Larry East wrote:
That's why I have pretty much given up on the "big" contests and just
operate QRP contests.
Actually, the ARRL Sweepstakes can be a great deal of fun and practice
for the "little pistol" or QRP operator (at least for those in the US
and Canada!).
You must work a station only once, not once per band. This means that
those of us without 40-meter beams and 80/160 meter arrays are not
automatically out of the running. There is a QRP class. This year I
worked many QRP stations, and judging by the QSO numbers, some of them
were doing quite well.
One way to greatly improve your CW sending is to make a serious contest
effort and send all of the exchanges with a paddle or bug, rather than
letting the computer do it. You would be amazed at how much more
effective the real thing is than sending from the phone book.
I also think that operating behavior was quite good this year, for the
most part. Contesters did NOT blow off weak or QRP stations (not the
same!) and really dug to get all of the details of the exchange.
I don't have a superstation. I have a 2-element quad at 45 feet for
20/15/10, a simple vertical on 40, and a highly suboptimal inverted L
for 80. I used my K2/100 by itself, and did not use packet or telnet
spots. I ended up with more than 700 QSOs in 79 sections! Last year
this kind of score was good enough to win my section.
I especially urge those of you located in the NNY (Northern New York)
section to give it a try next year. You will be in GREAT demand!
--
73,
Vic, K2VCO
Fresno CA
http://www.qsl.net/k2vco
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