• No commercial sponsoring; we wanted to use our own, private, reliable and well-known equipment.
  • Exception 1: two of our own linear amplifiers died BEFORE the SSB contest, so we loaned two ACOM 2000A amplifiers for the CW contest.
  • Exception 2: CUSHCRAFT gave us six used monobanders (two each for 10, 15, 20m).

   

• Topic: The same radio on all operating positions:
  • Easy swapping, when a defect occurs.
  • Easy reconnecting peripherals without adapters.
  • No changes in software configuration necessary.
• Our choice: Kenwood TS-850S.
• DL2NBU developed and built interface circuits for PC control.
• DJ5IW developed and built audio splitters for two independent headphone outputs

• Every operating position broken down into bits and pieces.
• Every little cable and adapter put on a list.
• The lists were available sorted:
  • by Band
  • by responsible Person (not necessarily the owner)
  • by actual store location
• Each position included:
  • serial number and owner (--> customs!)
  • measurements and weight (--> trailer dimensions)
  • when to bring back („after SSB“ or „after CW“)

   

  TRANSPORTATION

• Towers are large and heavy...
• One local company RENTED out three towers (each 24m high) for a total amount of ~DM 4.000 (~USD 2.000).
• Now we could my private VW van
• Now we only had to rent a trailer.
• The van has eight seats, good for in-country transportation.
• Van + trailer allowed ~2.200 kg cargo.
• Transportation concept:
  • Drive to Morocco (~3.500 km) before SSB
  • Leave van, trailer and equipment on site between the contests
  • Bring everything back to Germany after CW
• Collecting material in different places: bring material to the nearest place.
• Three drivers: one driving, one „2nd op“, one sleeping in the back seat.
• Changing shifts every three hours
• Continuous driving, only bathroom breaks
• Driving time: ~50 hours @ max. 80 km/h (50 mph).

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