[VHFcontesting] VHF CONTESTS

[Thomas Viselli]

I have been reading the posts for a few days, and I fell that I have a little bit to add.  I will try to make this as short as possible because enough space has already been used on the subject.  I have been operating in VHF contests since I first got my ticket in 1956, and contests in general are  a major part of my interest in ham radio.  The other part is in the improvement of my station and antennas so I can be competitive.  As in any contest there are winners and there are those that place. There are no losers.  Not everyone is going to win a certificate, so why are more categories needed?  I have, at last count, 56 certificates and plaques to my name, but it was after many years of contesting before I was awarded one.  That didn't keep me from still getting on for contests.  I found out that I had to add more bands to be competitive, and now after many years of evolution, I get to listen to nine different bands during a contest.  
Activity has definitely dropped off.  I have added four new bands in the last few years, but my QSO totals has dropped off significantly.  This has not occurred just since the ARRL dropped the line scores from QST!  This got me to thinking why has activity and submissions dropped off.  Then I fell back to my HF contest experience.  For my average HF station, there seems to be endless available contacts.  Not everyone I work in a HF contest is a contester.  A lot of the contacts are just guys that got on the air, as they would any other day, heard a large group of people having fun, and wanted to join in on the fun.  There I feel is the problem.  On VHF and above, there is hardly any activity during the average day or night.  It's hard to find a contact if you just get on any other time than during a contest.  I work basically the same contesters each contest, (not a bad thing) because the guy that has a multiband rig that tuned it up to 50, 144, or 432 Mhz a few nights in a row anticipating a contact never heard anyone, so he never returns.  I remember a few years back that I could listen on 144 Mhz and there was activity on SSB even during the day.  As I recall there was a QSO going on between Winchester,Va and New England very frequently.  So I think if we, as contesters, want to hear more activity during contests and see more submissions, we have to be more active during other periods.  When we work other newbees during the year we have to talk up contests with them and get them as excited about this activity within ham radio as we are.   
I could add more, but surely that is enough for now.