WQ6X RAC's 1-Up 4 Canada BE-4 DiVing DoWn to 160.

This is the 1st WQ6X RAC Winter contest and Stew Perry SP-160 GiGs run QRP from the mountaintop in Anza.  When I heard that WA6TQT's STN-2 was not committed for the weekend,
I set things up to run the Canadian RAC GiG multi-band QRP, followed by a short run in the Stew Perry contest, again running QRP. 

Client and holiday commitments kept me out of the operators chair until 09:30z (i.e. after 1am PT).  By then, most of America was "snuggled in their beds, with visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads".

While I usually run QRP remote from KN6NBT's Ramona QTH, there the 160-meter inverted Vee originally run from Tower #1 in Fallbrook does not properly fit at the Ramona QTH unless the tower
is run up to it's full 70' height (it normally sits "parked" at 55').

From the WQ6X point-of-view (with limited time spent in the OP-chair), Canadian activity in the RAC Winter contest seemed noticeably less than in previous years - I guess we'll know for sure when they publish the contest results in 2024.  Nevertheless, I accomplished the goal of running another QRP GiG having a fantastic array of antennas at my disposal.  Ironically, no QSOs were made on 160-meters Saturday morning; while the RBN receivers heard WQ6X call CQ, evidently no human operators were around to hear it ("if a tree falls in the forest...)

Operationally, the choice was made to run Single-OP Assisted mixed-Mode QRP for the RAC event.  For the Stew Perry SP-160 contest, the rules are very specific about no use of spotting clusters to find stations - I can use the bandmap, as long as I populate it with callsigns actually heard over the air.  Because stations will receive 4X QSO points for working me as a QRP station, encouraging stations to call in was facilitated by the following F1-Call:  CQ SP  WQ6X  WQ6X/Qrp.

Therefore, be patient and work all the weak signals you hear - if they turn out to be QRP,
you will receive a 3-point BONUS for having stuck it out.  Translation?: DON'T GIVE UP
on Us.

The 160-meter "Tri-Square" antenna is currently a real challenge.  One of the dipole feedlines
is broken, meaning when the software tells the switching unit to switch between N-E, S-E and
West, all we REALLY know is that it consistently points SOMEWHERE - we just dunno WHERE
that somewhere is, altho using the Reverse Beacon Network (RBN) data may help us sort it out later.

When it was ALL over, 52 160-meter QSOs made it to the WQ6X QRP LoG.

Once again, this QRP operation demonstrated you don't need an amplifier (or even the standard 100-watt radio) to work virtually every station you can hear; altho admittedly, in this contest, the Tri-Square could "hear" way better than other stations could hear it.

Have you ever worked a contest QRP?....  on 160-Meters?

DiD you work the Stew Perry contest to end 2023?

Is WQ6X in YOUR LoG?

WQ6X ASKS: Whut Do We Do with an Off-contest Weekend?

The 4th weekend of December (at least from the WQ6X perspective) is typically a non-contest weekend.  The weekend before was the OK-DX RTTY contest, and the following weekend will
be the Canadian RAC Winter Contest.

This is the time of year when I survey the 3830 Scores list for WQ6X for the current contest year (2023) reflecting not only on the successes but LooKing ahead to the coming contest year (2024), beginning with the ARRL RTTY-RU (Roundup) GiG the 1st weekend in January.  As part of planning for the upcoming RU GiG I made a close look at the high score data for the last 3 years.

Most importantly, it turns out that WQ6X actually set a contest record for East Bay section
and the PAC (Pacific) Division in the  2023 Roundup - and this was AFTER having the WQ6X
score dinged down from 2,277 points to a mere 1,736.

In preparation for a number of WQ6X operations from W7AYT's QTH in Concord, three
different antennas were compared on the upper bands by calling "CQ DX de WQ6X WQ6X"
and then capturing the RBN stats for those calls.  What is amazing is that the 3-el 10-m
Long John yagi tunes incredibly well as a rotatable dipole on 15-meters and to some degree
on 20-meters.

To quote a classic Christmas song.... "these are just some of my FAVorite things..."

What are YOUR Favorite things to do in your radiosport contest off hours?

BLAST from the Past: RADIOWORLD Editorial - Necessary and Welcome

While conducting mandatory end-of-the-year hard-drive maintenance on the several laptops
which make up WQ6X radio operations, I encountered pictures of the two editorials I wrote for RADIOWORLD (published on April 24, 2022, and December 21, 2022).  Because column-inch
real estate is always limited, magazine editors take it upon themselves to edit submissions for interest, legal or space reasons.  While I am overall pleased with the text that made it into print,
it's interesting to contrast the final result with what was originally written.

In all fairness, the above submission was making reference to two different arenas and the editor consolidated it down to one, with a slightly different order of the text, making it more palatable
to the mixed audience who reads RADIOWORLD magazine.  Nevertheless, it's interesting
to see things that I wrote actually making it into print.

Have YOU ever submitted an editorial or Op-ed piece to a newspaper or magazine?

What was YOUR Experience?

Listening Remotely Resolves Receive Randomity

In recent years, I have made considerable use of running radios remotely; first for NX6T operations in Fallbrook and later from Anza and Ramona (both) in So. California.  Accessing these stations require the use of a properly configured K3/0 (from the Concord location), or a K3/0-Mini from my Alameda office.  Even MORE recently, I have been running the Yaesu FT-2000 remotely between my office
in Alameda and its physical setup in Concord.

To simply listen-in (w/o transmitting) on HF happenings around the world, there are 100's of
SDR (Software Defined Receiver) all over the world, accessible using most any internet browser
on a computer w/adequate sound rendering capabilities.  My FAVorite SDR websites include:

• [X] - KFS SDR - Half Moon Bay
• [X] - Northern UTAH SDR
• [X] - K3FEF SDR in Pennsylvania
• [X] - TWENTE SDR in Holland

One of the benefits of using online SDR radios is that waterfall display that most SDR sites utilize.  Radiosport contest operators who appreciate PAN-adapter displays will find the SDR waterfalls to be near-equivalent replicas.

While use of offsite SDR access (to make QSOs) is NoT normally permitted in most radiosport contests, at other times and for other reasons SDRs can be quite useful tools, especially when propagation-checks around the world are needed.  Recently, I was configuring the FT-2000
portable setup in Concord to run by way of the FT-2000RC.Exe APP.  This software can
be run locally by way of a VPN (I use VNC viewer), or it can be run via IP-address using
the same APP on another computer such as the WinDoze-11 system in my Alameda office.

Having proper access to the FT-2000 is akin to having access to yet another SDR - this from
the North-East, East Bay Area.  When ragchewing with the Redwood Radio Roundtable late in the evening on 75-meters, I often listen to our 3830 frequency with the FT-2000, giving me a [so-called] "skip perspective", while running remote from Ramona (in N. San Diego County).

NoT too long ago I was experimenting with running the FT-2000 in Cw mode using the N1mm+ software.  Pre-defined function keys as well as Alt-K (Keyboard entry) is enough to run most any
Cw contest.

However, no matter how you run a radiosport contest, it ALL begins with listening, especially listening before you transmit - I even wrote a Blog entry about that.  ([CLICK HERE] to read that.)

Have YOU ever spent time listening on the various SDR radios located around the globe?

What Discoveries have YOU made?

WQ6X Wields a Wild & Wooly QRP 10-Meter Contest

wOw!  The 2023 ARRL 10-Meter contest was another of those wOw events - to say the LEAST.
It is fortunate this is one of those 48-hour GiGs that I wrote about recently.  The contest weekend
was interspersed with client commitments Saturday morning followed by a holiday brunch for the Amateur Radio Club of Alameda (ARCA) - for which I am currently club president.

On the left coast, the start of the ARRL contest coincides with the end-of-the-day for 10-meters. 
I got a late start (01:36z), running the K3/0-Mini from my office to the KN6NBT station that I run
remotely from Ramona California.  The band was dead to most areas east of Ramona however,
the band was WIDE-open to Oceania (VK/ZL) with Hawaii and what was left of Japan.  The REAL action would have to wait til 15:54z when I came into the office and spent an hour S&P'ing before
client work.

Rather than spend valuable operating time driving to Concord to setup the K3/0-Mini there, the decision was made to run WQ6X from my Alameda office after the brunch event and then, at 00:00z takeover the [remote] "helm" for NX6T.  My job was to keep NX6T active until the band falls apart; which happened by 02:15z.

Arriving at W7AYT's QTH at 03:30z, the K3/0-Mini was setup in a portable fashion.  On the oft-chance there might be any random band openings, CQ calls were made throughout the evening, rotating the yagi to various azimuth headings; unfortunately to no-avail.  In the previous sunspot cycle, I would often encounter late evening 10-meter band openings around this time of year, leaving me the expectation it could happen again this year, which of course DIDN'T happen - Oh Wail.

This is what I posted as part of the 3830Scores WQ6X entry on that page.

This is a WQ6X FIRST - running the 10-Meter GiG QRP from Ramona California. Client 
and ARCA radio club commitments kept me in Alameda Friday and part of Saturday, so I ran Ramona's K3 radio from my Alameda Biofeedback office using a K3/0-Mini. Upon arrival @W7AYT, the K3/0-Mini was installed just in time for a two-hour OP stint for NX6T finishing Saturday for me. Sunday morning, the band started to open around 6am and amazingly enough there was a Greyline opening to EU at 7am (15:00z). When that died, I went back to bed for
a couple of hours and then picked up where I left off around 10am until the GiG ended at 4pm. Condx. to JA and Oceania where MUCH better on Friday/Saturday than Sunday, altho a couple of Asian multipliers Sunday afternoon made up for the lack of QSO volume. There was LoTs of atmospheric noise all weekend, even tho no solar storms were (to my knowledge) indicated so the K3-DNR was an absolute necessity. Running Stereo-CW (see the WQ6X Blogs on that), made CW copy more effective. m

When it was all over, it would seem that NX6T took a 2nd-place (for the Southwest Division) behind the AOCC (Arizona Outlaws), while WQ6X managed a 1st-place for that division running Single-OP unlimited QRP - beyond that will be made known when they publish the contest results next year.

DiD YOU participate in the ARRL 10-meter contest?

IS NX6T or WQ6X in YOUR LoG?

For WQ6X CQ W.W. IS a World-Wide Wonder

The ONE word I shall use to overview the CQ W.W. Cw weekend this last weekend is

wOw!

Virtually every variety of contest experience you can imagine was in simultaneous play
throughout the 48-hour operating period.   As I wrote in a recent Blog ([CLICK HERE]),
I LOVE 48-hour contests because in a sense they enable what I call DO-overs.

DO-overs are nice when sometimes we incorrectly focus our op-time on a non-producing band
only to discover a nearby band was LOADED with workable activity.  DO-overs are nice when
(like this weekend) solar storms produce temporarily-marginal conditions, such as just after 08:00z
on Saturday morning.

Other than the increasingly worsening Space-WX (see above), virtually everything that is notable about this contest event made its appearance in the 3830-Score Submission after the contest.

Virtually everything else we need to know can be gleaned from the N1MM+ ending screen.

When it was all over, it would seem that WQ6X took a 2nd-place (for USA) behind K6JS.

DiD YOU work the CQ W.W. Cw contest?

Is WQ6X in YOUR LoG?

WQ6X Works Another W00LY 160-Meter Contest

This year's ARRL 160-meter contest came out of nowhere - literally - on Thursday, N6KI put the call out for operators.  The only OPs available were Dennis, WM6Y (Phil), N6CY (Rick) and me - WQ6X.  When my 1st operating shift came up (12:30am to 4:00am), most of the 225 "routine" stations were already in the log, while East of California, most OPs were still SnooZing soundly.

Middle-of-the-night contests require accommodation of S&P (Search & Pounce) in between frequency-running to alleviate the Boredom (bore-dumb) Factor.  The recent addition of the self-spotting-allowed rule in some ARRL contests makes for a slight improvement in QSO-rates during frequency runs.  Otherwise, it takes two CQ calls be-4 the RBN (Reverse Beacon Network) stations report/update the CQ's to the internet spotting servers.

After 4 frustrating hours I managed to add a WHOPPING 36 QSOs to the log, altho JA3 and V31 mults were 2 of those log entries.  Ironically, to work VE6 and a K8 (Mi) station, the best signal levels were made by pointing the Tri-square array to the WEST - GO Figure).  (Recent update: being that the Tri-square has been "broken" in the past, the assumption is currently being made that the phasing-cable system is out of "calibration".)

On the following Monday morning, looking back on the weekend, I found it amazing that I/We managed to accomplish what We DiD, when We DiD It as Well as We DiD!  While dealing w/the
solar CME that delivered a glancing-blow to the F-Layer of our atmosphere certainly created a signal challenge, the REAL Difficulty (and has been increasingly so in the last 6+ weeks) are the purposeful MIS-SPOTS being sent to the DX cluster(s).  

At first, I thought it was some sort of server glitch until some of the mis-posted callsigns were "too cute" to have been accidental or algorithmic mistakes.  A not-insignificant amount of operating time was spent deleting those entries from the call lists and bandmap(s).  If I knew what the CORRECT callsign should be, I would spot it properly (and trust that other OPs will do the same for me).
This egregious behavior has prompted me to send an e-mail to the ARRL contest coordinator
(Sean Kutzko) asking what can be done about this, and, can the offenders in some way be sanctioned.

Soapbox comments from the submitted logfile can help fill-in some of the technical details:

In the end, the ARRL 160 contest turned out to be an embodiment of a number of different
operating-factors to navigate thru in order to get the message out.  Unlike most contests,
the ARRL 160 & 10 meter contests are JUST that - single-band events; altho the 10-meter
GiG can be run mixed-mode (Cw and Ssb), whereas the 160-GiG is Cw only (altho the CQ-160
contests run a different weekend for each mode).  No matter which mode, we run in a single-band contest, whenever the band is not happening (for whatever reason), there's nothing left to do but Sit, Twiddle-our-thumbs, call CQ and Wait.

When it was all over, NX6T put 477 QSOs in the log (77 made by WQ6X).  Running as WQ6X
(from the EB section), 23 QSOs made it into the LoG - just enough to say "I Wuz THERE!".

To get a sense for some of the technical details about the WQ6X operation, the 3830 Soapbox comments say it best:

Did YOU work the ARRL 160-meter radiosport contest?

Is NX6T or WQ6X in YOUR LoG?