[VHFcontesting] One Missing Rover

[Eric Smith]

AMEN!  I like the "shore power" rule change also, then I
got to thinking about it for just a second and realized
that any abuses such as visiting inactive fixed stations in
different grids and running with your own callsign is
covered in other rules...

Imagine the entire K8GP operation operating from two or
three mountaintops during a contest... With just a bit of
extra effort they could pull it off! 

Hmmm... W2SZ/1 ROVER????  They already have the  gear set
up in utilty trucks, so setting the antennas up on tower
trailers isn't too much of a stretch...

To that end, four ARRL UHF contests ago, I ran my latest
"portable amateur radio station"
as a single op rover.  Pictures of the vehicle are on the
ARRL website in the soapbox area.  Easiest way to find them
is to "google" my callsign.

I have even taken two other operators along on two
different January VHF contests.  I did not send in the logs
as this would have violated current rules, but, this was a
good way to test the gear "all at once" and found that it
is indeed possible to run modestly high power on several
bands at once with antennae in close proximity and not tear
up the stations not actively transmitting too much.  Some
increase in noise floors with certain equipment
combinations did occur, subsequently changes in the station
equipment has minimized this greatly.

My current configuration provides for a driver, 6 meter
operator, two meter operator, 222/432 Mhz operator,
 903-10368  operator, and two other "hot-racking" relief
drivers or radio operators.  The 222/432 rigs are separate,
so that operator could conceivably have his hands full on
occasion, but I think this evenly distributes the typical
VHF contest workload evenly among the operators, and could
keep the stations on the air thru an entire 30 hour contest
period.

How's that for "adopting operating practices that allow as
many stations as possible to contact (the rover)"???
Eric
KB7DQH


On Wed, 8 Aug 2007 18:46:32 -0000
 "John Geiger" <aa5jg at lcisp.com> wrote:
> Also,eliminate the requirement that a rover can have only
> 1 or 2 operators
> (which includes the driver).  Can't see the logic in that
> one either.
> 
> 73s John AA5JG
>