Contester's Rate Sheet for May 19, 2004
*********************** Contester's Rate Sheet 19 May 2004 *********************** Edited by Ward Silver N0AX SUMMARY o CQ WPX CW Contest and Great Lakes QSO Party o Dayton and Visalia Report o A Bit of a Stretch BULLETINS o No bulletins in this issue BUSTED QSOS o A golden issue last time! ANNOUNCEMENT & NOTICES FOR 19 MAY TO 2 JUNE 2004 Logs are due for the following contests: May 19 - 432 MHz Spring Sprint, email to: springsprints@etdxa.org, paper logs and diskettes: 432 MHz Spring Sprint, ETDXA/WU4O, Jeff J. Baker, 2012 Hinds Creek Road, Heiskell, TN 37754, USA May 21 - Harry Angel Memorial Sprint, email to: vk3js@vkham.com, paper logs and diskettes: Harry Angel Sprint, 363 Nepean Highway, Chelsea 3196, Australia May 21 - CQC PSK31 Kontest, email to: contest@cqc.org, paper logs and diskettes: PSK, c/o CQC, PO Box 17174, Golden, CO 80402-6019, USA May 25 - SP DX RTTY Contest, email to: spdxcry@log.z.pl, paper logs and diskettes: SPDX RTTY Contest Manager, Christopher Ulatowski, Box 253, 81-963 Gdynia 1, Poland May 25 - Florida QSO Party, email to: logs@floridaqsoparty.org, paper logs and diskettes: Florida QSO Party, c/o Ron Wetjen, WD4AHZ, 5362 Castleman Dr, Sarasota, FL 34232, USA May 26 - Helvetia Contest, email to: contest@uska.ch, paper logs and diskettes: Dominik Bugmann, HB9CZF, Zuerichstrasse 104a, 8123 Ebmatingen, Switzerland May 29 - Microwave Spring Sprint, email to: springsprints@etdxa.org, paper logs and diskettes: Microwave Spring Sprint, ETDXA/WU4O, Jeff J. Baker, 2012 Hinds Creek Road, Heiskell, TN 37754, USA May 30 - UBA Welcome to European Union Contest, email to: weu.contest@uba.be, paper logs and diskettes: Carine Ramon, ON7LX, UBA HF Manager, Bruggesteenweg 77, B-8755 Ruiselede, Belgium May 31 - JIDX CW Contest, email to: jidx-cw@jidx.org, paper logs and diskettes: JIDX CW Contest, c/o Five-Nine Magazine, PO Box 59, Kamata, Tokyo 144-8691, Japan May 31 - Holyland DX Contest, email to: 4z4kx@iarc.org, paper logs and diskettes: Contest Manager 4Z4KX, Israel Amateur Radio Club, Box 17600, Tel Aviv 61176, Israel May 31 - GEM Net World Wide Contest, email to: gemnetindia@yahoo.com, paper logs and diskettes: GEM Net World Wide Contest, National Institute of Amateur Radio, Raj Bhavan Road, Somajiguda, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh 500082, India May 31 - Ontario QSO Party, email to: ve3agc@rac.ca, paper logs and diskettes: Ontario QSO Party, Ontario DX Association, 155 Main Street North, Unit 313, Newmarket, Ontario L3Y 8C2, Canada May 31 - Nebraska QSO Party, email to: neqp2004@alltel.net, paper logs and diskettes: Nebraska QSO Party, PO Box 375, Elkhorn, NE 68022-0375, USA May 31 - EUCW/FISTS QRS Party, email to: (none), paper logs and diskettes: R.P. Kimpton, M5AGL, 15A, Buckden Road, Brampton, Huntingdon PE18 8PR, England May 31 - US IPARC Annual Contest, CW/SSB, email to: (none), paper logs and diskettes: Contest IPARC 2004, Box 463, Sanbornville, NH 03872, USA May 31 - AGCW QRP/QRP Party, email to: qrp-party@agcw.de, paper logs and diskettes: Manager, Werner Hennig, DF5DD, Am Cappeler Freistuhl 33, D-59556 Lippstadt, Germany June 1 - ES Open HF Championship, email to: esopen@erau.ee, paper logs and diskettes: Toomas Soomets, ES5RY, PO Box 177, Tartu 50002, Estonia June 1 - QRP to the Field, email to: n0qt@arrl.net, paper logs and diskettes: Jan Medley, N0QT, QRPTTF 2004, PO Box 1768, Socorro, NM 87801, USA June 1 - New England QSO Party, email to: logs@neqp.org, paper logs and diskettes: NEQP, PO Box 3005, Framingham, MA 01705-3005, USA June 1 - Nevada QSO Party, email to: nvqso2004@cox.net, paper logs and diskettes: NK7C, Pat Hess, 759 Fairway Drive, Boulder City, NV 89005, USA June 2 - ARI International DX Contest, email to: aricontest@ari.it, paper logs and diskettes: ARI DX Contest, c/o ARI, Via Scarlatti 31, 20124 Milano, Italy June 5 - 50 MHz Spring Sprint, email to: springsprints@etdxa.org, paper logs and diskettes: 50 MHz Spring Sprint, ETDXA/WU4O, Jeff J. Baker, 2012 Hinds Creek Road, Heiskell, TN 37754, 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 HF CONTESTS Baltic Contest--CW/SSB--sponsored by the Lithuanian Radio Sports Federation from 2100Z May 22-0200Z May 23. Frequencies (MHz): CW 3.510-3.600, SSB 3.600-3.650 and 3.700-3.750. Categories: SO-CW/SSB/Mixed, MS, SWL. Exchange: RS(T) and serial number. QSO points: Baltic (YL/ES/LY) stations count EU--1 pt and non-EU--2 pts, EU stations count Baltic--10 pts, non-Baltic--1 pt; non-EU stations count Baltic--20 pts, non-Baltic--1 pt. Score: total QSO points. For more information: http://www.lrsf.lt/bcontest. Logs due July 1 to lrsf@lrsf.lt or PO Box 210, LT-3000 Kaunas, Lithuania. CQ WW WPX Contest--CW--sponsored by CQ Magazine from 0000Z May 29 - 2400Z May 30. Frequencies: 160 -- 10 meters. Categories: SOAB, SOSB, SO-Assisted, -HP, LP, and --QRP, MS (10-min rule), MM, SO-Rookie, SO-Tribander-and-Single-Wire, SO-Band-Restricted. SO operate 36 hours max with off times at least 60 min. Exchange: RS(T) + serial number. QSO Points: different continents--3pts (14-28 MHz) and 6 pts (1.8-7 MHz), with North America--2 pts (14-28 MHz) and 4 pts (1.8-7 MHz), with own country--1 pt. Score: QSO points x prefixes worked (ie, N8, KA1, HG73, JD1) counted only once. For more information: http://www.cqwpx.com/. Logs due 1 Jul to cw@cqwpx.com. Great Lakes QSO Party--Phone/CW/RTTY/PSK31--sponsored by the Michigan DX Association from 0000Z May 29 -- 2359 May 30, SO stations work 36 hours max. Frequencies (MHz): 160 -- 2 meters, no repeater or satellite, CW--3.560, 3.720, 7.090, 7.135, 14.075, Phone--3.870, 7.260, 14.270, 21.370, 28.450. Categories: A (>100 W), B (5 -- 100 W), C (<5 W), D (Club & MO), E (CW only), F (Mobile), G (Digital, one of RTTY or PSK31). Great Lakes are MI, IL, IN, WI, MN, OH, PA, NY, VE2, VE3. Exchange: Name and S/P/C, Great Lakes stations also send county. QSO Points: Phone--1 pt, CW/Digital--2 pts, QRP or mobile--3 pts. Score: QSO Points x Great Lakes counties (counted only once). Bonus points: 500 pts for QSO with W8DXI (once only), mobiles add 100 pts for each county with at least 10 QSOs. For more information: http://www.mdxa1.org/1aglqp.html. Logs to bripaw@yahoo.com (Cabrillo format) or Brian Pawloski W8BRI, PO Box 140012, Grand Rapids MI 49514-0012. QRP ARCI Hootowl Sprint--CW--sponsored by the QRP ARC International from 2000 - 2400 local May 30. Frequencies (MHz): 1.810, 3.560, 7.040, 14.060, 21.060, 28.060. Exchange: RST, S/P/C and Pwr or QRP ARCI number. QSO Points: members - 5 pts, non-members/different continent - 4 pts, non-members/same cont. - 2 pts. Score: QSO points x total S/P/C x power mult (<250mW x 15, 250mW - 1W x 10, 1 - 5W x7, >5W x 1). For more information: http://2hams.net/ARCI/index.htm. Logs due 30 days after the contest to wb5khc@2hams.net or Tom Owens, WB5KHC, 1916 Addington St, Irving, TX 75062-3505 MI QRP Memorial Day CW Sprint--sponsored by the MI QRP Club from 2300Z May 30 - 0300Z May 31. Frequencies: 160 - 6 meters. Categories: SOAB with classes A (<250 mW), B (<1 W), C (<5 W), D (>5W). Exchange: RST, SPC, and MI-QRP number or power output. QSO Points: MI-QRP members - 5 pts, non-member W/VE - 2 pts, DX - 4 pts. Score: QSO points x SPC counted once per band. If homebrew RX or TX, multiply by 1.25. If both RX and TX are homebrew, multiply by 1.5. For information -- http://www.qsl.net/miqrpclub. Logs to n8cqa@att.net or L. T. Switzer, N8CQA, 427 Jeffrey Ave., Royal Oak, MI 48073-2521, USA. VHF CONTESTS There are no VHF contests scheduled during this time period. VISALIA & DAYTON CONVENTION REPORT Instead of the usual news-results-and-technical categories, in this issue you get a veritable cornucopia of observations, tidbits, bon mots, and just plain gossip from the two biggest ham happenings of the spring. Attendance at Visalia was up, but down at Dayton. Visalia's weather was nice and Dayton's was not. That's the way it goes, some years. Lots of folks were stranded in the airports by thunderstorms this past Thursday. Once they got to Dayton, the storms moved in on Saturday. Let me tell you that hams look a lot better in the Hawaiian shirts (Visalia theme) than they do in plastic rain ponchos. Let's hope for a sunny year next time on both ends. Don't forget to say "Thanks!" to the organizers when you give them your feedback, bad or good. They work hard on your behalf. WaveNode (http://www.wavenode.com/) presented a neat box that monitors four power sensors or DC power sources simultaneously. The information is graphically displayed on a PC. Along with the display capabilities, the WaveNode can activate a protective relay based on the SWR or DC readings and graph and store the measured data. WaveNode might be a useful tool for your busy station. Travel cases aren't the only thing that Pelican (http://www.pelican.com/) has in its beak. I was surprised to learn the extent of their line of lighting products, from mini-LED lights to rather massive flashlights, including waterproof models. Also in the power measurement category, Alpha Power (http://www.alpha-amps.com/) was showing its new laboratory standard-grade 4510 HF wattmeter. It provides both analog and digital indicators of power levels from 30 mW to 3000 W full-scale without changing sensor "slugs," as well as SWR, PEP, and Delivered Power. It also can act as a data logger with a host PC. One of the most interesting new products I've seen is the latest version of FlexRadio's (http://www.flex-radio.com/) SDR-1000 software-defined radio. A stack of circuit boards about the size of a grapefruit handles all of the RF functions, tuning from 11 kHz to 65 MHz, relaying baseband signals with a 40 kHz bandwidth to a PC soundcard. The host PC then performs all of the demodulation and modulation functions, including a nice spectrum analyzer display feature. Currently, dynamic range in the soundcard is about 90 dB, but a 24-bit sound card (the type used by audiophiles) will extend that by 20 dB or more. (Review the presentations by NC0B of Sherwood Engineering referenced elsewhere in this issue for why this is an important receiver parameter.) FlexRadio also announced new accessories for the SDR-1000 - a 100-watt RF output board, RF Expansion board for improved front-end filtering, an ATU, a 144 MHz transverter module, and an interface for third-party software (such as PSK and RTTY modes) all available this coming summer. Very intriguing. International Radio (http://www.qth.com/inrad) extended their excellent line of receiving filters by announcing two new roofing filter modifications to the FT-1000MP, MkV, and MkV Field transceivers. (Filters for the Omni-VI will be available later this summer and soon afterwards for IC0-765 and 781.) These filters will improve the dynamic range of the FT1000MP family with 5 kHz tone spacing to 100 dB - a significant improvement. Down under power! Emtron introduced their DX-2B HF 160 - 10 meter amplifier based on the new Eimac 3CX1500D7 triode. The data sheet stresses the -50 dB harmonics and -37 dB intermodulation products. The amplifier requires 70 watts of drive for a full gallon of output. More information can be had by sending an email to emtron@emtron.com.au. Local company Palstar (http://www.palstar.com/) was touting their new AT1KBAL double-balanced antenna tuner that covers from 160 - 10 meters with a full-power rating of 1500 watts. They also had a display version of their ZM-30 Digital Antenna Bridge which uses Direct Digital Synthesis (DDS) technology to cover from 1 Hz to 30 MHz with a number of handy features. Look for the ZM-30 to be fully released in about 4 weeks with complete information on the Web site at the same time. What about those forum presentations? I attended several, the TAPR-sponsored Digital Modes forum (where I heard about the SDR-1000 mentioned earlier), the Antenna Technology forum, and the Contest forum. Lots of talks too numerous to mention, but here are my favorites from both the Visalia and Dayton events: Software-Defined Radio Technology, Steve Bible N7HPR - http://www.tapr.org/ - A good general sweep through digital modes and SDR technology Selected Terrain Studies for Optimum HF Station Performance, Dean Straw N6BV - Interesting analysis of the effect of terrain at several well-known stations The W8JI Antenna Notebook, Tom W8JI - http://www.w8ji.com/ - In-depth analysis of loading coils and capacity hats on short/mobile antennas W6NL 40 meter Moxon Yagi - David Leeson, W6NL - A new 2-element design that gives excellent performance in a small package An Investigation Into Ground Systems for Best HF Performance - Rudy Severns N6LF - Extending the classic broadcast work on ground systems to HF Are We Getting Closer to the Ideal Radio for Contesting? - Rob Sherwood NC0B - Review of close-spaced intermodulation performance of popular receivers A Look Back at 25 Years of Contesting - moderated by Doug Grant K1DG - A panel of the top guns of 25 years ago consider contesting today Some of these talks can be (or will be) found on the referenced Web sites, while others may be available at http://www.kkn.net/dayton2004 (thanks, George K5TR). All were excellent! So many great things to do at Dayton and so little time, it seems. If you haven't gone, be sure to put it on your lifetime "to-do" list! Carl, K9LA also gave an interesting talk on the history of the National Contest Journal (http://www.ncjweb.com/). Here is Carl's NCJ News for the upcoming journal. "With Field Day right around the corner, the May/June NCJ also carried the annual Field Day record listings by W4DC. Several old records were broken, and many new records were set because of the new F class. (Even though we all know it's not a contest. - Ed.) N5OT penned an article about the history of the SSB and CW NAQP contests which included some comments about the recent reflector postings of NAQP rule changes. N0JK's VHF-UHF Contesting column talked about rule changes to the ARRL VHF contests, and had a helpful hint for portable 6m antennas. W9XT's CTT&T column provided some interesting data on how much time we spend on non-operating activities. NW0L was the guest columnist for WA9ALS's RTTY Contesting column, and told us about their January ARRL RTTY Roundup effort. Rounding out the regular columns was K5AF with information about using Russian tubes." Under Carl's leadership, NCJ is focussing on the strengths of a printed publication - in-depth articles on technical topics, interviews and operating, seasoned with a stable of knowledgeable columnists covering many topics of interest. Active contesters will want to have a subscription to this informative and entertaining publication. No contest shack is complete without an NCJ to read while waiting for the bands to open up. Overheard while wandering the by-ways of the Hara Convention Center: Saturday morning - "What is it?" "I don't know, but I really want it." Sunday - "Can you guys cover for me while I sneak it into the house tomorrow?" Friday afternoon in the hall - "I'm lost!" "Yeah, me, too, but I don't care..." Several times - "Does it work?" "As far as I know!" (caveat emptor, folks) After checking out of my hotel on Sunday morning, with an early evening flight, I had plenty of time on my hands so I availed myself of some of the sights the Dayton area has to offer. Many hams are familiar with the world-famous US Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum). This year, I chose to explore the Wright Brothers museum in West Dayton which is part of the "Aviation Trail" (http://www.nps.gov/daav). There are many sites near Dayton that explore and document the rich history of flight in this area. On my way south, I also stopped by the original Voice of America station in West Chester (1 mile east of I-75 on Tylerville Road, about 20 miles south of Dayton). Decommissioned in 1994 and 1995, the main building is being converted into a museum and also hosts the WC8VOA radio club (http://www.wc8voa.org/). I took an informal tour of the transmitters, getting a look at one of those 250 kW tubes that graced the back covers of ham magazines for so many years. Look for WC8VOA on June 6th and 7th for the D-Day Anniversary special event operation (http://www.arrl.org/contests/spev.html#june) and then again during Field Day. (No, they don't get to use the VOA antenna farm - it was demolished.) CONVERSATION A Bit of a Stretch (This is the text of a short presentation I made to the Town Hall Meeting forum at the Dayton Hamvention. While its tone is general, the message applies equally well to contesting.) What is the biggest challenge facing ham radio? Some might say that it's BPL and CCRs, and while those are very important I would disagree. Some might say demographics and I'd say that they were close. The biggest challenge that we face today is outreach. There are two types of outreach. First, "Inside Outreach" is hams reaching out to other hams across our internal party lines. The hobby has such a broad scope today that we can lose touch entirely with aspects outside of our own interests. It's far too common to hear, "I have nothing in common with them," 'them' being whoever your group is not. Are you kidding me? To anyone even slightly removed from ham radio, our differences are miniscule, yet we sometimes insist on magnifying our differences to ridiculous extremes. This must be avoided for it weakens us as a group and diverts our energies from attending to the health of the hobby. Second, "Reaching Outreach" means hams reaching out to those who are not, making them aware of ham radio and presenting the hobby as an attractive and useful activity. Sometimes, we hide our light under a heavy bushel. This is partly due to the depth and breadth of the hobby. Unlike a generation ago, there is so much to ham radio that 24 hours a day is just not enough time to experience it all. Just ask our spouses. This very attraction pulls our focus inward, when we need to occasionally turn outward. In addition, many of us are better tinkerers than salesmen and women. As a result, we slowly disappear from public view, into our own mythical radio Shangri-La. When I started writing "Ham Radio for Dummies," I planned it to be a Desktop Elmer for new hams and licensing students - and this it certainly is. However, as I ferreted out information about the various niches of the hobby, I realized how much there was that I, a grizzled 30-year veteran, didn't know and of which I had been blissfully unaware. I also became aware as I worked with my non-ham editors of what a compelling story we have to tell. Not just of the days of yore and of radio pioneers, but of ham radio here and now. If only it could be told straight up and not as stereotyped images. I realized that there are literally dozens of great and interesting stories that needed a vehicle to carry them. I hope that "Ham Radio for Dummies" is just the first of those vehicles. Sure, I'd like to sell a copy to every ham. But I'd really like to sell you two - one to keep and one to give away to a neighbor, a co-worker, a niece or nephew, or maybe to your mayor or a news reporter. The "for Dummies" brand is a opportunity for ham radio to break out and be seen and heard by John and Jane Q Public and their 2.2 offspring. They won't see it if it's sitting on your radio shack's bookshelf. "Ham Radio for Dummies" is only a tool. It must be used to be effective. The demographics of ham radio are clear. If we continue to fracture internally and waste our energy on divisive debates, ten years from now, this convention may be just a memory. But the demographics also point to the solution. Making a few reasonable assumptions, we can hold our numbers steady by recruiting just one new ham apiece every few years. Just one! If we can pull in two in the same period, ham radio will be back on an ascending flight path. Don't sit back and wait for somebody else to do it. Don't fall into the trap of, "I paid my dues, let the ARRL do it." The ARRL is a powerful voice for ham radio, but people don't take up avocations because they like a national organization. If you can recall what got you into ham radio, it was probably seeing people like yourself having a good time and doing something useful and interesting. The future of ham radio depends on each of you. "Ham Radio for Dummies" is a start. Of course, it's an opportunity for us to practice Inside Outreach and get back in touch with other parts of our hobby's family that we may not have visited with for a long time. More importantly, the familiar yellow-and-black cover gives us a Reaching Outreach presence on bookshelves and Web sites that we have never had before. I was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time to write it. The challenge for you is to find your own right places and times to use it. 73, Ward N0AX 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/
