Posts Tagged ‘DXCC’
An interesting challenge
December 30th, 2015 | 
Author: http://ny4g.blogspot.com/2015/12/qrp-dxcc-challenge.html
He calls it "QRP Wars - The Morse Awakens".
Cute.
Now the question is - can it be done?
My answer is, "Yes, I think it can." Even with the worsening solar conditions. But (and there's alway's a "but") I think this competition favors those who are retired and can send mondo amounts of time on the radio. It also favors those of us on the East coast, who are closer to Europe and the Caribbean. And with the ARRL DX Contest which is held in February, if you really put your mind to it, it should be possible to work QRP DXCC within 100 days.
Am I going to put my money where my mouth is?
Not sure at this point. I just might try it for fun and just may keep a "diary" of the effort here on the blog - just for the halibut. Let me cogitate on it for a while. I have a couple of days left until 2016 rolls around.
72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!
Remotes
There has been a lot of discussion lately regarding the upcoming ARRL's review of DXCC requirements regarding, amongst other things, the use of "remote" stations. It seems that most folks are either dead against them or all for them, with little middle-ground. But one thing is for certain ... remotes are here to stay and are growing by leaps and bounds.The biggest controversy seems to be whether DX worked via a remote should count the same as DX worked from one's home station. Many think that DX worked via a remote should still be countable for your DXCC credits but should be in a separate class or have a separate endorsement indicating such ... others see no separation is needed.
I guess a lot depends on how one views the DXCC program overall. Some see it as a competition against other stations while others view it is a personal challenge for one's own satisfaction and the only competition is with one's self.
For example, if a New England 160m amateur spends many years perfecting his system and struggles for those hard-fought Asian or South Pacific contacts, should these contacts be held in the same regard as the New Englander's 160m neighbour who works all of the Asian-Pacific with ease via a remote station on the west coast? Should both DXCC certificates be the same? There is also the question of remote stations "for rent" and the overall ethics or "legality" of such within the amateur radio service.
The only direct exposure I have had to remote station operation is hearing what was clearly an east-coast remote being operated by an amateur on the west coast, while working Europeans. No problem with that, however, the operator was giving his location as CN87, Washington state ... clearly deceptive, as many Europeans were delighted to think that they had just worked a new state in "7-land"!
I suppose that no matter how strict the "rules" for remote operations eventually become, there will always be those willing to play by their own rules, as is human nature.
The genie is out of the bottle and there is no going back. I think the ARRL has some tough decisions to make ... hopefully they will be well-thought out and not based solely on financial interests.
CQ WPX made my day
From time to time I have heard of those of who manage to contact 100 DXCC countries during one weekend. This past weekend it was my turn to try.
If you have a contest station with 1 kW and monoband yagi antennas, then this goal shouldn’t be too hard. But for my station with only an 80 m horizontal loop (loop skywire) circling its way through my garden from treetop to treetop and 100 W of transmitter power from my K3, the challenge was greater.
About 6 hours before the end of the test and with 87 countries, I had almost given up so I sent the tweet above. The status for the second day of the contest was that I had only worked two more countries.
But then in the final hours I heard and then contacted Tunisia, Malaysia, Australia og Kosovo (Z6) to bring me to 91, and then Laos and Albania. But then it took a long while for some new ones: Spanish Africa (EA9) and Argentine. I also managed two more Caribbean stations (J3 and CO) and Peru and Sardinia.
Finally in the last hour of the contest two more Caribbean stations (PJ2 and VP9) and in the end Mexico 21 minutes before the end of the contest. That brought the total to 102. I think that was needed as Kosovo isn’t really an approved country and I also had contact with what was probably a pirate and not a station from Andorra. That signature was C31XR which most likely is the name of an antenna and not a real station.
My total was 47 European countries, 19 from Asia, 12 from North America, 10 from Africa, 9 from South America and 3 from Oceania. I think it helps to be in Europe as I had almost half of the countries quite close by, but it would be interesting to hear comments from North Americans on how realistic they consider this goal to be from their location.
CQ WPX made my day
From time to time I have heard of those of who manage to contact 100 DXCC countries during one weekend. This past weekend it was my turn to try.
If you have a contest station with 1 kW and monoband yagi antennas, then this goal shouldn’t be too hard. But for my station with only an 80 m horizontal loop (loop skywire) circling its way through my garden from treetop to treetop and 100 W of transmitter power from my K3, the challenge was greater.
About 6 hours before the end of the test and with 87 countries, I had almost given up so I sent the tweet above. The status for the second day of the contest was that I had only worked two more countries.
But then in the final hours I heard and then contacted Tunisia, Malaysia, Australia og Kosovo (Z6) to bring me to 91, and then Laos and Albania. But then it took a long while for some new ones: Spanish Africa (EA9) and Argentine. I also managed two more Caribbean stations (J3 and CO) and Peru and Sardinia.
Finally in the last hour of the contest two more Caribbean stations (PJ2 and VP9) and in the end Mexico 21 minutes before the end of the contest. That brought the total to 102. I think that was needed as Kosovo isn’t really an approved country and I also had contact with what was probably a pirate and not a station from Andorra. That signature was C31XR which most likely is the name of an antenna and not a real station.
My total was 47 European countries, 19 from Asia, 12 from North America, 10 from Africa, 9 from South America and 3 from Oceania. I think it helps to be in Europe as I had almost half of the countries quite close by, but it would be interesting to hear comments from North Americans on how realistic they consider this goal to be from their location.
Congratulations to Logbook of the World
Congratulations to the ARRL Logbook of the World (LOTW) which just reached 100 million confirmed contacts. This is the same as an impressive 200 million QSL cards out of about 630 million uploaded contacts on LOTW.
LOTW was established way back in 2003. This was only 2 years after I got my license. Since I have never enjoyed much to fill in QSL cards I embraced LOTW very quickly. I have to say though that I will of course respond with a paper QSL for those who ask for one.
But LOTW has been my primary means of confirming contacts for a decade. My DXCC was confirmed with LOTW.
Now at the same time that LOTW is celebrating 100 millions confirmations, I am celebrating 8 bands with 100 or more contacts all confirmed via Logbook of the World. This is on all bands from 3.5 to 28 MHz. This has been my goal for many years. The last confirmation came from the TC0A contest station in Turkey on 80 m after last month’s CQ World Wide CW contest.
I consider myself lucky to have reached 100 confirmations even on the elusive 12 m band which we all know will shut down soon not reopen again until the next solar maximum in about 11 years time.
But as the saying goes “The journey is the reward“, so what to do next as a radio amateur?
Location, location, location
I might not be in the best location for the QRP Fox hunts, but I do have to admit that I am blessed when it came to achieving QRP DXCC. Those of us in the Northeast definitely do not have the edge in Fox hunting that our fellow Hounds from the Midwest have. When you look at the Hound’s scores, the guys “who get ’em all” are usually, if not exclusively, from the middle of the US. But those of us in the Northeast, and on the East coast in general have the edge when working Europe and the Caribbean. I believe that Jim W4QO in Georgia posted that he worked over 100 different DXCC entities just this past weekend. That’s nothing to sneeze at and is a great accomplishment!
But if your a new QRPer you may be saying to yourself, “That’s all well and good, but I’m just starting out and I don’t have a tower and a beam or a fancy antenna farm.” I’m not saying that those wouldn’t be helpful, but you can achieve a lot with simple antennas. I posted yesterday that I worked about half a DXCC award this past weekend. I did it with a Butternut HF9V antenna and a home brewed 88′ Extended Double Zepp antenna. These antennas are surely within the reach of beginner QRPers (HOAs notwithstanding). With 5 Watts, I worked (in no particular order):
Estonia
Norway
France
Czech Republic
Belgium
Columbia
Italy
Slovenia
Bulgaria
Poland
Spain
Bahamas
Puerto Rico
The Ukraine
European Russia
The Azores
Mexico
Brazil
Chile
Morocco
The Turks & Caicos
The Cayman Islands
Alaska
Madeira Island
Portugal
US Virgin Islands
Sweden
Nicaragua
French Guiana
Lithiuania
Aruba
Curacao
Anguilla
Finland
Atigua & Barbuda
England
Scotland
The Balearic Islands
Germany
Jamaica
Belize
The Canary Islands
Bonaire
Belarus
Denmark
That’s 45 DXCC entities in just around four hours of operating. So I don’t want to hear about how QRP DXCC is hard or impossible. I’ve done it and believe me, if a ham and egger like me can work 100 different countries using 5 Watts, then you can do better! And when you come down to it, my performance this past weekend was really nothing to crow about. If you want to read a great story, then make sure to read Phil AK2MA’s recount of his ARRL DX Contest effort – 150 QSOs and 57 countries worked with an INDOOR Buddipole on just one band (15 Meters)! THAT my friends is an achievement!
There is a price to pay, however, and that is you’re going to have to work on your Morse Code. Life is not a dish of assorted fancy cashews. QRP DXing and CW go together like hand and glove. Some of these contest stations were sending so fast that it took me 7 or 8 listens to get their calls right. Normally I am comfortable copying up to 25-28 WPM; and on a good day, I can stretch that to 35 WPM if the code being sent well and the exchange is short (like a contest exchange). Some of these guys were sending around the 40 WPM stratosphere and I had to just pass them by. But with dedication and practice you can get to the “mere human neighborhood” of 25 WPM without going crazy.
And that’s part of what this is all about, too. Constantly improving your station, your antennas, and yourself!
72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!
Trying a new template.
Not sure I like it; or will keep it, but it IS different from what I had. Is this template easier on the eyes? Some folks recently and privately commented to me that they didn’t like a white typeface against a dark background. Is this any better?
I joined my CERT group to aid South Plainfield with the running of the Holy Savior Academy 5K walk/run this morning. Luckily, I only had one obnoxious driver to deal with who couldn’t understand that the main roads were closed so that people wouldn’t be run over. “You actually expect me to park on this side street and walk a block to my house?”, I was asked. “Yes, sir”, I replied, “It’s for your protection as well as theirs.” He still huffed and puffed until he started getting unreasonable and a little belligerent, so at that point, I radioed for police assistance. They arrived and suddenly the light bulb went on over his noggin – he got the idea.
The thing that gets me is that not only is this an annual event; but it’s also very well publicized. Notice about it appears on the local cable channel. Sacred Heart Church, which loans out its parking lot for the epicenter of the event is by far the largest church in town. The notices for the “Family 5K Run/Walk” appears in their bulletin for weeks ahead of time. The local town paper published the details about the run/walk and the road closures the week before the event, also. The town puts it on their Website and their Facebook page. Don’t people read? Several of our CERT members suggested to our Director of Emergency Management that perhaps next year, on the night before the event, that we do an automated “reverse 911” call and telephone all the houses anywhere near the route that the roads will be closed. Oh, and by the way, the roads are closed for all of about an hour – 90 minutes tops!
One of my Ham buddies, Marv K2VHW, who also lives in South Plainfield was at the event with me. He told me that his rain gauge had close to 4.5 inches (11 cm) of rain in it due to yesterday’s visit from Tropical Storm Andrea. Yesterday was definitely a soaker, and I’m willing to bet the cicadas weren’t too thrilled with it. I know that the tropical storm season does officially start with the end of May. I don’t recall us ever getting a visit by a named storm so early in the season. I hope it’s not a portent for things to come. Irene in 2011 and Sandy in 2012 were enough for me for a long, long time.
