[FQP] APRS

[Tom]

I suppose that it is time that I "fessed up" to putting a bug in Dan's ear 
at the Bassinger PicNic and starting all of this APRS issue.  I went to him 
about the legallity of it in our contest and to get an opinion.  He, in 
turn, has sought input from members and participants.

I have several reasons for wanting to use APRS.  As a ham I like to 
experiment with new things (like APRS is new) and I think it is clear that 
no one knows whether this is an advantage or not.  For some mobile routes it 
might be and for others it may not.  The purpose is to answer that question. 
I think it might bring a few more folks into the contest that don't normally 
participate  or perhaps don't send in logs (like county hunters) who might 
want to track the locations of mobiles going through their needed counties 
without sitting through the entire contest.
It allows my family to know my progress without disturbing me.
As an SSB only mobile operator, I do not have a pile-up on every county 
line.  Mixed ops who are kept busy by endless pile-ups on CW (I am 
exagerating) do not see the advantage of moving to get the 1 point qso.  I 
spend a lot of time S&Ping as an SSB mobile.  In addition, a middle of the 
road contester, I need all the help I can get until antique shops become 
multipliers.

In summary--if it adds to the fun, I want to do it.

Tom