On-the-Air Practice and preparation for Field Day

Field Day is not the only contest of the year. In fact, some will say that FD is formally a contest. You have an opportunity almost every weekend to participate in a contest. You can collect wallpaper from these contests to cover the stains on the wall of your shack where you accidentally spilled your coffee while you were trying to work a KH6 on 160 meters.
The following list is a list of contests that may be appropriate for a newcomer to contests or for someone who has not competed for a long time. An HT is a sufficient rig for some of them. Try a few; you might become addicted, especially when you find out how popular NE is as a multiplier during these contests!

2009
====
Mar 21 - Mar 22 Oklahoma QSO Party www.okdxa.org
Mar 21 - Mar 22 North Dakota QSO Party k0ln.com
Mar 21 - Mar 23 Virginia QSO Party www.qsl.net/sterling/VA_QSO_Party
Mar 22 - Mar 22 QRP ARCI www.qrparci.org
Mar 28 - Mar 29 CQ WPX SSB Contest www.cqwpx.com
This is a popular contest. You have lots of opportunities to make contacts with 
DX and North American stations.

Apr 04 - Apr 06 Montana QSO Party www.fvarc.org
Apr 04 - Apr 05 MO QSO Party www.w0ma.org
Get on the air and make a few contacts with our southeastern neighbor.

Apr 04 - Apr 05 QCWA Spring QSO Party www.qcwa.org/qso-party.htm
This is for QCWA members.

Apr 06 - Apr 06 144 VHF Spring Sprints www.sysadnet.com/vhfsprintrules.htm
Here's a big opportunity to use 2 meters for simplex QSOs. Don't use 146.52 or repeater I/O. If you hear someone hollering on a simplex frequency, give him/her a call for the points.

Apr 09 - Apr 19 Lighthouse Spring Lites QSO Party arlhs.com
Apr 11 - 12 GA QSO Party gqp.contesting.com
Apr 12 - Apr 13 Low Power Spring Sprint alexanderkorda@hotmail.com
Apr 14 - Apr 13 222 VHF Spring Sprints www.sysadnet.com/vhfsprintrules.htm
Here's a big opportunity to use 222 MHz for simplex QSOs. If you hear someone hollering on a simplex frequency, give him/her a call for the points.

Apr 18 - Apr 19 Michigan QSO Party www.miqp.org
Apr 18 - Apr 19 Ontario QSO Party cco.ve3xd.com/oqp
Apr 22 - Apr 22 432 VHF Spring Sprints www.sysadnet.com/vhfsprintrules.htm
Here's your opportunity to use 432 MHz for simplex QSOs. If you hear someone hollering on an FM simplex frequency (most likely 446.0), give him/her a call for the points.

Apr 25 - Apr 26 Florida QSO Party www.floridaqsoparty.org
You can work the Florida and Nebraska QSO parties at the same time. Make sure that you give the FL station your county even if it puzzles him.

Apr 25 - Apr 26 Nebraska QSO Party www.hdxa.net
Let stations in other states/countries see NE shine! You can work one another, too--on as many band/modes as possible.

Jun 13 - Jun 14 June VHF QSO Party www.arrl.org/contests/rules/2009/june-vhf.html
This is the last major tuneup before FD! You can use FM; just don't use 146.52 or repeater I/O even to solicit people to move to simplex. If you hear someone hollering for contacts on 146.48, give him/her a call for the points.

Jun 27 - Jun 28 ARRL Field Day www.arrl.org/contests/rules/2009/fd.html
Are you ready?