First of all, let me introduce our team. On the photo (from left to right): Soni, PY1NX; Fabiano, PT7AK; Jim, PY7XC; Renner, PY7RP; Luc, PY8AZT and Mr. Luke, PT7WA (Guru). Missing on the photo: Raimundo, PT7CG and Tino, PT7AA.
Planning
Before contest, SFI suggested that bands would show best propagation from last 8 years. We set our target on 32 million points (6,800Qs and 1,300Pfx), increasing 45% from last claimed score. We never expect so great conditions and a lot of high activity on the bands.
Learning from error
Last year, we lost valuable points on log checking process. We did an extra QSY, violating the 8 band changes limit on a very hot pileup hour. It caused a turn over between us and J7A on final results (fall from second to third place in World).
This is our Log checking result from 2011 showing band change violation penalty:
************************** Summary ***************************
4915 Claimed QSO before checking (does not include duplicates)
4388 Final QSO after checking reductions
17579 Claimed QSO points
14930 Final QSO points
1238 Claimed mults
1179 Final mults
21762802 Claimed score
17602470 Final score
-19.1% Score reduction
235 (4.6%) duplicates (without penalty)
133 (2.6%) calls copied incorrectly
142 (2.8%) exchanges copied incorrectly
18 (0.3%) not in log
234 (4.5%) band change violations
18 (0.3%) calls unique to this log only (not removed)
We investigated the source of such error and we figured out that N1MMLogger show wrong band change counting If a networked station delete a QSO on the fly. So, we did a extra band change as legal QSY.
To avoid same error, since CQWPX SSB we are using pencil and paper to control band changes on each hour (see photo). This simple method works like double check on band changes counting – and it keeps operator alert on sleepy hours.
This is ultimate band change controller from Organizações Tabajara!
0000z – Go! But…
Mr. Murphy wasn’t spotted on the station for a while, but we learned he is always around. Things got crasy, beside everything has been tested before contest. On first hour almost every computer lost CAT control. There were RFI all over the shack.
Only “new stuff” there was two antenna tunners installed to adjust SWR on CW portion on 80m 3el wire yagi and other one for upper yagi little mismatched on botton 7MHz band. We removed the tunners and RFI stills all around. Checked all RF path and we spotted a bad PL-259 connector. We fixed it and all RFI gone!
Couple minutes after, Mr. Murphy found an other toy to play. One computer started to cause S9+ QRM on 20m. This ATOM computer is on service for 3 years and never made QRM before. We exchanged it for a spare laptop and then no sign of QRM. But we need to download N1MMLogger full install (15Mb) on slow Internet. It took 60min to install and download N1MMLogger, USB drivers, etc… after 1h+ station was working again.
Day 1, SSN 86: Go very fast!
First 5 hours, propagation was like we never saw before. All HF bands 160-10m were wide open to high populated areas (EU/NA). It was hard to give up on high bands to explore noise on low bands for double points. We did 1500Qs just before local sunrise and 4500Qs on first 24h. That was amazing and we started to rethink our target. But…
Day 2, SSN 70: Go very slow!
Just like sunspots dropped from 86 to 70, all pileups faded down and gone with it. Unlike 24h before, there were weak signals from almost everywhere on 10m, but It took a lot of CQ to get a response. We did a lot of S&P, that was the only way to put some stations on the log. Almost the same was 21MHz band. There were few big signals and a lot of little phantom stations deep in the noise. Second day, we had 100Qs/hour for almost all day long. Best hour was 175Qs at 19z.
Prefix profusion
Aside greater conditions from last 8 years, prefix profusion turbocharged scores all over the globe. We managed to work 1487pfxs. That was insanely higher than we expected (1,300) and score started to grow faster than we planned. On 40th hour we scored 33,2 million (World Record), and right on the lasst minute we ended up with 7,101Qs and 36,999,534 pts.
Statistics
Access full statistics from our log here.
Photo just before contest finish… 36,778,995 and counting.
Next big contest, turn your antennas to Brazil. We have over 200 stations ready to get into your log!
All team members would like to say THANKS to our host – Barreto, PT7CB –, and to contester all over the planet that contact us.
PW7T Team
Fortaleza DX Group
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