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September 21, 2005 80M/40M Straight Key/Bug Sprint Final Official Results: Call QSOs Mbrs Pts Mul Sco Bonus Final Awd Antenna 80/40 W2SH 14 13 27 12 324 x2 648 1 80m horiz bisquare @ 72' W2LJ 15 13 28 10 280 x2 560 2 G5RV @ 30' K3WWP 12 11 23 8 184 x2 368 110' attic random wire KA8MPT 11 9 20 9 180 x2 360 # G5RV @ 25' K4UK 10 9 19 7 133 133 ?? VA3RKM 7 6 13 5 65 x2 130 1/4 wv wire/dipole @ ?' *VA3SIE 5 4 9 5 45 45 66' inv v @ 15' W1TF 4 4 8 3 24 24 64' indoor wire NU7T 3 0 3 3 9 x2 18 40M loop @ ?' KA2KGP 2 1 3 2 6 x2 12 dipole @ 25' AF4LQ 2 2 4 2 8 8 ef Zepp @ 28' Check Log: K2EKM 7 6 13 7 91 x2 182 88' dblt @ 20' (log email dated after deadline) # - Top score from a previous non-winner * - Special Award (Contesting newcomer) entrants: VA3SIE Special Award (Contesting newcomer) winner - VA3SIESOAPBOX: K3WWP - Well, 40M went long skip about 0050 here, and 80M was noisy as usual here, so.... the result was my poorest sprint since the very first one last October. I got so bored that around 0150 I started practicing sending with my left hand in case we have another 'off' hand keying sprint in the future. Actually I surprised myself that I could do it fairly well since I am far from ambidextrous here. About the only thing that I can do equally well left and right handed is hitting a baseball, although batting right-handed I was more of a place hitter while I hit with power batting left-handed. That was long ago though, but there's nothing much to say about the sprint so I thought I'd throw it in. HI. Oh, I forgot I did want to say it was nice to see a couple members whom I haven't heard in our sprints recently - K8NQQ and W2SH. Hope you'll both be regulars again now. W2LJ - Activity was spread out and kind of sparse. It was nice to hear a few new calls in there! The only good thing about Winter coming is that conditions should improve on 80 Meters greatly over the next months. Hope to hear more activity in October. Rig was K2 - key was my trusty ol' Nye Speed-X. KA8MPT - HAD FUN WHILE BAND STAYED UP. ANTENNA G5RV UP FT 25. 40 METER WAS GREAT FOR HALF OF THE SPRINT BUT DIE AT THE END, NOT MUCH ON 80 METERS IN OHIO. AF4LQ - Only got about 20 minutes in for this month's Sprint so not much of a log but as always I enjoyed the time I did have. W2LJ had a very nice signal here and it's always a pleasure to work Larry. The highlight was catching VA3SIE/P operating from Maple Island, Ontario., also with a very nice signal from his portable setup. I passed on the straight key this time in favor of a new keyer that I built last week. Rig was an OHR-500, the first radio that I built as a new QRP'er back in '98, and still a favorite. 73 es hope to get more time next month. KA2KGP - Very disappointing! QRN made copy miserable. RTTY sigs, SSB & even a "russian Woodpecker" sound obliterated most weak signals here. Didn't hear too many NA calls. I can't wait for 80 meters to shape up this fall. Rig: Argosy II, Key: straight key. VA3RKM - Put a temporary 67-ft. wire out the window at 5 ft. for 2 80m contacts. Lots of practice with weak signal work this time! W1TF - tnx for qso party. VA3SIE/P - This was a LOT of fun! You can find pictures and antenna details at the website of my upcoming island activation: http://www.sunim.plus.com/maple/index.html#anttest I operated bike portable this evening from Maple Island in Ottawa. I used a 20ft shakespeare wonderpole fishing rod to support the apex of an inverted vee dipole although since I forgot to bring the laneway markers I use to support the ends, I ended up using a couple of trees so the angle of my dipole elements was about 80 degrees, not the ideal 180 degrees. I only finished building the antenna from home hardware parts about 30 minutes before the sprint started!! I operated 40m running 2W from a KX1 with the builtin keyer. The band was very long this evening. There was a fair amount of QRN, maybe from Hurricaine Rita? Around 0145UTC some kind of electronic system in a nearby building started up generating 5/9+ computer hash across the band but thankfully only lasted about ten minutes. K4UK - Wow, QRN was really bad on both bands and very little activity heard here in Virginia. I was not sure of the number from VA3SI/P and not even sure of his call, so I've scored it zero points. (It was VA3SIE/P and I've counted the QSO for you - K3WWP) NU7T - Not much heard until 0130z. I called on 80m for about 25 minutes; no answers and no QSOs heard. Maybe it was my S7 to S9 noise level. Just because I am QRP, doesn't mean others couldn"t use an amplifier so I can hear them, right? hi hi W2SH - Antenna was an 80m horizontal bisquare. Rig a TenTec Scout at 5 watts. Straight key a Junker. I've submitted an unimpressive score, perhaps because of a disappointinting level of activity. My first QSO was with Larry, W2LJ on 40. His signal from less than 20 miles away was so weak that I initially logged him as W2RJ and had to ask for a repeat of his SPC! The skip was long and W4QO in Georgia was loud and got much louder as the contest advanced. 80 was in fine shape but overlooked by most entrants. K2EKM - Only operated during the 1st hour. Heard very few stations and noise level was high. Actually the signal levels on 80m were higher than on 40. Even when conditions are not great, this is still one of my favorite on-the-air activities. RULES: Date and time: UTC (Z): Thursday, Sep 22, 0030Z to 0230Z Eastern Daylight Time: Wednesday, Sep 21, 8:30 PM to 10:30 PM Special Category: We'll award a certificate to the top score turned in by a newcomer to CW contesting. That is, someone who has previously entered 10 or less CW contests of any kind. To further clarify, entering a contest means making at least one CW QSO in it, whether it is a major contest, state QSO party, club sprint, or any other kind of competition. Entry Deadline: All entries must be postmarked or email dated before 2400Z on Sep 28, 2005. Other Rules: For rules that are common to all of our sprints, check General Sprint Rules |