On May 28, 2009, at 8:32 AM, Rogers, Ron wrote:
> In addition Dick, here is the link to the rules for the ARRL June
> contest coming up.
>
> http://www.arrl.org/contests/rules/2009/june-vhf.html
Actually, you need to read three documents to cover all the rules for
June VHF:
http://www.arrl.org/contests/announcements/rules-all.html
http://www.arrl.org/contests/rules/2009/june-vhf.html
http://www.arrl.org/contests/announcements/rules-vhf.html
One is linked but not super-obvious at the top of the June VHF rules
that Ron posted, the other is linked way down at the bottom and also
easily missed.
If it all seems confusing, don't worry... once you get on the air,
you'll find folks in your local area, and if you ask... they WILL help
figure out anything that's confusing. The VHF contesting crowd are
some of the nicest folks on Earth. We have all sorts of debates and
things here on the mailing list(s) about these rules, but what you
really need to know for the contests is this:
- Be prepared to log. Not all logging software (if you like using a
computer to log) has any clue about VHF contesting. You can (of
course) log on paper and figure it out later... lots of people here
will help you figure out how to do it, but computer logging is nice if
you can do it... this is true of most contesting. ARRL has some
printable forms for paper logging in all of their contests too. You
should at least log the minimum needed data for the contacts, which is
usually callsign & grid square on most VHF contests. Unlike HF
contests, signal report is rarely needed and rarely offered by a busy
station.
- Know your Maidenhead Grid Square to at least four digits. Some
contests use six. I live in "DM79"... give it on-air with phoentics,
since this is weak-signal work... "Delta Mike Seventy-Nine".
Otherwise you'll give your callsign and get a lot of "where are you?"
questions that won't make much sense... helpful stations will explain
it on contest day, but it's an easy one to be prepared for.
- If you're planning on moving from Grid Square to Grid Square, you're
a "rover" and you must sign your callsign ending with that word
"rover" on SSB, or "/R" on CW or other digital modes. If you start
out the day not doing that, the good fixed operators will figure it
out in their software and adjust, but you'll confuse other folks when
you move grids.
- Horizontally polarized antennas are the order of the day... you can
of course use verticals if that's all you've got, but you're
penalizing yourself by about 20dB in our receivers... big stations
with gain antennas or even some "backup" vertical antennas will find
you, but you'll work more folks with horizontal. Antennas are king...
LOTS of plenty-competitive stations are using limited power, but at 2m
and up... pointing that beam right at the guy you want to work has
benefits for BOTH ends of the RF "link"... if you can hear him/her,
you can work 'em!
If it all sounds overwhelming -- if there's enough activity in your
area, there's usually weekly "activity nights" on at least VHF that
you can get involved in and talk to locals year-round. Also you'll
hear plenty of examples of how the contest exchanges go ... and of
course, ask questions here...
We all (me especially) may seem "cranky", but if you meet us in person
or on-air, we're all out here to have fun with VHF operating.
Contests tend to be where activity centers around on the VHF+ bands,
so that's where it's easiest to find us all... but there's other
activity year-round. After you're bitten by the VHF bug... it doesn't
go away easily, and you start looking at digital weak signal modes,
you pine for another day of Aurora Scatter, and if you're really
hooked... you start trying to figure out where airliners fly over to
bounce microwave signals off of them to extend your range beyond the
horizon... you can get in as deep into the pool, or as shallow, as you
like... but we'll all be happy to see you on the air.
This time of year is the "right" time to typically see some Sporadic-E
type openings start happening, and is often the time of year new folks
get hooked on 6 meter SSB... one afternoon you have the 6m rig on
quietly hissing with noise in the shack, and then you hear voices and
think at first they're in your head... you reach for the AF gain knob,
and there's someone six or seven states away having a ragchew with a
local buddy, or calling CQ... and then anywhere from a few minutes to
a few hours later, they fade away, as mysteriously as they came...
I will never forget the first time I heard Aurora Scatter... I was
sitting there thinking, "Why haven't we heard that guy up in Northern
Nebraska before, and why is he whispering? Is he so focused on the
contest he lost his voice? Wow!" Then after a few more voices
"whispering" faded in around him in frequency, it started to become
obvious that, "Hey, there's something new going on here."
Have fun, ask questions... tell us your antenna setup, and think
seriously about homebrewing some loops like the squalo or the moxon
type antennas relatively quickly since contest weekend is coming up
REAL soon... but if you don't get it done, don't let it stop you from
getting on the air!
--
Nate Duehr, WY0X
nate@natetech.com
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