DX Contest Gunslinging From Outlaw Territory

Steve London, N2IC

August 31, 2013

A Few Hints, Tricks and Secrets For The Single Operator, All Band Contester Who Wants to Win DX Contests From Outlaw Territory

Yes, Outlaws Can Almost Win

2012 CQWW SSB 2012 CQWW CW

And Can Certainly Win Zone 3

But…I’m not a Bonafide Outlaw

My QTH is 12 minutes east of Phoenix

N2IC Antenna Farm ?

The Real N2IC

No Stacks – Just Single Monobanders

5 el 20 @ 60’

6 el 10 @35’ 6 el 15 @ 32’

4 el 40 @110’

2 el 80 wire @ 100’

KT-36XA @ 75’

3 el 15 @ 35’

Rule #1

Staying in the chair

Arrange for pet and SO care for the entire weekend

Have food and water within arm’s reach Straws work well in phone contests Small cooler next to chair

Chair should be comfortable, but not too comfy

Monitor should be slightly below eye level Don’t sleep during middle-of-night JA

I Do Sleep

Wake up at the usual time Friday morning Take a 2-3 hour nap Friday afternoon Operate from the start until Saturday evening

Sleep 3-4 hours Saturday evening Begin sleep when 15 and 20 close to JA (~02Z) Wake up just in time for EU sunrise (~05Z-06Z) Stay awake until contest ends

All antenna and shack work done before Friday ! Use K6LL’s checklist

Run, Run, Run !

Don’t Miss Running Opportunities JA Europe UA9

But, How Do I Know I Can Run ?

When Is It Runnable ?

When it’s 03Z, on 20 meters, and there are loud UA9’s and UN7’s Run !

Are the big gun JA’s S9 or stronger ? Run !

When you are S&Ping Europeans and they are coming back to you, 1st or 2nd call Run !

Common Mistakes

Start of contest 20 meters is loaded with South America, Africa,

other rare DX Bzzzt…You should be on 10, and then 15 meters

running JA until those bands die. Do not get suckered in by 20 meters at the start of the contest.

Sleeping anytime between 08Z-Sunrise Bzzzt…You should be on 40 running Europe and

JA 40 is often best to Europe well after their sunrise (08Z-

10Z) Big hardware not required

Common Mistakes

Saturday and Sunday Sunrise Suckered in by DXing on 20 meters

You should be on 15 (or even 10) meters looking for the European running opportunity

15 and 10 can open very suddenly (or not at all !) Again…If you are successful doing S&P to Europe,

you should be running Saturday and Sunday Afternoon

Running when you should be S&Ping This is when you should be S&Ping South America,

Caribbean, Africa Not enough of them to try running

Common Mistakes Working USA

A weak KB8XYZ calls you and being a good guy, you answer him and give him a contest QSO

He comes back, proceeds to tell you he is not in the contest, and that you have his call wrong. Spends the next 30 seconds correcting his call.

You’re hosed in so many ways He is worth 0 points He is weak, so any DX tuning across the

frequency doesn’t hear him (and you) He is inaudible to the W9 who tunes across, and

now steals your run frequency

Common Mistakes

So, what’s Mr. Niceguy to do ? Don’t respond with his complete call, but explain

“DX only” “The KB8. Sorry DX only for this contest. CQ

Contest…” For every KB8XYZ that calls you, there are 5 more

KB8’s just listening, and if you work KB8XYZ, they will now all call you

Remember, this weekend’s nuisance is next weekend’s Sweepstakes contact

Common Mistakes Lack of Situational Awareness

Constantly keep asking yourself “Am I on the right band doing the right thing to maximize my final score ?”

The band seems runnable, but I am not getting answers to my CQ’s. What is going on ? Could there be someone else on/near my frequency ? Does my signal stand out compared to stations

around my frequency ? Watch for other clues (timing, dupes, etc.)

After the contest, compare your log with the regional winners

Band-by-Band

10 meters Never assume that just because there are no

sunspots,10 meters won’t produce Besides the usual South Americans, be alert to

openings to, and across equatorial areas YB, DU, 9V Long-path over South Africa to BY, JA

With a solar flux above 130, there’s no meters like 10 meters !

15 Meters

Our Money Band ! Regardless of sunspots, we own 15 meters

Never shut-out to JA It only takes a modest amount of sunspots for

good Europe

20 Meters

Without very high sunspot levels, 20 is often a difficult band from here Too much daytime absorption Too low nighttime MUF Best just before and during our local sunrise Sometimes good over-the-pole after sunset

40 Meters

We love JA – sunspots or no sunspots 40 Phone is a zoo, but there are a few tricks

7128 is the lower edge – Only 72 kHz to play with 40 CW is a great band

Often best to Europe after their sunrise (08Z-11Z) Spray RF to Europe and JA at same time

80 Meters

60-80 countries in a weekend 200 total QSO’s

JA openings run up the QSO numbers JA openings can happen anytime between 09Z

and sunrise (13-14Z) Don’t forget you can work VE in CQWW Don’t get caught DXing when you should be

running on 40 If you have SO2R, keep checking 80 for new

arrivals

160 Meters

(Almost) Strictly a multiplier band If you have a big signal and can hear, it can

be a fun band Don’t get caught DXing when you should be on

another band If you have SO2R, keep checking 160 for

new arrivals If CQWW, beware that single-op and multi-

single DX stations may only be there for a short time, and only on the first night

Conclusion

DX contests can –almost- be won from Outlaw territory

Stay in the chair Run whenever possible Watch out for the common mistakes Stay aware of what is going on around you Know the bands