Phil:
you'll notice a huge difference in received signals alone if you can use an 
antenna switch to A/B the vertical and the beam once you get the beam up.
It'll be like plugging an antenna in when one was not there before when you 
switch to horrizontal.
And when you transmit using an antenna on the right polarization, most 
people you hear, will hear you.
You should be able to grab those distant stations out to 300 miles with the 
4 element pointed in the right direction.
Unless you use a few hundred watts, or if it's a particularly good day for 
VHF propigation, you might have a bit of a challenge being heard that 
far...most VHF enthusiasts are using minimum 10 elements on VHF for any weak 
signal work.
You'll notice the difference in propigation from week to week as well. 
We've been running a 2M weak signal net every sunday morning for the past 
couple years on 144.200...there isn't a whole lot of guys around, but 
probably about 20 that check in regularly.  They are spread over about 300 
kilometers in and around the Edmonton area.
The farthest i've ever heard anyone check in was from saskatune saskachiwan 
wich is probably something around 500 or 600 miles from here.  The station 
there uses a pair of 15 element long boom beams on 2M and 300 watts.
we get some great openings down into colorado during the summer on 2M ssb 
and 6M, so perhaps you'll hear some of the boys from ve6 land down there.

regards
Colin
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Phil Scovell" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, July 15, 2009 10:28 AM
Subject: VHF UHF In Denver


> Monday night, I checked into a local 2 meter sideband net I had heard 
> about.
> The Rocky Mountain VHF+ ham club has three nets a week.  Monday nights 
> they
> meet on 2 meters, Tuesday nights they meet on the 220 band, and Wednesday
> nights, a few guys show up on 432 and all on the sideband part of the 
> band.
> Monday night, there were about 50 check ins and we had two guys from
> Cheyenne Wyoming which is only 110 miles north of Denver, one guy from
> Nebraska, two guys from western Kansas, and beside two guys from western
> Colorado, at least 300 miles from Denver, we had one guy from eastern Utah
> check into the net.  I am only using a short 9 foot diamond dual band
> vertical on 2 meters at about 15 feet above ground on my roof, which isn't
> the accepted polarization for 2 meter sideband of course, but I could copy
> both the guys in Cheyenne and one of them was Q5 copy.  I could not copy
> either of the Nebraska or Kansas stations nor, of course, the western
> Colorado check ins nor the Utah station but I heard 99 percent of all the
> Denver stations in about a 60 mile radius.  I'm getting a little 4 element
> horizontal beam for 2 meters and also putting up a small Cushcraft 3 
> element
> yagi on 6 meters on a 38 foot tower with a 10 foot mast but my vertical on 
> 6
> meters is doing amazing things so far.  I've also discovered that the
> VHF/UHF hams seem very willing to assist in antenna projects and help each
> other out which has really surprised me since my experience with local FM 
> 2
> meter repeater clubs in the Denver area has been just the opposite over 
> the
> years.  There is quite the community of 6 meter active hams in the Denver
> metro area and during contests, you could easily work, within a 50 mile
> radius, at least 100 stations just on 2 meters alone.  If you want to read
> more about the Denver VHF Plus group, go to:
>
> www.rmvhf+.org
>
> There is also a local Denver ham, who is big time into antenna 
> construction
> and how-to articles, by the name of Dave with the call of W6OAL, who sells 
> a
> 4 element horizontal 2 meter yagi kit for 60 dollars but he also details 
> all
> the parts and instructions how to build it, written in plain text format,
> without having to buy his kit if anyone is interested.  4 elements on 2
> meters doesn't sound like much but 10 DB forward gain is like switching on 
> a
> KW amp when running 100 watts barefoot.
>
> Phil.
> [log in to unmask]