CQ WPX 2011

Well, another great contest is over!  This past weekend saw a fantastic weekend for catching DX on the bands.  The SFI was up at 115 with the A index at 2 and the K index at 0......a good recipe for good DX.

I used the Kenwood 570D into my 80-40-20m fan-dipole for the contest, giving the FT-857D a rest.   Amongst the 400+ contacts I made using the VE3FCT callsign, there where a few new ones put in the log, V3M in Belize, 3V1A in Tunisia, TG9NX in Guatemala, and VP2EH in Anguilla. 

15m seemed to be the place to be as it was extremely active both days from almost dawn to late evening. There were some good 10m openings as well. I managed to have QSO's with Argentina, Brazil, Cape Verde, Germany, and Belize all on 10m late Sunday afternoon.

But what was even more enjoyable this weekend was the good behaviour on the bands.  I didn't hear anyone tuning up on top of another station, pile-ups seemed to be pretty orderly, and everyone seemed to be in a great mood. 

Hopefully the SFI will continue to rise so we can have a very successful "QRP to the Field" weekend on the 30th April - 1st May weekend.  That weekend is also the "International SOTA Weekend". 

This coming weekend (April 2nd) I'm going to the Iroquois Hamfest for the first time as there are a few things I need to pick up.  If you're going I hope to see you there!