[80m] 80m DXing - a beginner's view

[John Harper AE5X]

After 23 years in this hobby, I finally "discovered" 80m DXing last winter.
Previously, I either had been a teenager succumbing to the parent's rules
(get those darn wires outta the trees - NOW!) or in the Navy without a
permanent home upon which to build an antenna. Last fall, I bought my first
house, on a hilltop in rural northwestern NJ. Before, the band had always
been the same old group of local guys have a 2 meter-equivelent conversation
on 80m. This notion of 80m had been burned into my mind's view of what the
band was all about. This and nothing more. Imagine my surprise at (having
moved into my house and installing an 80m inverted V at 50 feet) tuning
around one evening at the bottom of the band and hearing DX! Nothing exotic,
just a few G's and EA's. That winter, my DX count on 80 went from 2 (USA and
Canada) to 61, all with 100 watts and too-low-for-DX inverted V. The best DX
was working VQ9QM thru a pile up.

The bug has bit me hard and I've bought the requisite books (ON4UN's
LBDXing), studied the geometry of trees in my yard, pondered ground
conductivity, read the reviews for amplifiers, etc...... in an effort to
improve my signal.

Some things I've noticed:

1. 80m DX stations are poor QSLers! I hope I'm wrong in the long run, but so
far, none of the cards from the bureau from last winter's QSOs have been
from my 80 contacts. All the other bands, but not 80. I have received a few
cards, but I sent direct with green stamps.

2. JA's are a tough path from here in W2 - I still do not have Asia or
Oceania for 80m WAC. I can't even hear Japan yet I routinely hear the same 4
or 5 guys in W1 & W2 working strings of JAs on any given Sunday morning.
What the hell are you guys using for antennas?! I want one!

3. My fantasies have migrated from get-togethers with Elizabeth Hurley to
4-squares with elevated radials. Near salt water.

My goals on 80 are simple for now - WAC and then DXCC. If you guys are
right - that propagation is comparitively poor this year - then I consider
it a good time to be starting out on the band since thigs will only get
better. In the meantime, I'll keep listening for a JA (5B4 would be easier
for Asia) and a VK to complete my WAC. 73 all.

John Harper AE5X
Outdoor QRP (and some newbie 80m DXing stuff!): http://www.qsl.net/ae5x