Log Checking Report (LCR) - KL8DX 2012 CQ WW CW Contest LCR

The KL8DX Classroom

I recently received an email from Randy, K5ZD outlining my Log Checking Report (LCR) for the 2012 CQ World Wide DX CW Conest. Logs are public and participants are alerted to their log becoming available. A few feel that revealing of the contest logs should not happen as it would possible give up strategic information, etc. Me on the other hand, it's my Report Card and grades how well I did in the contest. I welcome these reports with open arms and I sure use them to my benefit. I learn from them and then try to fix my problem areas.

My shack is my classroom when it comes to operating. I'm always learning. It could be about propagation, strategy, space weather, greyline or simply how my equipment plays under certain conditions. I also learn from others without leaving my chair. As mentioned in my previous blog, via email or simply just tuning and listening to other operators on the air. I learn what and what not to do this way. 

Anyhow, if I had to grade my operating from the CQ WW CW Contest, I would grade myself at a C+ level. This is simply because my 3.8% error reduction. Had I not lost a multiplier, I would of graded myself at a B-, I think. Let's take a look at the breakout -

************************** Summary ***************************

    1881 Claimed QSO before checking (does not include duplicates)
    1862 Final   QSO after  checking reductions

    4186 Claimed QSO points
    4046 Final   QSO points

     129 Claimed countries
     128 Final   countries

      69 Claimed zones
      69 Final   zones

     198 Claimed mults
     197 Final   mults

  828828 Claimed score
  797062 Final   score

    3.8% Score reduction

       8 (0.4%) calls copied incorrectly
       7 (0.4%) exchanges copied incorrectly
       0 (0.0%) band change violations
       4 (0.2%) not in log
      15 (0.8%) duplicates (Removed without penalty)
       3 (0.2%) calls unique to this log only (not removed)

********************** Results By Band ***********************

             Band   QSO  QPts  Zone Cty Mult

   Claimed   160M     0     0     0   0    0
   Final     160M     0     0     0   0    0

   Claimed    80M    11    23     5   5   10
   Final      80M    11    23     5   5   10

   Claimed    40M    30    76     8   8   16
   Final      40M    30    76     8   8   16

   Claimed    20M   728  1731    19  58   77
   Final      20M   720  1657    19  58   77

   Claimed    15M   913  1896    19  38   57
   Final      15M   905  1852    19  37   56

   Claimed    10M   199   460    18  20   38
   Final      10M   196   438    18  20   38

   Claimed    All  1881  4186    69 129  198  Score   828828
   Final      All  1862  4046    69 128  197  Score   797062

When I looked a bit closer as to the reason why, it was simply my copy. 
In looking at it from another angle, my lack of copying. Let's take a look -
********************* Incorrectly copied *********************

14053 CW 2012-11-24 0247 KL8DX    1 PS1T    11 correct     PS2T       
14027 CW 2012-11-24 0327 KL8DX    1 JF1NSD  25 correct     JF1NHD     
21046 CW 2012-11-24 0840 KL8DX    1 SF3A    14 correct     HF3A       
28065 CW 2012-11-24 1911 KL8DX    1 N7LXU    3 correct     N7XU       
28038 CW 2012-11-24 2340 KL8DX    1 JH1CTQ  25 correct     JS3CTQ     
14065 CW 2012-11-25 0015 KL8DX    1 K1BG     5 correct     K1DG
14040 CW 2012-11-25 2252 KL8DX    1 K7FL     3 correct     K8FL       
21082 CW 2012-11-25 2359 KL8DX    1 JF1NSD  25 correct     JF1NHD

I've always had a mental block with the letters "H" and "S" at higher speeds. 
In looking above, that is what stood out first in my error report. And it did not   stop there. I also incorrectly copied the following exchanges -
*************** Incorrect Exchange Information ***************
21067 CW 2012-11-24 0154 KL8DX     1 7K4XNN   24 correct   25
21058 CW 2012-11-24 1819 KL8DX     1 K7BG      3 correct    4
21048 CW 2012-11-24 1827 KL8DX     1 KH7X      5 correct   31
21098 CW 2012-11-24 1851 KL8DX     1 WX9U      5 correct    4
28063 CW 2012-11-24 2244 KL8DX     1 NG7Z      5 correct    3
21036 CW 2012-11-25 2215 KL8DX     1 W3HDH     5 correct    4
14040 CW 2012-11-25 2249 KL8DX     1 N0EF      4 correct    3


The biggest puzzle for me is how in the heck did I get KH7X wrong! Zone 5 for31? And I gotta wonder about 7K4 as Zone 24 and not 25? That's a bit easier to swallow than KH7X. I've worked Paul, NG7Z in so many contests and I know he  is in Zone 3.

The ones that really effect ones score are the multipliers that are "busted." 
I did just that -
********************** Lost Multipliers **********************


21046 CW 2012-11-24 0840 KL8DX    1 SF3A   14 correct HF3A  


So, I review my results for the next test. What can I do to improve and what
mistakes did I make in this last contest that I need to pay more attention to 
during the next contest? Yes, when one is tired, it's easy to make mistakes but
when contesting, that could be the difference between what I refer to 
myself as framing or blaming, or simply - wallpaper or none.
I've also made an attempt to correct people when they have busted my call. I hope that others will do the same should I bust their callsign. Yell back at me or send your call a few times so I get that "V-8 Moment" and correct it. Sadly,
many bust my callsign because of poor spotting. I often get spotted as KL7DX
and people will click, work, log and move on without verifying my call. 
I correct as many as possible and I make sure I send my call after each QSO if 
I'm running stations. If I'm S&P (Search & Pounce) and someone has
my call wrong, I send it not only once, but twice.  Something like, 
"K8QWY de KL8DX 5NN 01 de KL8DX. 
Here is a look at how many busted my callsign (I removed the call to protect 
those who did) -
************* Stations Copying KL8DX Incorrectly *************
21000 CW 2012-11-24 0148 JH****          25 KL7DX            1
21000 CW 2012-11-24 0158 JF****          25 KL7DX            1
14064 CW 2012-11-24 0517 VE***            3 KL7DX            1
14040 CW 2012-11-24 0745 R***            16 KL7DX            1
14009 CW 2012-11-24 0756 SP****          15 KL8NX            1
14000 CW 2012-11-24 0757 Y***            15 KL9DX            1
21062 CW 2012-11-24 0838 L****           15 KL7DX            1
14065 CW 2012-11-24 1524 S***            15 KL7DX            1
14008 CW 2012-11-24 1625 R***            17 KD8DX            3
14034 CW 2012-11-24 1634 L****           20 KA8DX            4
14059 CW 2012-11-24 1644 N***             5 KL7DX            1
21021 CW 2012-11-24 1823 K***             5 KL7DX            1
21025 CW 2012-11-24 1844 W*****           3 KL7DX            1
21000 CW 2012-11-24 1902 W*****           3 KL8DK            1
21000 CW 2012-11-24 1959 K****            4 KL7DX            1
21077 CW 2012-11-24 2018 K***             5 KL8X             1
21000 CW 2012-11-24 2036 K****            5 KL7DX            1
21077 CW 2012-11-24 2044 N***             3 KL7DX            1
21077 CW 2012-11-24 2047 K****            3 KL7DX            1
21077 CW 2012-11-24 2106 W****            4 KL7DX            1
21000 CW 2012-11-24 2208 N***             3 KL7DX            1
21077 CW 2012-11-24 2210 W***             5 KL7DX            1
21077 CW 2012-11-24 2224 K***             3 KL2DX            1
21000 CW 2012-11-24 2227 VE****           4 KL7DX            1
28000 CW 2012-11-24 2240 K***             4 KL7DX            1
14066 CW 2012-11-25 0004 K***             5 KL7DX            1
14066 CW 2012-11-25 0043 VA***            3 KL7DX            1
14000 CW 2012-11-25 0202 N***             4 KL7DX            1
14066 CW 2012-11-25 0211 K****            5 KL7DX            1
14027 CW 2012-11-25 0302 W***             3 KL7DX            1
14001 CW 2012-11-25 1210 U***            16 DL8DX           14
14015 CW 2012-11-25 1215 R***            16 KL7DX            1
14059 CW 2012-11-25 1225 9***            15 KL8TEX           1
14028 CW 2012-11-25 1227 9***            15 KL7DX            1
14000 CW 2012-11-25 1243 U****           16 DL8DX           14
14102 CW 2012-11-25 1252 U***            16 KD8DX            4
14054 CW 2012-11-25 1448 Y***            20 KL7DX            1
21040 CW 2012-11-25 1515 Y***            15 KL7DX            1
14033 CW 2012-11-25 1546 Y*****          20 KR8DX            4
21000 CW 2012-11-25 2045 C****            8 KL7DX            1
21028 CW 2012-11-25 2058 L***            13 KL7DX            1
21000 CW 2012-11-25 2101 K***             5 KL7DX            1
21000 CW 2012-11-25 2126 V****            5 KL7DX            1
21037 CW 2012-11-25 2135 K***             5 KL7DX            1
21000 CW 2012-11-25 2137 W***             4 KL7DX            1
21037 CW 2012-11-25 2202 N***             3 KL7DX            1
21036 CW 2012-11-25 2203 N***             4 KL7DX            1
21037 CW 2012-11-25 2203 N***             5 KL7DX            1
21037 CW 2012-11-25 2204 N***             3 KL7DX            1
21037 CW 2012-11-25 2205 W/******         3 KL7DX            1
21000 CW 2012-11-25 2212 K****            4 KL7DX            1
21037 CW 2012-11-25 2215 N***             4 KL7DX            1
21037 CW 2012-11-25 2218 K***             5 KL7DX            1
14040 CW 2012-11-25 2322 N***             4 KL7DX            1
21000 CW 2012-11-25 2347 JA****          25 AL8DX            1


Contesting is about speed AND accuracy, and scoring reflects just that. 
A call can be busted for many reasons, fatigue, QRM, QRN, QSB or simply,
just not copying it right. What is loud and clear is my final result and using
that, I will forge ahead and hopefully do better next year. 
But for now, class dismissed...   

I'm a 10? Not Really, But I Did Rain RTTY All Over Europe This Morning on 15!

My rate...rates?

So, I happened to stumble across some pretty interesting information this afternoon regarding the 2012 CQ World Wide CW Contest. This page had Valery, R5GA's callsign all over it. He has a listing of stations within their classifications and claimed best 60 minute CW QSO rates. This appears to have been extracted from their submission files. Either way, this was extremely interesting to review.

Now mind you, I'm not a high speed CW operator. I've always dreamed of being able to mentally copy a long QSO at 40 wpm but, that will never happen. Not to make excuses but I think it boils down to how I first learned CW. I feel that if I had learned differently, my copy would be much better than it is 25+ years later. And it's not for lack of practice. I try to get on CW as often as possible and contest weekends are excellent practice! It's possible to work so many great DX stations but also increase your copy speed. I can be rusty on a Friday afternoon when a contest starts but if I try hard and stay focused, by Sunday, I'm ready for a 32 wpm QSO! Well, at least I feel that way. I like to refer to it as Contest Code Overload! It's like eating a bunch of chocolate or drinking several cups of leaded coffee. I'm ready for anything and bouncing off the walls. But as the contest ends, I will push myself away from the radio, exit the shack and take a long break before returning, even leaving the contest program running. I will rekindle my relationship with my wife, our beagle and the cat (well, actually my daughters cat that she forgot to take with her) who frequently visits over contest weekends. 

Anyhow, getting back on track...you can see my detailed break-out here. Or you can click on any of the callsigns on the "All time records" page and it will show you the individual best efforts. My effort apparently shows what a computer decided was worthy of 10th place for my single operator, low power entry. And when I look at the list of stations, there are some great operators! And it makes my key stick just thinking about being listed on the same page with them! Little ol me. 

Other Alaskan stations who are listed are KL2R, KL7RA and NL7G. Of the three, I've only personally operated with Larry, N1TX (at KL2R). I have the utmost respect for Larry as an operator and contester. I only wished I lived a bit closer as I would love to spend more weekends at KL2R and continuing learning from Larry. I've written in previous blog posts about the team at KL2R. A very skilled and focused group of operators, all of which I very much look up to. I've always wanted to head down to Rich, KL7RA's station (been invited) but that is a very long haul for me. I still hope to. Rich has also been very instrumental in helping me become a better operator with advice, suggestions and more. There is a group of contesters here throughout Alaska that I keep in touch via email and a few I have met personally. I feel I owe my wallpaper success stories to them all, as they accepted this "out of stater" and have never made me feel like a "lid." They've answered all my questions and I feel I can ask anything of them, no matter how silly I might think it might be. 

One of the neat things about today's modern technology is, even though I've only personally met about half of the contesters I correspond with, I've been able to gain lots of great advice and insight from them via email. What I'm trying to say is, even if you live in the sticks like we do, you can still reach out and get valuable information and get your questions answered. You just need to ask. I arrived to Alaska entirely as a Search & Pounce (S&P) contest operator / DX'er and I will depart a "Park & Bark", not afraid to dig in and call CQ kinda guy. There are lots of publications available as well, both printed and electronic that give some good advice. In the latest National Contest Journal (NCJ), an article written by Mike, VE3GFN caught my eye. The title read, "The Little Pistol Pages." Mike's focus is more from a small station perspective so I'm looking forward to future reads from Mike in NCJ publications. I have found NCJ a valuable magazine with many articles from many a skilled operator, sharing experiences and advice on how to take operating to the next level. Most of the major magazines (like QST and CQ) and some organizational magazines also get into explaining the ins and outs of operating. Yes, I know, contesting is not for everybody but if you love ham radio and are in any way competitive, a good contest weekend might be just the ticket. 

15 Meter RTTY Contacts this morning - 100 watts

I had a bit of insomnia this morning so I strolled into the shack and found some great European signals on 15 meters! Well, I decided to take advantage of being awake and I worked one station one RTTY then I moved up and called CQ. I was on from 1015z to 1145z and that 1.5 hours flew by! To the right is a graphic illustration of where my 100 watts rained down over points east of me. My RTTY signal seemed to be raining all over Europe! I love openings like that. The only thing that could of made it better was doing the very same thing but on 10 meters! A ham can dream, right? As tired as I am now I hope I don't have a repeat but if so, I can only hope the bands will be open like they were this morning. 

Beaming Over North Pole Twice for Europe And Later Finding I Took A Continent!

April 1st RTTY QSO's on 20 Meters from KL8DX to Europe

I had high hopes of actually working some of the CQ World Wide WPX SSB Contest this past weekend. Those plans were changed once the solar wind picked up and absorption whet through the roof. I tuned the high bands for a large part of the weekend and from Friday to Sunday morning, I did not hear much of anything. Sunday morning the bands started to come back to life but it was short lived. By Sunday afternoon, I went from hearing some stations to hearing none. I knew my 100 watts would not make it out of the state of Alaska. I'm not much into SSB contests anyhow but compounded with the poor conditions, it was not hard for me to focus my attention on other things. I've worked tough contest weekends before but this one was a bust, from my location at least. Some of the other Alaskan efforts I've seen posted are a small fraction of what those stations normally work. I sadly flew the white flag of defeat for this contest.

In speaking of the WPX contest, there was a small window where I was hearing a few West Coast stations but those signals were not very strong and were accompanied by lots of QSB. One of the highlights for me was listening to 9 year old Emma, the daughter of Andreas, KU7T. I always enjoy listening to the "younger crowd" and Emma was doing a fantastic job! I listened to her for approximately 10 minutes and she sounded like a seasoned contester. She was CQ'n and picked up a few stations during my presence on the frequency. I only wish the band had been a bit better for me to be able to QSO with Emma. Maybe next time! I hope Emma enjoyed the contest and I sure hope to hear her voice again on the radio. We need to do what we can to encourage  younger generations to get involved with our hobby.  Awesome job, Emma! Keep up the good work!

2012 ARRL DX CW results for ARS KL8DX

The graph at the top of the blog gives a graphic illustration of my 20 meter RTTY contacts this morning. I had my antenna fixed to the lower 48 but was hearing some European stations. I saw it was about Greyline for that part of the world and I noticed TF3IG/2 had been spotted on the DX Cluster. I turned my beam and found TF3IG with a respectable signal into Alaska. I went from decoding him on my rig to firing up MMTTY and working Ingi. I had a few stations call me after I worked Ingi (it was his frequency) so I QSY'd up a few and called CQ beaming Europe. I was surprised to find a handful of stations coming back to me. One thing led to another and I eventually had enough stations calling me that I needed to work split. Sadly, I had to shut down, even with stations calling, but I enjoyed the short burst of activity. I worked the band for nearly 1.5 hours.

We made our weekly trip to the Post Office and a large white envelope found a home in our Post Office Box. It was from the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) and my wife was sure it was more wallpaper. When we arrived home, like a kid on Christmas morning, I opened it first. The certificate above is what I found in the envelope. I really like the new design and it has already found itself in a frame and will be hung on the wall tonight. What I'm most excited about is NO SCORE REDUCTION! Yea, I was just shouting out loud. If you look at the score on my certificate and the score on my 3830 submission, they are both the same. I strive for the "Golden Log" with each submission but I rarely get it. Practice makes perfect and I will continue to attempt to "get it right the first time." The other neat part of this certificate is being a "Continental Winner." That just takes this wallpaper up a notch. I've been lucky enough to do this two years in a row. Anyhow, I went into the archives and pulled up my 3830 submission and it's listed below. 

ARRL DX Contest, CW

Call: KL8DX
Operator(s): KL8DX
Station: KL8DX

Class: SOSB/20 LP
QTH: Alaska
Operating Time (hrs): 17.75

Summary:
Band  QSOs  Mults
-------------------
  160:          
  80:          
  40:          
  20:  828    57
  15:          
  10:          
-------------------
Total:  828    57  Total Score = 141,588

Club: North Coast Contesters

Comments:

I started out on 15 meters but needed to move to 20 due to line
noise in the direction of the lower 48. The aurora on Saturday
evening ended my daily effort but led to some beautiful displays
overhead. Sunday, things were slow in coming back but finally 
propagation got a bit better during the last 3 or 4 hours of the
contest. I had several DX stations call me over the weekend 
probably not knowing we were DX in this contest and not a state.

A more detailed breakout of my effort can be found on my blog. 
Thanks for the QSO's and patience! Contacts will be uploaded to
LOTW today. 

73,
Phil - KL8DX
Denali National Park, AK

For my signal to make it to Europe, it has to cross over North Pole not only once, but twice!  This is the secret to some of my European success stories I'm sure. The double North Pole crossings actually lead to an increase of signal strength by at least 2dB. Even though my amplifier has bit the dust, I realized quickly that I really do not need it. My shack might be a few degrees cooler but my electric bill has dropped significantly. And my European path is, and always will be, my secret weapon during contest weekends, due in part to my double North Pole crossing. 

As we enjoy this first day of April, my thoughts can only be on spring. By next month, I will be planning our camping trips and hitting the campgrounds early. As I mentioned in earlier blogs, I feel that 2013 may send us on some new adventures. We are looking forward to our favorite campground outside of North Pole opening up for the summer. Even though my blog may have a bit of an April 1st twist, it just so happens that the "other" North Pole has a Zip Code of 99705. It actually does not increase my signal strength by 2dB, but I point my HF beam that way for a large part of the winter and I camp there during several weekends throughout the summer. I love camping and I love radio and to combine the two, well that just better than...

WSPR'ing & 29,147 DXCC Certificates Later

WSPR 20 Meters

The bands have been less than favorable but I've left my rig on 20 meters with the beam pointed to Europe. I decided to leave WSPR running for a few days this past week to see how well the European path was doing. WSPR is another mode that will have difficulties when decoding signals if there is an auroral presence. But, as the solar shake up calmed, callsigns were beginning to populate on my WSPR screen. I spent more time listening than transmitting but my power output was 10 watts when operating WSPR. I fed that to my 4 element tri-bander, which normally is parked at the 43 foot level on my tower.

Decoding WSPR

 WSPR is a great tool for weak signal propagation testing. Now that we officially entered into Spring (still looks and feels like winter around these parts) propagation will begin to take a different look when it comes to decoding signals. By May, the snow will begin to melt and it will be time to welcome back the return of the midnight sun. I very much enjoy the 24 hours of daylight in June. This enjoyment will keep me from occupying my ham shack but I've done enough of that all winter. As contest season wraps up, my sights will be on getting our camper ready for camping season. My goal is to head out earlier this year and break my portable station out of mothballs. Nothing better than to be camping in a remote location working DX from an unofficial campsite.

The DX talk of late is the operation of XR0YG on Easter Island. I was lucky enough to work the DXpedition team on 20 meter CW last night. Crazy pile-up but the operator was doing an awesome job. I knew I would have my work cut out for me as the pile-up was pretty big. I tried, gave up, tried, gave up and finally snagged em on my 3rd attempt. I hope to get them on a few more bands and modes before they depart. I heard them on 17 meters this past weekend but with my low antenna and power, they were well out of my reach. 

I've caught up with all of my QSL card requests and my next batch of replies will be headed out to the bureau this week. Activity level and QSL reception go hand in hand. At least from my operation here, as activity level directly correlates to how full my Post Office Box gets. 

Our weekly trip to the Post Office yielded a small tube with my name on it. It seems my DXCC certificate has arrived. My very first certificate, number 28,436, was dated February 10th, 1989. Today, I received my first DXCC certificate from this location, numbered 57,583. I also received two, 150 Endorsement Stickers (I assume the League meant to send me a 125 & 150 but instead, sent me two 150's by mistake). I remember sending my QSL cards via Express Mail and doing all the paperwork by hand. Then, patiently waiting for their return. Now, with LOTW, my certificate was achieved simply with a few mouse clicks and referencing my credit card number. Oh how times have changed.

Computers are pretty old around here and our main "family" computer just bit the dust (again). So, I will be in the market for one. Now I just need to decide if I want to stick with a desktop or transition to a laptop. I'm thinking laptop and docking station but it will come down to what I can afford. Thankfully, I had most of the stuff backed up. I'm still hoping I can retrieve my most recent data off of the hard drive. I had installed a second hard drive which was basically a mirror to the first. I think I might rebuild that computer and put it here in the shack. I need more horsepower that my aged shack Dell's can produce. My world is about multitasking and my abilities have been limited to my processor speed and RAM here in the shack. Ham Radio Deluxe (HRD) is my logging program of choice but it taxes my aging computer to no end. Especially if I'm also running DM780 having fun on the digital modes.

I woke up this morning to find 20 meters in pretty good shape toward Europe. It's been snowing all day and most of the night. Working a few stations this morning and waking up to a nice hot cup off coffee helped start the new week off on the right foot. The DXCC certificate sent it to the next level. Now it's time to bundle up and head out into the single digits to plow snow. The calendar might of said "First Day of Spring" on March 20th but by Alaskan standards, that does not happen before April 20th. Officially it's here but unofficially, we have a month or more.   

Propagational Time-Out?

HAARP - My Icom is no match for high solar winds today!

Spaceweather has been a bit of a topic the last 24 hours or so. We are currently experiencing the effects of a Coronal mass ejection (CME). The increase in solar wind also brings an increase of absorption. Saturday was not too bad when it came to band conditions. I have a short weekend, so I opted to do less radio on Saturday and set aside a bit more time on Sunday. Well, as luck would have it, the solar wind increased and when I woke up early this morning, there was not one signal on any of the bands. 

JT65Flat Screen (JT65-HF)

 As noon on Sunday approached, the bands did not even show signs of getting any better. I left my rig sitting on the 20 meter JT65 frequency and not a single station was decoded all morning. Here is the screen shot I took early this afternoon local time (to the right). JT65 is a great weak signal mode however, when the bands are this bad due to geomagnetic activity, not even the weak signal stuff will do any good. I have found also that JT65 does have trouble decoding signals with Auroral Influence (AI) and you can easily tell by the signal signature on the waterfall, if a signal does have any AI. 

Auroral Influence (JT65-HF)

The example of the AI to the left shows what JT65 signals look like on  the waterfall of the JT65-HF software. The signals looks as if it's "smeared" and not well defined. And as you can see, the last decoded transmission was at 2156z and I show nothing decoded  at 2159z, but it's apparent that signals are on the band. Personally, I think Olivia seems to function the best under these type of rough band conditions. PSK31 is not even an option with bands this tough, as I won't decode a signal. But as I mentioned earlier this morning during a conversation I was having on Twitter, when I moved to Alaska, the term "Radio Blackout" hit home. 

Auroral Oval as seen from Ovation Aurora

So, what is a ham to do when the bands are dead quiet? Well in my case, my weekly trip to the Post Office yielded plenty of direct QSL card requests including a nice full envelope of cards from the Alaska QSL Bureau. I also received the latest CQ and QST magazines! So, I have plenty to keep me busy. From what I'm reading, I think it will be a few days before the bands heal. I do have my camera battery charged up and ready for some auroral displays. I read last night, it was pretty good. We have been experiencing very clear and colder weather but the clear skies at night will make for some great aurora viewing. So, I will try to stay up tonight and see if the St. Patrick's Day green will extend into the heavens above. With the Spring Equinox just a few days away, this is when most will tell you it's the best time to view the aurora above. 

Photo ©KL8DX 

If I had to attach a visual representation of what it's like to operate ham radio during this type of band conditions, I would have to say the photo to the left does just that. And oddly, these tough conditions normally hit on the weekends! But I hope that maybe, just maybe, we will see in increase in the solar flux and 10 meters will once again come alive. I love that band! And in speaking of 10 meters, I read this morning in the March edition of CQ Magazine that I will have a bit more wallpaper to enjoy. It appears that I managed to take top spot during the 2012 CQ WW DX RTTY Contest on 10 meters, low power, single band, single operator, Alaska. My wife tells me she can always tell when I get my new magazines. My bathroom visits tend to take much longer but thankfully, we have two bathrooms in our house. 

So, when it comes to operating ham radio during high absorption weekends, I feel like the moose in the photo above I took here at Denali. But a bad day of ham radio is always better than a good day at work, right? 

Straight - For the Key & Ice

Myself participating in SKCC's WES March 2013 

SKCC had their monthly Weekend Sprintathon (WES) this past weekend. I've participated in several of these over the last few years and find them extremely enjoyable. This WES was just a bit different as the Bonus station was the one and only, W1AW! You can read a bit more about this event on SKCC's main page. I think the neatest part of this was the fact that the team of 9 operators were going to be using Hiram Percy Maxium's Spark Key over the course of the entire weekend. This weekend was also promoting QRP operating (although I opted for QRO as band conditions were a bit tough for a large part of the weekend for me). Using a Straight Key for me is like taking a trip back in time. This is where it all began! I can envision that telegraph operator sending messages back in the days of the wild west. Or the telegraph operators relaying vital information during World War I and World War II. But to know the history behind the key that you're using and know who had used it, well that's taking manual Morse to the next level in my opinion!

I love Morse Code and it is by far my most favorite mode of communication that I use on the ham bands. It's the only "other" language that I know. When I first got into ham radio, knowing Morse Code was a requirement. To obtain the highest license level available to ham radio operators (Extra Class), you had to take a 20 Word Per Minute (WPM) Morse Code test, and pass it! Morse Code is no longer a requirement to obtain your ham radio license. This old form of communication is just as popular today as it has been for many, many years. 

My Navy Flameproof behind the keyboard

I knew my time would be somewhat limited this weekend but I also knew I was going to participate one way or another. My goal at the very least was to locate and contact W1AW. I was excited to actually work W1AW on two bands this weekend, 15 & 20 Meters. Yes, I've worked W1AW many times before and have even operated W1AW. But this weekend trumped any previous contacts I've had with W1AW due to the circumstances and of course the KEY being used at the other end. I'm not sure if Hiram's key was in fact the one that was used for our QSO but again, I thought it was a great way to promote Morse Code and the use of Straight Key's. Over the course of the short time I operated on Saturday, and what I was able to operate on Sunday, I made 96 straight key QSO's. It was great to see so many operating QRP as well. All in all, SKCC and W1AW made this past weekend one to remember.

Looking toward Sugarloaf Mountain & Mt. Dora

As mentioned earlier, Saturday was beautiful here in the Interior of Alaska. Suffering from cabin fever, my wife and I accompanied by our family beagle, headed out onto Otto Lake, the lake we live next to. We have done this now for the past few years, walking the lake from one end to the other. It was breezy but warm and the ice was still 3-4' thick, plenty safe. 

Mt. Healy

I sacrificed a few hours of operating time to enjoy the great outdoors. The sun is slowly returning to Alaska, so the longer days are very refreshing. It's been another long, dark and cold winter. Now that temperatures can rise to the 30+ above, we will open windows and doors and venture outdoors to enjoy the fresh, clean air! The photos here are ones I took from our foot trek across Otto Lake. Can you actually blame me for giving up radio time to enjoy such a beautiful afternoon? 

Looking back toward our QTH

 Even though we are far from seeing the end of winter here in Alaska, it really won't be long before the ice begins to melt and all this solid form of water returns to liquid form. In just a few months, people will be enjoying the lake again and the sounds and smell of spring will be in the air. When this seasonal change takes place, I will end up powering off the shack and spending much more time outdoors enjoying all that Alaska has to offer.

View looking NW on Otto Lake

We enjoy camping season and are very much looking forward to hooking to our travel trailer and heading out! Rest assured, I will be dragging along my portable equipment as it serves a two-fold purpose. There are many places we travel that have no cellular service so it's reassuring when you still have a means of communication. And secondly, I will be looking forward to operating /P from various camping locations once again. It's so nice to get away to remote places where there is no man made noise for miles and miles. Like using a straight key, it's nice to travel to places where there is no cellular service, no internet and experience life as it was not so long ago. 

Nested But Colorful

Sunset @ ARS KL8DX & KL8SU 03/07/2013

In my previous post I mentioned the Chinook that was bringing strong winds to the Interior of Alaska. It has arrived but the forecasted 70 mph did arrive but the highest gust we saw at our house was only 61 mph. The storm is exiting north quickly and I expect that by Friday night we might be back to calm. These wind storms can last for days but thankfully this one is moving through quickly. I'm hopeful to be sending the beam back to the top of my tower in the next 24 hours.

In this photo, you can see our Mosley TA-34-XL nested just above our roof level. I happened to catch a beautiful sunset and was able to snap a few photos before it disappeared. With the wind, there were lots of Lenticular clouds all around us. I love this type of cloud formation and we see it frequently in this area as we receive these strong winds and are surrounded by mountains. We are often treated to colorful sunrises and sunsets here. Just one of the tough parts of living in such a beautiful place. 

Dropped In My Log and Then Dropped To My Roof

TX5K Confirmation of our QSO!

I was hoping for a chance to work the Clipperton Island DXpedition before they shut down. I've not had any success as propagation just seemed as if it were not in my favor. I had read emails from other Alaska stations that they were successful in logging the DXpedition but I was still unsuccessful. That changed today. 

I've been following the weather discussion here in Alaska and watching a Chinook working its way up from the Gulf of Alaska. We are forecasted to receive 70 mph wind gusts beginning late tonight and through tomorrow. I knew I would be cranking my beam down to roof level for the remainder of the week. Today was my last real day to take advantage of my antenna at its normal operating height of 43 feet. When I settled in after work, I tuned the bands and tweaked the antenna and I was excited to hear TX5K with a strong signal on 20 meters. It was time to settle in and join the rather large crowed who were attempting to do the very same.

The first order of business was to set my Icom 756PRO up for split operating and using my Dual Watch (The dual watch* function allows you to receive 2 signals on the same band simultaneously), attempt to find the operators "pattern" as he was working split (work stations above his calling frequency). I finally found the operators pattern after listening for several minutes. I lined up my secondary VFO and sent my callsign a few times with pauses in between. It was not long before I heard the operator sending my callsign and a report. I returned the report and after hearing TX5K send "TU" (Thank you), I sat back in just enjoyed the sound of the pile-up of others attempting to log Clipperton Island. 

Fellow blogger / contester  KA3DRR mentioned the website that the DXpedition crew were using for uploading logged contacts in one of his previous posts. I ventured on to their website and holy crap, there it was, our QSO, in real time (about 45-60 seconds later as the website refreshed)! I happened to see that the same team was also active on 20 meter SSB (Single Side Band). I ventured up to their SSB frequency, set up my radio and on the second call, I had TX5K logged yet again! 

I decided that since I was on a lucky streak, I would try to find them on another band. Their website showed them active on 15 meter CW. I found them with a very strong signal. I tried a few times but the operator then was calling for "RA" (Russia) stations only. He worked a few VK stations (Australia)  and I attempted a few more times but the operator again called for "RA" stations only. By the time his run was over, my chances of logging TX5K on 15 slipped away. 

Highlight

After confirming that I made it into the TX5K logbook on two modes, I headed out and lowered my beam to just above our roof level. The winds can blow and I don't expect much of a reprieve in the weather until after the DXpedition has left the island. But thankfully, the planets lined up and taking a few extra minutes to listen and form a strategy payed off. I'm a small station so it's a great feeling when I can log a new entity especially when I made it through the masses calling the operator on the other end. The operator I worked (unknown) was doing a great job on CW! There was not as many calling when I worked them on SSB. Thanks to the group and all those who made this DXpedition possible.