‰  NOW 40 WPM  ‰  TEXT IS FROM DECEMBER 2013 QST  PAGE 69‰
AND OVER 100 MORE QSOS THAN ZACK, BUT THE ADDITIONAL MULTIPLIERS AND POINTS
ON THE MICROWAVES WORKED TO ZACKS ADVANTAGE.  TWO NEW SINGLE OPERATOR
CATEGORIES WERE ADDED TO THIS YEARS JUNE VHF CONTEST.  SINGLE OPERATOR,
THREE BAND SO3B IS ALREADY LOOKING LIKE A BIG HIT WITH 108 ENTRIES THAT
MOSTLY PUT A DENT IN THE SOLP LOG TOTALS.  SINGLE OP, FM ONLY SOFM
GENERATED NINE LOG SUBMISSIONS.  THE MAJORITY OF THESE ENTRIES SET THE
FIRST SECTION, DIVISION, AND CONTEST REC

COMPETITIVE STATIONS.  BUT DIMINISHING RETURNS COME WITH LOW GEOGRAPHICAL
POPULATION DENSITY WHERE THERE ARE FEW, IF ANY, OTHER STATIONS AVAILABLE TO
WORK.  GENERALLY ROVERS AND PORTABLES HAVE AN EASIER TIME ADDING THESE
BANDS THAN FIXED STATIONS SINCE HIGH GAIN ANTENNAS ARE SIGNIFICANTLY
SMALLER AND COAX RUNS ARE SHORTER.  THE RANKS OF THE CLASSIC AND UNLIMITED
ROVERS WHO DO CARRY THEM CONTINUES TO DWINDLE, AND ALONG WITH THAT THE
NUMBER OF QSOS OTHER STATIONS MAKE ON THESE BANDS.  SINGLE OPERATORS THE
MAJORITY OF CONTEST ACTIVITY ORIGINATES WITH THE SINGLE OPERATORS WHO TAKE
ADVANTAGE OF THEIR STATION CAPABILITIES, RANGING FROM A SINGLE BAND WITH
MODEST ANTENNA TO A MULTIBAND STATION WITH STACKED ARRAYS.  THE SINGLE
OPERATOR, LOW POWER SOLP CATEGORY HAS HAD THE MOST LOGS SUBMITTED SINCE ITS
INCEPTION AND HAS SEEN SUCCESSFUL PORTABLE AS WELL AS FIXED STATION
EFFORTS.  THE OVERALL SOLP W3ZZ MEMORIAL FIRST LOG AWARD HAS BEEN SPONSORED
BY TIM, K3LR, AND DAVE, W9PA, FOR A SECOND YEAR AND GOES TO KF7PSM IN DM26
NV.  IM PROUD TO CONFIRM I WORKED PETE.  GOOD JOB AND WELCOME TO THE RANKS
OF SOLP VHF CONTESTING.  BOB, K2DRH, IN EN41 IL BUILT A SINGLETOWER

SUPPORT IT.  MOST OF THE TIME IT HAS AS GOOD OR BETTER PROPAGATION THAN 2
METERS AND BETTER IMMUNITY TO MANMADE NOISE.  QSOS SCORE THE SAME HIGHER
POINT VALUE AS 432 AS WELL AS PROVIDING ADDITIONAL MULTIPLIERS.  WHILE
COMPETITIVE MULTIOPS, ROVERS, AND SINGLE OPS KNOW THEY MUST HAVE IT, MANY
STATIONS JUSTIFY NOT HAVING A SEPARATE RIG OR TRANSVERTER FOR THIS BAND
BECAUSE OF INCREASED COST AND SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER QSO TOTAL THAN 2 METERS
ROUGHLY 35 OR 432 ABOUT 60.  UNFORTUNATELY THIS ALSO TENDS TO MAKE RIG
UNAVAILABILITY AND LOWER QSO TOTALS ON 222 A SELF FULFILLING PROPHECY.
ONLY THREE STATIONS IN THE JUNE VHF CONTEST HAD MORE THAN 100 QSOS ON 222,
ALL OF THEM MULTIOPS.  WHILE IT IS MORE COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE ON MULTIBAND
RIGS, 432 GENERALLY HAS MORE DIFFICULT PROPAGATION CHARACTERISTICS AND COAX
LOSS CAN BE A SIGNIFICANT FACTOR.  MORE ATTENTION TO DETAIL IS REQUIRED TO
BE SUCCESSFUL ON THIS BAND.  SIX STATIONS IN THE JUNE CONTEST HAD 432 QSO
TOTALS OVER 100, FOUR OF THEM MULTIOPS.  QSOS ON 902 MHZ AND ABOVE COUNT
FOR MORE POINTS AND ADDITIONAL MULTIPLIERS THE TECHNICAL COMPLEXITY AND
DIFFICULTY RISES WITH THE FREQUENCY, AND SO DOES THE COST TO PUT TOGETHER
AN EFFECTIVE STATION WHILE THE QSO TOTAL CONTINUES TO GO DOWN.  ADDING SHF
AND MICROWAVE BANDS WITH THEIR HIGHER POINT VALUES TENDS TO BE THE PROVINCE
OF THE MORE TECHNICALLY MINDED AS WELL AS BEING A NECESSITY FOR THE MORE
‰  END OF 40 WPM TEXT  ‰  QST DE W1AW  ƒ