DXpeditioning--Behind the Scenes Other books about DXing
DXPEDITIONING - BEHIND THE SCENES
CHAPTER SUMMARIES
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DXpeditioning--Behind the Scenes Other books about DXing |
Define the objectives of the DXpedition very carefully at the outset. Draft budgets early on and prepare a planning network. Establish an effective planning process and consider the feasibility of having an advance party. Prepare detail plans for both installation and breaking down. Establish a central master file for all correspondence.
All DXpeditions should be 'marketed' in some way. For the one-man holiday DXpedition, a simple note of dates, callsign, bands, modes and QSL information to DX bulletins should be sufficient, but for the major DXpedition a more targeted marketing strategy is called for. Send press releases well in advance and include national radio society journals on the mailing list as they reach a far wider audience than 'hard-core' DXers. Be honest: don't set too high expectations which cannot then be achieved. Consider setting up a web site for the DXpedition. Give publicity to your sponsors; they deserve it and you may want to use them again!
Gaining significant sponsorship is a challenging business. Sponsors, particularly those in the commercial arena, expect some form of return for their investments. Some of the best known clubs have developed criteria for evaluating requests for sponsorship. If you accept sponsorship be sure to comply with their conditions. Be certain to process bureau cards. Work hard at developing relationships with potential sponsors and make sure that contributions are properly acknowledged.
In summary try to find someone to undertake a site survey using the sub-headings set out in this chapter. Think about contingency planning "What if this? -- What if that?" Finally, be flexible and be prepared to change your plans on the day.
A possible structure for the organisation of a major DXpedition is discussed. There is a need for the core team to encompass a large number of management and technical skills. Try to bring experienced operators from abroad into the DXpedition team. Bear in mind that not all the operators may be available throughout the whole period of the DXpedition. Establish 'kingdoms' and let those responsible get on with their tasks. Formulate a team agreement and set up a sound international support arrangements. Appoint a competent and experienced pilot.
"There's no going back" for anything forgotten, so it is important to plan well. Check and double check that no little item has been missed. List everything in an inventory to ensure that all equipment required is available at the DXpedition destination. Consider whether linear amplifiers are really necessary. They are heavy to transport and can cause an unacceptable strain on the electricity supply at more remote locations where generators must be used. Beam antennas provide similar gain and are also effective on receive. Weigh up the pros and cons of monobanders compared with tribanders. Take more wire and small coax than you think you will need in order to make up Beverage receive antennas, additional dipoles etc.
Allow enough time for all the preliminary work such as antenna assembly and testing of radios and computers. Try to avoid multiple shipments. Consider the use of an ATA carnet. Get some very strong packing cases made, they are a good investment. Note that the total costs of shipping may be several times higher than the basic freight cost. Take care when chartering aircraft and ships. The financial aspects of the logistics function are significant -- be sure to budget carefully. Build contingency plans -- just in case . . .
The likelihood of inter-station interference becomes greater the more stations are in use simultaneously. With a multi-transmitter DXpedition EMC problems are likely to occur unless attention is paid to good engineering practices. Preferably use monoband antennas rather than tribanders or multiband verticals, and try to ensure that beams are at 90 degrees to each other to reduce inter-station interference. Invest in a good set of bandpass filters, which should be placed between the transceiver and linear amplifier (if used). The danger of radiating wide-band noise is reduced further by the use of high-power low-pass filters following the linear amplifiers.
DXpedition technology has come a long way in the last 10 years and will no doubt go even further in the next 10. The good DXpeditions will embrace this technology, harness it and improve upon it as that is the route to greater QSO tallies and heightened satisfaction amongst our deserving audience. Technology brings with it its own challenges, things that can go wrong and skills that need to be procured. Getting it right is as important as getting the stations working well or the antennas properly resonant. Once you have done it you will never be able to imagine going back to paper logging.
Take your propagation prediction seriously. Be aware of when in the solar cycle your DXpedition is being planned. Make your propagation forecasts very early on in the DXpedition planning and use them to plan the number of stations, number and type of antennas, and number of members of the DXpedition team required.
Use a computer propagation prediction program, and learn how to interpret the results intelligently. Obtain a DX Edge, or use Geoclock, for planning low-band openings. Obtain or make a Great Circle map based on your DXpedition's location. Do not ignore unusual or unlikely openings to difficult-to-work areas of the world. The most successful DXpeditions exploit all the band openings and do not just work the easy paths, even if that is where the greatest QSO numbers are.
Post the times and bands of operation for particular areas of the world on the Internet, preferably on your own DXpedition web site if you have one, or via the Internet DX bulletins and try to adhere to the schedules when on the air. But also obtain feedback from 'pilots' and be prepared to alter your schedules to fit in with actual propagation conditions experienced.
Consider running a beacon, particularly during the period before the DXpedition proper starts, whilst station assembly and antenna work is taking place. Obtain reports on where and when the beacon is being heard in order to plan your operating schedules.
There is much that a DXpedition can do to satisfy specialist band and mode needs that will significantly enhance the overall perception of the operation. These specialisms will almost certainly add considerably to the logistics of the operation and thus will have to be planned carefully and thoroughly and, ideally, will require the DXpedition to include operators experienced in those particular specialisms (but who, of course, can turn their hand to other bands and modes too).
The writing of the DXpedition manual was very much a team effort and one that proved to be extremely valuable to the team. It is a considerable task to create the manual and, by the very nature of DXpeditioning, every DXpedition manual will be different. It is clearly worthwhile taking that effort when the end product is, in the words of one of the team members who is a veteran of many DXpeditions, "...the best organised DXpedition I have ever been on". The organisers of any major DXpedition should give serious consideration to the creation of their own DXpedition manual.
Decide whether to phase in the stations or whether to use the 'big bang' approach. Decide on the lengths of a typical shift, design an operator schedule and decide how it will be administered. Consider the approach to specialist activities such as Top Band and RTTY. Establish a routine for briefing all team members and agree the roles of shift leaders. Consider the use of technology to enable operators to communicate with each other. Establish sound standards and procedures and make sure that all team members are familiar with them. Work split frequency until the pile-up has virtually disappeared. Develop a policy to deal with insurance (duplicate) contacts. Take a professional approach to still and video filming. Learn your knots. Leave the site tidier than you found it.
Consider issues such as personal safety, availability of medical facilities, personal fitness, security and evacuation plans very seriously. Make sure that you have next of kin details for all members of the DXpedition team. Environmental considerations may affect the operation significantly. Investigate these matters carefully early on in the planning stage and learn from the experience of others.
The quality of financial planning and control can make or break a DXpedition. It is a fine balancing act between overrunning the budget on the one hand and making excess profits on the other. Budgeting accuracy probably has to be better than ± 5% which is a level of accuracy that a lot of major corporations would be pleased to achieve! Cash flow is the other enemy of the DXpedition treasurer, where some creative thinking can significantly improve matters. Identifying potential problems at an early stage is important, time can then be spent finding the best solution. Sound financial planning is the route to that knowledge.
Articles about a DXpedition should be written on a timely basis. Several authors may be willing to write articles. Select you target magazines carefully and customise the article for the particular audience. 35mm DXpedition presentations are very popular. Include some background and statistical slides. High quality videos are difficult to produce and are expensive. Do not forget to send thank you letters to all those who have supported your DXpedition.
It is vital for a DXpedition to appoint a QSL manager who can be relied upon to carry out his QSLing duties diligently and who is prepared to spend a considerable amount of his spare time doing so. Each QSL manager works to a series of 'rules', but standards and ethics (e.g. when to reply direct and when via the bureau) are widely recognised and should be agreed between the DXpedition leaders and the QSL manager before the operation. Those applying for QSLs should also follow the 'rules' and in almost all cases will receive their QSLs without an undue delay.