[VHFcontesting] VUCC in a Weekend, on Indoor Antennas!

[Les Rayburn]

This past weekend's ARRL VHF Contest began with a healthy dose of Murphy. At the request of my good friend, Marcus Thomas, KF4YHP, I had planned on doing a multi-multi operation using his 75 foot portable tower, 7 element M2 6 Meter beam, and 17B2 Boomer, along with my compliment of rover antennas for the other bands thru 1.2 Ghz. 

Only days before the contest, Marcus injured his hand while working on a tower for another ham in the area. The injury was severe enough to not only stop our work on the feedlines for our effort, but to keep Marcus out of work and off the air for the duration. 

With only three days to prepare for the effort, I debated my options for the contest Rebuild the rover rack and try to visit some nearby grids as a rover? Throw up some portable mast in the driveway, and attempt a 6 band effort from home? Forget the whole thing and go fishing with the XYL? 

Murphy continued his domination at this point, as a major project at work resulted in a lot of late nights and early mornings, with no time for hobby. Thursday night saw me in a state of despair....no antennas in the attic connected...no antennas on the rover rack...radio's and feedlines lying in the shack floor. AHHHH!!!! 

To complicate matters, our nephew had decided to pay us a visit over the weekend. I quickly pressed him into service after I got home on Friday, and together we managed to reinstall the hardline and antennas in my attic to get me on 6M thru 1.2 Ghz. 

Alabama experienced near record temperatures of well over 95 degrees, and inside the attic, it must have been well into the 100's. Work progress was slow, and breaks were frequent. As midnight neared, I began checking each line for SWR...problems arose immediately. High readings on several bands, with no apparent cause. 

At 4AM, I finally called it a night, with only 6, 2, and 432 working correctly. I resigned myself to a very limited effort on those bands. 

As the contest began, 6 Meters roared to life, and filled my receiver up past 50.250! Even more amazing was that it lasted for hours on end. While I enjoyed the runs on 6 Meters, my main goal was to work new grids on 2 Meters towards the VUCC effort. 

Mid-afternoon saw 6 Meter contacts grow very short, with my station working into nearby South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee via E-skip. I quickly tuned to 2 Meters and began listening in earnest for E-Skip there. None was heard, however, and back to 6 I went. 

Murphy stuck his final blow when I attempted to work nearby powerhouse, Jimmy Long, W4ZRZ on 432. I recently purchased Icom IC-471 failed to operate properly. Jimmy could hear me, but I couldn't detect his signal at all. We switched to FM and worked using my 50 watt Icom FM rig! Drat! 

Late in the day on Saturday, I finally gave up on the affair, and decided to spend some quality time with the wife and my nephew. We went fishing at a nearby lake until nearly 3AM..and had a blast. I got a ton of Bream, and tried to enjoy my family. 

Sunday morning saw exhaustion and heat taking their toll, and I slept right thru my 6AM wake up call. Finally staggered into the shack around 9AM...to find 2 Meters dead, and 6 again wide open. Having no other options, I concentrated on working 6 Meter contacts, determined to have some fun and just enjoy renewing friendships. 

By 11AM, I noticed that I had already worked 78 grids, despite very limited operating time. A thought crossed my mind; "I wonder if I could work 100 grids before the contest ends"? As a few more new ones were logged, the possibility of earning VUCC in a single weekend using only 100 watts and the indoor antenna seemed a real possibility. 

The push was on....and by 1PM, I passed the century mark. VUCC in a weekend, using nothing but a stock Icom 746 Pro and an indoor antenna. Wow! No wonder they call it the Magic Band! By contest end, I had worked 126 grids, four countries, 33 states, and had a ton of fun! 

Thanks to all the wonderful operators who struggled to pull out my weak signal, and even more to those who stopped for a brief moment to encourage me. Great contest, and despite not working any new ones on Two, one that I won't soon forget. 

73,

Les Rayburn, N1LF
EM63nf
VUCC 6 Meters #1,712
Grid Bandit #222