Claimed score: 1,992Q 40z 131c = 725k points

The contest was operated from G3TXF's North Devon QTH in WAB Area SS44.

Operating time : 39 hours.

After a couple of years doing SOAB, this year (2004) it was decided to take the easier option and do SOSB.

It's much less knackering doing SOSB than doing SOAB - especially if you have to put up all the antennas prior to the Contest and take them down afterwards - field-day style!

The chosen band was 20m.

The 20m antenna (an ancient Hy-Gain 204BA 4el yagi at 80ft) was put up on the Friday and a few hours sleep were taken just prior to the start.

The first QSO on Saturday morning was at 0145z with LU8XW and the last QSO on Saturday evening was D4B at 2159z.

During late Sat/early Sun six more hours sleep were taken, during which time 20m was hopefully all but dead.

The first QSO on the Sunday was ZL1CDX at 0428z. Operating was then continuous on 20m right through to the end at 2359z on the Sunday.

However 20m was very slow after 20z. The last QSO was made at 2227z (and as luck would have it, it was 5H3KK - for z37 - the 40th Zone!).

G3TXF continued to trawl the band for the last 90 minutes of the contest but no QSO was made. Anything that was audible (and there wasn't much that was!) had already been worked.

Total time at the rig (although not necessarily always able to make any QSOs!) was 39 hours.

Of the 1,991 QSOs on 20m, 715 (36%) were W's and 104 were JA's. Most of the latter were on the Long-Path. (South-South-West from UK).

On Monday morning the old 20m beam was taken down and packed away. The CQWW CW Contest (the world's greatest Contest) was over again for another year.

73 - Nigel G3TXF