2026 ARRL Sept VHF contest

Raw Score: 549 Qpts x 67 Mults = 36,783 - Note: The raw score, QSO points and mult totals are estimates based solely on the individual log contents and are not used during subsequent log checking. 

Here is a quick public view link, share on PC, phone or Ipad, use this as a reference for our 6 digit grid squares

https://canva.link/sept-vhf-rover-plan

A Foggy Morning as we prepare from FN10XX for the next Grid  During the Sept VHF contest.

AA2SD/R and KE5NJ/R Complete a Successful Tag Team Rove During the September 2026 VHF Contest

AA2SD/R  KE5NJ/R Sept VHF Rove Summary Sept 16, 2026. - Fellow Pack Rats and Friends, Here is a final summary of our Tag Team Rove, this was a combined effort to focus on Pack Rats with Chris and I putting in a tag team effort to work Pack Rats and all other operators. 

We planned 23 individual SKEDS on the first day of the mountain to run the bands, and we achieved contacts with 19 total  planned SKEDS or  82% success rate which was excellent, all of these contacts were with Pack Rat stations.

AA2SD/R Score - The initial raw score Raw Score: 288 QSO’s 549 Qpts x 62 Mults = 34,038  Note: The raw score, QSO points and mult totals are estimates based solely on the individual log contents

KE5NJ/R Contacts by band and mode

Chris and I experienced delays in FN10XX due to a foggy and wet morning

We constantly utilized  the W3SZ Map for pointing, and also pinging our locations worked very well. For this Rove I upgraded 2 rooftop antennas and reduced power on the bands to manage overall battery power.  All of our contacts were achieved analog, with the exception of a small test for FT8. We had constant activity during the 2 day period and appreciate the stations that made the efforts to follow and contact us.

Here is a Google  link to our Rover photo album, some are redundant as I 

document hookup and equipment for future use.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/aDm5bB5BmgwhomV87

Power, Rigs and Rover Antennas Deployed:   

• 2 Mtr-100 Watts with Diamond 5 Element featherlight Yagi, backed up with 2 Halo Stacked Antennas

• 432 - 85 Watts with Diamond 10 Element Yagi backed up with 2 Halo Stacked Antennas

• 222 - 5 Element Yagi backed up with 2 Stacked Halos

• 6 Mtrs 100 Watts - Freq Tester Large Halo Only Rooftop mounted

• 1296 -47 watts with small Directive Systems Looper 15 elements

• 903 --  48 watts with small Directive Systems Looper 19 elements 

• 2.3 -  32 Watts with Directive Systems Looper 45 elements

• 3.4 - 20 Watts with Directive Systems Looper  54 elements

• 5 GHZ  -5 Watts with Horn Antenna

• 10 GHZ - 1.8 Watts with  Slot Antenna 12 Slots x 2  Roof Mounted from Bert pe1rki.com

• IF Rigs - FT991A, for the lower 4, ICOM 905 with scope for the Micro Bands, FT891 for FT8 Test

• Transverters - All Demi,with the exception of a Kunhe for the 10 GHz

• DC Power - (2) -100 Watt LIFEPO4 Batteries, (4) 35 AMP Gel Batteries,  Charging from Renogy DC to DC Charger

• Summary of Visits to Grids

• Over 400 Miles driven  in 2 days

KE5NJ/R Rover Chris working from FN20 Penns Peak

AA2SD/R Rover working from FN20 Penns Peak

Day One Stay Put on Camelback FN21 to Maximize Contacts with SKEDS

The first day we stayed on top of FN21 Camelback for 4 1/2 hours, we were busy the entire time, and did not have a slow period, most likely due to SKEDS planned. Working as a Tag Team, we maximized our SKED contacts working 23 Pack Rat operators. As a Tag Team, you have (2) rovers with separate stations on the same grid square and work both rovers in order on the same frequency allowing your 2 contacts as you run the bands with us.

Day Two was Fast Mobile Visiting (4) Grids at Our Convergence

We visited 5 Grids  FN20, FN21, FM29, FN10, FN11, and we also stayed at each location for over 2 hours. Due to a very rainy and foggy start we got off to a late start but still maximized contacts at each location within the 2 hour period.

Working Jeff K1TEO and locals from FM29 Pole Hill Park at the Contest End

Driving Home we Worked FN20 and Finally FM29  Driving home toward NJ and Delaware we worked several stations on the go with the lower (4) bands

I visited 2 home locations at the end of the contest in FM29, Bob W2SJ and Mike  WB2RVX. I visited Bob W2SJ home to confirm a 10 GHz Contact and 1296 and I visited Mike's WB2RVX home to confirm all 10 bands. I stayed in the contest to 10:50 PM, and worked several stations from Pole Hill Park in Gibbsboro FM29 including Jeff K1TEO on 1296 and 903 from 190 ft, and also worked Ray N3RG

Slot Antennas Proved Effective for Rover Use on 10GHz

My smaller Smaller Yagi Beams worked very well for 2 MTRs and 432

The 10 GHZ Slot only was excellent, I worked W2EA and Roger W3SZ with  the Slot Antenna with no set up ( I drove my car in a large circle in an empty Parking Lot at Penns Peak  while monitoring signal peak to offset the null on the Slot Antennas). The Slot also allowed me to work WB2RVX and W2SJ during a home visit.

Improvement Areas:

• FT8 did not work well in the hotel, only 6 contacts

• 2.3 and 3.4 need work minimal contacts, I will check the antennas

• Battery Power Management

Thanks to all PackRats, W2EA Mountain Toppers, K2AA  and other Operators for working our Rover Tag Team,

We will soon start on our Jan VHF Contest improvement plans and send out information.

AA2SD and KE5NJ/R

Scott and Chris

-  

Go Out and Play Radio Listen for the Weak Ones

Scott  AA2SD/R   www.aa2sd.com

609 254 7120   Pack Rat DMR 8804

Rover Plans for the 2026 September VHF Contest AA2SD/R and KE5NJ/R

What is Tag Team Roving ?

Simply put you will have 2 Rovers in the same exact location for antenna pointing. This allows you to work 2 independent stations and run the bands. We  coordinate together on the same frequency as you run the bands, and you will work one Rover AA2SD/R, then the second and KE5NJ/R and then move up to the next band. Listen for the operators for band coordination, and keep in mind we typically use 144.215 as our rover liaison frequency.

Join my Text List Scan below with your phone

ARRL September VHF Contest  

 September 12–14, 2026 (1800 UTC Saturday to 0259 UTC Monday). The objective is to work as many Maidenhead grid squares as possible on 50 MHz and above.

Here is our Total Contest Plans for Saturday and Sunday

I am pleased to report that Chris KE5NJ/R Rover and myself AA2SD/R will be "Tag Team" Roving in the Poconos at (5) Grids, all hand selected with great overlooks. We will start the contest at FN21 on top of CamelBack located at Big Pocono State Park, and move to the grid square convergence for the entire day of Sunday including FN10, FN11 ,FN20 and FN21. As always we will be using the W3SZ map and pinging our live location to allow you to follow along and point your antennas.  On the return trip home we plan to work with locals in FM29 as we do make contacts on the go. We expect lots of activity in the Poconos, and I will have 10 bands and Chris KE5NJ/R will have 7 bands.

Don't forget that the renowned Mountain Toppers W2EA will also be operating. The South Jersey Mountain Toppers ARC, otherwise known as W2EA, will once again ascend to their

normal operation location on the summit of High Knob in Eastern Pennsylvania.

Read the full Rove details at the link below:

https://sites.google.com/view/aa2sd/2026-arrl-sept-vhf-contest

Here is a quick public view link, share on PC, phone or Ipad

https://canva.link/sept-vhf-rover-plan

Read the W2EA Mountain Toppers Details at the link below:

https://sites.google.com/view/aa2sd/w2ea-sept-vhf-contest

Link for the W3SZ Mapping Program:

https://w3sz.com/map.php

Watch our Past Sept ARRL  VHF Contests actitivies  from AA2SD/R and KE5NJ/R

 September 12–14, 2026 (1800 UTC Saturday to 0259 UTC Monday). The objective is to work as many Maidenhead grid squares as possible on 50 MHz and above. [1] 

David Petke K1RZ

W3SZ Mapping Program Important Details on Data Entry

PackRats and Friends - VHF Contest Operators.   The June VHF Contest is September 12, 2026 at 1800 UTC to September 14, 2026 at 0259 UTC – Two Weeks from Now.   Everyone Entering their Plans lets you all know Where everyone is going to be and When they will be there.  Two functions outlined here:  DATA ENTRY & RETREVAL and ROVER / PORTABLE SITE PLANNING.

DATA ENTRY.   The link at https://w3sz.com/k1rz/getUpdateForm.php.  You can select to enter your plan in either UTC (Default) or LOCAL Time (LOCAL must be chosen at the top of the Data Entry form EACH TIME you enter that form).  If you are a Fixed station or a Rover be sure to set your Start Date-Time and Stop Date-Time for this contest for each Grid you activate.

DATA RETRIVAL.  The link to the File Download to Print Hardcopy in either CSV or PDF format is https://w3sz.com/k1rz/K1RZDownloadPage.html

The Multi-function Download Window provides Sort selections for Geographic Lat-Lon Filtering, plus Sorts by Callsign, Grid, Azimuth or Time.  Contest Bands, Contest Date-Time Filter to select ONLY those stations intending to be on in THIS CONTEST, and displaying Plans in either UTC -or- Local Time, plus optional Azimuth Filtering Sorts.   Please BE SURE to Use the Optional Date/Time Filter – 2026-09-12 1800 UTC to 2026-09-14 0300 UTC, or you will also get 100s of plans from previous contests.

ROVER / PORTABLE SITE PLANNING – the DATABASE MAP EXTENSION. https://w3sz.com/map.php    Making site selection plans is critical to the success of your PORTABLE or ROVER operations.  IF everyone enters their planned Grid(s) in TEN CHARACTER Grid Format, you will get a more accurate look at the Path Profile near you, and near a distant station you want to work.  A Double-Click on the other stations marker on the map will show you the PATH PROFILE pop-up between you and another distant station.   As a Rover / Portable be sure to change the INFO Button for each Grid you activate, so that Azimuth, Distances and Path Profile are correct for you. Note also there is a TIME SLIDER at the bottom of the map that allows you to focus only on those stations who plan to be in THIS CONTEST – just CHECK THE BOX at the right end of the slider and then slide the slider to the beginning DATE-TIME (in LOCAL Two-Hour time segments) to track Rover / Portable plans and Fixed Station Plans through-out the contest. Have Fun with the Map Extension!

MAP TUTORIAL.  Tutorial links below take you to video’s Roger made to show ALL the MAP EXTENSION capabilities https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhcWbjH-CpxrCOdlLEDECRrED18B4NZ9n.  While hovering your mouse over the map, type the letter “p” to see a List of Map Keyboard Functions.  The Help button at the left end of the Time Slider will also bring up the Keyboard Function List.  An Example of a useful sequence of Keyboard Functions is “j”, “k”, “c”, and “d”: where “j” and “k” allow entry of two grids up to 10 characters in length, “c” provides the AZ, Reverse AZ and Distance between the two grids and “d” provides the Path Profile between the two grids.

MAP AS VISUALIZATION TOOL.  After you make your Grid Start/Stop Date-Time NEW Plan or UPDATE Plan in UTC TIME and DATE -or- LOCAL TIME and DATE, including your station capabilities for Fixed Stations and Rovers, then go to the MAP EXTENSION page, RELOAD the Map Page, and “check” what pops up when you click on other stations markers on the map. You can now Visualize where all the other stations in the region are, plus see a pop-up containing how to liaison with each station, their bearing and range from you, their bands, etc.  Plus, if you change the 2-hour local timeslot with the < > keys you’ll see the ROVERS move across the map, in accordance with their entered Plans.

Thanks Everyone.  Have fun in the JUNE Contest. Listen for the weak ones. Stay-in-the-Seat as long as you can.  Operate ALL MODES available, or ANALOG Only.  SSB and CW are still the Fastest QSO Modes we have.   With FT2 as the Exceptions. 

73,  Dave K1RZ and Roger W3SZ   

Details on the September VHF Contest from the ARRL

Objective: For amateurs in the US and Canada (and their possessions) to work as many amateur stations in as many different 2 degrees x 1 degree Maidenhead grid squares as possible using authorized frequencies above 50 MHz. Stations outside the US & Canada (and their possessions) may only work stations in the US (and its possessions) and Canada.

Dates: The second full weekend in September (September 12-14, 2026)

Contest Period: Begins 1800 UTC Saturday, ends 0259 UTC Monday.

Notice: Participants in the FM Only category can now count contacts made on 902 MHz and 1.2 GHz toward their scores. Previously, only contacts on the four lowest VHF bands (50, 144, 222 and 432 MHz) counted toward participants' scores in this category.

Click Here for Complete ARRL September VHF Contest Rules (PDF)

For contest information contact contests@arrl.org or (860) 594-0232

All legal modes are permitted. For Cabrillo file mode definitions, Digital modes should be represented as "DG" (for all things digital), SSB Phone as "PH", FM voice as "FM", and CW as "CW".

Stations in KH0-9, KL7 & KP1-KP5, CY9 and CY0 count as W/VE stations and can be worked by DX stations for contest credit.

Log Submission Deadline

Logs are due within TEN (10) days after the event is over. Logs may be submitted either online or via mail, but electronic Cabrillo logs are the preferred method. Electronic logs must be submitted via our web app at contest-log-submission.arrl.org/

Logs that have been submitted electronically are listed on the Logs Received page. Click the contest name to see a list of submitted logs sorted by call sign and club name.

Online Log Submission - Cabrillo formatted logs must be uploaded via our web app at contest-log-submission.arrl.org.

Submitting Paper Logs By Mail - Be sure to mail your completed Summary Sheet and Log Sheets postmarked before the log submission deadlines.

Paper Entry Forms:

September VHF Summary Sheet

VHF/UHF Log Sheet

Send completed Summary Sheets and logs to:

ARRL - September VHF Contest, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111

If submitting a paper log, it is strongly suggested you use a delivery method that offers a tracking number.

If you wish to convert your log into a Cabrillo formatted log for electronic submission, visit www.b4h.net/cabforms/ and select the event of interest. You can input your log data which will be converted to a Cabrillo formatted log for you (it will generate a log and return it to you), and then you can in turn submit your Cabrillo log online via the web app at contest-log-submission.arrl.org/.

Awards:

Downloadable Certificates will be awarded in the following categories at https://contests.arrl.org/certificates.php

Single Operator:

- Top Single Operator in each ARRL/RAC Section for high and low power.

- Top Single Operator on each band (50, 144, 222, 432, 902, 1296 and 2304-and-up categories) in each ARRL/RAC Section where significant effort or competition is evident. (Note: Since the highest score per band will be the award winner for that band, an entrant may win a certificate with additional single-band endorsements.) For example, if KA1RWY has the highest single-operator all-band score in the CT Section and her 50- and 222-MHz scores are higher than any other CT single operator’s, she will earn a certificate for being the single-operator Section leader and endorsements for 50 and 222 MHz. 

- Top Single Operator Portable in each ARRL/RAC Section where significant effort or competition is evident. (Single Operator Portable entries are not eligible for single-band awards.)

- Top Single Operator, 3-Band in each ARRL/RAC Section where significant effort or competition is evident.(Single Operator, 3-Band entries are not eligible for single-band awards.)

- Top Single Operator, FM Only in each ARRL/RAC Section where significant effort or competition is evident. (Single Operator, FM Only entries are not eligible for single-band awards.)

Rover:

- Top Rover, Limited Rover and Unlimited Rover in each ARRL Division and Canada where significant effort or competition is evident. (Rover entries are not eligible for single-band awards.)

Multioperator:

- Top Multioperator score in each ARRL/RAC Section where significant effort or competition is evident. (Multioperator entries are not eligible for single-band awards.)

- Top Limited Multioperator in each ARRL/RAC Section where significant effort or competition is evident. (Limited Multioperator entries are not eligible for single-band awards.)

DX:

- Top DX stations where significant effort or competition is evident.