A west coast showdown? How often do you get to go head-to-head with the world’s best operators in your own backyard? Dan (N6MJ) and Chris (KL9A) typically operate from exotic contest locations with high rates, but the pandemic kept them grounded this year and closer to home. With that in mind, enter Tim, N6WIN.
Tim just put the finishing touches on his new super station in Arizona. Three big towers, stacked monobanders, stacked tribanders, and 500′ long beverages round out his arsenal.
Tim is an avid contester and happens to be good friends with Dan, N6MJ. Prior to IARU, Tim asked if I wanted to go head-to-head with N6MJ@N6WIN, KL9A@N9RV, and rising contest star KI6RRN@WA6TQT.
“Hmm. Two of the world’s best and a new contesting star on the rise?” Yeah, let’s do this!”. Not only did it sound fun, but these are three great ops that will pull out all of the stops. How would it go? What about conditions? Us northerners can get hit hard by any solar disturbances. Oh, did I mention being a strong underdog?
In addition, we had a North versus South competition. Northerners K7RL/KL9A versus southerners N6MJ/KI6RRN.
Contest Day – 12:00Z
Contest day arrives and I’ve got multiple bands open. 20m, 40m and 80m are in play, but 20m and 40m sounds best, so that’s where I start. The 12:00z bell rings and it’s off to the races!
If the contest were only 28 minutes long, I would have won. With 23.5 more hours to go, my razor thin lead would erode. In fact, one minute later, it was gone:
The score updates and my lead is gone for good.
Hours later, Dan, Axel and Chris leave me in their dust.
At this point, it isn’t close. Even though my score increased 40% versus 2019, in the end, Dan, Chris and Axel proved once again why they are world class. Dan set a new W7 record, smashing Chris’ 2011 record from NK7U’s station in Oregon. Both Axel and Chris set new records too, but were overshadowed by Dan. Amazing efforts by Dan, Axel, and Chris.
After the contest, Tim used SH5 to compile our stats:
While trying to keep my CW skills sharp, I feel my daily practice sessions have paid off. Obviously, I still have a long way to go to catch Dan, Chris and Axel.
73, Mitch, K7RL
