I just bagged Wichita, KS on 2 meter fm (146.52) with 50 watts. 254 miles

eta: the guys in Wichita are reporting that OKC is also hearing them.

Nice. I keep an eye on aprs.fi and wait for those long first hops to show up.

It was a bit weird. I had just got home and parked my butt, flipped the 2 meter radio on and started surfing the news when they started coming up. At first I wasnt paying attention to it until I didnt hear a repeater ID. Normally theres a couple people on 146.550 (including me), but I didnt recognize any of the voices. Thats when I saw it was on 52. I just figured it was people passing through town, until they started taking checkins. All this time the S meter was climbing. Once the meter made it to about S4-5 I checked in. Kind of surprised them when I gave my location as Omaha, Ne. I guess they run a 52 simplex net 4:30-6:30 (ish) nightly and call it the drive home.
Even at S0 I could hear them and they could hear me. Shortly after I checked in and had a short QSO the Okies checked in. I'm not sure how many, but it sounded like more than 2. I heard reports that Texas was also heard in there.
Just like HF, signal would rise and fall.
I had thought about running outside and putting the beam together, but I didnt want to waste the chance, so everything was done on the good 'ol arrow j pole. One of the other locals that I chat with on 55 simplex got a bunch of them in Wichita after I had headed up to fix dinner. He has a much nicer location and a beam that rotates. He ended up working into Oklahoma before I got back.
I did hear a couple guys just east of St.Louis, MO later, but the band was folding in by then, and tried but couldn't work them.

Still, It was a blast getting that mileage on 2 meters.

Those openings are fun on 2M.  My best is em28 to Muskegon, MI many years ago.  Helps I had a 10ele beam up about 40ft.  But just 50 watts.  



Best 2M fm memory I have was a pilot out of Chicago headed to Vegas every thursday night on a commercial flight.  Caught him on .52 once when he was crossing over IA and NE.  Talked weekly for 2 months.