‰ NOW 35 WPM ‰ TEXT IS FROM DECEMBER 2013 QST PAGE 69‰ 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 35 WPM TEXT ‰ QST DE W1AW ƒ