARRL DX contest a
couple of nights ago, memories returned of contests past that spanned
three decades. Back in 1971 I came to Washington while still in
college, and interned part-time for a Senator. A few months later I
ran into Barry Goldwater, and soon I was filling out a CHARS
application and paying dues.
My contesting at W3USS began with the 1973 phone ARRL DX, so it was
appropriate that my last effort from there was the same contest 26
years later. My old paper log continues to reside in the club's
records, signed by "WA1FEO" . So does my 1973 sweepstakes log, a
contest particularly memorable because it ended prematurely when
flames erupted from the PA compartment of Goldwater's Swan 350 that I
was using. (A fire extinguisher was installed in the shack shortly
thereafter; and Goldwater forgave me.) In those days it was a
TH3MKIII 8 feet off the roof, and a 14AVQ. No 80 or 160.
I operated many contests from there over the years, using either W3USS
or K3ZJ. In later years I invited guest ops, and they turned in some
great scores as I competed from my mountaintop station in West
Virginia (beginning in 1988) and spent time with my family.
In 1992 I unexpectedly returned for ARRL phone when Friday afternoon
before the contest my sister-in-law offered to entertain my 3-year old
for the weekend because my wife was ill (and carrying our second son).
I drove home from work, packed the station, and was still connecting
the equipment as the contest started. Saturday morning I had to go
QRT long enough to go out and buy some food and something to drink.
Score that weekend for 20 meters single op remains the top score for
the W3 district. Go figure!
There might be a little "relaxed" contest operating one last time
during phone WPX. And W9JG has been operating a little bit at odd
times. Sometime in May the original W3USS will be gone. R.I.P.
de Dave K3ZJ
--
CQ-Contest on WWW: http://www.contesting.com/_cq-contest/
Administrative requests: cq-contest-REQUEST@contesting.com
|