2008 ARRL Field Day
07/01/2008 |
N8CPA
N8CPA 1D OH. I don't know how many times I keyed that, but it got acknowledged at least 212 times.
FD started at about the same time as another cell of a system of thunderstorms passed through my neighborhood. And the downpours on each side of its track seemed to form a liquid version of a Faraday cage. It took 20 minutes to make my first contact, and the S9 noise level from the proximity of the storms severely impeded reception on all bands for the rest of the night, and induced in me a kind of lethargy. I simply wasn't awake enough to try CQ FD.
Some time after 0000Z Sunday morning, I tried a RTTY contact, but the other station didn't acknowlege receipt of my exchange. By 0400Z Sunday morning, I had made only 75 Q's. I shut down for the night some forty minutes later with only 85, all CW.
But I was up again as soon as the cardinals' calls overcame the sound of my snores. And as the sun rose, I was sipping my coffee as I hunted and pounced on 40--with my 60 foot vertical dummy load, even trying to run 40 or 80 proved somewhere between hapless and useless. And though I never overcame the induced lethargy of the night before, later openings on 10 and 15 proved sufficiently energizing for me to stick with it until the end. I finished with 19 more contacts than I made last year--which, I guess, makes it a successful Field Day in terms of Q count. But it is pretty hard to fail an event where outcome is measured in terms of enjoytment. I'll be back again next year.
But between now and then, BRING ON CW SS--123 days and counting! -- N8CPA
FD started at about the same time as another cell of a system of thunderstorms passed through my neighborhood. And the downpours on each side of its track seemed to form a liquid version of a Faraday cage. It took 20 minutes to make my first contact, and the S9 noise level from the proximity of the storms severely impeded reception on all bands for the rest of the night, and induced in me a kind of lethargy. I simply wasn't awake enough to try CQ FD.
Some time after 0000Z Sunday morning, I tried a RTTY contact, but the other station didn't acknowlege receipt of my exchange. By 0400Z Sunday morning, I had made only 75 Q's. I shut down for the night some forty minutes later with only 85, all CW.
But I was up again as soon as the cardinals' calls overcame the sound of my snores. And as the sun rose, I was sipping my coffee as I hunted and pounced on 40--with my 60 foot vertical dummy load, even trying to run 40 or 80 proved somewhere between hapless and useless. And though I never overcame the induced lethargy of the night before, later openings on 10 and 15 proved sufficiently energizing for me to stick with it until the end. I finished with 19 more contacts than I made last year--which, I guess, makes it a successful Field Day in terms of Q count. But it is pretty hard to fail an event where outcome is measured in terms of enjoytment. I'll be back again next year.
But between now and then, BRING ON CW SS--123 days and counting! -- N8CPA
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