SAC CW contest 2018

I wasn't able to dedicate much time to the contest this year (as always, to be honest) but enjoyed my Sunday morning digging out Scandinavians on 40m and surprising them from the Far Side.

Band      QSO   Points   Multipliers
------------------------------------
80m          0       0       0
40m         40     120      25
20m          5       5       5
15m          0       0       0
10m          0       0       0
------------------------------------
Total       45     125      30

Claimed score: 3,750 
Single-op (assisted) All band High power

Although I won't set any records, it was good to catch some genuine DX.

QSL cards still valued

This week I received a beautiful QSL card to add to my album:

I've been DXing long enough to recall the poor quality of QSL cards common in the 1970's - often generic designs in one or two colours of ink, shoddily printed on cheap thin card with low resolution. They were par for the course, at the time. I had some printed myself. Home-made cards were common in some parts of the world.

Despite the limitations, some hams got creative with the designs: cartoons were quite popular, supplementing or replacing the more traditional country-outline-map-with-a-dot, or the plain and simple callsign banners.

In the 90s, full colour photographic cards gradually became more common. The standard design of the age was a photo of the operator, seated in the shack in front of the radio. Some were holding a microphone or Morse key, perhaps wearing headphones or turning the VFO. A few had kids or pets sitting on their laps, while computer screens and keyboards gradually appeared in the average shack-shot.

Too tight to get any printed, for some years I sent picture postcards of the local area using sticky labels for the QSO info - initially hand-written then computer printed.  

This century, as LoTW has grown, cards have declined in number but increased in quality. Most of the cards I receive today are unique custom-designed and professionally-printed in full colour. Nice! Some, such as VP8ORK's, feature arty shots by hams with a flair for photography. A few DXpedition or special event station cards, such as VP8ORK's again, are folded or stapled multi-page cards with further photos, sponsors' logos, info about the stations and operators etc. in addition to the basic QSO info.

I still get a buzz from QSLing. I enjoy reading the cards and appreciate the effort and expense by the senders. Hand-written comments - even something as simple as a scrawled 73 - catch my eye.  Cards confirming genuine DX QSOs are valuable, especially if I lack the corresponding LoTW confirmations.  Cards from friends or particularly challenging QSOs make me smile.

The best QSL cards deserve their places in my album. I ration myself to just one card per DXCC country, and relish leafing through the album either to insert new cards or just to remind myself of all the fun I've had over the years in this fine hobby.

Chasing grids

I've finally passed 3D2EU's scores in the ARRL International Grid Chase: it has taken months of effort to catch them and take the lead in CQ zone 32. Five excellent ops were QRV from Rotuma Island for ~3 weeks, making ~30,000 mostly CW QSOs covering ~1,000 grid squares.  

Overall, I'm ranked 106 in the grid chase with a total score of ~5,000, a long way behind the global leaders' awesome totals of over 20,000.

Some chasers may be running FT8 robots and multi-station setups to max-out their rates. Several are keen contesters. I can't compete directly with that level of activity and dedication ... but I'm giving them a good run for their money in terms of working unique grids. So far this year I've made ~13,000 mostly FT8 QSOs covering ~1,100 unique grids placing me 20th in the world - not bad at all with ~40,000 chasers! Logger32 conveniently highlights new grids this year on its band maps which suits my aims as a Far Side DXer.