‰  NOW 40 WPM  ‰  TEXT IS FROM SEPTEMBER 2013 QST  PAGE 80‰
WHETHER YOU THINK THE BANDS WERE HOT OR COLD, THERE ARE A BIG BUNCH OF NEW
CALL SIGNS IN THE RECORD BOOKS AND THE TABLES SHOW ALL OF THE CATEGORY
WINNERS BY DISTRICT AND CONTINENT.  PARTICULARLY NOTEWORTHY ARE THE THREE
ALLTIME RECORDS SET THIS YEAR  NR4M W/VE MULTI SINGLE, LOW POWER  P40P
W5AJ, OP DX SINGLE OPERATOR UNLIMITED, LOW POWER  HK1NA DX MULTI MULTI THE
HK1NA STATION AND TEAM LED BY JORGE, HK1R, HAVE BEEN COMING ON STRONG,
WINNING AN EXTREMELY CLOSE RACE IN THE A

44 STATES IN THREE AND A HALF HOURS WAS FANTASTIC.  DESPITE THE STRANGE
CONDITIONS, WE STILL HAD A LOT OF FUN.  ITS HARD TO SPEND TWO DAYS CHASING
AND LOGGING DX WITHOUT GETTING A FAIR AMOUNT OF ENJOYMENT OUT OF THE
EXPERIENCE.  IN FACT, ONE THIRD OF THE SOAPBOX COMMENTS FROM W AND VE
INCLUDED THE WORD GOOD OR GREAT AND ABOUT ONE SIXTH MENTIONED FIRST, AND
ONE MENTIONED IGUANAS HAD A BLAST OPERATING FROM A HOUSE ON THE BEACH
IGUANAS WALKING ALL OVER THE PLACE.  HC8/K7ST.  RECORD PARTICIPATION WHEN
THE E MAIL ROBOT FINALLY CLOSED ITS INBOX, IT HAD USHERED IN A NEW
PARTICIPATION RECORD OF 3545 LOGS 18 MORE THAN LAST YEAR.  1817 W/VE LOGS A
LITTLE LESS THAN 2012 AND 1733 DX LOGS A LITTLE MORE THIS YEAR 875,714 QSOS
WERE REPORTED BY DX STATIONS.  THATS AN AVERAGE OF 18,244 PER HOUR NOT A
BAD RATE AND AN INCREASE OF 60,000 AND CHANGE OVER 2012.  W/VE LOGS
CONTAINED 691,336 QSOS, WHICH IS DOWN BY ABOUT ONE PERCENT THIS YEAR.
THERE ARE A LOT OF W/VE STATIONS WHO COULD BE SEEING THEIR CALL SIGN IN THE
RESULTS AND ARENT BECAUSE THEY DIDNT SEND IN A LOG.  NEVERTHELESS, ROSE
ANNE LAWRENCE, KB1DMW, HAS NO DOUBT BEEN SORTING A LOT OF QSLS AT THE ARRL

2013 ARRL DX PHONE RESULTS FROM IGUANAS IN THE SHACK TO BLOWN UP EQUIPMENT
AND UNEXPECTED QRP CONTACTS, THE ARRL DX PHONE EVENT OFFERED A CORNUCOPIA
OF CONTESTING.  WARD SILVER, N0AX, N0AX ARRL. ORG  AFTER THE RELATIVELY
QUIET CONDITIONS TWO WEEKS EARLIER FOR THE ARRL DX CW CONTEST, HOPES WERE
BEING STEALTHILY RAISED THAT MAYBE JUST MAYBE WED ENJOY THOSE COVETED HIGH
LATITUDE OPENINGS ON 15 AND 10 METERS.  ONCE AGAIN, THOUGH, OLD SOL DECIDED
TO DRIVE US ALL NUTS BY TOSSING A JOKER ON THE TABLE.  SOLAR INDIGESTION
RESULTING IN A CORONAL MASS EJECTION PEAKED THE PARTICLE PERCEPTORS ON
FEBRUARY 25 AND AGAIN ON FEBRUARY 28.  ON FRIDAY, THE PLANETARY A INDEX HIT
A NASTY 27, BODING POORLY FOR PROPAGATION.  WHILE THE A INDEX INNOCENTLY
RETURNED TO A WIDE EYED AND MODEST 12 ON SATURDAY, MARCH 2 AND TO AN EVEN
MORE RELAXED 7 ON MARCH 3, THE DAMAGE HAD BEEN DONE.  PATHS FROM THE US AND
CANADA OVER AND THROUGH THE NORTHERN AURORAL ZONE WERE EPHEMERAL AT BEST
AND NON EXISTENT AT WORST, ESPECIALLY FOR STATIONS AT NORTHERN LATITUDES.
SINGLE OP, HIGH POWER ENTRANT AL9A SUMMED UP THE ALASKAN POINT OF VIEW FROM
60 NORTH LATITUDE PRETTY WELL  PROPAGATION  THIS ONE REALLY STUNK.  ON THE
OTHER HAND, STATIONS IN THE LOW LATITUDES OR ACROSS THE GEOMAGNETIC EQUATOR
FROM NORTH AMERICA MADE FAR MILDER ASSESSMENTS.  FOR EXAMPLE, VK4TS DECIDED
TO PARTICIPATE AS A 40 METER SINGLE BAND ENTRY NICE 40 METER RUN INTO USA,
‰  END OF 40 WPM TEXT  ‰  QST DE W1AW  ƒ