RESULTS: January 2020 ARS Spartan Sprint

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SOAPBOX: January 2020 ARS Spartan Sprint

K3RLL
Had two more stations that seemed to hear me okay but I couldn't quite copy their call signs. Really need to get something to get on 80m.  40m wasn't all that bad this evening but it sounded like the party moved to 80m after about 20 minutes. Many thanks for the effort by the A.R.S. Staff put into making this monthly event continue.  Happy New Year ... Don

K4BAI
Not much activity. 40M not too good. Heard but could not work AB9CA/7 and KFØN. 80M quite good to most areas. Thanks to W2LJ and WB9HFK for 2 bands. No signals on 20M at start. Thanks for all QSOs and Happy New Year to all.  73/72, John, K4BAI.

K5GQ
CWops CW Academy Monday night class ended at 03:30z. Got the ATS-3 set up on 40m and tuned up and down. No signals found. Called CQ SP  from 3:45 - 3:55. Mark, K5GQ

N4SO
Elecraft K2 at 3.3 lbs. 5 watts with a half square antenna for 40 meters from Alabama. Thanks to Spartan Sprint operators: WB9HFK, KB1M, AB9CA/7, Ken N4SO

WB5BKL
K3/10 @ 5W to a 40M extended double Zepp. It was a quiet night here at Lake Buchanan... One contact on 40M - thanks AB9CA/7 and two on 80M - thanks K4BAI and WB9HFK. Worked all I could hear. Gave up after about 90 minutes. Hoping for more activity and better propagation in February. Oh well. Had fun.

RESULTS: December 2019 ARS Spartan Sprint

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SOAPBOX: December 2019 ARS Spartan Sprint

* Footnote below

AK4JA
This was my first Spartan Sprint and I'm feeling a little porky. I need to lose some weight on the next go-around (I enjoyed this well enough I want to do it again). Worked NØTA on 40 and 80. Loudest signals were N5GW and WB5BKL. WB5BKL was a steady 589 signal here in the metro Atlanta area till near closing time. Nice to work AB9CA/7 in AZ, too. 6 contacts total with 1-watt power out (tried at 500 mw but wasn't being heard). Good fun! And like the Terminator said, "I'll be back." 73 de AK4JA

K9DRP
I thought 40 was going to work better this month as N5GW answered my CQ right out of the gate.  And it was good - for about 15 minutes, then zilch!  80 was working until the last half hour. I about quit 1/2 hour early due to lack of activity, but I keyed on. Should as well gone QRT for nothing was gained (I was able to hear WB9HFK in the last 30 minutes, but not able to log him). Worked K4BAI on both bands! Thanks much to AK4JA who had a difficult time getting me to copy his call correctly. And greetings to N4SO and K1QO on their first appearance in my log. I hope to work you many more times in the new year.  Happy Holidays to all, and special thanks to KI6SN for gathering up our results to make this fun for us. 72, Don, K9DRP

K3RLL
40m was pretty quiet here except for the lulling sounds of all the nearby S-5 electronic hash that does such a superb job of covering up QRP signals.  Experimented back and forth between two different antennas - both highly compromised - and feel fortunate for my two contacts. Many thanks to John and Jim. Spartan Sprinters have the best ears going!  72/73  de  Don K3RLL

NØTA
6 Q's on 40, and 6 on 80. Worked the first hour. Thanks! K3 @5w, doublet at about 25 ft.

K4BAI
5 QSOs on 40M. Heard several there who could not hear me. 40 in poor shape. Best DX on 40 was AB9CA/7 in AZ. On 80, band in very good shape. 10 QSOs. Little noise. QSOs from NH to CO. Need more activity! 73/72, John, K4BAI.

N5EM
Running KX3 here on internal batteries.  7 Q's on 40/80.  Again, nothing heard on 20M.

WB9HFK
Rig: Icom 7300 @ 5W. Antenna 40M: OCF Dipole. Antenna 80M: 150 ft. random wire.

K9DRP
I thought 40 was going to work better this month as N5GW answered my CQ right out of the gate.  And it was good - for about 15 minutes, then zilch!  80 was working until the last half hour. I about quit 1/2 hour early due to lack of activity, but I keyed on. Should as well gone QRT for nothing was gained (I was able to hear WB9HFK in the last 30 minutes, but not able to log him). Worked K4BAI on both bands! Thanks much to AK4JA who had a difficult time getting me to copy his call correctly. And greetings to N4SO and K1QO on their first appearance in my log. I hope to work you many more times in the new year.  Happy Holidays to all, and special thanks to KI6SN for gathering up our results to make this fun for us. 72, Don, K9DRP

KB1M
Only heard 3 calls in the first hour, K3RLL and 2 others, and was spotted only by one station on Reverse Beacon. 73, Walt

WB5BKL
K3/10 @ 5W to a 40M extended double Zepp. 1 QSO on 20M, 5 QSOs on 40 and 10 on 80M. Removed one pleasant QRO chat (TNX KI5AL) and one dupe from score. Best signals: On 20M - AB9CA/7; On 40M N5GW; on 80M - K4BAI. Seasons greetings to all. CU in 2020. Had fun.

AB9CA/7
On the road and the antenna will not do 80. Made one Q on 20 and 9 on 40. Only 2'fer was WB5BKL. Prop seemed a little short. Nothing further East than IL and GA. Yet AK4JA from GA made the trip with only 1w. Prop can be a little hard to figure. Thanks for the Q's! 73, Dave, AB9CA/7

* HONORABLE MENTION: K1QO
Contacts 4 (not valid due to ...see below) so actually 0. My sincere apologies to K4BAI, WB9HFK, N5GW and K9DRP! I checked at 9 pm on 20, didn’t hear anything, checked 40 didn’t hear anything, checked on 80 and didn’t hear anything then I called on 3562.30 for awhile and got no answers. I went to 160 in case anyone might be there and heard C6AGU . . . who I just couldn’t resist trying to get so I turned my power up to 95 watts to get him.  Then I went back to 80 and heard K4BAI. I was so excited to hear him! Unfortunately, I failed to turn my power back down to 5W. I actually woke up in the middle of the night and had to check the radio and was crushed when I checked! I’m so sorry to all! I’m back on the radio after a couple years hiatus (I was a full time caretaker for him until he passed away). Again, I’m so very sorry I promise I won’t fail everyone next time. 72/88 K1QO, Ann

* FOOTNOTE: In the spirit of the holiday season, all stations who worked K1QO/QRO are still credited with working her. No worries. Honest mistake. Spartan Sprints have always been based on the Honor System. We roundly applaud Ann's honesty - and that of every SP operator over the years. Best community in amateur radio. - KI6SN 

RESULTS: November 2019 ARS Spartan Sprint

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SOAPBOX: November 2019 ARS Spartan Sprint

K3RLL
Back in FL for the winter and dealing with highly compromised stealth antenna. RBN spots showed little love at 3dB. Very fortunate that WB5BKL heard me calling him. Happy for my one contact tonight considering Nick was the ONLY station heard here. Not even ‘the CW voice of GA’ (BAI). Maybe next month . . .

K7TQ
Five watts, a QRP Guys 20-30-40 m vertical and marginal conditions make for a short night. Did manage to work the only station I could hear.

K4BAI
1:50 hours of listening and calling.  QSOs by band:  40M: 3. 80M: 6. Both 40 and 80 in good shape with loud signals and no noise, but need more activity. Next month I hope. 73/72, John, K4BAI

N5EM
Running KX3 here on internal batteries. 5 Q's on 40/80/160. Nothing heard on 20M. Thanks to WB5BKL for 1st 160M Q by sked on new antenna. 72, Ed, N5EM

AB9CA
Started on 20 but no one there. 40 was also light, only 2 there. 80 was the main band tonight, with 8 Q's. Only one 2-bander, W5QLF. Lost 2 to QSB. But a fun night anyway. Rig was K3 at 5w to wires. I was getting quite a few RBN spots but it appears there were few sprinters tonight. Hopefully business will pick up next month. 73 de Dave, AB9CA

K9DRP
What a tough night on 40!  Only able to work W5QLF on that band. I heard John, K4BAI, but he wouldn't take my call (did work him on 80 though). Once again, God Bless Texas for half of my contacts. First time using a LiFePO4 battery and it worked well with the Argo V. Hope to hear ya'll in the fox hunts. 72, Don, K9DRP

WB9HFK
Icom 7300 @ 5W Antenna: 150 Ft. Random Wire Weight: 25 lbs. I never heard anyone on 40M. CQs went unanswered. 80M was more noisy than normal at my QTH. Sorry to anyone I may have missed down in the noise. See everyone next month! 72, Mark

WB5BKL
K3/10 @ 5W to a 40M extended double Zepp. 2 QSOs on 40 and 4 on 80M. Heard K4BAI, K7TQ, and AB9CA on 40 but no contact. Best signals: 40M - K3RLL, 80M - N5GW and K4BAI.  I hope everyone has a grand Thanksgiving. Had fun.

K3JZD
Nothing at all heard on 40m. I had to break out my 'heavyweight radio' (KX3) and go to 80m where I use a sloped 59' EFRW. Worked Dave-AB9CA there. Heard John, K4BAI calling, but he wasn't hearing me. So, was another 1 contact month for me. Jody - K3JZD

NØOCT
Was anyone even really on? I sat tuning around 40m from Ø200 through Ø345 and heard nothing in MO. Even called CQ a few times. Either all the activity was on 80m, or everyone was worn out from November SS. 72, NØOCT

N5GW
Not much on 40 - heard K3RLL weak sig but he couldn't hear me. 80 much better during solar minimum.

So, What's a Spartan Sprint, and How Do I Play?

Spartan Sprints are two-hour gatherings sponsored by the Adventure Radio Society, held the first Monday of every month. The Spartan Sprints have a unique, three-faceted focus. They encourage outdoor operation with back country radio gear (if outdoor operation isn't practical, home-based operation is fine). They gather fascinating information about the upper atmosphere, documenting how low power signals can travel long distancs. And they encourage the growth of a like-minded community of amateur radio operator who generously share their knowledge and experiences.

Which Bands?

Bands of operation are 80 meters, 40 meters, 20 meters, 15 meters and 10 meters. You may operate any number of bands - your choice. Many Spartan Sprint operators gravitate to the QRP CW calling frequencies on these bands.

Equipment and Antennas

Spartan Sprinters use 5 Watts or less. We encourage you to experiment with 1 Watt or less. You will be surprised at how effective these low levels can be, and how much fun QRPp really is. Similarly, we encourage you to experiment with simple wire antennas. And we encourage Sprinters to use equpment they built from "scratch" - that is, equipment built from schematics.

Exchange

Exchange RST, SPC (state, province or country) and power output. If you choose to call CQ, use the format "CQ SP," or "CQ QRP TEST." You can give yourself credit for working the same station on a second, third, or fourth band.

What Is the Weight of My Station?

The weight of your station is determined by weighing everything at your operating position up to, but not including, your feedline and antenna. In other words, your rig, key, keyer, antenna tuning unit, battery, headphones and so on. 

Submit Your Spartan Sprint Log

Please send the following information in an email to: SpartanSprint@yahoo.com

• Your call sign
• Total number of contacts during Sprint
• The weight of your station (in pounds - includes all gear except antenna and feedline)
• Soapbox comments about your Sprint experience

Check Out the Spartan Sprint Results

The results of each month's contest appear on the Friday following each month's first-Monday Sprint. They are posted here on this website. You can find results from previous months here, as well.

- Richard Fisher, KI6SN