[NLRS] Prelim: Rovermania results W0ZQ/R

[w0zq at aol.com]

Another excellent Rovermania is behind us.  It will take me some time to get my log formalized, but here is some prelim numbers

EN44  49 Q's
EN43  66 Q's
EN33  45 Q's
EN34  30 Q's
EN35  27 Q's
EN25  37 Q's
EN24  39 Q's

Total 293 Q's

Leaving my house on Saturday morning, I looked down to see my "Check Engine" light was on.  Doh.  I had just recently got gas, so I pulled over and check the gas cap ... sure enough it was not fully locked in place.   After screwing it down tightly, I drove another 10 miles looking to see if the error light would self correct - it did not.  So I pulled over a second time, disconnected the battery cable to do a "reboot", and that fixed it.  Whew.   

Conditions from the St. Charles grid corner on Saturday were good.   It was warm, not too hot, some humidity, but a little breeze helped.   K2DRH, EN41, was easy to work from all four stops on 222 through 3456 at about 300 km.  Bob and I managed to work all his bands, 222 through 3456, from all my seven grids minus just one contact .... we did not connect on 3456 MHz from EN25xb (~460 km).   I did pack up and leave from EN34oi a little earlier than I wanted but Dakota county (just to my NW) was experiencing some large hail, so I decide leave.   

Sunday morning was coolish and very damp until later in the morning, with not so good signals from the Winsted grid corner.   I must say that the mosquitos are in great form this year and I may have more mosquito bites than grid multipliers this time.  

Thanks to the N0KP, K0AWU, W0UC, N0AKC for being there.  Also worked was N0TTW, KC9BQA, K0NY (nice 222 signal), W9ZIH, W0VB, N9LB, W9RPM, K2YAZ, KA0PQW, K0SIX, NT0V, K0KFC, and probably a few others that I am missing.

Rovermania is about rovers, and they were out there.  Worked was W9FZ/R, KC0P/R, N0HZO/R, W9SNR/R, WB0LJC/R, WA0VPJ/R, KC0IYT/R and K0BBC/R.

I worked from EN08 to EN51, and from EN74/63 to EN32.   I did not hear nor raise any stations in central or western Iowa nor SD despite CQ that way from time to time.  I think our bettter propagation was Saturday and to the southeast.

73, Jon
W0ZQ/R