210 Countries on a 10 Foot Whip

I finished my WAS/pm in 2004 and reviewing my Pedestrian Mobile log i noticed that I had worked over 50 countries. So I decided to work a few more, how hard could this be?
97% of these contacts were made using my PRC military backpack radio (50W) using a 10 foot whip that is attached to the backpack. The radio is powered by LiIon Cells and weighs 23 pounds.
Using my KX1 (3W) I worked Costa Rica, Latvia, Estonia, Canada, Virgin Islands and Belize using the same whip.



For more information about Pedestrian Mobile operation see WA3WSJ’s new Amateur Radio Pedestrian Mobile Radio Handbook that is now available
You can get the Pedestrian Mobile Handbook at
http://wa3wsj.homestead.com/WA3WSJ-Wutz-Publishing.html
The DX contests can help when you are just starting your DXCC/pm, but I have found that frequently when the propagation is good enough for the DX to hear you the pile up is too big to break.
The spring of 2005 had some good 15-meter openings that helped a lot. My whip antenna is more efficient on 15 meters since it is close to a quarter wave long. 15 meters skip is also more unique, allowing European signals to skip over the East coast and to drop right into Colorado (sometimes). I can move my drag wire (counterpoise) around to peak stations up and have a little less loss.
Working the last few countries was like looking for Love, It is like a butterfly, if you chase it, it will elude you, but when you sit and rest it will come and land gently on your shoulder.
I was at the bottom of almost every pile up and had a low pile up success rate.
The ARRL does now issue a special DXCC certificate for Mobile operation but not for Pedestrian Mobiles, However, you can get a unique Pedestrian Mobile certificate for WAS/pm or DXCC/pm from The Great Out Doors Radio Club.
Here is the contact list for my Pedestrian Mobile over the past 12 years.
Some entities like Bonaire, Curacao, Saba and Sint Martin were not counted twice even though they were worked before and after their liberation.
The hams listed below have the best receivers/antennae and are the best operators in the world.
Contacts made in
2002:
G3MCS 17M SSB England
PJ2T 10M SSB Bonaire Island
HC4C 10M SSB Ecuador
P40Z 10M SSB Aruba Island
6J1KK 10M SSB Mexico
KL1V 10M SSB Alaska
2003:
MM5DWW 17M SSB Scotland (Orkney Island)
2004:
6Y5/W6XE 17M SSB Jamaica
Ji1TMH 17M SSB Japan
TI3TLS 20M CW Costa Rica (Using KX1)
KP2AA 20M CW Virgin Islands (Using KX1)
YL2KO 20M CW Latvia (Using KX1. This is the night the Bear snuck up on me. The Bear' story is in an eHam Article at: http://www.eham.net/articles/9262).
LZ1ND 17M SSB Bulgaria
OZ1BTE 17M SSB Denmark
F5PSG 12M SSB France
CN2R 10M SSB Morocco
ES5JR 20M CW Estonia (Using KX1)
VE3DJX 20M CW Canada (KX1)
KC5UN 20M SSB USA
KH7X 15M SSB Hawaii,
D44TD 20M SSB Cape Verde Island
9Y4ZC 10M SSB Trinidad/Tobago Islands
VP2E 10M SSB Anguilla
CO8LY 15M SSB Cuba
ZY7C 15M SSB Brazil-
EA8ZS 15M SSB Canary Island
OK1RI 15M SSB Czechoslovakia
ZP5MAL 15M SSB Paraguay
CT7B 10M SSB Portugal
V26B 10M SSB Antigua
LU1HF 10M SSB Argentina
8P1A 10M SSB Barbados Island
HP3XBS 10M SSB Panama
KG4WW 15M SSB Guantanamo Bay
V47KP 15M SSB St. Kitts Island
VP5DX 15M SSB Turks/Caicos Islands
OA4O 15M SSB Peru
HK3JJH 15M SSB Colombia
NP3U 15M SSB Puerto Rico
DJ3HJ 17M SSB Germany
VP2MLA 10M SSB Montserrat
S9SS 17M SSB Sao Tome
V31JP 40M CW Belize (using KX1, What a great receiver - 40 meters! )
4U1UN 20M CW United Nations NY
HC8N 20M CW Galapagos Island
4M5X 20M CW Venezuela
J7OJ 15M CW Dominica Island
YN4SU 15M CW Nicaragua
8R1K 15M CW Guyana
ZS4TX 15M CW South Africa -
6W1RW 15M CW Senegal
ZD7VC 20M SSB St. Helena Island (it was a miracle to break this pile up)
VE3LZZ/C6A 20M SSB Bahamas
YS2ZKK 17M SSB El Salvador
2005:
HR2JGG 17M SSB Honduras
V51AS 15M CW S.W. Africa (Namibia)
HH4/K2AC 17M SSB Haiti
ON4ND 15M SSB Belgium
FY5KE 15M SSB French Guiana
J68RI 15M SSB St. Lucia Island
FG/F5CWU 15M SSB Guadeloupe
CX5BW 10M SSB Uruguay
SM5IMO 15M SSB Sweden
OH0R 15M SSB Aland Island
OH6NIO 15M SSB Finland (Twin 6 element beam on 150 foot tower)
CE1L 15M SSB Chile
HI8/JA6WFM 15M SSB Dominican Republic
RU1A 15M SSB Russia
IR4X 15M SSB Italy
VP9/W6PH 15M SSB Bermuda
VP2V/DL7DF 17M CW British Virgin Islands
ZF2AH 17M SSB Cayman Island
FS/KT8X 17M SSB St. Martin Island
OE9ETH 17M SSB Austria
YU1XA 20M SSB Yugoslavia (Serbia)-
EI9JF 17M SSB Ireland
S58N 17M SSB Slovenia
GI3DZE 17M SSB Northern Ireland
GP0STH 17M SSB Guernsey Island
EA9IE 17M SSB Melilla Island
GW3YDX 20M CW Wales
OM5DP 15M SSB Slovak Rep.
PA0CKV 15M SSB Netherlands
SV9CVY 15M SSB Crete (Mike has a 17 element beam)
LY4ZZ 17M SSB Lithuania
ZD8Z 15M SSB Ascension Island
9A3YM 17M SSB Croatia
TG9IGI 15M SSB Guatemala (worked in a snow storm)
PJ7LT 17M SSB St. Maarten Island
CQ9K 15M SSB Madeira Island
HA80IARU 15M SSB Hungary
T77C 17M SSB San Marino
LX1EA 17M SSB Luxembourg
SQ6Z 15M CW Poland
HB9QQ 17M SSB Switzerland
SV2BOH 17M CW Greece
JW/F8DVD 20M CW Svalbard
CP6/DF9GR 20M CW Bolivia
FO/N6JA 17M CW French Polynesia
CY9SS 17M CW St. Paul Island-
IS0/F5CWU 17M SSB Sardinia
4N5N 20M CW Macedonia (using KX1)
2006:
GD4PTV 17M SSB Isle of Man
TO5A 15M SSB Martinique
PZ5CY 15m SSB Suriname
J37K 15M SSB Grenada
YX0LIX 17M CW Aves Island
XF4DL 17M CW Revilla Gigedo
HK0GU 17M CW San Andres
ZL1BYZ 17M CW New Zealand
2007:
V73ZZ 17M SSB Marshall Islands
2008:
VP6DX 12M SSB Ducie Island
TX5C 17M CW Clipperton Island
TO5RZ 17M CW Saint Barthelemy Island
2009:
K5D 21M SSB Desecheo Island
4X4DZ 20M CW Israel
2010:
Z21BB 20M CW Zimbabwe
LA5LBA 17M CW Norway
ZL8YY 15M CW Kermadec Island
PJ2T 15M CW Curacao
PJ4D 15M CW Bonaire
PJ5/AA4HC 15M CW St. Eustatius
PJ7E 15M CW St. Maartin
2011:
CY0/N1NSB 15M CW Sable Island
E73Y 15m CW Bosnia-
3B8MM 15M CW Mauritius
OX3XR 12M CW Greenland
TK5TX 10M CW Corsica
EB3CW 10M SSB Spain
4O3A 10M CW Montenegro
T32C 15M CW East Kiribati (Christmas Island), Kiritimati
TF8GX 10M CW Iceland
EA6UN 10M CW Balearic Island
9H1SP 10M CW Malta
5N7Q 10M CW Nigeria (Using world’s biggest rotatable SW Broadcast Antenna 20 dB gain),
UT7UJ 12M CW Ukraine
KH2/N4NL 10M CW Guam
9M6XRO 12M CW East Malaysia
EU6AF 10M CW Belarus
RU0ZM 10M CW Asiatic Russia
HL5NLQ 10M CW Korea
ST2AR 10M CW Sudan
TA2ZF 10M CW Turkey
SV5BYR 10M CW Dodecanese, Rhodes Island
TX7M 10M CW Marquesas Islands
3XY1D 10M CW Guinea
OD5NJ 10M CW Lebanon
FP/KV1E 12M CW St. Pierre & Milquelon Islands
E51Z 15M CW South Cook Island (Raroutonga)
5T0JL 10M CW Mauritania-
5R9/AI5P 10M CW Madagascar
3D2T 10M CW Fiji
C5A 10M SSB The Gambia
BV100 10M CW Taiwan
TU2T 12M CW Ivory Coast
ZK3V 10M CW Niue Island
7Q7GM 12M CW Malawi
T2T 12M CW Tuvalu Island
E51MAN 15 CW North Cook Island (Manihiki)
RI1FJA 10 CW Franz Josef Land
9L0W 15 CW Sierra Leone
EL2A 15 CW Liberia
5H3EE 15 CW Tanzania
C91NW 10 CW Mozambique
3DA0NW 10 CW Swaziland
2012:
NH8S 12M CW Swains Island
ZB2FK 15M CW Gibraltar
D3AA 15M CW Angola
HB0/HB9LCW 17M CW Liechtenstein
7X4AN 10M CW Algeria
J8/PE1IGM 10M SSB St. Vincent
Ri1ANF 12M CW South Shetlands
3D2C 12M CW Conway Reef
A61Q 12M CW UAE
JX9JKA 10M Jan Mayen-
7P8D 10M CW Lesotho
2013:
5B/UW2M 15M CW Cyprus
CU1EZ 10M SSB Azores
J5UAP 17M CW Guinea-Bissau
9U4U 17M CW Burundi
VU3NXM 15M CW India
5W0M 10M CW Samoa
OY/DL3UB 17M CW Faroe Island
YO4RIU 15M SSB Romania
TO2TT 15M CW Mayotte
XR0YY 15M CW Easter Island
K9W 12M CW Wake Island
XR0ZR 12M SSB Juan Fernandez Island (Robinson Caruso Is.)
T33A 12M CW Republic of Kirbati (Banaba)
VK2DX 30M CW Australia
XT2FCJ 20M CW Burkina Faso
4L0A 15M CW Georgia
VP8NO 15M CW Falkland islands
V85SS 20M CW Brunei
2014:
Ri1ANR 17M CW Antarctica (Queen Land Mod)
FW5JJ 15M SSB Wallis & Futuna Is.
3B9FR 17M CW Rodriguez Island
N7ET/DU7 17M CW Philippines
TO7CC 20M CW Reunion Island
TX6G 12M CW Austral Is.-
ZA/ON6NB 15M SSB Albania
TY1AA 12M CW Benin
VK9DLX 20M CW Lord Howe Is.
2015:
K1N 12M CW Navassa Is.
TI9/3Z9DX 10M SSB Cocos Island
PW0F 10M CW Fernando de Noronna Island
JT1CO 17M CW Mongolia
E6GG 30M CW Niue
What about #250, Yes, I expect there will be a #250 but it is not on my priority list.
Got to leave room for new comers to have a goal.
Good luck.
Paul w0rw/pm
Colorado

Note: *These contacts took hours outside with +30F conditions and snow on the ground.
All 10 Meter contacts were made using an 8 foot whip.
The game is afoot….
Originally from an eHam Article at http://www.eham.net/articles/10734
| KA4KOE | 2021-10-02 | |
|---|---|---|
| 210 Countries on a 10 Foot Whip | ||
| Glad you're still at it, Paul. I really enjoyed the loaner book, "Two Eggs on My Plate". 73 Fleep | ||
| W0RW | 2021-08-06 | |
|---|---|---|
| Re: 210 Countries on a 10 Foot Whip | ||
| ps: You can use the ARRL RF Exposure calculator to make sure your rig is safe. Go to: http://arrl.org/rf-exposure-calculator Stay safe. Paul w0rw Reply to a comment by : W0RW on 2021-07-26 Hi Pete, Thanks for 'Liking' my article.... My use of the word 'antennae' was just my attempt at British Dry Humor. i guess i failed. Your " chip on the should or mine..." is not pettiness It is pedantic. Paul w0rw | ||
| AE5X | 2021-07-29 | |
|---|---|---|
| 210 Countries on a 10 Foot Whip | ||
| Congrats, Paul - that's an amazing accomplishment! I'm glad to have you logged while you're /P on several occasions! 73, John | ||
| W0RW | 2021-07-26 | |
|---|---|---|
| 210 Countries on a 10 Foot Whip | ||
| Hi Pete, Thanks for 'Liking' my article.... My use of the word 'antennae' was just my attempt at British Dry Humor. i guess i failed. Your " chip on the should or mine..." is not pettiness It is pedantic. Paul w0rw | ||
| MM0TWX | 2021-07-13 | |
|---|---|---|
| 210 Countries on a 10 Foot Whip | ||
| FAN-TAST-TIC article! Very inspiring! Congratulations for your top-class operations. Only tiny detail (forgive me, it's a chip on the should or mine...) is that the plural of antenna is antennas, for they didn't have radios when the Latin language was around. The only case in which "antennae" could be considered is when referred to the antlers some insects have. Again, please forgive my pettiness. You are a top ham. 73. Pete | ||
| W0RW | 2021-07-04 | |
|---|---|---|
| 210 Countries on a 10 Foot Whip | ||
| Additional Info... The top Dino QSL Card was made by WA3WSJ. i send it out when i operate from the new fossil discovery area. See “ Unprecedented Fossil Discovery at Colorado Springs” https://www.eham.net/article/44512 For more on /PM see: “Peripatetic Morse (PM)” https://www.eham.net/article/45430 When i am on CW i use a MK-33 Whiterook, straight lever paddle, It is best for walking. iambic is hard to do when walking. https://electronicsusa.com/mk.html 73 Paul w0rw | ||
| W0RW | 2021-06-30 | |
|---|---|---|
| Re: 210 Countries on a 10 Foot Whip | ||
| Hi KC6RWI, The handset i am using is a military H-189, i use that for SSB. The radio does have a speaker but i can't hear it very well when the radio is on my back. The ground is a 1/4 wave trailing wire drag wire. Notice even the surfers have drag wires. i am open for additional DX schedules... i would love to work Bouvet Island. Paul w0rw Reply to a comment by : KC6RWI on 2021-06-30 I see that you are talking on a phone, but that would be inconvenient if you want to listen to the band and free up your hands, do you also have a speaker in the radio? | ||
| KC6RWI | 2021-06-30 | |
|---|---|---|
| 210 Countries on a 10 Foot Whip | ||
| I see that you are talking on a phone, but that would be inconvenient if you want to listen to the band and free up your hands, do you also have a speaker in the radio? | ||