James,
Thank you. Your comments and suggestions help A LOT. Not arover, just a
portable station competing in FM only. Rover category is way to competitive
acrossto many bands & modes . X2 on establishingcontacts pre contest and
studying log sheets. I have started a pin map of FM conteststations based on
posted logs to survey for ideal operating sites that will putme in the middle
of traffic. Northern& West Central VA (where the altitude is at) is a bit too
far south to beideal, east central or north east PA appears to be better for
getting closer tothe action. There are several UHF/VHFgroups in the DC area.
I hope to link upwith them in a couple weeks at the VHF/UHF super conference
and start networkingfor June. Weak or no cell connection atthe three sites I
surveyed though an external antenna would make a world ofdifference and make it
possible to monitor rover locations and do real timespotting, great suggestion.
X2 on notbuying a bunch of new gear, just looking for gaping holes (like 6M
FM) in myset up. Adding 6M FM/SSB would let mesnag & drag (snag on SSB, drag
them "down" to FM) stations, sinceboth you and Bob beat that drum pretty hard
it goes high on the list. Going H pol seems so wrong for FM since thereare
thousands of V pol FM rigs out there (20-30dB hit for cross pol), but as
Ilearned in January darn few FM V pol are contesting. Setting my antenna's at
45 degrees and takingthe 3dB hit on V & H sounds better all the time, what I
loose in marginal FMV pol contacts I may more than make for by snagging and
dragging H pol SSBoperators over to FM. 100 QSO's but only60 points: I talked
to around 100stations (QSO) but only a small fraction (13) were willing to
submit logs and Ihad to give instructions to about half of them on how to do
that during the QSOwith follow up email. I also found thatI had to dig out
maps and pass grid square info to them along with UTCtime. I was not preparred
to do that soit was a real mess getting location info, finding it on a road map
and thencrossing it over to my 8-1/2x11 grid square map. I did not bring a
computer which would havemade that a lot easier. Conservingbattery power and
minimizing fuel used for recharging was high on the survivallist. Gasoline is
life in single digittemps when you're out there alone for 3days in a location
that very few can reach. Next time I will bring a lot more fuel, a laptop and
an inverter.
Question: Sounds a bit like you are suggesting that Ican get contest points
even if the contact doesn't submit a log. QSO's don't count unless both
parties submita log with matching QSO info correct? Ifthat's not correct then
I really shot myself in the foot.
73, John, KM4KMU
-----Original Message-----
From: James Duffey <jamesduffey@comcast.net>
To: VHF Contesting Reflector <vhfcontesting@contesting.com>
Cc: James Duffey <jamesduffey@comcast.net>; nosigma <nosigma@aol.com>
Sent: Thu, Mar 31, 2016 1:20 pm
Subject: [VHFcontesting] New to VHF/UHF Contesting: Next Steps
John - Welcome to the world of VHF contesting and ham radio!
You discovered how much fun roving can be in the last contest, but to be frank,
FM operation only just scratches the surface of what can be done in a contest.
I looked at your Photobucket album and you have an impressive rover.
I will divide my comments about improving your operation into two parts, one
for continuing with FM and one for transitioning to weak signal CW/SSB
operation.
No matter which direction you go, the first thing to do is to establish
contacts with other VHF/UHF contesters in your area. You can do that by joining
a VHF/UHF specific club in your area or a contest club in your area that
includes an active VHF/UHF contingent. Most clubs are looking for contributors
to the club scores in club competition and are eager to make contact with
newbies. You can also identify active VHF/UHF contesters by looking on this
list or searching the QST VHF contest results for active stations in your area.
Most areas have simplex frequencies where guys hang out 24/7, find out where
these are in your area and give a call.
After you have made contact with these local operators, about two weeks before
the contest, send an e-mail letting them know where you will be going and when
you will be there. If you are going to more than one grid put in times for each
grid. If you are going to places where you have cell phone coverage include
your phone number so that people can contact you. Look into using APRS, either
direct on 2M, which may cause interference, depending on how it is implemented,
or by a cellphone app like RoverStatus. Let people know where you are,
including frequency, by sending a text to known operators. Visit nets before
the contest and tell people you will be on and to look for you. If there are
nets during the contest check into those and ask for QSOes.
Adding 222MHz, even with a handie-talkie will help your score and, given the
lack of 222MHz activity will make you more attractive to fixed stations.
You should be active at the end of the contest. At that point, many stations
are desperate for more QSOes and call on the FM frequencies to try and scare up
some activity. I know we do that.
Rather than invest in amplifiers for FM, I suggest that you spend the money
that you would have spent on the amplifiers to get a used multi-mode rig. You
will get a lot more bang for the buck. A lot more.
Which brings me to the second half of my suggestions - make the transition to
weak signal operation. By operating FM, you are giving away 22 dB or so over
SSB. 22dB is enough to extend your range 100-200 miles, depending on direction
and activity, that is another 6 to 10 grids. That is a lot of points and
multipliers.
You don’t need anything fancy to get on SSB, certainly not a KX3, transporters
and amplifiers, at least to begin. You may find someone willing to loan you a
rig, ask around. If you buy used amplifiers for 2M and 70cm, that will set you
back $300 to $400. If you add a preamp for 432, that is probably another
$50-100. You can buy a used 2M multimode transceiver for that, and probably go
a long ways towards getting a used DC to daylight rig like an IC-706MKIIg. You
don’t need anything fancy to get started. If you buy used, make sure everything
works, as parts for old rigs can be hard to find.
If you only have a 2M multimode, keep the FM rig, then when you make contact on
2M, move the stations to the other bands on FM, most people will gladly comply.
For June, you will need a 6M rig to be competitive.
You should probably use horizontal antennas, even if you want to keep to FM.
You can work regular FM stations OK, and the big contest stations will have
horizontal antennas so, you will be compatible with them.
Another option is to find a rover who is looking for a driver or relief
operator. You will learn a lot that way. Even finding a multop station that all
take new ops is good experience.
I am curious, with 100 QSOes, why did you only manage 60 contest points? You
can work guys who are not in the contest for points and enter a log with those
QSOes. If someone doesn’t know their grid, you can tell them what it is and
have them tell it to you back. A road map or atlas with grid squares marked off
will help here.
I hope that this helps. I hope someone in your area has already touched base
with you. - Duffey KK6MC
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