Author: NØHJZ

First, THANKS to everyone that got on the air! We did an incredible job of kicking off the QSO Party season!! We really know how to kick off a party!!

Participation within MWA was down 16% from last year (78 active Ops versus 93 last year). Despite the decline, everyone seemed to have a great time! Considerable QSO counts were made over five bands! Stations across the US said it was nice to hear so many MN stations on 80M – 10M! 20 Meters was still the money band but it was great to see activity so spread out! While there was good activity, band conditions were mixed. Mixed conditions, along with lower MWA participation (and a snow storm for some of the mobiles) kept any new records from being achieved. We still had some great scores!

In the MNQP Team Competition, Team 1 took the top spot for the second time this year! Team 1 seems to be the QSO Party team as they also won the Cal QSO Party in October. Team 10 grabbed second place (and 9 points). Team 9 took third place with a great effort and 12 active teammates.Here are the team results:

• Team 1 – 520,834 Points – 10 Pts
• Team 10 – 464,254 Points – 9 Pts
• Team 9 – 413,170 Points – 8 Pts
• Team 2 – 378,218 Points – 7 Pts
• Team 7 – 365,577 Points – 6 Pts
• Team 6 – 351,762 Points – 5 Pts
• Team 4 – 341,468 Points – 4 Pts
• Team 8 – 262,694 Points – 3 Pts
• Team 3 – 201,122 Points – 2 Pts
• Team 5 – 164,240 Points – 1 Pt

In the full year Team Competition, the final standings are starting to firm up. Team 9 looks like they are almost unbeatable! With two events left in our contest season, Team 9 holds a nine point advantage over second place Team 1. The real battle is for third place. Which team will stand on the medal platform with the bronze medals? Team 7 holds a four point advantage over Teams 8, 6 & 2 (who all have 56 points). It looks like the medals won’t be decided until the final contest!! Here are the standings:

• Team 9 – 82 Points
• Team 1 – 73 Points
• Team 7 – 60 Points
• Team 8 – 56 Points
• Team 6 – 56 Points
• Team 2 – 56 Points
• Team 5 – 51 Points
• Team 4 – 49 Points
• Team 10 – 38 Points
• Team 3 – 29 Points

Our next contest is the ARRL DX CW Contest on February 15-16. Get everything tuned up and ready for a great contest at the peak of the cycle!!

73,

Rich NØHJZ

A few of you asked me to share how to get to a million points in the contest season. You need to make an effort to be active in all 11 contests in our contest season. I think that, with a minimal station, and some BIC time, everyone in MWA could do this. Here is the formula:

• CQWW RTTY – 300 QSO’s x 75 mults (average QSO worth 2 pts) = 45,000 points
• CQWW DX Phone – 400 QSO’s x 200 mults (average QSO worth 2.5 pts) = 200,000 points
• Sweepstakes CW – 350 QSO’s x 75 mults (QSO’s worth 2 pts) = 52,500 points
• Sweepstakes Phone – 350 QSO’s x 75 mults (QSO’s worth 2 pts) = 52,500 points
• CQWW DX CW – 400 QSO’s x 200 mults (average QSO worth 2.5 pts) = 200,000 points
• ARRL 160 Meter Contest – 250 QSO’s x 50 mults (QSO’s worth 2 pts) = 25,000 points
• ARRL 10 Meter Contest – 300 QSO’s x 60 mults (average QSO worth 2.5 pts) = 45,000 points
• ARRL RTTY Round-Up – 400 QSO’s x 50 mults (QSO’s worth 1 pt) = 20,000 points
• Minnesota QSO Party – 400 QSO’s x 60 mults (QSO’s worth 2 pts) = 48,000 points
• ARRL DX CW – 350 QSO’s x 150 mults (QSO’s worth 3 pts) = 157,500 points
• ARRL DX Phone – 350 QSO’s x 150 mults (QSO’s worth 3 pts) = 157,500 points

FULL YEAR TOTAL = 1,003,000 points

You’ll need to work all three modes. You can go with low power or high power. You can run assisted to add to your multiplier count. You just need to get on the air and spend some time making QSO’s! If anyone needs more help getting their station ready for the contest season, let me know.

I hope this helps more stations earn their certificates at next years meeting and enjoy the contest season more!

73, Rich NØHJZ