[PaQSO] N3WAV/M-R.I.P.?

[Joe Raymer]

Hi all,

I do need to get on my soapbox even though I promised myself that I would
hold off and not complain about this issue at least for another few more
weeks. However, since someone brought it up already I guess I�m OK. Well
last year for the K3CSG Bonus station and now this year we always have
this problem of not being heard when calling out on a frequency. Well
this year it final hit us what the problem is and that is it�s the
stations running QRO. Which totally cover you up. I don�t know what can
be done to fix this problem but it should be reviewed and discussed
because there clearly isn�t a fair opportunity for everyone in the
contest. I don�t think eliminating the QRO division is the answer either.
The other thing people don�t follow the suggested PAQSO band plan, which
I think is unfair to most of the mobiles out there because they have a
designated calling freq minus 5 Khz down from the suggested frequencies
but someone is QRO on it or +/- 5Khz form the frequency. Of course all
these frequencies are suggested only but I think its better if some
people formulate some ideas of what can change to make the people that
can�t afford or can�t use an amplifier during the contest. I myself like
to see a suggested band plan for QRP, Medium and QRO stations for the
party this way everyone has a more fare advantage to working everyone.



On Wed, 16 Oct 2002 18:30:05 EDT N3WAV@aol.com writes:
> Hello All,
>        Well, I made my attempt to make it to all 33 WPA counties in 
> the 
> mobile.  
>        I was doing pretty well, despite the fact that it took 1 hour 
> to get 
> my 10 QSO's in FAY because no one could hear me over the 
> 7,000,000Mwatt 
> stations. 
>        I got to ERI and sat at the Advanced Auto Parts in Corry.  
> The QRM 
> from the 7,000,000Gwatt stations and the foreign broadcast was so 
> bad that no 
> one could hear me.  I switched to 20m.  Did not hear anyone so I 
> called and 
> called on 14.275, the listed mobile window, and got no replies.  
> Switched to 
> 75 meters and no one could hear me (this was at 7:00 PM).  I was in 
> ERI for 
> 1.5 hours.  Moved to Warren.  Also took 1 hour to make 10 contacts 
> on 80, and 
> each one was a struggle.  Moved to McKean.  Again it took 1.5 hours 
> to make 
> my 10 contacts.  I sat in front of a business, promted the Police to 
> stop and 
> talk to me and ask what I was doing and why I was there for so long. 
>  I 
> explained Amateur Radio to him and how the contest worked and he was 
> very 
> interested and did not give me a hard time.  
>        Then I moved to ELK.  I made 1 contact in 30 minutes so at 
> 11:00 I 
> decided that I would go St. Marys and get a room and go to sleep.  
> No rooms 
> anywhere in St. Marys.  Drove to Emporium.  No rooms in Emporium.  
> Drove to 
> Renovo.  No rooms in Renovo.  It is now 1:30 in the A of M.  All of 
> the 
> 7,000,000,000Gwatt stations are in bed, warmed by their amps.  Drove 
> to Lock 
> Haven.  No rooms in Lock Haven.  Drove to Lamar.  No rooms in Lamar. 
>  It is 
> now after 2:00 AM.  I decided that since I missed activating ELK, 
> POT, CLE, 
> and CRN because no one could hear me, that I would sleep in the 
> Durango in 
> the parking lot of the Comfort Inn in Lamar so that I could give out 
> CLI in 
> the morning.  No bed, no shower in AM, no chance to change clothes.  
> But 
> people wanted CLI so I sacrificed for them.
>        The next day worked out better and I was even able to give 
> out CLE by 
> altering the route slightly (Unfortunately I forgot FRA).
>        After all the driving (780 miles), after all of the near 
> misses while 
> trying to paper log while driving, after being stopped by the 
> police, after 
> sleeping in the car (my chiropractor Sam, KE3PO, calls that job 
> security), 
> after driving and logging in the rain and fog, after all the people 
> 
> tailgating me, after my foot switch not working so that I had to use 
> my hand 
> mike the entire time, I was thinking that maybe this was for the 
> birds.
>        Well, then I figured that maybe I should get a good night's 
> sleep in a 
> real bed and then maybe I would feel better.  I got up this morning, 
> had a 
> good day at work and was feeling great when I came home.  I had 
> dinner and 
> started thinking about next year.  How could I help everyone get 
> those needed 
> counties?  The hassles of Saturday seemed to have disappeared.
>        Then I checked my email.  There must have been 30 or 40 PSQSO 
> emails.  
> I sat down to read them and collect the thank you's.  Well, the 
> hassles of 
> Saturday seemed to instantly reappear as I read thank you's to just 
> about 
> every other mobile but me.  Now, mind you, I did not go mobile for 
> the thank 
> you's or any kind of glory.  I just wanted to help folks get hard to 
> get 
> counties. But little pat on the pack would have been nice.  One good 
> thing, 
> it helped me make up my mind about ever again driving 780 miles as a 
> favor 
> the Party.
>        Did I miss working a lot of counties?  Of course.  Because 
> when I 
> tried to get a rare county the 7,000,000,000,000Gwatt stations said 
> "NO! TO 
> THE MOBILE."
>        My favorite quote of the contest:  "The mobile stand by, the 
> other 
> station go."  Shouldn't it be the other way around?  Get the weak 
> signal 
> first?  Get the mobile first so that he can move to another county?  
> Only one 
> station, W4ZE, took me first over the other stations.
>        So good luck next year getting those rare counties.  I think 
> I will 
> just stay at home and give out my rare county-WES.
>        73, de Bob, N3WAV / no longer M
> _______________________________________________
> PaQSO mailing list
> PaQSO@mailman.qth.net
> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/paqso
> 
> 

--- StripMime Report -- processed MIME parts ---
multipart/alternative
  text/plain (text body -- kept)
  text/html
The reason this message is shown is because the post was in HTML
or had an attachment. Attachments are not allowed.
Please post in Plain-Text only.---