SOAPBOX: July 2021 ARS Spartan Sprint

W1PID

I operated 12 minutes. 3 QSOs on 20. 4 QSOs on 40. Thanks everyone. 72 Jim W1PID

 

K3RLL

So great to be away from the hurricanes and be back in PA for the summer with a real, honest-to-goodness outdoor antenna for a change! Great propagation tonight also, with many solid-to-strong signals, 3 watts and up.  Delighted to make my 10 contacts in 29 minutes - a tribute to the skill of our Spartan Sprinters.  72/73 … Don

 

NØTA

4 on 20m, 13 on 40m. Tnx for the Q's. K3 at 5 watts. Doublet & Vertical, GenLog.

 

NØAR

I arrived about an hour late to the party and was glad the qrn hadn't left! 20 meters was marginal up here with 40 being the workhorse tonight. I ran the Kwd 590 at 5 watts and fed the 43' vertical. Rx was off the loop since the static crashes were pretty loud. Hope you all had a good Fourth of July. 72 Scott NØAR

 

K4PQC

Good weather here in Bishop, GA but not for long with a hurricane on her way....  I didn't hear any stations on 20 meters and most of the activity was on 40.  One station, W3KC, was worked both on 40 & 80.  A couple of stations answered my CQs but I couldn't pull them in...  Rig AT 3B @ 3W 160 Meter Loop at 25. Thanks to all for the Q's 72 Phil - K4PQC.

 

AG4CC

First sprint, did not hear any CQs so called CQ SP on 20m.

 

K3JZD

40m only.  Very little QSB and QRN this month.  Naked QCX transciever w/500 mAH LiPo Battery Pack running at 4w with K0MBT 3D Printed Mini-Mini Key and Earbuds to a 40m dipole up 25'.   73 - Jody - K3JZD

 

WB5BKL

K3/10 @ 5W to a 40M extended double Zepp or a 40M dipole. Worked NK6A on three bands - thanks Don!  Best signals:  15M - NK6A, 20M - NK6A, 40M - K4BAI, 80M - WA8ZBT. 80M seemed very noisy here. Two QRO QSOs not counted. Had fun.

 

W3KC

Arrived late but was able to make a few contacts on 20, 40, and 80. IC-703 @ 5 watts into an end fed  wireup 24 feet.

 

WB9HFK

Rig: Icom 7300 @ 5W. Antenna: Hustler 6BTV - Gnd Mounted with 60 Radials. Weight: 30 Lbs.

 

WA4AAK

Enjoyed working WØITT with his 1W station, and 9 others. Most were heard on 40m, a few on 20m and 80m. Ran 3W to an 80m CF Zepp. 72 to all! Evan WA4AAK Alabama

 

K4BAI

Nice sprint tonight. 2 QSOs on 40 and 16 on 80. Two were on both bands, N0TA and NK6A. Called a lot of CQs on 80, but got no replies and heard no one else in the Sprint on 80. About one hour of actual operation. 73/72, John, K4BAI.

 

 

RESULTS: June 2021 ARS Spartan Sprint

 

For an enlarged view, please click on the Scoreboard.

SOAPBOX: June 2021 ARS Spartan Sprint

WB5BKL

K3/10 @ 5W to a 40M extended double Zepp.  6 QSOs on 20M, 3 on 40 and 1 on 80. 6 states this month. Best signals: 20M - NØTA, 40 and 80M - K4BAI.  Remarkable signal:  K4PQC @ 2W! Gave up after an hour and a half, but still had fun. Holding a good thought for Andy, W5ACM (SK) . . .

W1PID

4 Qs on 40M. 1 on 20M. Thanks all.

NØTA

4 on 20m, 6 on 40m. Worked the first 45 minutes. K3, Doublet, GenLog.

K3RLL

Started out on an empty 40m band, wondering where everyone was.  Yep, 20m was open (in and out) and that's where the party was tonight. At last, there is hope for improved propagation in my lifetime!  Thanks for the nice contacts this evening and for the Spartan Sprint .  72 ... Don

K4PQC

Terrible weather here in Bishop, GA with severe lightning storms approaching.  I couldn't hear many stations so I decided to just call CQ and go as long as my battery would last.  It only lasted for one hour and this was OK as I had to shut down my station anyway because of the lightning.  Using a modified Steve Weber design ATS-3B and 160 meter loop at 25'.

WVØH

Another fun night with the little red radio. I shaved off some ounces and got my station down to 0.606 pounds using a different battery, ear buds and paddle made with some smaller wood.

K4BAI

3 QSOs on 20M; 13 QSOs on 40M; 3 QSOs on 80M.  Only one heard and not worked was WVØH on 20 and I worked Myron on 40. Thanks for all QSOs.  73/72, John, K4BAI.

K9DRP

Set up my mcHF rig for the sprint.  The LiFePO4 battery I use with it outweighs the rig! The contacts were great for the first hour But activity disappeared during the second.  K4PQC was sounding FB with 2 watts! TNX to AB9CA for 2 bands.  Worked 2 on 20, 2 on 80, and the rest on 40.  SRI to the couple stations I couldn't pull out due to QRN. 72, Don

WB9HFK

Celebrating my 50th year as an amateur radio operator.

W4NLT

Very frustrating evening. Started on 20M with 5 qsos, then shifted to 40M and 80M. That's where things fell apart. Local noise was high and although I could copy them none of the stations I called heard me. Heard WA9TGT, K4BAI and WVØH on 40M; K4BAI, WVØH and AB9CA on 80M. 73/72, Andy, W4NLT.

WA9TGT

40 meter band seemed rather noisy again, all my contacts were made on 40 meters except for 1 which was on 80 meters. I was using my KX2 with a 12v 4000 mAh 12v Lithium-ion battery. Participation in the Spartan Sprint seems pretty low again this month.

AB9CA

Ran the K3 at 5w to the usual wires. This is the first time in a looong time that 20 has been the main band. The band breakdown is 11/9/3 for 20/40/80. Total of 23. The noise seemed to be pretty bad on 40 and 80, made it tough to hear. Was hearing stations on 20 who were east of the Mississippi. Been a while since hearing that. Thanks to all for the Q's. Hope to hear everyone, and a few more, next month. 73 de Dave, AB9CA

WA4AAK

Many thanks to the unknown heroic operator who worked so hard to cut through my local QRN - wish I could have completed that contact! Made one contact on 20m, 6 on 40m, and then K4BAI and AB9CA for a second time on 80m. Always enjoy listening to such highly skilled CW operators! 72, Evan - Huntsville, AL

RESULTS: May 2021 ARS Spartan Sprint

 For an enlarged view, please click on the Scoreboard.

SOAPBOX: May 2021 ARS Spartan Sprint

 K3RLL

Not many Sprinters on 40m this evening but at least those of us there could space ourselves out easily. (But that's not usually a good sign; is it?)  40m was really up and down here in FL and very strong into New England tonight Big signal was KB1M - a nice change after months of barely copying each other.  72 and thanks for the contacts ... Don

K4BAI

Thunderstorms in GA tonight and QRN very bad on 40 and 80 Worked only VE3EDX on 20, 12 stations including NK6A in CA on 40, and AB9CA on both 40 and 80.  Hope for better conditions next month. Now that we are into summer like conditions, it will pay to start on 20M. 

73/72, John, K4BAI.

K3JZD

Used 40m only.  Seemed like pretty good conditions.  Naked 40m QCX w/500 mAH LiPo Battery Pack running 4w with K0MBT 3D Printed Mini-Mini Key and Earbuds to a 40m dipole.   73 - Jody - K3JZD

WVØH

I used my usual MTR4B-v2 but decided to exclude my Palm Paddle and larger battery (if you can call my 650mAh LiPo a ‘larger’ battery). I used an 1/8-inch stereo plug for my paddles. I rigged a wooden paddle to it from a hamburger skewer and bent the contacts of the plug to allow for single-lever iambic keying. Very fun to have the rig positioned sideways in front of me.

Here is the run down.

Total Weight: 0.62 pounds (0.112 pounds for Panasonic ear buds, battery and paddle)

Input power: 9v battery (EBL Nickel Metal Hydride)

Output power: 3W at start and 0W at 1 hour into SP; battery died.

Total QSOs: 2 on 40m, KF9NL and VE3EDX

Station fun: 100% - 72, Myron. WVØH

NØTA

Three contacts on 20, the rest on 40m. Used a QCX for both bands, which caused me to miss some weaker callers. Quite a bit of static crashes on 40m making things tough. Tried 80m but no luck. Vertical on 20, doublet on 40.

WB5BKL

K3/10 @ 5W to a 40M extended double Zepp.  Operated only 30 min - a serious electrical storm developed almost overhead at about 0130Z. Closest strike < 200 feet away.  1.5" of (much needed) rain in an hour and a half + some hail. Enjoyed 20 and 40M contacts with NØTA (x2), NK6A, VE3DX and K4BAI but pulled the plug and disconnected everything. Still had fun...

N7QR

I haven't done this one in a while.  KX3 dialed down to 5 Watts with a modified QRPGuys paddle into a Buddistik on my sister's 4th floor balcony railing in Park Ridge, IL.  Stayed on 40.  Heard no SpartanSprint contesters but a lot of stations on the air.  No answers to my half dozen CQs. A lot of fun and easier than at home in Portland OR. - Russ

WA9TGT

Using my KX2 with outboard 12V LifePo4 battery. Antenna 100’ cfzepp. I heard very few stations calling CQ SP, all 4 of my contacts were on 40 meters. Band was very noisy due to storm cell passing through.Hope next month will be better. - Donnie Garrett / WA9TGT

W5ACM

Fun times on 20M and 40M this month. I spent the first 25 minutes of the event prepping the ATS3a. It has been a few months since I last used it. With new batteries and somewhat clean key contacts, it did well. The new vertical is also a great help. Looking forward to more 20M ops next time! - 72 de Andy W5ACM, Houston, Texas.

RESULTS: April 2021 ARS Spartan Sprint

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SOAPBOX: April 2021 ARS Spartan Sprint

W1PID

Thanks all for the QSOs. Running 3W with MTR and 18650 battery with a step-up to 10V. Best DX: NØTA in Colorado. 73, Jim

NØTA

Worked the first hour on 40m. Band appeared a bit long - worked 11 states. Thanks for the Q's. K3 & doublet.

K3RLL

My house is in the midst of being painted so all antennas, such that they are, are disconnected and dismantled this week.  But knowing how important the Spartan Sprint is, I spent the weekend resetting up an attic doublet with two homebrew loading coils and coax running through the house. It's a terrible antenna but some wise fellow once said "any antenna is better than no antenna".  And much to my surprise and joy, seven patient and skilled ops heard me this evening.  Even RBN was my friend this evening!  Thanks to all on 40m and to the complete staff of A.R.S. for continuing to facilitate this monthly pleasure.  72/73 ... Don

WB9HFK

Celebrating my 50th year as an Amateur Radio (Ham) Operator.

K4BAI

Got a late start due to a Zoom meeting running over time. Thought I heard a caller on 20M, but couldn't ID the caller. 40M was quite good with no skip zone, so I was able to work as close as 100M iniside GA, plus AL, and FL and also out to NM and MN.  Thanks for all QSOs.  QSOs by band:  40M: 13.  80M: 5.   80 had some QRN, but it wasn't bad and signals were good. 73/72, John, K4BAI.

N2GG

RIG, HB-1B = 1.39 LBS. I worked 13 states.

K4PQC

Great weather at 65*F for the Spartan Sprint. Lots of activity for Search and Pounce but only a couple of contacts made calling CQ with only 2W. I did work John - K4BAI on 40 and 80.  Also worked Gil - N2GG in NM for his first Spartan Sprint. A little more weight this time using 2 filters. Thanks to all who participate.  72 - Phil

WVØH

My inaugural run with my new MTR-4B V2. I used a 650mAh Lipo battery, a Palm paddle and CCrane earbuds running 5W into my 40m Delta Loop at home. I started out on 20m calling away and John, K4BAI return my call but quickly faded. I figured if John’s beam wasn’t making it, that was pretty good indication to head down to 40. I stayed on 40 until about 20 minutes left in the Sprint, handed out 8 QSOs there and switched to 80m and worked Nick, WB5BKL again. As always, thanks to ARS for putting this on and collecting our scores. Much appreciated. 72, Myron, WVØH

ABØCD

First event with brand new KX2 + 35ft wire from 2nd story townhouse bedroom window to corner of garage - sloper pointed East with 25ft counterpoise on bedroom floor. 72, Dick ABØCD

K3JZD

80m only, using my just completed purpose-built QCX-Mini transciever.  I was not plagued with a lot of QSB or QRN this month.  It was more very weak signals from the QRP Spartan Sprint players, and not that many participants using 80m.  Maybe 80m will no longer be usable as we get into the warmer months.   I might have to build some more of the single band QCX-Minis.   Naked 80m QCX-Mini w/500 mAH LiPo Battery Pack running at 4w with KØMBT 3D Printed Mini-Mini Key and Earbuds to a bent 107' EFRW up 20'.   73 - Jody - K3JZD

AB9CA

Back on the air now that I have an antenna again! Started on 20 but no activity found. Went to 40 where most of the action was. Logged 11 on 40 and 4 on 80. Good to hear some new calls along with the more familiar ones! Good to see more activity. Rig was IC-7200 @ 5w. Ant was wire. Thanks for the Q's. Hope to be back next month. Dave, AB9CA

WB5BKL

K3/10 @ 5W to a 40M extended double Zepp.  Tried 15 and then 20M. RBN heard me on 20 but apparently no one else.  9 QSOs on 40M and 3 on 80M. Best signals: WV0H and K4BAI respectively. Also doubles with Myron and John. Only 7 states this time.  Did not count one 80M QSO as could not complete the exchange. 80M very noisy here. Had fun.

WA4AAK

Enjoyed contacting so many of my favorite Sprint operators! I learn a lot from observing how these skilled operators manage weak signals with grace. A nice surprise was working Ivin, N9IVI (not officially in the event) who was backpacking in Indiana: actually living the Adventure Radio Society ethos!

N4TRB

This was my first Spartan Sprint. I called CQ SP on-and-off for 1.5 hours on 7.023 MHz without a response or hearing another Spartan Sprint station (in the rather wide passband of my little rig).  Still, my call showed up on pskreporter with the station closest to Atlanta being in Wisconsin, so I'm actually pretty happy!

WA9TGT

Bands seemed to be a little better than previous months. All my contacts were on 80 & 40 meters. Equipment used was a IC-705, 100ft CF Zepp Antenna, RF Output power was 5 watts. Enjoyed the Sprint, Thank You! Donnie Garrett / WA9TGT

NØAR

Running the TS-590 at 5 watts, vertical antenna and dipole. Conditions were improved up here. It hit 85 degs in the Twin Cities and a TS blew up all around me. So 40 minutes of fun then the mad dash to disconnect antennas! 72 to all Scott NØAR