2000 CQWW SSB Contest @ VO2CQ

VO1MP, VO1MX,  and I ventured back to Point Amour, along with VE2ZP for the 2000 CQWW SSB Contest (October 28-29, 2000).  (See CQWW SSB 1999 for details about our 1999 trip and maps of the area).  We operated the contest in the Mult-Single category.  VO1MP and VO1MX were due to arrive at Point Amour on Sunday, October 22, but high winds delayed the ferry crossing from VO1 to VO2 by a day.  VE2ZP and I were due at Point Amour, from Ottawa, on Monday, October 23.  VE2ZP arrived on time, after having to leave his SB-200 in Natashquan, due to weight restrictions on the small aircraft from Sept-Iles to Blanc Sablon.  Unfortunately a family emergency prevented me from arriving until Wednesday.  By the time I arrived, the majority of the antenna work had been completed:  2 of the 3 thirty foot towers and the 15m beam were up, along with the 80m delta loop and the 160m "vertical".  Since I was the lightest of the crew, the climbing of the 10m tower was left to me.  After climbing this really light-weight tower, I can see why!  On Thursday, we managed to get the third thirty foot tower up and the 204BA on top.  We also managed to put together a 2-element delta loop towards Europe and an single delta loop to the SW.  We left the easy antenna work until after dark and strung up two Beverages, NE/SW.  On Friday, we mounted an all band GAP Challenger vertical to the fence right over the water.  The vertical would be used for the second multiplier station.

The contest started out fantastic!  After the first 24 hours we had 5.6 Million points and were 1.5 Million points ahead of our score from 1999!  We were on our way to close to a 15 Million point score!  At about 0300Z the solar storm hit, and hit us hard.  We had 14 straight hours of less than 100 QSOs, including 4 hours with less than 24 QSOs, an hour with 2 QSOs, and an hour with 1 QSO!  While VO1MP, VO1MX, and I slept, VE2ZP kept slugging away.  When I awoke, Dave told me he had found the threshold for making a QSO:  we could only work a station above S7!  We might get a "QRZ?" from an S6, but forget anything below that.  On the second day we made a total of 34 QSOs on the low bands: 26 on 40m and 6 on 80m.  We finished the contest 1.8 Millions points behind our score from 1999.  Click on the image below to compare our rate graphs from 1999 and 2000.

A view of the site.

The lighthouse from the rocky beach.

Another view from the beach.

Looking towards EU from the top of the Lighthouse.

Looking down the 160m antenna.

VE2ZP

VO1MP/VO2CQ

VO1MX

VE2ZP looking in from top of the lighthouse.

Another view of the site.

Besides doing well in the CQWW SSB Contest, one of my objectives on this trip was to work Ivo 5B4ADA on 160m.  Ivo needed Zone 2 to complete 160m WAZ and 6BWAZ.  I'm glad to say that I did work Ivo, but I was actually his second Zone 2 station on 160m.  While I was trying to get the CT network and packet station going for the contest, Gus VO1MP / VO2CQ was working Europeans on 160m CW.  5B4ADA managed to bust through the EU pileup and worked VO2CQ for his last zone!  Since I was in the same room and could hear what was going on, I got on an worked 5B4ADA also, as VO2AC.  Gus still reminds me that he was the first one to work 5B4ADA :=)  Congratulations Ivo (and Gus)!

Log Search (VE3FU, VE3FU/NP2, VO2AC, VO2CQ)

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