OK2KKW - Marconi Memorial Contest 2016 from Prague again

Semi automatic translation by Google translator :-(

Read this note please!

As in last years the contest season of radioclub OK2KKW has finished by Marconi Memorial Contest. Because just like last year, the weather did not favor to any crazy efforts in the cold and mud on the hill, we decided to once again give away points from the home QTH in category "by the fireplace." Moreover, we had noted health problems both with me and with David 1RK, who broke his ankle bone, in addition dad has sore tooth, so we were glad to have the race in 2 people (together with Lada OK1DIX) succeeded without major complications .. as the newly dispose 8el antennas from I0JXX, I decided simiar to a VHF Contest 2016 to build a total of three directions. The standard first course consisted 10el DK7ZB time pushed up a bit higher due to refurbishment of 11 years old rusty Magirus mast by changed internal cables and anchoring the new system. Another way I built from 8el I0JXX 2m plastic bungee pipe attached to the chimney and fixed directed to do SP9 / OK2 / OM. Last direction then formed 8el I0JXX at a height of about 2.5 meters above the roof on the TV mini-rotator. To the direction of OK2 / OM was something less than about 100W to about 700W other 2 directions so that the performance of the sum of 1,5kW. Unlike VHF Contest time I used any other coax connection, that this time I was through the hole drilled in a shack at the site of air inlet so that the canopy of the dome gave completely closed in case of rain expected. The change also was a new fixing antennas so that in case of heavier wind was no problem with direction.

Because of the work I have walked before a race at a time when it is dusk, most of the work on the antennas I conducted with headlamp up at night, which at + 4 ° C was quite an experience. Finished all cable connections I could make it (of course) about 5 minutes before the start of the contest, so it was not even time to try a new, more durable LNA with PGA103 +.

But let's read few words of Lada OK1DIX:


 

Marconi Memorial Contest is my favorite race, because rather than keys CW than I shout into the microphone. As he wrote Matej due to weather, Prague was a good choice. Matej in his home QTH prepared everything ready so I came to the finished shack, just joined headphones and morse bug.
By 1400 UTC I start on the race. Although built 3 lines no pile-up is observed. Conversely, for the first QSO I wait three minutes and on the other fourth well, actually we're not on the mountain elevation. Then they begin to walk the station, but there's no glory. It's raining and the conditions of the match. It goes a little to the southeast where they appear 9A stations from a distance of over 600 km and mood rights + YU1LA and YU7ACO over 700 km. It's the habit compared to the our Mountains hut. From Prague, the S5 station under 450 km. With nightfall comes, then has added several SM / OZ stations. The West, however, is closed by the front. Slower DL stations are scarce. PG16MC remain until the morning one PA station in the log. Until 1800 UTC come HB9CLN, HB9GF, F5JNX and, later, our good friend Denis F6DCD. It is rather the product of labor OK1TEH with ON4KST than any improvement of conditions. The main areas are still 9A / S5 and I until ten in the evening when I pass it to Matej.

OK1TEH: we started the race at a frequency of around 144.130 MHz so that we were on the edge of the band, which, while meant less interference, but also a smaller number of callers. And even later, the que of stations wasn't as large as in previous years .. The major disappointment were little activity SP stations compare to in VHF Contest when I made 60 SPs.., but in the MMC, it was only 19 QSOs .. Not more CW operators in Poland? Movement from the west were well below normal and very little activity seemed to us from the field YU / E7, in comparison to last year we did not do something more OK stations, but significantly fewer stations OK from the field JN99 (15x in 2015, 10x in 2016). Around 21h UT Lada went home to sleep and I took the key. I wkd some nice QSOs to I, HB9 and F, with TM0W QSO was this time a total of childbirth sked with F6HPP / p from JN19 unfortunately based on playtime, as well as with ON4TX. Contesting me extra complicated problems, so I constantly had to meander, which always meant to come on frequency .. Unlike past years, so I did not go this time all night, but I slept about 3 hours. I note that there's nothing a good as night's sleep in the own bed, hi.


 

In the morning, conditions improved a little bit to the west, and after a long struggle, I managed to log connection with F6HPP/p. Later I was able after a little struggle to make even ODX QSO with IK1TBE from JN34, which was finished just at the moment when Lada DIX has returned, for which I was quite happy because fatigue had done its job. Around midday came heavy rain from the DL and conditions to the west across the drenched woods again worsened considerably.

OK1DIX: morning up again. Matej managed to make it through the night many nice QSOs, but without chat many of them would not work. The second day is a bad direction to the West, still raining. Even in the misery manages PA4VHF, PA4EME and PA5MS , but G prefix stay as dream. More DL stations, but no great distance. Finaly he manages to make ODX IK1TBE. The situation remains unchanged until the end of the contest. Result of 360+ QSOs and 120000 points is not bad due to bad conditions. Our location in the OK contest list around the 7th place from Prague is also not bad. I think it's a worthy conclusion contest of the season. The negatives except the conditions included interference from the direction of OL3Z and then also some level of "keying". At several stations with their nonrhythmic "boom-boom" keying is difficult to read. The second case is the station that they were going pretty fast with PC, but when one of them asks for something, it's obviously not able to picked up. Less is time to time more ...
 

OK1TEH: Originally, I thought it would be achievable due to the greater number of antennas even up to 400 QSO, but unfortunately the conditions were really below normal and attenuation of wet forest cut off some interesting QSO towards JO31 away. Interestingly, however, compared to for example OM3KII who have excellent QTH on the Great Javorina, in terms of the number of DXCC are not living up to them, with one exception - stations from DL. It also looks good with our preliminary results on the score sheet, we mostly from my home QTH problem with the way into the top ten, which would hopefully this time might not be such a big problem.

Conclusion: Despite the bad condx prevailed in total contentment and especially MMC is our favorite contest because we like the telegraph, just a pity that there is no more VHF CW contests.

Finally, a small summary of the past season 2016 in our club. We have managed quite good results on 70, 23 and 3 cm, so hopefully the callsign OK2A / OK2KKW will keep the fortune still so far quite graceful ..

Thanks to everyone who wkd us in the contests of 2016 season and gave us points on the VHF.
CU AGN by operators of MMC 2016 Matej OK1TEH and Lada OK1DIX.

OK2KKW's Contest logs: here

SUM of WWL : 78                                                         QSO vs QRB      
WWL        : 32xJO70   22xJN79   17xJN89   15xJO60   14xJO61   13xJN98  ----------------
             12xJN76   11xJN97   11xJN58   10xJN99   10xJN86    9xJO71        < 100  58x
              9xJN95    9xJN88    9xJN49    8xJO51    8xJO50    8xJN59    100 - 199  55x
              7xJN68    6xJN69    6xJN65    6xJN37    5xJO31    5xJO30    200 - 299  68x
              5xJN48    4xJO80    4xJO65    4xJO62    4xJO41    4xJN87    300 - 399  45x
              4xJN85    4xJN63    4xJN54    3xJO90    3xJO72    3xJO32    400 - 499  63x
              3xJN75    3xJN55    3xJN39    2xKN09    2xJO94    2xJO81    500 - 599  45x
              2xJO53    2xJO43    2xJO42    2xJO40    2xJO33    2xJO20    600 - 699  21x
              2xJN94    2xJN78    2xJN77    2xJN64    1xKO00    1xKN19    700 - 799  12x
              1xKN18    1xKN08    1xKN07    1xKN06    1xKN05    1xKN04    800 - 899   2x
              1xJO91    1xJO83    1xJO82    1xJO74    1xJO73    1xJO64        > 899   0x
              1xJO22    1xJO21    1xJO10    1xJN96    1xJN66    1xJN57  ----------------
              1xJN47    1xJN44    1xJN38    1xJN36    1xJN34    1xJN19                  

Hour   QSO  Score  AVG   DX Callsign        N  NE   E  SE   S  SW   W  NW
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
14-15   32  10701  334  753 YU1LA           1   3   7  12   5   4   -   -
15-16   32   9677  302  764 YU7ACO          7   2   4   8   5   -   2   4
16-17   24   8795  366  702 IK4WLV          1   2   1   2   6   3   8   1
17-18   27   8320  308  546 DF0MU           2   -   2   4   7   2   6   4
18-19   23   7666  333  593 HB9GF           -   -   4   4   1   8   2   4
19-20   15   5175  345  626 OZ9FW           3   1   3   -   4   3   -   1
20-21   23   8302  360  700 IZ5FDD/4        1   -   -   7   6   4   3   2
21-22   18   4662  259  597 HB9EWY          1   -   3   5   1   2   3   3
22-23   16   6148  384  728 TM0W            -   1   3   4   3   2   3   -
23-24   17   4576  269  716 I2XAV/1         -   -   2   6   3   3   3   -
00-01   18   4854  269  747 IQ5NN           2   1   1   4   4   1   2   3
01-02    8   2043  255  676 IK4UPB          -   -   -   1   2   -   2   3
05-06   15   4842  322  660 I5MZY           2   -   1   2   2   2   4   2
06-07   15   4061  270  673 E72U            1   2   3   4   1   2   1   1
07-08   12   5106  425  809 F6HPP/P         1   1   -   -   1   1   5   3
08-09   13   5662  435  822 IK1TBE          -   -   1   1   4   2   1   4
09-10   17   6105  359  580 F1TRE           2   1   1   2   1   3   5   2
10-11   12   3941  328  654 PA5MS           2   2   2   1   1   -   4   -
11-12   13   3776  290  536 DG7TG           1   -   -   1   2   1   3   5
12-13    9   3041  337  656 E77AR           1   2   1   2   -   -   1   2
13-14   10   2939  293  597 9A3QB           -   -   1   3   1   2   1   2
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total  369 120392  326  822 IK1TBE         28  18  40  73  60  45  59  46