[PVRCNC] K4QPL SS SSB SO U HP

[Jim Jordan K4QPL]

K4QPL SS SSB SO U HP

80    354
40    129
20    93
15    44

Total 620 x2  = 1240  x 80 Mult = 99,200
Time: 16 hrs.

Much as I was psyched up before the contest, I must admit I faded somewhat
at the end in the face of adversity. This was my first SSB contest with N1MM
and the Orion II. Computer went black in the first hour and I thought it was
dead. After rebooting several times it finally came up and stayed on for the
rest of the contest and is still working. Why? I have no idea unless Murphy
was under the desk. Using a mouse and new commands after using TR-Log for
years was not an easy experience on SSB. I carefully set up the Orion II on
Thursday night with the gang on 28.450 and it was doing great with picking
up the weak signals on 10M.  I had also listened on the other bands and I
thought the AGC and NR settings I used in SS CW would work. When the contest
started I was constantly hearing noise and apparent overload from nearby
stations. Had to ask for excessive fills and just not performing as I
thought it should.  I didn't take the time to work it out and assumed it was
because I didn't have the optional narrow SSB roofing filter. Only on Sunday
did I realize the carefully programmed AGC settings were all wrong for an
SSB contest and the radio was doing a beautiful job of picking up all the
splatter and miscellaneous crud off the noise floor from a thousand
legal-limit amplifiers being overdriven by excessive compression and high
gain voice keyers and putting it into my headphones as "weak signals."
That's a lesson from this non entry-level radio I won't soon forget!

Then on Sunday morning while taking a break to prepare to move over to W0UCE
and operate the rest of the contest as NY4A, aka "fresh meat",  Jack called
to say that the "little problem" we had experienced on Saturday morning
trying to get the port settings right for the Icom Pro III and N1MM wasn't a
little problem at all. The radio wasn't talking to anyone or anything--not
even the ICOM automatic amplifier. Then it turned out that it was an
apparent conspiracy by the Icom radios (probably instigated by UCE) not to
allow SSB to be emitted from the sacred temple of CW on Victory Church Road.
The second radio wouldn't even wake up. Kenwood didn't take part in the
boycott, but the prospect of fighting the QRM with a TS-440 low power was
not something I could stomach so we admitted defeat and I stayed home. Not
one SSB syllable escaped from there the entire weekend. Murphy rules!  (I'm
sure if K2AV had known what was about to happen he would never have loaned
me his SB221 to replace my dead SB1000. But it worked great. Thanks, Guy!)

Having eagerly anticipated the feast everyone would make of it on Sunday
when they heard "#1 U NY4A 57 NC", I was suddenly deflated and got really
tired of S&P while searching in vain for good run frequencies on the high
bands. I did alleviate the pain a bit by shooting a few fish in a barrel
with the N1MM band map and packet spots to make my sweep and working all the
PVRC'ers I could find. My keyboard could type "Mdc" without even thinking
about it. That also cheered me up tremendously.

I also smiled to hear Laurie, N1YXU at the controls of Multi op N1LN using
that great XYL voice to bust the pileup on VY1JA. I thought it was planned
as a secret weapon until I heard afterwards that OM Bruce had a sore throat
and gave her more operating time. Or at least that's his story. I think my
theory is better, particularly since it was only a last minute flurry of
working Bert, N4CW and some other PVRC'ers that kept me from also stopping
at 600/80 and having a tie score with them.

The contradiction of the weekend was that the 80M "Drain Field Special"
antenna once again "came up smelling like a rose" giving me good runs and
signal reports. I had taken the precaution of shortening it to resonate at
about 3830 instead of 3530 and that paid off big time with the
aforementioned 354 Q's on 80.

Thanks to everyone for all the great activity this weekend and on cw as
well. Large animals can be brought down by a swarm of hungry mosquitoes and
even if NCCC isn't brought down (and I think there's a good chance they will
be) they will be scratching for a long time to come!

Finally, looking at the early returns, it looks like Henry and I will be
subsidizing a few ARRL PINS for NC members turning in bigger and better
scores for the club and the "Chairman's Challenge."

GO PVRC!

73,

Jim, K4QPL