Yesterday, I wandered down to the shack about 2100Z, thinking that I’d make a couple of contacts while waiting for my XYL to get home from work. I switched the rig to 30m and was instantly thrown into the middle of a pileup. I pulled up DXWatch on my laptop and discovered that the DX everyone was chasing was 3B7C, the DXpedition to St. Brandon Island in the Indian Ocean. The pileup stretched from 10.104 to at least 10.107 MHz.
I tried for more than an hour to crack that pileup. I changed frequencies, I tuned around and found who he was working and tried to call around that frequency, but nothing. After a while, I just got bored and gave up, switching to 40m, where I had a couple of nice QSOs with Jack, W4SON/M and Mark, VA3UMP. (I’m still not sure whether I can count VA3UMP as a callsign that spells a word. What do you think?)
After those two contacts, I decided to give 3B7C one more try. I tuned around a bit, and found that he was listening around 10.106. I heard him sign “TU 3B7C UP” and then hit the button on my memory keyer that blasted out my call. “KB6NU?” was the reply. I reached for the paddles and sent “DE KB6NU KB6NU K.” He came back, “KB6NU 599.” To which, I replied, “TU 599.”
How about that? After an hour with no luck, I worked him on the first call on my second attempt. Yesterday, at least, it was better to be lucky than persistent.
Mark says
Actually, you can count it as a call sign that spells a word. I selected this call as I am an umpire.
73.
Jack says
Hi Dan,
I was surprised to find my call mentioned on your site. Unfortunately I’m not a rare one, but on several of my trips to Nepal I was able to find the time to spend hours op as 9N1SON on 2 trips, and 5a few more as 9N7S0N, after they changed their call policy – reserving 9N1 for local Nepalese. I would prefer to only rag-chew from there. The ‘599 repeat all’ is not a QSO IMHO, but the rest of the world can’t rag-chew with each other, with so few having more than a smattering of English, so they ‘QSO?’ with each other using a few abbreviations, Q-signals, & RST. At times, I wonder if half of them *could* carry on a savvy R-C with a fellow countryman.
I took my rig keyer, paddles, HB Amp, etc to Nepal on my last 7 week Nepal trip, in 2000, but didn’t bother to renew my license. I was QRL with various other fun activities, and just didn’t want to face 1000s more QSLs over the next few years. I ran into the Minister of Communications and Information across Kathmandu from his office. He walked up to me, and asked why I hadn’t been in to see him. {I was glad I’d resisted the temptation to boot-leg.} When cards come from the bureau, I start sorting them by JA1, JA2, – – through JA0, and ‘others’. Then I sort the ‘others’ in alpha order. I put them back in the envelope, and wondered why I bothered to spend so many hours on 1000s of meaningless contacts, + 2 or 3 neat rag-chews. Ticket renewal is $200 USD per 2 bands each year. For 4 bands, I can support a Sherpa kid in English boarding school for almost a whole year. That is so much more rewarding, it isn’t even in the same league. My prize student [whom I’ve known since she was 5 y/o] is now in college full time, while also attending nursing school across Kathmandu from college. When nursing school conflicts 100% with college, she gets a LOA permission from her college, attends nursing school full time, then returns to college in 30 days to take exams – and is making good grades in both schools.
I love Ham Radio, but my 57 years in this great hobby is of less significance. BTW, she just took a 3 month LOA to make a trip to Poland – and plans to make that up, too – in both schools. If I’d been that smart, I’d have been graduating college at age 14 instead of Grammar School.
See you on 40 CW.
73,
Jack