[NLRS] 10 GHz Contest - W0ZQ/R August report

[W0ZQ at aol.com]

For the August installment of the ARRL 10 GHz & Up contest, I went  roving 
with W9FZ, N0UK, K0HAC, and WB0LJC in southwestern MN.  Our plans  were to 
start near Montevideo, MN, at 8:00 am on Saturday morning and to work  our 
way west into eastern SD making a stop about every 10 miles and  working back 
to the fixed group located on Buck Hill, EN34ir, and to whomever  else may 
be around.   

With a 130 mile 2.5 hr trip ahead  of me I left my house in Bloomington 
early Saturday morning and met the rover  gang just north of Montevideo in 
EN25da just before 8:00 am.  At 194 km we  were able to work N0KP, KC0IYT, 
WA2VOI, K0KFC, W0LCP, and N0HJZ on The  Hill with good SSB signals.  Rich, N0HJZ, 
was using my 2 watt 17 dB  horn system and was S3.  On the drive out I had 
been listing to the  weather reports, and it wasn't good - a large area of 
rain was moving into the  area and it look like a wet time ahead.  From 
EN25da dark clouds loomed to  our west and southwest, so we decided to take the 
game plan and throw it out the  window and drove east rather than west in an 
attempt to stay ahead of the  advancing rain.

The next stop was EN25fa at 181 km to Buck  Hill.  The down side to driving 
east was that the distances were coming  down.  By this time KC0P and N0HZO 
had joined the gang at Buck Hill.   W0GHZ and WA0SSN had located themselves 
at Cannon Falls, EN34nl, and we were  able to make a nice 220 km with them 
on SSB.  

Racing east our  next stop was EN24HX at 167 km.  About this time the rain 
finally caught up  with us.  In consultation with the gang on Buck Hill who 
had Internet  radar, we decided to run south hoping to "punch the core" of 
the rain  system.  If we ended up in rain all day we could always bag it and 
head  home.  We were also concerned that the rain would eventually move into 
the  Twin Cities and Buck Hill cause them to have to leave.    

>From just southwest of Willmar we headed straight south on county  roads.  
About this time we realized that our planned overnight stay in  Pipestone 
was not going to happen so I called and canceled those hotel  rooms.  

Through the afternoon hours we continued straight  south stopping to work 
EN34ir from EN25ia, EN24jw, EN24js, EN24jn, EN24ii,  EN24ie, EN24ib, EN23iw, 
EN23ir, EN23ho, and ending the day at EN23fn around  6:30pm.  Along the way 
KB0OZN and K0TAR were added to the log from  EN34ir.  We were also able to 
add KM0T, EN13vc, from our stop in EN24ib on  a random.   From EN24jw I was 
able to work W0LGQ in EN21 on very weak  CW.  EN23fn, our last stop on 
Saturday, was about 222 km from Buck  Hill.  We did try with K0AWU, EN37ed, from 
this last stop with the hope of  some rain scatter enhancements, but it was 
not to be.  Bill thought he  could just barely make us out on the SDR, and I 
thought I could just hear his  CW, but nothing was strong enough for a copy. 
 This would have been about  425 km.

Throughout the day we had battle light to moderate rain, but  managed to 
stay mostly dry.  This group of rovers is battle hardened and we  came 
prepared, so as long as the wind wasn't blowing hard, or as long as it  wasn't hard 
rain, we were able to battle though it, and the line of rain had  stayed 
just west of Buck Hill all day keeping them mostly dry too.

We  pulled into a hotel in Worthington and were luck to get the last 
non-smoking  rooms.  We had an excellent meal, and having been a long day, I slept 
very  well indeed - this in spite of a pretty good thunderstorm that went 
by at about  2am.   

Sunday morning came and we were on the back side of the  cool front - I 
think the temperature was about 60 degrees with a fair wind  blowing.  The line 
of thunderstorms had just cleared the Twin Cites and  Dave, N0KP, was able 
to report that despite the rain that the road to Buck Hill  was still 
passable by 2-wheel drive.  Between cell phones and Blackberries,  the word got 
out and we were on for Sunday !  Once again perseverance was  paying off.

>From Worthington we headed south into northern Iowa and  worked our way 
east.  The plan was to slowly work our way eastward over to  35W where we would 
head home later in the day.  Our first stop was in  EN23fl, a distance of 
228 km to Buck Hill.  KC0IYT was worked from his  Eagan water tower spot to 
give him a new grid (EN23), and WA0RSE and W0JT joined  the gang on The Hill. 
  

Through the day we worked our way east  with stops in EN23hj, EN23ig, 
EN23lg, EN23oj, EN23rk, EN23tj, EN23wi, EN33bj,  and EN33dj.  From several of 
these stops we were able to work K0KFC and  W0LCP from Jim's house in EN35rj, 
the longest distance was 322 km (Wisc to  Iowa).  We were also able to make 
some Q's with W0GHZ from his  home station, the longest distance was 225km, 
all with good SSB  signals.

At our last stop, EN33dj, we were able to also hook up with  N0EDV and 
N0AKC who were on Elk Mound, Wisc, EN44dv, at a distance of 231  km.

All told, I think it was 23 stops and about 170 contacts, with about  400 
to 450 miles of driving - my final log is not in front of me right  now.  
Saturday was a bit damp at times, and we had considered throwing in  the towel 
more than a few times, but we re-evaluated how it was going at each  stop 
and pressed on.  
 
What a great bunch of fellow rovers, and although we did not make it up  
onto the Buffalo ridge area and the "tourist" part of the rove was mostly gray 
 and cloudy, we still had a fantastic time and are already looking forward 
to  September.  A BIG thanks to EN34ir captain N0KP for coordination and  
leadership, and to all of you who came out to play.  

73,  Jon
W0ZQ/R