[VHFcontesting] 6m and June VHF contest

[John AA5JG]

To those who have commented on how everyone was on 6m vs the other bands in the recent contest, let me point out a few things:

1. Openings like we had Sunday are more the exception than the rule.  I have seen some really good openings on 6m during the June contest, but I have also seen some years where the 6m openings are few and far between.  You never know what to expect.  Most years you will get some nice openings, but nothing of the magnitude that we had this year, where there were contest stations up to 50.300.

2. The amount of roving is probably decreasing with the high fuel prices, and taking 6m out of the mix will definitely kill many roving activities.  As someone who has gone roving for quite a few contests in the past 4 years or so, 6m is an easy band to rove with.  You take a 1/4 wave mag mount, throw it on the car, set a 6m rig on the front seat, and you are probably going to make quite a few contacts provided there is any band opening at all. 2m and above are much harder to rove with because you need horizontal beams to do very much, and the number of contacts you are going to make is probably going to be much fewer.  Many people are not going to spend $4 a gallon to hand out a couple of QSOs on 2m and 70cm.

3. Operators have different reasons for entering contests, and their reason will determine the strategy they take on 6m vs. other bands.  If your goal is to win, then yes, you will stay on 6m and run stations if it is open.  Most of us know going into the contest that we aren't going to win.  Probably less than a dozen stations in each category have a legitimate chance of winning their category in a VHF contest.  If you are new and chasing VUCC on 6m, then you will probably stay there working new grids, especially if your station is kind of marginal, since it doesn't take much to work a lot of 6m when it is really open.  

However, if you are really into chasing grids on all bands, then you will be on 2m with any hint of tropo or Es, since the grids you miss on 6m will probably be available again this summer.  The grids you miss on a 2m Es opening might not be available again for 5 years or more.  Being able to monitor both 6m and 2m at the same time is a definite plus.  This was the first year I was able to do so in the past 8 years, and it really helped me catch some 2m openings I would have missed otherwise.

4. There is nothing we can do rulewise that will please everyone, or even most of the people.  If you don't think enough people were on 2m and up, wait until September when 6m is dead and all the contest activity is on 2m and above. Messing with the rules in any significant manner when they aren't broken is sure to hurt the contest.

73s John AA5JG

 

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