I enjoy taking part in the Stew Perry Topband Challenge ever since I took a serious interest in 160 meters.
This is the only radio event that rewards the stations who have gone to the trouble of building proper receiving antennas and who take the 160 meter band seriously. This is because the scoring system is based on the distance between stations, where longer distances give more points. Although the scoring also favours low power stations – I am of the opinion that low power stations should only compete among themselves, i.e. there should simply be three categories in the contest – High Power, Low Power and QRP, since it is utterly impossible to compete against the Low Power stations who get up to 4 times the number of points.
This event does not attract the “Weekend Warriors” that are so prevalent on the band in other large contests. They typically have no hearing ability, but usually they have very strong and sometimes broad signals sometimes with key clicks which make any effort by stations who have real hearing ability very difficult. This does not bother these stations since their hearing ability is so poor that they only ever hear the strongest signals. They also create space around their signals where no other station can operate, there are indeed suspicions that this may be done on purpose, since these stations show up year after year with their broad signals.
My Christmas message to those stations who show up on 160 meters with key clicks is this:
Go Away and don´t come back. You are not welcome here.
There is no technical excuse for this, this behaviour shows a complete disrespect for the band and to those who have paid their dues and have put forth the extreme amount of work required for working on 160 meters – the ultimate challenge in Amateur Radio.
Call: TF4M
Class: Single Op HP
QTH: HP85FP
Operating Time (hrs): 12.5
Summary:
Total: QSOs = 434 Total Score = 3,200
Comments:
Conditions were poor, the Aurora lay like a blanket across the arctic, but the
powerful Arctic King performed magnificently.
TFM 1397dx2
The Arctic King – the most powerful 160m antenna on this planet
I used a K3 mostly in diversity mode using another large vertical for rx with
an array of 4 bi-directional Beverage antennas up to 400m long.
Rule 6. I shut down my Skimmer Server during the contest and this young boy
enjoyed his radio without any human or technological assistance of any kind.
The band never really opened towards the US and I was only able to work a few
USA stations although I could hear (sense?) activity all across the band.
Despite the poor conditions 24 QSOs were made with JA which is normally a very
difficult path especially during Aurora. I was also called by KH2/N2NL.
JA0YUD was a solid 599 at 13:10Z and low tide! 
Listen to our QSO and notice what it is like to enjoy Zero Noise level I am actually listening directly on my transmit antenna – the Arctic King during this contact.
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Heard KH6LC, CE1/K7CA and BW2/KU1CW but was unable to raise them.
The high point of the contest was being called by ZL4AS for my longest distance
QSO of 17774km for a record 36 point QSO and since ZL is nearly antipodal to TF,
I don’t think it is possible to have a longer QSO than this from my QTH on the
planet!
In addition to being nearly antipodal to TF, this QSO also involves a polar crossing, making this the Ultimate DX QSO.
To accomplish this contact from my location and in Auroral conditions to boot, is nothing less than miraculous.
Listen to our QSO:
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The contact with ZL4AS is the third contact in the history of radio communications between Iceland and New Zealand on 160 meters. The first two were made by me with ZL3IX and ZL3NW.
ZL4AS
I have posted the entire sound file in the Audio section of my web site – click on the link on the top bar.
Preliminary results are out. At this point (January 1. 2011) – TF4M is in 5th place Worldwide, 2nd place outside North America, 1st place Europe and I have the longest distance QSO (Best DX) of all categories – the QSO with ZL4AS 17774 km.
I may qualify for the Top Score EU High Power, Best DX (Longest QSO High Power), and the Aurora Borealis Awards.
The categories and award plaques may be seen here.
The results are out! TF4M and ZL4AS had the longest QSO in the event – 17,774 km and we qualified for the Longest DX award plaque.
TF4M was in 6th place WorldWide and had the top score in EU as well as the Top Score, > 60 Deg N Geomagnetic Latitude.
However, only one plaque can be won by any station in the Stew Perry event so the plaques for these categories were issued to the runners up.
I am the sponsor for the Longest QSO, High Power plaque, and I am very pleased to win it, since this is a very prestigious award.
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