Discover the Excitement of Simplex: Go Beyond the Repeater!

If you’re a licensed ham who mostly chats on your local 2-meter repeater, you’re not alone. Repeaters are fantastic—they make it easy to connect with friends and reach further than you could on your own. But did you know there’s a whole other side to VHF radio that’s just waiting for you to explore? Often it’s a symphony of static but this June 14th and 15th there will be people roving around! Plan to listen and make contacts even for just an hour Saturday afternoon/evening or sometime on Sunday.

What is Simplex?

Simplex operation is direct, radio-to-radio communication—no repeater in the middle. It’s just you and another operator, making contact over the airwaves. It might sound old-school, but it’s a vital skill and a lot of fun!

Why Try Simplex?

  • Challenge Yourself: See how far your signal can really go. You might be surprised!
  • Sharpen Your Skills: Learn about propagation, antenna placement, and power output in a hands-on way.
  • Emergency Preparedness: In a real emergency, repeaters might be down. Simplex skills could be crucial.
  • Meet New Hams: Connect with operators outside your usual circle.

The Perfect Opportunity: The VHF Contest

The ARRL VHF Contest is the best time to try simplex. During the contest, hams all over the country are on the air, eager to make contacts. You don’t need fancy equipment—just your regular 2m radio and a willingness to try something new.

How to Get Started:

  • Tune to the National Simplex Frequency: 146.520 MHz is the standard calling frequency for 2m simplex.
  • Listen and Call: Don’t be shy! Call “CQ Contest” and see who comes back.
  • Write-down Your Contacts: You do not need to submit a log unless you really want to enter the contest.
  • Try Different Antennas: If you have a mobile setup or an outdoor antenna, use it! But even a handheld can make contacts during the contest.

Tips for Success

  • Move to a high spot if you can–height makes a big difference
  • Use as much power as your radio will allow
  • Turn-down or disable the squelch. If you cannot disable the squelch, at least on the lowest setting you will hear people.

You Can Do It!

Simplex operation is a core part of amateur radio. It’s rewarding, practical, and a great way to grow as a ham. The next VHF contest is your invitation to step outside the comfort of the repeater and discover what your radio—and you—can really do.

Give it a try. You might just catch the simplex bug!

Ready to learn more or have questions? Reach out to your local club or send me a email. See you on 146.52 this June 14th and 15th!

Additional Info

Grid Square

Anytime you make a contact on simplex you will often be asked for your Maidenhead Grid or “Grid Square”. During the contest this is required as part of the “required information exchange”. To find your grid you can use https://QRZ.COM, enter your callsign then look at the Details tab. If your at a different location, then use their awesome Gridmapper resource to find your location on the map and it will tell you the grid! https://www.qrz.com/gridmapper
QRZ will give you a highly accurate locator such as EM15ab but for the VHF Contest we just need the first 4 characters like EM15.

Report

During the contest you do not need to be concerned with signal reports either. The required information exchange during this contest are the callsigns and grid squares. People in the contest earn points by contacting as many people as they can, per band and per grid square. Rovers will be driving around from corner to corner of the grids in your area. When they cross into a new grid they will want to contact you again!

Dual-band or Tri-band radio:

During the contest people will ask if you have other bands – like 6m, 1.25m, 70cm, etc. If you do that’s terrific!
6m FM Simplex call freq is 52.525 MHz.
2m FM Simplex call: 146.52 MHz
1.25m FM Simplex call: 223.5 MHz
70cm FM Simplex call: 446.0 MHz

Special Arkansas Activity

This year, N5ZY/R (/R for Rover) and several friends led by N0LD/R, will be activating grid squares from some of Arkansas’s highest and most scenic locations, including Queen Wilhelmina State Park and Mount Magazine. We’ll be operating on 6 meters, 2 meters, and up, providing a unique opportunity for local hams to make contacts with portable stations in rare grids.  We are sure many native Arkansas Amateur Radio operators will also be rovering or participating in the contest.

For a detailed schedule, planned locations, frequencies, and operating tips, please see my blog post:
https://n5zy.org/2025-arrl-june-vhf-contest-2/
And N0LD’s site: https://okrover.info/

VHF Activity (contest) details

  • When: June 14, 1 PM – June 15, 10 PM Central
  • Bands: 6m, 2m, 1.25m, 70cm, 33cm, 23cm (see n5zy.org for full frequency list)
  • Live Tracking: I’ll be beaconing my position via APRS—search for N5ZY on aprs.fi