Tiny Elephant's Contest Corner

The Latest Contest News -
A NARC Bulletin Exclusive

A monthly column by Ed Deichler, K2TE

Heavenly Ham

It is early October as I write this column and the Red Sox Whiners have another year to grouse about while this ex-Buckeye is hopeful that the Indians will finally make it all the way and win the World Series. Baseball fanaticism is another one of the genetic traits of my family and, thanks to a sweeping make-over in Cleveland, all the more frenetic come October. The month also finds me running up and down the tower checking antennas and connections as I get ready for the big DX contests. I will be operating the 80 meter SSB position at the KB1SO multi-multi entry for this year. If the Indians are in the Series, Ray may have to set up a TV next to the rig (sound off, of course).

This October is also special for a unique event that will be remembered as an epilogue to decades of incredible advances in engineering. By the time this issue of the NARC Bulletin reaches your table, a balding but fit 77-year-old astronaut will have taken his second ride in space aboard the space shuttle. It is hard to believe that John Glenn is THAT old. I remember the day when a Top Gun Marine Colonel blasted off from Cape Kennedy February 20, 1962 in a glorified diving bell to be the first American to orbit the earth from space. I was remember watching a legion of white-shirt- and-tie guys with headsets on intently staring at rows of consoles. I was in the seventh grade at the time and as I think back to that day, I have to believe it had a lot to do with my getting hooked on electronics like thousands of other kids at the time. My teacher was an elderly disciplinarian who relented for the occasion and allowed us to have a TV in the classroom to watch history being made. Here was a woman who remembered when TV didn't exist and "jet" and "rocket" existed only in comic books; now we were both watching the door open on a whole new era. A little over a year later I got my ham ticket.

Fast forward 30 years (more or less): kids are huddled around a terminal in hundreds of local schools across the country as several adults tweak a slow scan TV picture and a VHF rig listening for a call from Owen Garriott, W5LFL, as he orbits the earth in the space shuttle. Some of the kids who got to talk to Owen that day thought it was pretty neat (co-ool has not been invented yet) and are now deeply interested in communications. Owen was quickly followed by another "ham-anaut", Ron Parise, WA4SIR, who regularly talked to folks via ham radio from his "out of this world" QTH. There has even been a shuttle flight where the whole crew consisted of hams, making it "ham heaven". Kids today have the chance to witness amateur packet sent from space and even Internet link-ups. I'm sure the day is not far off when we can schedule an audio-visual exchange with astronauts using our integrated wrist- mounted TV/UHF/VHF rig to the ground plane on the car roof while sitting on Rte 3.

I wonder what thoughts will be going through Senator Glenn's mind as he glides around the earth 36 years after he started the whole thing? Pity he never got a ham license; if he had, we could have had a special WAS award for every ham in the world - Worked All Spacecraft. Oh well, guess I'll have to settle with working all stations in these contests:

ARRL Sweepstakes, 7-8 November (CW) & 21-22 November (SSB).

The annual ARRL Sweepstakes contests follow on the heels of the CQ Worldwide SSB contest with the first weekend in November. Each event starts at 2100Z on the respective Saturday and runs till 0300Z on Monday with an operating limit of 24 hours (sleep permitted!). Operating categories are single operator; multioperator/single transmitter; and single operator/QRP.

The sweepstakes contests are known for the rather long contest exchange. There are 5 fields that must be exchanged in the following order: serial number, precedence ("A" for less than 150W; "B" for more than 150W; and "Q" for 5W or less), your callsign, Check (last 2 digits of year first licensed), and ARRL section (NH). Each contact is worth 2 points. Contest multipliers are the total number of ARRL and CRRL sections worked. Logs go to the ARRL in ASCII format (disk or email) or POP format by 22 December 98.

Japan International DX, 13-15 Nov (SSB).

The Japanese Five-Nine Magazine sponsors a worldwide SSB DX contest that covers 80 through 10 meters. Like all big contests, this one is 48 hours long beginning 2300Z on the 13th. JA stations can operate the full 48 hours while everyone else is limited to 30 hours. There are several operating categories: single operator/high-power all- band or single band; same categories except low-power (< 100 W); and multi-operator. JA stations will be sending a signal report and their prefecture (50 maximum) while the rest of us send signal report and CQ zone number. Contacts on 80 and 10 meters are worth 2 points while 40, 20, and 15 meters count 1 point each. Multipliers are the total number of prefectures per band.

Logs go to Five-Nine Magazine, attn: JIDX contest, by 31 December 98.

CQ Worldwide CW DX, 28-29 November.

What better way to sit and relax after stuffing yourself for two days on Thanksgiving and its leftovers? I often find this contest is a great excuse to get rid of visiting in-laws - or for them to get rid of me. Every brasspounder in the world is encouraged to work each other in the usual categories from pea-shooter to multi-multi juggernaut. The object is to work all 40 CQ zones and all 328 DXCC countries in the world on all bands, which, of course, no one has done yet. (But then, no one would ever hit 70 home runs in Major League baseball, either). Whether you can send 50 WPM or struggle along at 13, why not jump in and see what you can do?

The sky is the limit, and not just for proud, old astronauts!!

73, de K2TE