2013 ARRL DX CW contest

This was my first ARRL DX CW contest. Propagation conditions here in North Idaho were excellent for QRP.


My 5W station and simple dipole attached to my roofline at about 20 feet and open wire twin feedline worked almost all parts of the world: from Central & South America to Europe, Africa, Asia (Russia and Japan) and New Zealand.


15 and 10 meters were really hot during daylight hours and are where I made most of contacts. 20 meters, at least for me, was dead, netting me just 1 contact. 40 meters was just OK.


I set a goal for myself to work 100 stations with the time I had available. I ended the contest just before time ran out with a contact to Guam, which was contact number 101.


My KX3 performed like a champ on a set of 8 rechargeable batteries. The rig's ability to dig weak signals out of pile-ups and sometimes marginal propagation conditions was very impressive.


My best contacts were Montserrat and Senegal which I never expected to work. Conditions were so good I worked Montserrat on multiple bands.


Looking forward to next year's contest!