reply to N3RD

[KR2J at aol.com]

FROM:	Robert E.Naumann, 72240,1433
TO:	"Hawes, Dave", INTERNET:DHAWES at ccgate.ueci.com
DATE:	12/06/94 17:38

Re:	Copy of: Re[2]: Testing CT networks

QSL, Dave.

I hope my disclaimer at the end of my message took the edge off it for you.  
I know you are not responsible for those that are really the complainers.

If you want to see a group that seems to want to take the clubs money to the
grave with them, look at the 
NJDXA!  I was a member there and couldn't believe how tight these guys are
with the $$$.  They've got a lot 
- believe me.  Anyway, they used to complain about sponsoring contest plaques
among other things. 
Needless to say we didn't see eye to eye about that!

There is something about the number of spots that I believe most 
people don't realize.  At a multi/multi, it's less likely that we'll be
spotting as much as a good multi-single, for 
example.  We are set up to be running on each band and you don't spot much
when you're running.  Sure,
we have a second rig on most bands for finding mults, but with a 1500 watt
rig right next to you on the same 
band, it's not always easy to do that.  I, personally, made an effort to spot
everything that I found and was 
not spotted recently.  I had a hard time doing that because every time I
spotted something unusual I had this 
feeling in the back of my mind that I'm giving mults to LPL when I do this.
 Despite the pain of this, I spotted 
some real juicy stuff on 15m.  As you point out, we did have a problem with
the stations on 10, 80 and 160 
not being able to originate any spots directly.
These positions did have the ability (after we figured out how) to use the
keyboard on the node itself and 
manually send out a spot.  I'm not certain how much this was done.  Probably
not enough.  

Has anyone analyzed the quality of spots versus the quantity ?  I'll bet that
we probably spot more good stuff and not too much of the "garden variety".

RM.  Hmmmm.  Yes, laid back RM.  Well, to be honest, the RM shack is not a
showplace at all.  The towers 
and antennas are nice - but you have to be careful about the ticks all over
the place as you walk around.  
KQ2M got one when he was there a couple of years ago.  In addition, ther is
no running water or modern 
plumbing.  During the contests, Bob contracts with a portable toilet company
and they place one of those 
things that you see at construction sites outside the shack.  We have to run
out every time we need food or 
drinks or what have you.  Depite Bob's efforts, there are mice there and what
they have left behind is there 
too.  While bringing in all of our equipment, we have to clean the area we
are going to put it in.  

As far as there being a "clique" - well I guess there is - sort of.  But I
think it's more like the N3RS clique than 
anything else.  What I mean is that we have a bunch of guys that operate
there year after year and we all get 
along great.  Don't you guys at RS have the same situation?  I've never been
invited to operate anywhere 
else in the FRC - aside from NF2L, which is a subset of the RM crew when
we've done a multi-2 in ARRL 
from Bill's.

Is there a desire for others to operate from RM ?  Who has been turned away ?
Lately, we have deterred 
KQ2M from operating from there because, quite frankly, he's a pain in the
ass.  N4HY has fallen from grace 
recently as he has seen fit not to show up many times and critcizes
everything when he does. We had N2EA 
coming there for a few contests, but he seemed more interested in going out
to dinner with N4HY and holding 
a "B" meeting friday and saturday nights during the contest.  KE2PF is back
from KG6 and he's been there 
the past few contests.  I'll admit that there probably is an "inside" group
there, but I think after enduring the 
RM phenomena, you feel a "bond" with the others who have done the same thing.
 It truly is a "hobo" 
experience!  All that hobo stuff is really just a joke.  I'm sorry that there
might be someone offended or might 
feel left out by it.  We're just having fun.

We'd be more than happy to have some other guys come in there to operate.
We've been concerned about being shorthanded.  We never have daytime guys for
the low bands.  We could 
use at least 3 guys for that job.  As you know, these don't have to be "top"
guys either.  This is not to say we 
couldn't use more "top" guys either.  Over the last few years, we've pulled
in some outside talent from time to 
time.  This has mostly been because they've asked RM if they could come there
and he said yes.  K3EST, 
WC4E, and N7BG have all been there among others.  K3UA flies in every contest
or like the CW weekend he 
drove out from Pittsburgh.  He works for USAir and usually flies for free,
but they cancelled the flights into 
Atlantic City that he usually takes.  TG9AJR was there during the phone
weekend.

I'm concerned about what is apparently a perception of the RM operation that
from what you're telling me is 
something that I was not aware of and I think that many of the RM op's don't
see it either.  Can you clue me 
in any further ?  Do you have any suggestions as to how we could diffuse this
perception ?
Let's just keep this discussion between you and me for the time being - at
least until we reach some 
conclusions.  I think we're doing the Multi-2 again for ARRL, this might be a
good time for some other FRC 
types to try out RM.

What are your thoughts ?

73, 
Bob