The CQ Manchester Mineira DX Contest (CQMM DX Contest)

Got on 20m last evening to see what kind of activity there was and discovered the 2012 CQ Manchester Mineira DX Contest (CQMM DX Contest) was going strong. This was my first experience with this contest and it was great to hear strong north-south propagation for the first time. I heard contesters from Colombia, Brasil, Cuba, Alaska, and the Dominican Republic all night.

Although I was on 0300Z - 0600Z operating QRP I only managed to work XE2S (Sonora, Mexico) and AL9A (Anchorage, Alaska). My tuner is out of action so I was running my OHR-100A 20 QRP rig straight off my 40 meter dipole up about 20 feet. I suspect I was putting out about 1 watt. So, considering the very low power out and marginal operating conditions of my equipment, I was happy with the result. I hope to work the contest some more this afternoon and evening.

Plan to participate in 2013 CQMM DX contest now that I know about it.