I want to thank the Pack Rats for honoring me with the 2016 W3IY Rover
Recognition award. W7QQ returned from the Super Conference and presented the
plaque recently to me at lunch. I am sorry that I could not have been there in
person to receive it. I am quite honored to receive it and consider it one of
my highest ham radio achievements. It was totally unexpected and that makes it
even more special.
When I started roving I had no rover mentors here in NM; the last NM rover had
given it up, for lack of activity, 5 years before I started. Being on my own as
to how best to start roving, I turned to the internet and old QST articles on
roving and VHF contest reports, as well as VHF contest soapbox comments and
photos for advice and help. Among the most valuable resources I referred to
were the W3IY rover pages now maintained by W1RT. I learned a lot from those
pages; be loud on two, power (battery) management is as important or more
important than rigs and antennas, pass stations up in frequency first then
down, use variety in planning routes, use a second operator/driver when
possible, one can stack antennas close in a rover and live with the small
performance hit, be courteous, give everyone an equal chance to make a QSO with
you, and perhaps most importantly, listen for the weak ones. After receiving
this award I went back and reviewed those pages again and realized that there
are still a lot gems in there from which I can still learn. So, it is doubly
nice to receive this award named after a ham that had a big influence on me,
not only on my roving career, but on my VHF career too. I am happy that the
Pack Rats are perpetuating Bill’s memory with this award and am especially
proud to be a recipient.
Roving is very different in different parts of the country and receiving this
award from a part of the country far removed from where I rove adds to the
value of this award to me. We often project our personal experiences on the
world as a whole and assume that everyone has it the same way we do. That is
certainly the case in VHF contesting when we think other regions have
advantages or disadvantages that we do not have. It is important to recognize
the differences that exist and value the diversity. I am glad and humbled that
the Pack Rats are able to value contributions from a rover in an area where
roving is quite different from eastern PA.
Listen for the weak ones. - Duffey KK6MC
--
KK6MC
James Duffey
Cedar Crest NM
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