[VHFcontesting] 222mhz Spring Results

[Spring Sprints]

Hello Les (and VHFcontesting community),

I saw your (Les's) comments in the dxworld 220 Prop chat area about
the lack of activity there in Alabama. We had a pretty good crowd up
in the Chicago area and, from the logs I'm seeing, the "usual"
suspects were on in the Northeast.

I apologize for last year's results being so late...totally MY bad. I
am TRYING to make sure I do BETTER this year, actually with HOPES of
being able to announce the results at the 2009 Central States VHF
Society Conference (basically in MY "hometown" this year, in the
Northwest Suburbs of Chicago) and THAT is the last full weekend in
July (I happen to be the VP and "Techincal Program Coordinator" for
that and would gladly welcome a paper from you, Les, or OTHER
VHFcontesting reflector readers, on a VHF/Weak Signal related topic,
see the call for papers at
http://www.csvhfs.org/conference/callforpapers.html ...hint, hint).

Even withOUT a paper to present, how about a trip TO the Windy City to
attend? (Even STRONGER HINT, HINT!)

AnOTHER factor was former co-host Steve stepping down as co-host (due
to increased work responsibilities on his part), leaving me pretty
much "solo", not to mention some of my own "life issues" this year.
Net, net, I was not able to 'promote' the 2009 events as actively as I
would have liked, since I had to make sure the "backroom" processes
(log receiving, place to post list of Logs Received, prepping for log
checking so it CAN BE DONE a LOT more quickly in 2009, etc.) were in
place and ready, so basically, I ended up being too busy to even ASK
for assistance and I DID what I felt to be most important.

I MUST take SIGNIFICANT issue with your, Les's, statement (especially
since sent 'nationwide') that:

    And the late announcement date meant that amateur print
    publications such as QST had no opportunity to get them published.

The Spring Sprints WERE "posted" in QST. IN the April 2009 issue,
(which should have been delivered in mid-March) mention of the Spring
Sprints was in SEVERAL places. Sean, KX9X, mentioned the 2 meter
Spring Sprint SPECIFICALLY as one of his "Sean's Picks" bullets at the
bottom of his "This Month in Contesting" column on p. 83. All three of
the April events were in the "Contest Corral on p.84 (and they are all
in the "ON-LINE Contest Corral" on the Contest Department home page at
http://www.arrl.org/contests/ ). IN the "World Above 50 MHz" column,
pp. 91-93, there are TWO mentions; bottom center of p. 91 in the "This
Month" box and as the third of five items in the "Here and There" at
the end of the column on p. 93.

If you (Les) have some suggestions on HOW to get MORE coverage than
THAT in QST, I'm open to such.

I've not seen the May, 2009, QST yet but I'm quite sure that the two
May events (Microwave and 50 MHz) will be mentioned in Contest Corral
and World Above 50 MHz, as the April events were. The Spring Sprints
were/are also on the WA7BNM Contest Calendar. Admittedly, I did NOT
get them into CQ or CQ-VHF for 2009 (but they were NOT in there in
2008 either, unless someone there GUESSED at the dates).

Also, what about "you" (Les) promoting activity locally there in the
central Alabama area. Don't you have a list of regional VHFers with
whom you exchange e-mails? Bug them, send messages "reminding" them of
the Sprints (and OTHER VHF Activities). In the Chicago and
southeastern Wisconsin area we have the Badger Contesters with a
reasonably active e-mail reflector. There is the Northern Lights Radio
Society (NLRS) up in Minnesota (Twin Cities predominant), the
KCGridBandits out in the Kansas City area, LOTS of clubs up in the
Northeast. These are very effective in stirring up activity.

Further affiant sayeth naught. Cordially, JK