Great job!
First, thank you to BA3AO, BY3CQ, and BH3ERS for their strong support!
Studying at a university in Tianjin.（CAUC）It's been two years, and this is my first time participating in a competition at the Tianjin Radio and Electronics Society using good equipment. This time, I used the IC7610 + GP antenna, competing individually on a single band for 48 hours! Young people need to strive!
On March 24, 2023, I received a "Solar Corona Hole" alert from BH3ERS. I was surprised and thought, "Wow, what a coincidence!" However, after thinking about it, I realized that sharing this information is fair, as it concerns global electromagnetic disturbances. All I can do is try my best to fulfill my responsibilities! The rest will be up to fate. That evening, I requested an overnight absence from school.
Due to the long distance from China Civil Aviation University to the association, which requires a 1-hour metro ride plus pre-race setup time, I departed at 05:52 AM on March 25th.（BJT）Wake up and depart. Arrive at the association at 07:24, following Zhang's instructions from the previous day to warm up, prepare, and set up the equipment. Before the competition, I used JJ3KYE and DW7MAU as a warm-up.
Beep beep! The world's coordinated time is 00:00 on March 25th, and the frequency is very busy. I started setting up my station at 21.250. In the first hour of the competition, I made 48 QSOs, and I thought that with this speed, breaking 600 QSOs would be easy!
Regarding the competition:
The propagation was indeed unstable. According to the Hour-QSOs table, there were 264 QSOs conducted between 00:00 and 08:00 on the 25th, and 77 QSOs conducted between 09:00 and 23:00. On the 26th, perhaps due to propagation issues or a decrease in participant enthusiasm, the number of radio stations using specific frequencies decreased; there were 113 QSOs conducted between 00:00 and 08:00, and 42 QSOs conducted between 09:00 and 23:00.
It seems my initial target of over $600 was too optimistic. Based on the suggestions from BA3AO and BH3ERS, I will prioritize contacting new DX stations to acquire a larger number of contacts, focusing on Europe, Oceania, and excluding Africa. However, I'm finding that American stations are quite rare, with most contacts coming from Europe, Asia, and Oceania, while Africa is not included in my targets.
When the number of QSOs reached 300, it became increasingly difficult to continue making QSOs. The frequencies were already well-established, and it was hard to find new stations. QSOs increased slowly, as Zhang said, "5 in a group, then 50 in another," but each gap was difficult to overcome! Keep going! After 13 hours of competition, I completed 300 QSOs, and after 28 hours, I completed 400 QSOs.
Regarding dissemination:
Based on observations made while maintaining a vigil for 36 hours, it was found that there was essentially no transmission before 05:00 Beijing time. Between 05:00 and 06:00 Beijing time, transmissions were primarily between Japanese and North American radio stations. However, the North American signal to Tianjin was very weak and difficult to distinguish. From 06:00 to 07:00 Beijing time, signals from Southeast Asian radio stations, such as those in Indonesia and Malaysia, were prevalent, along with some transmissions from Australian radio stations. During the period of 12:00-13:00 Beijing time, which coincided with lunchtime, Japanese radio stations were particularly active. Finally, during the period of 13:00-16:00 Beijing time, European radio stations began to transmit.
Regarding logistics:
Once again, I would like to thank BA3AO for their excellent logistical support. The meals, fruit, energy drinks, and throat lozenges ensured that the competition could proceed smoothly!
Regarding physiology:
To be honest, I had never experienced a sore throat before. The first night was really unpleasant – it felt awful. Luckily, Zhang Ge had prepared lozenges to soothe my throat. I also brought some chrysanthemum tea and goji berries to drink, which helped to cool down and regulate my energy levels.
Because I sat for 17 consecutive hours, my knees were particularly sore and stiff on the first night. Everyone should be aware of this!
I probably went to sleep around 23:30 and woke up around 05:00 to wait for the American broadcast, so I slept a total of about 10 hours over two days. I was still quite tired, so it's important to get enough rest in advance, especially not staying up late before the competition.
Regarding shortcomings:
This competition requires reporting the signal report plus a sequence number. The key is actually the sequence number. I tended to be verbose when reporting the sequence number. For example, instead of saying "Three two one," I sometimes said "Three hundred and twenty one." This not only wasted my own time but also made the waiting radio station impatient, causing them to switch frequencies and lose QSO opportunities. Similarly, if I encountered a previously contacted radio station, I would usually say "Before QSO" followed by CQ, but I would say "Before QSO thank you all the same," which was even more time-consuming. Next time, I will strive for conciseness and efficiency!
Figure 1: Me and the Association
Figure 2: Number of QSOs vs. Score
Figure 3: Running time
Figure 4: Maximum Rate
Figure 5: Global Connectivity by Region
Figure 6: Distribution of QSOs (Question-Answer Sessions)
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