[ILQSO] Preferred times for Phone & CW during ILQP?

Fri Oct 5 10:43:22 EDT 2007

Jim:

Good points!  Last year I found WN9O and worked him several times on 80 
during the ILQP 06.  I didn't analyze whether I was able to work mobiles 
on 40.  I moved to 80 before I figured it would be fruitful, and found 
many stations there.  The most memorable thing about ILQP 2006 was the 
wind and the frigid temperature.  All else pales in comparison! :)

I try to listen for mobiles, but there's scant resources for this 
effort.  Mobiles list the counties in which they plan to participate.  
They seldom list routes and times.

It would be a great service if the mobiles would post their "approximate 
times" for each of the counties they intend to activate, so that we 
could get a reasonable idea of when they'll be in various places.  This 
needn't be, and cannot be, "hard and fast" timing, but

It would also be great if mobiles would check propagation and move to 
whatever band is at or below the critical frequency for short range 
communications for part of the time they're in a county.  If propagation 
remains as it has been for the past few weeks, we ain't gonna have much 
NVIS action at 7 MHz, because the critical frequency will be below this.

In many state QSO parties in which I've participated the past couple 
years, the critical frequency has been below 7 MHz during the day, which 
means that very few in state contacts were available during the day, and 
many possible counties were missed, because mobiles stayed on 40 metres 
and worked out of state stations.  Had they moved to 80/75 metres they 
and we could have picked up quite a few extra multipliers.  The rules 
encourage 20 during the beginning, 40 as the "prime band" and 80 during 
the latter part of the day.  However, that means that when there's no 
short skip during the day, as has been the case often on 40 metres, even 
at the beginning of the contest, mobiles who stay there won't be heard 
by anyone within the state.  Conventional wisdom says that 40 is below 
the critical frequency during the day, and this is often the case when 
there are numerous sunspots.  But, when there are no sunspots for weeks, 
sometimes months on end, there's no short skip on any band except 75/80 
metres.

During Ohio QSO party 2007 we had a multi-multi operation.  One station 
stayed on 75 metre phone all afternoon.  The pickings were slim, but we 
racked up several county multipliers.  Conventional wisdom told us that 
we'd not do anything on 75 metres during the day, but we were having 
troubles with the 20 metre beam so we stuck to 75.

Something of which to think.

73 de n8xx Hg

James Funk wrote:
> Hank, you probably are already doing this, but if the rate falls on 40 cw, do some quick "cruising" to look for mobiles CQing.  Many of them will be mults for you, and they may have heard you earlier but couldn't break the pileup. They will be thrilled to have you call!
>
> Same goes for 40 SSB, though most mobiles won't spend much time CQing there as it isn't very productive for a weak station.
>
> 73, Jim N9JF
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ilqso-bounces at mailman.qth.net
> [mailto:ilqso-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Hank Greeb
> Sent: Thursday, October 04, 2007 8:49 AM
> To: Illinois QSO Party
> Subject: Re: [ILQSO] Preferred times for Phone & CW during ILQP?
>
> Thanks, Jim:
>
> I operate so little phone that any hints are helpful.  I'll see if I can
>
> get my computer program (N3FJP) to "talk" to my rig - like I've done 
> with it to send CW, so that repetitive CQ's won't burn out my voice.
>
> I did notice last year that rate dropped fairly quickly on a CW band, 
> and it was most noticeable because 20 was all but a dud, 80 wasn't "up" 
> yet, so I was stuck on 40.  If such were to happen again this year (I 
> hope not), I could oscillate between phone and CW and probably have a 
> better rate.
>
> CU on phone and CW during ILQP
>
> 73 de n8xx Hg (N9Q from Boone, Dekalb, Winnebago & Ogle Counties, during
>
> ILQP 2007)
>
> James Funk wrote:
>   
>> I doubt that it is necessary to specify, Hank.  When I operate both, I
>> just hit one for all it's worth and then change either bands or modes
>>     
> or
>   
>> both.  You get an idea pretty quick of what rate you can get on a
>>     
> "new"
>   
>> band or mode and move when wherever you are currently drops much below
>> that rate.
>>
>> You will for sure want to spend time on 40 phone calling CQ.
>>
>> A note to all fixed and portable IL stations:  (reiterating a plea
>>     
> from
>   
>> KJ9C)
>>
>> Please Please PLEASE if you are calling CQ and have several stations
>> calling, once in awhile call for mobiles (even if you don't hear any
>>     
> in
>   
>> the pileup)!!!  There will probably be one or two, and you will NEVER
>> HEAR THEM over the fixed stations!  They will probably be a mult for
>> you, but they will go away if they call half a dozen times and get
>>     
> beat
>   
>> out by fixed stations.
>>
>> The same goes for mobiles with big pileups, but things get hectic
>>     
> enough
>   
>> there that it's really hard to remember this!
>>
>> 73, Jim N9JF
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: ilqso-bounces at mailman.qth.net
>> [mailto:ilqso-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Hank Greeb
>> Sent: Wednesday, October 03, 2007 5:26 PM
>> To: Illinois QSO Party
>> Subject: [ILQSO] Preferred times for Phone & CW during ILQP?
>>
>> When a station operates both phone and CW, what's the preferred times 
>> for the modes?
>>
>> This will be my first time for ILQP and phone - last year my
>>     
> microphone 
>   
>> didn't work.
>>
>> 73 de n8xx Hg
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>> for list problems contact ng9r at arrl.net
>>
>>
>>
>>   
>>     
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>
>
>
>   