2026 ARRL Sept VHF contest

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Rover Plans for the 2026 September VHF Contest 

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

David Petke via Packrats W3SZ

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   

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.