Operation ZX5J – Report
A Great Adventure Into The Clouds
WPX 2000 phony gave us a great lesson. Within a radio-amateurish spirit, we achieved results and conquests never expected. In short I will tell what this adventure of our first multi-multi of Boa Vista (ZX5J Land) was and how much we worked to reach the goals previously established.
For long time we thought to undertake a multi-multi operation of Boa Vista, but for that purpose we would need powerful antennae for the lower bands, as well as improved QTH conditions. Looking forward to this type of operation, a year ago I expanded QTH facilities, thus creating room for 7 stations to operate simultaneously with comfort and adequacy, in order to avoid, as much as possible, interference among them.
After that, it was still necessary to prepare the irradiant system and, as typical Brazilians we are, we obviously left for the last hour the execution of projects already exhaustively discussed.
Thus, at our radio-amateurs meeting in Curitiba, we decided to undertake what, for many people – even ourselves I confess, seemed impossible. To install three 48m towers, assemble a 40m irradiant system, with eight-element cubic blocks, and undertake a first test at ARRL phony. We merely had 23 days for that!
Get working! Two perfectly integrated teams, one in Florianópolis, taking care of the installation of all tower shoes, 18 altogether; and another in Curitiba taking care of the towers project, calculation and construction. Thus PP5JR, PP5WG and PP5UA in Florianópolis, and PY5EG, PY5ZBU and PY5EJ in Curitiba. Upon shoes completion, we began the tower assemblage, in record time, with the invaluable help and unequalled capacity of our great friend Zeca, from Curitiba, and our companion Nicolau, from Florianópolis.
Upon towers completion, we were very happy to receive the visit of PY5ZBU Don and PY5EJ Pavanatti to orient and help us to assembly the blocks, while PY5EG went on with the operation strategic planning and time adaptation to the impending challenge.
After several days of intense effort, under the most unfavorable climatic conditions (our friends Don and Pavanatti know quite well about that, as they suffered quite a bit with BOA VISTA polar climate), we finally finished our first cubic block, which resulted extremely narrow for the band, not being operative above 7150 Hz. This would be quite negative for the United States; further it didn’t demonstrate any gain for transmission and reception, over the 4 element KLM already installed… it was a huge deception; after so much hard work we returned to zero.
Showing a faith peculiar to special people, Don and Pavanatti encouraged us and proposed a new type of irradiant system: a system with vertical polarization YAGI with 9 elements. At work again! We succeeded in mounting one for Europe and another for the United States. The initial tests were not very conclusive, as propagation in 40 m was very strange those days. However, the band width problem had been solved and we noticed a discrete superiority of these antennae over KLM, especially in Europe direction.
Thus, after so many difficulties of climate, tuning, etc., we accomplished the 40-m irradiant systems.
At this point it is worthwhile to mention Don PY5ZBU and Pavanatti PY5EJ abilities. During several days they struggled against different problems to install those monstrosities, but they never showed any discouragement, always believing they would succeed well. And they did.
We were already at WPX threshold and still several things were pending, like 80 and 160m bevarages, the 80 m irradiant systems improvement and the construction of another one for 160 m.
One week before WPX, the operators started arriving and we finally went to Boa Vista. Initially we received PY4OY Carlos and LU1HF Juan, who joined us to continue the hard but gratifying work. Thus we had a team of seven persons: PPJ5R, PP5WG, PP5UA, PY5ZBU, PY5EJ, PY4OY and LU1HF. Several jobs were allotted along the week, while other companions joined the group. PY2KC Rodrigo, LU6ETB Arturo, K1ZM Jeff, ZP5AZL Aníbal and PT7YV Beto were here and, stepping onto a triumphal red carpet, the mentor of this crazy project: PY5EG Atilano, whose arrival was filmed.
Complete the team, we defined strategies and finished the preparations for the contest. K1ZM Jeff took care of bevarages mounting, his main specialty in which he is undoubtedly the best. Other colleagues finished the wire for two 80m yagis of 3 elements each, and others assembled a double bazooka for 160m at 48m height. Hard work, enviable disposition of all !!!!!!
Besides the operators, our team included, since last week, a companion, no radio-amateur, who took charge of the part corresponding to the computers network system. So willingly as common only to very special persons, and with an impressive technical knowledge, our friend Davi left the imprint of his efficiency and won the admiration and gratitude of all. Congratulations, Davi, no doubt you had an outstanding performance during the operation.
Another colleague worth mentioning is my particular friend PP5MCB Mauro, responsible for our packet cluster. We had no problem with the packet, executed at 9600 bounds, via radio, with direct link to Boa Vista – Florianópolis, with barely 5 W. Our friend Mauro is the person directly responsible for all of our achievements in terms of packet. He built this network we have here today, which is, no doubt, an example to the world.
It is good to point out that, during the morning of our contest, a Sunday, he came correct a system minor defect in detriment to his daughter´s baptism ceremony. Friends like this, with such a dedication and comradeship, teach us a lesson far beyond contacts… it is a lesson of friendship and dedication.
Everybody well motivated to start WPX: just at the very beginning we were able to get contacts in 160 m. Thus, with the customary operators relay, all the bands contributed to our final score. Just at the end of the initial day we were surprised by the great number of multiplyers, and with the awful propagation at the 40-m band.
The second day was not different; however, our pleasant surprise was to break the prefix world record, 9 hours before the closing. A first great victory for this team.
We finished the contest with the following score:
| 160m | 27 | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80m | 211 | 35 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 40m | 449 | 107 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 20m | 1836 | 300 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 15m | 3366 | 451 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10m | 4284 | 640 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10173 | 1537 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| score: | 48,140,377 |
Operators distribution was as follows:
10 METERS: PP5JR PP5WG
15 METERS: LU6ETB, ZP5AZL, LU1HF
20 METERS: PY4OY, K1ZM
40 METERS: PY5EG, PP5UA
80 METERS: PY2KC
160 METERS: PT7YV
TECHNICAL SUPPORT: PY5ZBU, PY5EJ
PACKET SUPPORT: PP5MCB
NETWORK SUPPORT: DAVI
ANTENNAE:
160m transmission: double bazooka 48 m
phased baverages reception 2 USA, 2 EUROPE
80m transmission: 4 phased sloopers; yagi 3 elements USA, yagi 3 elements Europe, both 45m high
phased bevarages reception: 2 USA, 2 Europe.
40m 1 klm, 4 elements, 31.5 m high
1 yagi vertical polarization , 9 elements for Europe
1 yagi vertical polarization, 9 elements for USA
both yagis at 40m height
20m system stack: 2 phased yagis, one at 30m height, another at 16m height, with independent rotors, 5 elements each
15m system stack, 2 phased yagis, one at 28 meters height, another at 14m height, with independent rotors, 6 elements each
10 m system stack, 2 phased yagis, one at 18 meters height, another at 8m height, with independent rotors, 7 elements each H system with 4 yagis of 5 elements each, forming an H, all rotating frame, For transmission, one, two, three or four antennae can be commuted simultaneously, with 10m of distance, both horizontal or vertical, between them.
I could not close this chronicle without expressing my most sincere gratitude to two colleagues, without whose friendship and dedication y my side for long time, and who always contributed to make our dream become reality today, sometimes in detriment of familiar events caused by the long absences devoted to the station.
I sincerely thank PP5UA Pedro and PP5WG Walter, more than brothers, persons whom a happy fate put in my way, an event whose meaning only we, radio-hams, know and understand!
For me, it was an unforgettable experience, not only for the contest performance, but to the fraternal being together with colleagues of the highest quality, both as radio-amateurs and human beings. The great value of all this lies on encountering again old friends and also in strengthening the friendship I had, through radio, with many of them. It was also pleasant to realize that we actually constitute a team, a team that not only achieved victory in the operation, but also was the number one in union, solidarity and communion for the ideal.
Congratulations to you all! It was an honor to have you as companions, it is an honor to have you as friends… the seed was sown … well fertilized… growing and growing…
An invitation is here, for new events like this to be held, and for this group to remain together. The gains will be merely an expected consequence.
To you, friend and brother Atilano PY5EG, my very special thanks, for everything and from everybody, as the greatest merit consists in dreaming and pursuing the dream – in this subject you are, and will always be our great champion!
PP5JR SÉRGIO LIMA DE ALMEIDA
BOA VISTA WPX 2000
IDEA OF FEW, WORK OF MANY, ACHIEVEMENT OF ALL