[NLRS] Preliminary Jan report K0PG/K9ILT rove (long)

[ADUHAWK@aol.com]

We switched from sedan to SUV for this event, got the antennas a little 
higher, tried out a new 2 meter beam and, for the first time, got all six 
bands working at once.  Our plans called for a slightly less ambitious trip, 
lopping off three grids and shortening the trip a bit.  We still drove 746 
miles in winds that allowed us to almost see the fuel gauge moving!  The new 
roof rack held up very well and we enjoyed ourselves mightily.
Saturday took us to Nickoll Knoll in EN62.  When we reached the top of the 
hill with at least 20 seconds to spare before the start we found Mike, 
WB8BZK/R all set and ready to go.  We agreed to work in tandem right away, 
but Mike volunteered to cross Route 53 and operate from EN52 until we left at 
1945Z.  Among our contacts from that spot were with Jim, WB9SNR, one of the 
founding fathers of roving in these parts.  We pressed on to a ridge in EN52 
west of Elgin, IL.  Since we were in a vehicle that supposedly allows for 
off-road adventures, we took one, driving all over the site to get the 
absolute best shots at the horizon for our 30 minute stay. We made the long 
trek across EN52 operating as we went, stopping for food and gas (already) on 
our way to EN42.
We operate from a ridge near Galena, IL.  Not long after we arrived, the big 
signal of W0VB appeared.  We thought that we had struck it rich and that we 
would be working everybody in the North country. Wrong.  We couldn't complete 
with K0AWU, we had to go to CW with KA0RYT and W0GHZ struggled with us.  We 
worked N0AKC, N9DG and W9GA but we had no luck with Michigan and Ontario, 
which are usually slam dunks from up there.  In fact, we got just a couple of 
Chicago area stations.  We got behind schedule up there, but worked our way 
down to EN41 and stayed in Clinton, IA for the night.

For many contests, Bob K2DRH has been a big part of our effort.  Since we 
were staying near his Albany, IL QTH we stopped over Sunday morning for 
coffee and a shack tour.  Bob and Fran have a lovely home out in the country 
on a nice high spot.  Add a couple of very ambitious towers and an amazing 
VHF/UHF stack and you have quite a station.  We were able to work Bob on all 
6 from just about every grid we visited.  While we were there, we worked N0PB 
in EM39 from in front of the house.  We just lined up the car with Bob's 
beams and it was no problem.  

One of the best parts of our trips is that we have had the opportunity to 
meet several of the best contesters in this part of the country.  All have 
been welcoming and happy to spend time, even in the midst of the event.

Saturday's propagation had been so poor, we decided to bypass EM49 and get on 
with it.  After EN40, we scooted over to EN50 and then dropped down into EM59 
and 69.

Sunday morning was very cold. It was 8 degrees in Clinton when we got going.  
I let the car warm up for 30 minutes before we got going.  The radios were 
still not too pleased about the cold and the IC706 i.f. had frozen up on 
145.000 and would not move, even after a couple of hours.  We didn't have the 
manual along so we knew that we would have to ask someone with that radio for 
the reset command.  

There had been lots of contacts with stations who had 6, 2, and 432.  Thank 
you FT847, FT100, FT817 and the IC706 family.  Sure enough, we were called by 
KE0FT from EN41.  When I asked if he had a 706 I knew that our troubles were 
over.  He told us to press "Up" and "Down" while holding the power switch.  
Two seconds later we were all reset, and ready to go again on 903.1.

Then 6 opened.  We were running along through EN50 when I thought that I 
would check 6.  Sure enough, K1TOL answered my call.  Shock and surprise 
ruled, but that's why they call it "The Magic Band."  Pat thought it was 
really cool, but the band had gone dead.  She just about tore the mic out of 
my hand and decided to CQ on her own.  (This was unusual because her mother 
taught her not to talk to strangers.) Anyway, before you know it she had a 
pileup going.  We were using our brand new KB6KQ loop at about 8 feet, and 
after all, had not brought the 6 meter amp along. Pat has seen E skip on 6 
before, but this was unexpected and like everybody else, it added nicely to 
our score.

The rest of the day went well.  We missed K4TO in EM77 on 222 from EM59 after 
getting him on 2 and 432, but we did work the higher bands into EM89 with 
K8TQK.  We finished at the 4 corners of EN50,60,51,61 with several trips 
through the bands and found ourselves 70 miles from home at the end.

Takedown went well, with the antennas stored more or less intact. The only 
unpleasant surprise we had with the new car was with the fact that we don't 
need as much feedline.  So our carefully measured runs now have quite a bit 
of surplus.  It wound up looking like a real spaghetti bowl back there.  
Improvements will be made!

Our logs are unedited and handwritten, but it looks like we both made about 
375 QSOs, which is about average for this run, but our mults were down.  It 
looks like a 35,000ish score for each of us, with Pat having a couple of more 
Qs than me.  We were visited by only one police official this time, a new 
low.

We want to thank our constant companions, K2DRH, WB9Z, and N2BJ and everybody 
else who rode along with us.  Next time? We'll be doing it a little 
differently.  Maybe an all landfill operation.  We'd like to go somewhere 
exotic for June.  Well, maybe Michigan.  In the mean time, a little antenna 
work and maybe 2304.  73, Tim K0PG and Pat K9ILT 


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