[InHam] Fw: iNDIANA QSO PARTY IS 6 DAYS AWAY ! SOME HINTS

[Dan Evans via InHam]

 Tips for working the INQP


FYI

73
Dan
-- 
K9ZF 
Amateur Radio Emergency Service, Clark County Indiana. EM78el 
The once and future K9ZF /R no budget Rover 
 ***QRP-l #1269 
Check out the Rover Resource Page at: 
<http://www.qsl.net/n9rla> 
List Administrator for: InHam+grid-loc+ham-books 
Ask me how to join the Indiana Ham Mailing list!
On Sunday, April 27, 2014 12:13 PM, Mel Crichton <kj9c at iquest.net> wrote:
 
First, apologies if you already received this, as it went to the INQP 
>reflector first. Your email was gleaned from an email you sent to me or to 
>WB9CIF about Indiana QSO party on May 3.....
>
>The INQP reflector has been mighty quiet for the last few days, and INQP 
>2014 is only 6 days away! Could it be that everyone is too busy tweaking 
>their stations. loading logging files, debugging the mobile, or building 
>antennas for that big rover operation?
>
>Let's hope so!
>
>The map shows all 92 counties with operations planned.... some of the 
>counties will be covered by only mobiles or rovers, meaning thst they won't 
>be on the air for very long.  The map is at 
>http://www.hdxcc.org/inqp/activity.php. There's also a list of planned 
>operations, accessed from http://www.hdxcc.org/inqp/. If your call is not on 
>the map, please let me know the bands and modes you intend to operate 
>Saturday    kj9c(at)arrl.net
>
>Some advice:
>Mobile/rovers.... be sure to call CQ on 40 meters for at least a few minutes 
>from each county, and remember that it will take some time for folks to 
>discover you. Forty meters will work best for in-state QSOs until almost 
>dark. If you have 75 or 80 meter capacity, try that too, especially after 
>dark. Then, if there's time and it's daylight, go to higher bands and work 
>far west and Europe... it's surprising how many of those guys participate in 
>INQP. Twenty should be good well past sunset.
>And be sure to work stations in the 7QP from each county, as they get extra 
>QSO points even though you might be a "dupe".
>Fixed stations.... if operating unassisted you can't use a spotting network. 
>However, you will work more counties if you do. And if you are using a 
>spotting netwrok, be sure to spot the mobiles and rovers so they will stay 
>busy during their short stay in each county (as a mobile I can tell when 
>I've been spotted, as the pileup gets REALLY big)
>
>Here's the advice we sent out last year....
>
>HINT  Listen for the weak signals!  We have a handful of mobiles, rovers, 
>and a couple of fixed QRP in rare counties ... so don't work just the loud 
>ones. If YOU are calling CQ on SSB and "running", ask for "mobiles, QRP, and 
>rovers only" once in a while. They won't stick around after a couple of your 
>QSOs with stronger stations. And don't expect them to call you twenty 
>minuteslater when you will take a breath and ask for weak signals.....They 
>won't be waiting for you. Chances are they already have your county in their 
>log.
>
>HINT On SSB it's often difficult to understand county names, especially for 
>mobiles with ignition noise, power line noise, and tiny antennas. Spell out 
>the county three/four letter abbreviations (like Mike-Oscar-Romeo)  as well 
>as saying "Morgan". Abbreviations are at 
>http://www.hdxcc.org/inqp/counties.html
>
>HINT  If you can afford only an hour to operate, try to make it near or 
>after dusk when propagation favors 80 meters inside the state.
>
>HINT  If you are a mobile/rover in a "rare" county, call CQ on 80 near the 
>mobile window frequency of 3535, in case in-state propagation occurs in the 
>afternoon. This gives Indiana stations who might be monitoring 80 a chance 
>for your county. Definitely use 80 after dusk, if you can. (In 13 years of 
>INQP I may have made a handful of Indiana QSOs on 75 meters while mobile, so 
>don't look for me there).
>
>HINT  Note who is SSB only, especially weak signal mobiles. A number of 
>fixed stations will be SSB only as well..... but mobiles and QRP favor CW to 
>optimize their signals, and they may work only stations who call CQ on SSB 
>(i.e. search and pounce). .....  many will be in a county for no more than 
>30 minutes, so don't put off working them. Some of our mobiles will post 
>their route schedules on the county hunter website 
>http://www.cquest.com/cgi-bin/flynn/trips.pl... Mobiles/rovers... please 
>post your rough schedules on INQP reflector before Saturday... thanks
>
>HINT  Work the 7QP and NEQP stations on every band/mode you can.... give 
>them your county,  as some of them are also in INQP (we offer plaques for 
>top W7 and top W1 scores in INQP). And they may be a new state for you. 
>Think of them all as being in INQP and holding a run frequency. If you are 
>an Indiana mobile/rover, you can work any 7QP station from each county you 
>are in... they get extra points in 7QP. Another hint... when you work 7QP 
>and NEQP use the CW format "IN XXXX"  where XXXX is your  county 
>abbreviation. It helps with their logging.
>
>HINT If you work a fixed 7QP station from your home station before INQP 
>starts, and you don't move to a different county during INQP, they won't 
>work you again! So save those rare Wyoming, Idaho ,and Montana contacts for 
>after 1600Z.
>
>HINT  Call CQ a LOT.... as you work your way up (or down) the band, work 
>everybody you can, even if not in INQP. If you find a "hole" plop down, call 
>QRL?, and then call CQ.... it might take a few minutes for the next guy 
>coming up the band to find you... once you are spotted on the net, you'll be 
>busy. Act LOUD!
>
>HINT  Work both modes (CW and SSB), as multipliers (counties, states, 
>provinces) count in EACH mode. You can even ask a station to QSY to the 
>other mode for a few seconds so you can work them for a new multiplier.
>
>HINT  This is an honor system, so if you are claiming to be single-op you 
>should not be using spotting assistance. You may spot mobiles and rovers to 
>the cluster without monitoring the cluster, and they will appreciate it. But 
>this is a slippery slope.
>
>HINT  (More of a request).... keep a log and send it in!!! Even if there's 
>only one contact in it. We want to grow INQP, and your log helps us to 
>determine what counties are active and which ones need more "temporary" 
>help. Another Hint.... if you transfer a hand written log to word processor 
>or Excel, please send the WORD/Excel file and NOT a printout... It's easier 
>on Tim to not have to retype all your contacts (believe me, he will NOT 
>retype any this year).
>
>HINT  Also send your logs to 7QP and NEQP, and don't bother with removing 
>the non-contest QSOs (for example removing a W1 worked in 7QP)... their 
>software (and ours) will throw out any non-valid QSOs with no penalty. . 
>NEQP is at http://www.neqp.org/.  W7QP is at 
>http://ws7n.net/7QP/new/Page.asp?Content=start
>
>HINTS: more operating hints are available at 
>http://www.hdxcc.org/inqp/publicity/How%20to%20operate%20IN%20QSO%20Party.pdf
>
>HINT  If you work WA5LOU (our state ARRL section manager) say "Hi Lou".... 
>He has helped us advertise  INQP, so please show Lou we appreciate it.
>
>And if you have fun Saturday, tell your ham friends and your club so they 
>might participate next year. If you don't have fun, tell us (the 
>organizers). And please offer suggestions.
>
>Thanks to the folks who will get up early Saturday to drive to their 
>starting county or string up portable antennas, who prepared for hours or 
>days to activate counties, and who won't be getting home until the wee hours 
>Sunday morning. With gasoline at 3.75 here, it won't bea cheap day!  The 
>rest of us should thank them by working them as many times as possible. And 
>work each other!!!
>
>Have fun.... and.... Make Indiana heard!
>
>Mel KJ9C
>
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