ARRL DX CW Contest-Fun at W3PP
Stacked Antennas
The cobwebs are finally starting to clear after the marathon 48 hour ARRL DX CW contest. The goal of this contest is to work as many Non-US, Non-Canadian stations as possible in the allotted time. An endurance test to be sure but a blast nevertheless.
This year’s effort eclipsed 2008 by a wide margin. The operators would like to take credit for this improvement, however it can more likely be attributed to better(not great) band conditions.
QSO’s Multipliers Score
4131 469 5,722,269 2009
2996 427 3,786,636 2008
For the past couple of years I’ve been an operator at contest station W3PP located in southern Delaware. Dallas Carter (W3PP) built this station from the ground up a number of years ago and takes great care to provide the very best operating experience. The station consists of operating positions for 10m-160m, dedicated multiple single band antennas, and separate receiving antennas for 80 and 160 meters. Alot of time, effort, and money was spent initially and still is today on its maintenance.
10, 160, and 80m op positions
Operating at a multi-multi (multiple operator multiple radio) contest station provides great fun and camaraderie. Its also a great learning experience as contesters can provide wonderful insight into ways to both improve your home station and operating skill. I’ve been a licensed amateur radio operator for 40 years and yet I still learn something each time I participate in these contest efforts.
This year’s crew included both seasoned veterans and newcomers which is always a great mix. Joining our host W3PP-Dallas, was W2GJ-Pete, WB4FDT-Pip, K1RY-Roy, NW3Y-Chick, WG3J-Eric, and yours truly, K3WI-Bill. W3pp encourages both experienced and non experienced hams to show up and have a great time. I’ve found that most contest stations welcome anyone who wants to stop by and operate, to do just that. Who are the contesters in your area? Well a quick Google search would turn up a few as well as subscribing to the contest reflector hosted by www.contesting.com .
At a contest station, its important to utilize the strengths of not only the station design but the operator’s skill and preference. Which operator should be assigned to each band, does the operator do S&P (Search and Pounce-spin the dial and call who they hear) or are they a Run operator(establishes a presence on a frequency and calls CQ to draw others to him or her). When properly managed, these and other strategy considerations allows the contest station to operate at peak performance. Other important considerations include who is doing the pizza run Saturday and the donut run Sunday morning. A well oiled machine still needs fuel after all!
In the final ananlysis these events are about having some fun and we do our best at trying to achieve that goal. While making contact with more than 4000 fellow contesters is a great result, sitting around the table and shooting the breeze with friends both new and old is really the better part of the experience.
Tags: ARRL, Contesting, W3PP
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