2012 IARU HF World Championship | Personal Note

Good evening from the shackadelic #hamr zone where long delayed echoes between hemispheres subsided into memory and it is time to reflect on my performance. Overall, I had a lot of ham radio fun in the pilot's seat inside my mentor's shack during the course of 20 hours. The central coast of California enjoyed pleasant blue skies and a moderate temperature in the mid-60s while a solar storm raged above. It was good racing weather.

I'm pleased with my Q total of 1,003 however that was not enough to push my position when 3830 Score Rumors published on CQ Contest Digest. I went to the other performance extreme that is lulled into a sense that multipliers would follow rate per hour. Well, that didn't happen, and I didn't take advantage of the polar opening into Europe during grayline starting at 17 degrees ending at 35 degrees with either 6 element monobanders pointed toward Africa.

I wasn't watching the multiplier matrix instead the Red Bull rate per hour couldn't compare with searching and logging.

Searching and logging multipliers is as important to one's score as maintaining a rate per hour above fifty five. However, the rush of rate is an apples to oranges comparison because the adrenaline keeps pumping, even when I knew my multiplier numbers needed improvement. Likewise, I was playing a high stakes game of Monaco that is hoping conditions would improve toward Europe on either 15 or 20 meters.

Okay, I'm no Daniel Craig as James Bond in Casino Royale, where the greatest poker game ever played on the flat screen occurred.

Even with 6 element monobanders on 15 and 20m in addition 5 elements on 10m pointed toward Asia at 315 degrees plus or minus. It wasn't enough to compensate for the flattened polar path that connects the European multiplier express with the West Coast of California.

Instead, I kept betting on the same four tires without taking a pit stop to review my strategy because the rate per hour was hypnotic. My lesson learned.

Contest on!

P.S. Congratulations Sandy, DL8QQ for a terrific score out of DR1A as 1,799 Qs went into the log totaling 2.6 million points.