[PaQSO] More on 20m and Good Neighbor QSOs...

Tue Oct 22 06:45:07 EDT 2013

HI Charlie,

I got a similar e-mail. It was from a 4 call in TX.

------

Next year please bring a 20m antenna along so half the country and all the
DX has a chance to work

Jefferson county PA

I noticed you made over 300 QSOs and not a one of them on 20M where I had a
chance to even work you.

It’s a shame half of the PA stations just talk to each other on 40 and 80
and ignore the rest of the country.

Maybe the rules/scoring needs to be changed?

thanks

----------

I replied in kind, then received this reply, which I found pretty
condescending.

----------

Thanks for note John....

well, checking the 3830 reflector....seems N2CU and N2ZN each worked a
hundred or more on 20cw.....while mobile. Sometimes

it takes a bit of practice to know where to operate.....   everyone likes
to be on ‘the frequency’ but half the time, there’s a big fixed

station there like on 040..and mobiles go there, don’t hear anything and
call away and never work anyone!   try and work on

a freq like 14040.3 or 14041.3 or 14043.7.....folks will find you.    Avoid
the even freqs......

Worked about 35  counties on 20M cw, half of them with mobiles.

It gets a bit frustrating when you see the PA QSO Party results and half
the mobilesstations never went to 20M  leaving out half the country

for the QSO parties. That’s a sure way to eventually kill interest in the
QSO parties...with hundreds not being able to participate.

I don’t know if self spotting is allowed in this QSO party...... but if you
spot yourself on ch.W6rk.com you’ll normally get lots of activity

and once the spot shows up , you’ll have a dozen quickly show up in 2 or 3
min including the DX.

See you next year....

-------------------

But, it's good to see that N2CU, and N2ZN got this dudes "gold star".

so. . . . we have to spot ourselves on the internet to give the hams west
of the Mississippi a chance to turn on the rig & work us? What? Are they
all watching the big game on TV? Whatever happened to careful tuning, and
searching for stations? Or, god forbid, maybe they could call CQ? <I don't
even know if self-spotting is allowed>
Anyhow, I never responded after that. IF I hear him next year calling me,
I'll work him.

I wonder how many of us got a similar e-mails after posting to the 3830
reflector?

I may think twice before posting scores there again.

Yes, I'm still a bit PO'd.

<end rant>

This e-mail set me off in part because I actually put up a dedicated 20
meter antenna, and spent more time on 20 this year, than ever before. I
also did a LOT more (for me) CW this year, as I work on improving my CW
skills (and boy, do they need improved! HI HI).

After that, I get a whiny e-mail because I didn't spend enough time on 20?

So. . . . I'm curious how many of the rest of us were so "honored"?

John, KD8MQ

On Oct 22, 2013 5:35 AM, <kb3co at comcast.net> wrote:

>
>
> It was not only the West coast stations that felt left out this year -
> Last week I received the below attached email from an unhappy county hunter
> from Texas.
> The truth is that we went to 20m CW very early in the contest but found
> that we had the same problem with Winkey as W3CQB and others did - the
> entire PC locked up. So we had to abandon that and settle for 20m PH which
> did not yield very much. Fortunately the problem was limited to 20m only -
> otherwise we would have had a serious contest changing problem. In past
> years we always had a good following on 20m CW - mostly Europeans, 5's,
> 6's, and 7's. We very much regret not being able to do the same again this
> year. It was my miss that I did not check out 20m CW operation prior to the
> contest.
>
> 73, Charlie KB3CO
>
>
>
> From: <Unhappy Texan >
> Date: October 15, 2013 at 5:06:30 PM EDT
> To: < kb3co >
> Subject: pa QSO party
>
>
>
>
> Next year please find a 20M cw antenna and use it.
>
> 27 counties I missed because you never ran on 20cw and of course, from TX
> to PA during the day on
> 40 and 80m isn’t going to work with my inverted vee up 30 feet.
>
> Saw your comments on 3830 reflector.
>
> Half the country had no hope of a clean sweep or getting the counties they
> needed.
>
> 647 cw contacts and not a one on 20m
>
> Maybe they can change the rules so you all don’t sit on 80 and 40 all day
> long and work each other while 70% of the country
> and 100% of the DX has no hope of working you
>
>
> 73
> <Unhappy Texan>
>
>
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