10/20/2004 | W2EV As for the second weekend of the contest...'had a ball. After some initial problems on Saturday, I hit the road on Sunday to work what I can work. Being power-budget limited as a roving station, it was extremely difficult to get noticed with my 2-watts on 144.260 SSB, so I brought along APRS. Anyone so interested could track my position, and know when I stopped. As it turns out, this was a very smart decision. Other stations quickly knew that I was "nowhere in sight" on Saturday (equipment problems) and didn't wait around to work me.

It's a strategy that I'd highly suggest for similar low-power-budget stations who can't get noticed any other way.

A Big thanks to the VE3 contingent. It was a real thrill to meet up with them west of Niagara Falls, Ontario and work a few new callsigns. It was disappointing to miss some other operators simply because my 2m liaison power was limited. My 5-watts and 2' dish on 10-GHz could have easily made the grade. Oh well...maybe the APRS strategy will catch on more next year. -- W2EV