Radio operators enjoyed excellent propagation conditions during the A1 Contest. Forecasts also predicted improved conditions for VHF PA toward the end of the week. It seems they were just predicting…
… I’ve prepared a new version of KST4Contest for VHF PA. It can send the collected frequency data as spots to the DX cluster. Since I use N1MM+, it was tempting to try out this feature. The functionality isn’t perfect, because:
- data from 432 MHz is sometimes mixed in with the 144 MHz data (a shorthand way of reporting the frequency without the band, for example, “QSY .240”)
- the frequency information can also be transmitted by the other station (Station A requests a QSO with Station B at 144.240 MHz, and Station B confirms: “I’m going to 144.240 MHz” = both stations are logged at 144.240 MHz)
Even this relatively imperfect system offers several advantages:
- seeing which frequencies are occupied
- see which stations are active
- the ability to quickly tune in by clicking on a spot
For mid-November, meteorologists had predicted relatively warm weather, but with strong winds. Last year I had to deal with snowfall, so I was curious to see what it would be like this time. However, fog began to roll in along the road past Nové Mesto nad Váhom—and it was very thick. This is how Černecký vrch welcomed me: fog, a light breeze, and a temperature of 1.5°C above zero. I’m used to even worse weather, so it wasn’t all that challenging.
Visibility in the fog is limited to a few meters. It looks like fog on the radio band, too. After a few initial contacts, I’m going to try a challenge. Due to the proximity of the Leonid meteor shower’s peak, I chose a frequency in the lower part of the SSB segment this time. Most of the stations coming in are from nearby. Števo OM2ABC has an excellent signal; in a head-to-head contest among callers, he beat out Karol OM1AKU. E70SIC comes as a surprise, followed by E73O.
Just as the band is empty, so is the KST chat. Several stations are focusing on reflections from the meteor shower and aren’t responding to SKED requests. My mood improves with a contact with SP6CPF from JO71 via an aircraft reflection. What a strong signal! A moment later, SP3KEY, also from JO71, has a signal right on the edge—but we managed it. I end the first hour with a contact with Peter OE6V, whom I’d been trying to reach because of JN76.
It wasn’t until the beginning of the second hour that I managed to make contact with I4GHG, and HA5OO from JN97 unexpectedly came on the air as well. Endre apologized, saying he’d had a lot of sked requests and had only just gotten around to mine. OM3WMA is calling from Žalostina. This time, Draho OM3CQF is sharing the transmission site at JN88RT with Vlado. I’m receiving “1” as my call number from several stations. These are mostly OE stations. For example, OE3KAR from JN88 and OE3REC from JN77 surprised me. The second hour improved the multiplier count a bit.
VHF PA November 2024 DXCC Statistics
I start the last hour with IZ1ESM from JN45, which is almost 800 kilometers away! I make a few quick contacts across the band. The data recorded in the bandmap by KST4Contest is particularly helpful here. In the meantime, I call out a call sign, and IK3SSG from JN55 comes in, followed by I3QJZ from the same square. S59K also comes through among the Italian stations, and IK4GNG from JN64 wraps up this series. Even though it’s almost noon, there are still people to make contacts with. I also add six contacts with 9A and two with E7. Thanks in part to an unusually strong final hour, the total stands at 104 contacts by the end. Since I don’t count the number of quadrants during the VHF PA—I just visualize them on the map—the final tally of 29 locator quadrants comes as a surprise. At 392 points, that adds up to 11,368 total points. The average per contact is 3.77 points.
