Contester's Rate Sheet for November 6, 2002

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Contester's Rate Sheet
6 November 2002
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Edited by Ward Silver, N0AX

SUMMARY
o Phone Sweepstakes completes the twin weekends
o New section - "Results and Records" - for announcing updates and
releases
o Leonid Meteor Storm - Nov 19th?
o Cloudburner antennas and low-band receiving
o Squeezing Into the Phone Band

BULLETINS

o KL7Y - SK - A very sad bit of news this week.  Dan Robbins, KL7Y,
was killed in a motorcycle accident after operating at KH7R in the CQ
WW SSB contest just the previous weekend.  All of us considered Dan
one of the most dependable, solid contesters with his big multi-multi
station providing an all-band beacon from Zone 1.  By all accounts,
Dan was a helluva guy and will be missed greatly by his friends and
the contest community worldwide.  If you'd like to send your
condolences and sympathies, aim them at Joe, WL7E at wl7e@arrl.net. 
Contributions to the Daniel K Robbins Memorial Fund may be sent c/o
Bridgeview Bank, 11411 West Wadsworth Road, Beach Park, IL 60099. 
Cards or flowers may be sent to Dan's mother, Arlene Robbins, 2202
Lydia Ave, Zion, IL 60099-2038 or his very long-time girlfriend, Linda
McKinney, 6204 235th Ave. Salem, WI 53168.

BUSTED QSOS
o A golden issue last time!

ANNOUNCEMENT & NOTICES FOR 6 NOVEMBER TO 19 NOVEMBER 2002

Logs are due for the following contests:  

o November 10, 2002 - YL Anniversary Party, CW - email to: (none),
paper logs to: Jeanie Parker, WA6UVF, 28400 Vista del Valle, Hemet, CA
92544, USA

o November 11, 2002 - FISTS Fall Sprint - email to: W8PIG@yahoo.com,
paper logs to: Dan Shepherd, N8IE, 1900 Pittsfield St., Kettering, OH
45420, USA

o November 12, 2002 - Tennessee QSO Party - email to:
w9wi@bellsouth.net, paper logs to: Tennessee QSO Party, c/o Doug
Smith, W9WI, 1385 Old Clarksville Pike, Pleasant View, TN 37146-8098,
USA

o November 12, 2002 - North American Sprint, RTTY - email to:
rttysprint@ncjweb.com, paper logs to: Jay Townsend, WS7I, Post Office
Box 644, Spokane, WA 99210, USA

o November 12, 2002 - 10-10 Int. Fall Contest, CW - email to: (none),
paper logs to: Steve Rasmussen, N0WY, 312 N. 6th Street, Plattsmouth,
NE 68048, USA

o November 15, 2002 - California QSO Party - email to:
cqp@contesting.com, paper logs to: NCCC, c/o Al Maenchen, AD6E, 3330
Farthing Way, San Jose, California 95132, USA

o November 16, 2002 - Pennsylvania QSO Party - email to: (none), paper
logs to: PA QSO Party 2002, PO Box 614, State College, PA 16804, USA

o November 16, 2002 - YL Anniversary Party, SSB - email to: (none),
paper logs to: Jeanie Parker, WA6UVF, 28400 Vista del Valle, Hemet, CA
92544, USA

o November 18, 2002 - Illinois QSO Party - email to: (none), paper
logs to: RAMS, c/o John Matz, KB9II, 7079 West Ave., Honover Park, IL
60103, USA

o November 19, 2002 - ARCI Fall QSO Party - email to:
rfoltz@turbonet.com, paper logs to: Randy Foltz, K7TQ, Attn: Fall QSO
Party, 809 Leith St., Moscow, ID 83843, USA

The following contests are scheduled:

Note that the following abbreviations are used to condense the contest
rules summaries:
SO - Single-Op; M2 - Multiop - 2 Transmitters; MO - Multi-Op; MS -
Multi-Op, Single Transmitter; MM - Multi-Op, Multiple Transmitters; AB
- All Band; SB - Single Band; S/P/C - State/Province/DXCC Entity; HP -
High Power; LP - Low Power; Entity - DXCC Entity

Japan International DX Contest - Phone - sponsored by Five Nine
Magazine from 2300Z Nov 8 to 2300Z Nov 10, work JA stations only.
Frequencies -- 160/80/40-meter bands (20/15/10-meter contest in
April), remember that JA can operate between 1810-1825 and 1907.5-1912
kHz. SOAB-LP/HP (<100W/>100W), SOSB-LP/HP, MS, Maritime Mobile
categories with 30-hour time limit for non-JA stations (off times min.
of 60 min). 10-min rule applies to MS entrants -- see web site.
Exchange RST and CQ Zone, JA stations send prefecture number. QSO
Points: 160 -- 4 pts, 80 -- 2 pts, 40 -- 1 pt. Score is QSO points X
JA prefectures (maximum of 50 per band). For more information --
http://www.jzap.com/je1cka/jidx/jidxrule-e.html. Logs due Feb 28 to
jidx-log@dumpty.nal.go.jp or JIDX Contest, c/o Five-Nine Magazine, PO
Box 59, Kamata, Tokyo, 144, Japan.

Worked All Europe DX Contest - CW - sponsored by the Deutscher ARC,
0000Z Nov 9 -  2400Z Nov 10. Frequencies: 80 - 10 meters according to
Region I band plan. Categories: SOHP, SOLP, MS, SWL. Packet or
spotting nets allowed (SO stations not using spotting assistance will
be noted). SO operate 36 hrs max., up to three off periods of 1 hour
min. Non-EU work EU only except RTTY, where everyone works and
everyone except own country. Exchange: RS(T) and serial number. Score
1 pt/QSO and 1 pt/QTC. Final score is QSOs + QTCs x weighted
multipliers. Multipliers: non-EU use WAE countries, EU use DXCC
entities plus call districts in W, VE, VK, ZL, ZS, JA, PY and RA8/9/0.
(RTTY use WAE + DXCC.)  Mults on 80-m count x4, on 40-m x3, otherwise
x2. A QTC is a report sent from a non-EU station back to an EU station
of confirmed QSOs that took place earlier in the contest. A QTC
contains the time, call sign, and QSO number of the station being
reported (e.g. 1307/DL1AA/346). A QSO may only be reported once and
not back to the originating station. A maximum of 10 QTCs can be sent
to a single station. The same station can be worked several times to
complete this quota, but only the original QSO has QSO point value.
Keep a list of QTCs sent. For example, QTC 3/7 would indicate that
this is the third series of QTCs sent, and seven QSOs are reported.
For more information - http://www.waedc.de. Logs due Dec 15 to
waedc@darc.de or WAEDC Contest Manager, Bernhard Buettner DL6RAI,
Schmidweg 17, 85609 Dornach, Germany.

Arkansas QSO Party - CW/SSB/PSK31, sponsored by K1ARK from 0000Z to
0600Z Nov 10 and 1400Z Nov 10 to 0100Z Nov 11. Frequencies: CW -
3.550, 7.050, 14.050, 21.050, 28.050 MHz; Phone - 3.980, 7.260,
14.260, 21.360, 28.360, 145-147 MHz; PSK - 3.580, 7.070, 14.070,
21.080, 28.120 MHz. Categories: SOAB, SO-PSK, MS, Mobile; HP (>100W),
LP, and QRP (<5W) all categories. Exchange: RST + AR county, state,
province or "DX." QSO Points: PSK - 3 pts, CW - 2 pts, SSB - 1 pt.
Score: QSO points × AR counties (AR station count states, provinces
and AR counties) counted once only. Bonus stations: W5YM - 25 pts per
band/mode, Arkansas ARRL-affiliated club station - 10 pts. For more
information - http://www.arkan.us. Logs due 30 days after the contest
to k1ark@arrl.net or to Bill Smith, K1ARK, 2164 Magnolia Drive,
Fayetteville, AR, 72703.

OK/OM DX Contest - CW, sponsored by the Czech Radio Club (CRC) from
1200Z Nov 9 to 1200Z Nov 10. Frequencies: 160-10-meters. Categories:
SOAB-HP (>100W), SOSB-HP, SOAB-LP, SOSB-LP, SOAB-QRP (<5W), MS, SWL,
packet spotting allowed for all categories. Exchange: RST plus serial
number or OK/OM district. QSO Points: EU to OK/OM - 1 pt, non-EU to
OK/OM - 3 pts. Score: QSO points x OK/OM districts (OK/OM stations use
WPX prefixes) counted once per band. For more information -
okomdx.radioamater.cz. Logs due Dec 15 to okomdx@radioamater.cz or
OK-OM DX Contest, CRC, PO Box 69, 113 27 Praha 1, Czech Republic. 

YO International PSK31 Contest, sponsored by the Sport Club of Baia
Mare - YO5KAD from 1600Z to 2200Z Nov 15. Frequencies: 3570-3590 kHz.
Categories: SO. Exchange: RST + serial number + YO county or DXCC
entity. QSO Points: YO stations - 2 pts, non-YO - 1 pt. Score: QSO
points x YO counties + DXCC entities counted only once. For more
information - http://www.qsl.net/yo5crq. Logs due 15 Dec to
yo5crq@qsl.net or Radioclubul YO5KAD, PO Box 220, RO-4800 Baia Mare,
Romania.

ARRL November Sweepstakes - CW, 2100Z Nov 16 to 0300Z Nov 18.
Frequencies: 80 - 10 meters, work stations only once. Categories:
SOAB-LP (A), HP (B), QRP (Q), SO-Unlimited (U), MS (M), School Club
(S). Exchange: Serial number, Category (precedence), Call, Check (last
two digits of first year licensed), and ARRL section. QSO Points: 2
pts/QSO. Score: QSO points x sections (counted only once). For more
information -
http://www.arrl.org/contests/rules/2002/nov-sweeps-rules.html. Logs
due 18 Dec to ssphone@arrl.org or to November SS Phone, ARRL, 225 Main
St, Newington, CT 06111.

RSGB 1.8MHz Contest - CW, from 2100 Nov 16 to 0100Z Nov 17.
Frequencies: 1820-1870 kHz. Categories: SO. Exchange: RST+ serial
number + UK district. QSO Points: 3 pts/QSO + 5 bonus points per UK
district. Score: QSO points. For more information -
http://www.rsgbhfcc.org/. Logs due 16 days after the contest to
hf.contests@rsgb.org.uk or RSGB - G3UFY, 77 Bensham Manor Road,
Thornton Heath, Surrey CR7 7AF, England.

North American Collegiate ARC Championship - Phone - this is the
second half of the school club competition described in the previous
issue of the Rate Sheet.

LZ DX Contest - CW, sponsored by the Bulgarian Federation of Radio
Amateurs from 1200Z Nov 16 to 1200Z Nov 17. Frequencies: 80-10-meters
with 10-minute band change rule. Categories: SOAB, SOAB, MS, SWL
Exchange: RST + ITU zone. QSO Points: same continent - 1 pt, different
cont - 3 pts, LZ station - 6 pts. Score: QSO points x ITU zones
counted once per band. For more information -
http://www.qsl.net/lz1fw/contest/. Logs due 30 days after the contest
to lz1bj@yahoo.com or BFRA, PO Box 830, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria.

NEWS & PRESS RELEASES

The Logs Received pages for the 2002 ARRL August UHF and September VHF
Contests have been posted at http://www.arrl.org/contests/claimed.
These lists include all electronic and paper submissions. If you find
an error in your listing, please contact n1nd@arrl.org or by phone at
860-594-0232. If your entry is missing, please have available the
automated receipt number (if submitted electronically). (Thanks, Dan
N1ND)

Scott, N3FJP, has released networked versions of his contesting
software for the NAQP and WPX contests. The CQ 160-Meter program has
been updated to incorporate the recent rules changes. He is also
developing a State QSO Party program. You can find more information at
http://www.n3fjp.com/.

If you're into snagging the French Overseas islands (such as FW, FO,
FG, FR, etc.) during this season's DX contests, then you might be
interested in the DIFO program (Diplome Des Iles Francaises
D'outremer). F5NOD's Web site has the complete details -
http://www.qsl.net/f5nod/difo.html.

Where to find the latest in contest DX-peditions?  My favorite site is
NG3K's "Contest Expeditions" Web site at
http://www.cpcug.org/user/wfeidt/Misc/adxo.html. Currently, there are
more than 20 expeditions listed as active for CQ WW CW. Another
excellent free site is the OPDX Internet bulletin -
http://www.papays.com/opdx.html.

Leonid Meteors, Nov. 19th - There is a very good chance that the
Leonid meteor shower will be an intense one this year and possibly its
last big display for the next 60 to 70 years.  Whether you're
interested in working meteor scatter or just taking in one of the
natural world's greatest wonders, take a look at this Web site -
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2002/09oct_leonidsforecast.htm
(Thanks, Mike N7WA)

RESULTS AND RECORDS

The results of the GACW (Grupo Argentino de CW) GACW DX Contest - The
Samuel Morse Party - are available at http://gacw.no-ip.org/. (Thanks
Raul, LU6EF)

The East Tennessee DX Association announces that the 2002 VHF/UHF
Spring Sprint Results are in and that Peter Shilling, VE3AX is the
overall winner this year. The complete results are posted on the ETDXA
Web page at http://www.etdxa.org/vhf.

Records for both modes of the CQ WW contest have been updated as of 22
October - http://cqww.com/intro.htm. (Thanks, Bill W4ZV)  The CQ RTTY
contest records are available at
http://www.rttyjournal.com/contests/index.htm. (Thanks, Don AA5AU) As
long as you're poking around to see if you can become a record holder,
be sure to update your country/prefix/call cross-reference files at
http://www.k1ea.com. CTY.ZIP has been updated as of 30 October.
(Thanks, Jim AD1C)

Risto, OH3UU reports that the final tally of WRTC Early Birds was 930
logs. The total quantity received was 1250 logs. They are still being
processed.

TECHNICAL & TECHNIQUE

In the "antenna schizophrenia" department, for CQ WW, low-band
antennas can seemingly never be high enough. Sandwiched between the WW
weekends, Sweepstakes demands excellent regional coverage - so the
antennas can easily be TOO high. What is a contester to do?  Well,
below the ionosphere's critical frequency (below which a signal
travelling vertically is completely reflected) the best thing for
reliable coverage out to several hundred miles at least is a low
dipole or inverted vee. A cloud burner (http://www.cebik.com/cb.html)
is easy to put up for the weekend ("Honest, honey, it's just
temporary!") and blankets a region centered on your QTH with 40 or
80-meter signal. Steve, K7LXC, also contributes, "A novel idea via
K3LR years ago is to put a reflector wire on the ground under the low
dipole - a cheap and easy way to get some more dB in the air instead
of warming the worms."

After the CQ WW SSB weekend, there were numerous reports of US
operators calling DX stations "out of band". Some was no doubt just
the occasional boo-boo when transmitting on the wrong VFO, but other
instances can be attributed to just plain old inattention. Keep a
close eye on the frequency of that packet spot when it shows up on the
monitor - be sure that you'll be able to call the DX station at a
frequency on which you're allowed to legally transmit!!

Planning on pulling out the weak ones on the low bands this season? 
Martin, VK5GN, contributed this interesting method of making sense of
signals deep in the QRN. "A technique I use to try and get the weak
ones in the noise is to create a little jigsaw puzzle. I hear a signal
under the pile. It is distinctive and definitely there, but very
difficult to read. I get one letter, say a G, I put that into a box I
draw on the paper. As it keeps on I get a 5 so that goes in the box
randomly as there is no apparent pattern to the already existing G.
Later I get a Z and then GN. I put them the box again. As the G is in
the box twice, I put a line through the single G. Eventually it makes
some sense and I call the guy. It is not always right but it often
gets me within one letter of a correct call. The rhythm of the sounds
helps to arrange the letters into a complete call. It is harder to
describe than to do."

Considering receive antennas on the low bands, Tim EI8IC, directs us
to a great Web site on Beverage antennas with a neat box that allows
three stations to share six Beverages - 
http://tk5ep.free.fr/tech/beverage/bevtheory.htm. If you are using
relays to switch between receive antennas and find that the contacts
develop enough resistance to prevent reception, it may be due to
contacts designed to handle higher currents. Greg, ZL3IX writes, "A
trick I learned from a relay manufacturer a few years back, is to put
some DC on the lines being switched. Just a couple of mA from a few
volts is enough. It seems that the micro arcs formed when the contacts
open and close are sufficient to keep the contacts at a low
resistance."

From the Tongue-In-Cheek desk, "I recall a QST article by Larsen E.
Rapp, WIOU, where he told us that we can increase the strength of our
RF output signal levels by using different diameters of coax. Start
out with RG-8, then go to RG-58, then RG-141. The electrons will be
compressed as they move from the larger diameter cable to the next
smaller diameter cable which will make them increase velocity which
will make them fly off the antenna much faster!" (Thanks, Chuck K3FT)

CONVERSATION

Squeezing Us All Into the Phone Band

After a brief respite this coming weekend in which we attempt to
recharge our Ham Radio Points account with the spouse and catch up on
all the chores undone in the past two weekends, another major Phone
contest takes place on the following weekend - Sweepstakes. Congestion
on the HF phone bands is always tough during a contest and it's likely
that this year's expected good conditions will raise the
QSO's-per-square-kiloHertz to unprecedented levels. It also raises QRM
and blood pressures. Why is phone QRM so much worse than during CW
contests?

Lets do some math. Assuming people have filters you can get 200 fairly
clean CW channels in 100 kHz of band. On phone, the same amount of
band gets you 33-1/3 channels. Those 200 clean phone channels require
600 kHz of band space - available only on ten meters. If you further
assume a 3:1 load of phone vs. CW guys on the air and an average phone
band size of 250 kHz (80 - 15) the congestion is at least eight times
worse on HF phone than on CW.

Yikes!  Notice that the 250 kHz is pretty much the entire phone band
on 80 and 15 and more than the entire phone band on 40 and 20 meters.
This means a lot of QRM to contesters and non-contesters alike. This
should also be a clue to every phone op to take an extra dose of
Vitamin Courtesy. Listen first. Avoid ongoing QSOs and nets. Shine up
those diplomatic skills. Keep the splatter and buckshot under control
and check your audio before the contest starts. A tip - when someone
claims, "You're 50 kHz wide!" they may have a noise blanker and/or
preamp on, causing severe receiver overload. You might suggest that
they turn those features off if you are confident that your signal is
clean.

Jim, K4OJ, is solely responsible for this one - "Where does N5KO live?
 In a Cabrillo pad."  Jim - go climb your tower or something!

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The Contester's Rate Sheet wishes to acknowledge information from the
following sources:
WA7BNM's Contest Calendar Web page -
http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/ ARRL Contest page -
http://www.arrl.org/contests/
SM3CER's Web site - http://www.sk3bg.se/contest/