[NLRS] 144.200- Calling freq - Operating freq

[Bill Davis Jr]

   The vast number of contest QSOs
here (WITH receive preamps and antennas fed with hardline at 60ft and higher)
are made with very weak signals. This was the attraction of the contest from
the start, working the weak ones. Most of these stations for me are within
30deg of MSP. In the past a fairly "large" number of them were from
MSP proper. Recently it seems less and less are from MSP, BUT new calls are being
worked from EN34/35 with very weak signals. My assumption is that they may be
new comers to the VHF contests. These stations are most often worked on 200 and
often worked with too weak of signals to reliably QSY from 200. Hence, yes
there are times that a QSO will be made on 200. 



  The missing element is ... I know how loud their signal is, but I don't
know how loud my signal is. IF they are hearing me well enough, a request for a
QSY up to 144.2xx might work quite well without me knowing it. (If I can hear
them well enough to know that they can QSY) Sometimes for a single station your
time ahead by exchanging INFO and being done with it. I hear stations calling CQ
on 144.200 that are not a problem, K2DRH is a good example. Bob will ask people
to QSY or make his QSO and be gone in quick order without major impact on the
calling the calling frequency. For me Bob is 411miles away and can be worked on
tropo "bubbles" with ease. N0AKC and others are worked in a similar
fashion. My best chance of working anyone is to hear them first and respond to
thier call. In the past, my best chance of hearing an individual station is to hear them on 144.200.



  No small number of stations make QSOs by listening and responding to CQs
other than spending much time calling CQ. This may be due to a number of
factors. Small stations that have had little success calling CQ, TVI/RFI
issues, not being comfortable contesting or multi-tasking. What is
the payoff for a 60watt station operating with a squalo or small low beam
calling CQ off of 144.200? If these operators are to be rewarded, we/they need
a large number of stations using 144.200 as a calling frequency. Either for
very quick QSOs on 200 or a QSY.



  Several people have commented in response to my original post, that they
have been less than impressed with their success rates of calling CQs off of
144.200. I would think that the bigger the station is and the closer that
station is to the "contest population" the better the chance for
successful CQs off of 144.200. But I too understand regardless of the station,
there will be weak ones to be worked at the limit of the a stations range and that some of those QSOs seem to depend upon  the calling frequency.



  During the last several contests I have done little listening on 144.200
.... it has become rare that I will hear the station being worked by other
stations far to my south on 200. With my antenna on MSP I will hear no one to
my W-N-E if they are calling on 144.200, they are too distant and MSP activity
will cover them up. We must "look at each other" up this way to hear
each other on 144.200 or any freq. My ONLY chance to work NT0V, W0PHD, VE3KRP,
VE4MA and to a lesser degree N0UY is to swing and call on 144.200 or to make a
sked before the contest. Looking at Wally's email ... how much calling CQ off
of 144.200 will he be rewarded with? For MSP to work Wally or any of these
other stations, it will be for them to be heard on 144.200. That means the more
individual stations "the merrier" looking north calling on 200. If 200 becomes dominated by a
limited number of stations, the majority of us loose.



   In the past, I know Jim K0MHC has tried to establish a
"northern" calling frequency and a time window. I'm not sure how
successful that has been for him. I have not heard too much activity during
these windows.



   Justin K9MU operated 144.220 (if memory serves me right) for this contest
and didn't stray much from it. I would be interested how that worked out for
him. He is closer to the population center/s and it might have worked pretty
well. 



   It is not practical for each of us to have a single operating
frequency ... It would be nice to announce a frequency for a contest and then work the people that hear  you or call you on "your"
frequency. 



   In my initial post, I posed the question of a secondary
"calling frequency". I think it would be helpful if it could be
"established", at least IF 200 was BUSY ALL would have a have a better
chance of  hearing someone or being heard on the "standard" secondary calling freq, than a random freq of their
choice. This would in no way preclude efforts in improving calling frequency utilization.

73 Bill  K0AWU  EN37ed
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