[PVRCNC] K4QPL NC QSO Party

[Jim Jordan, K4QPL]

After returning from Charlotte I walked into the shack Sunday evening to
 find everything in the same pile as when I brought it back from Howie's
 and ARRL DX. Untangled as many wires as possible to connect up the
 computer and the Orion. "Issues" with keying O2 by N1MM. Finally resolved.
 Loaded N1MM and tried to set up exchange and as many "F" buttons as
 possible.

 Tentatively sent out a CQ on about 7040. Deluged with calls including
 AA4NC. Entered "Wake" and MM refused to accept it. "Illegal, Immaterial
 and Irrelevant" or some similar Perry Mason objections. Kept trying while
 listening to a pileup trying in vain to work me. Grabbed a piece of paper
 and started logging the run with, yes, a pencil and sending the exchange
 with the paddle. That reminded me of old times for sure. Looked at the
 computer clock and put in time sporadically. Must have had about 30 qso's
 on paper when I finally figured out why MM wouldn't take Will's exchange.
 I entered "Wake" and all it wanted was "WAK"! So back to the computer.
 Then I switched to 80M and most calls came up "DUPE" when I knew I hadn't
 worked them so I logged them anyway. Finally realized cable switching had
 cancelled interface wtih radio so it was now logging the 80M qso's as
 manual 40M dupes. Not to mention the 30 or so that weren't in the computer
 log at all. At some point discovered that the computer had been unplugged
 all week, the clock battery had run down and the time it was logging had
 no resemblance to EST or GMT. I have no idea what time I worked people!

 After the runs petered out I tried S&P but promptly encountered all the
 noble souls who must feel there is something dishonorable about simply
 logging a dupe with zero points and who insisted on telling me we had
 worked before.  I assume they may have been in the hen scratching which
 passed as a paper log or in the 40 freq notation of my 80M computer log.
 (If they get a NIL, they deserve it!) Anyhow, after far too many of those,
 I quit S&P and just ran for a few more minutes.

 I think I had around a hundred qso's more or less on 40 and 80 meters in
 an hour or so. Whether I take the time to create a contest log from the
 paper and computer mess is problematic. Good thing this wasn't a real
 contest.

 MORAL: Contesting takes at least a minimal amount of advance preparation.

 But hey, it was FUN!

 73,

 Jim, K4QPL