Tag: special event station

No hamming….

I haven’t been on the HF bands for a while. No CW, no DX Packet Cluster, nada. I’d like to get some quality time with the CW paddle.

The weather station is down – not sure what’s wrong.

My 2M packet station is partially working. The TNC is hooked up to yet another old computer that I moved out to the garage. But the wireless network connection out to the garage is hit and miss…. so I’m going to try to set up a bridge to extend the network out there.

I have been prepping the W4V Veterans Day Special Event cards and certificates. I plan to finish up the cards and should be able to print the certificates out tomorrow. All should be in the mail on Thursday.

Beer update: The total fermentation time was two weeks. I bottled the first batch on Saturday. I varied the amount and type of sugar. In 1/4 of the bottles I put 1/2 brown sugar and 1/2 regular sugar. In another 1/4 of the bottles I put all brown sugar. The rest of the bottles got the regular sugar. We’ll see what kind of difference the sugar makes. This Saturday I’ll put 4 of the beers in the fridge for conditioning….. then 4 more the next week, etc. I have another batch to start fermenting… probably this weekend.

Went to the eye doctor today and was diagnosed with keratoconus in my left eye. At first I thought that meant that my eye would bulge, possibly pop out and/or bleed… but it’s actually not too bad. Keratoconus, or KC for short, is a thinning disorder of the cornea that causes distortion and reduced vision. The biggest short term impact is that I have to get hard contact lenses. I do need to start taking better care of my eyes.

Already the 19th of November!

I’ve been falling behind on my updates…

(1) W4V – Veterans’ Day Special Event Station. I got a late start on Saturday… took a while to pack the truck. Setup at Fort Story took longer than expected – my biggest challenge was tying down the center mast after I’d gotten it vertical. It’s really a two person job and hard to do alone. But once I got the antenna up, the rest was easy. A beautiful day as well, low 70s and clear skies. The QSOs rolled in, as long as I was calling “CQ” I was getting QSOs. Sunday was a different story. The forecast called for rain, but I thought I could weather it out. I arrived at Fort Story but the winds became too extreme – no chance of getting the center pole up. I threw in the towel for a portable operation and headed home to operate. Not the same satisfaction running a special event from home, but I still enjoyed the QSOs. Even got Wyoming… which completes my Worked All States Award!


(2) Kenwood TS-930S…. my “new to me rig”. I picked this up from a local ham at a bargain. What a radio!

This piece of electronics perfection is over 20 years old, but it performs like a dream. The receiver is amazing. Also getting great reception reports on both SSB and CW. This rig is now the centerpiece of my shack.

(3) I didn’t work the Sweepstakes this weekend, but did have a QSO with a special event station celebrating Oklahoma statehood. However, I did work a sweepstakes station on 15M who was operating from the Santa Clara Valley.

(4) Also a few CW QSOs – I’ve hooked up my Logikey CMOS4 Keyer. Amazing little device, lots of features – but does a great job as a basic keyer.

Upcoming Special Event Stations

Nov 9-Nov 12, 1600Z-2000Z, Arlington Heights, IL. Armored Force Amateur Radio Net, KA9NLX. Veteran’s Day SE honoring all veterans. 14.325 7.283 7.035 3.985. Certificate. John Paskevicz, 1423 North Ridge Ave, Arlington Heights, IL 60004. AFAR members will operate from different parts of the country on all amateur HF frequencies and 2 meters.

Nov 10-Nov 13, 1300Z-2100Z, Hampton, VA. US Army Amateur Radio Society, W4V. Veteran’s Day observance from Fort Monroe, VA. 14.248 7.248. Certificate. US Amry Radio Society, 224 Beauregard Heights, Hampton, VA 23669. www.usaars.com

Nov 11, 1200Z-2359Z, Nutley, NJ. Robert D. Grant United Labor Amateur Radio Association, N2UL. CQ Veterans Day, Labor remember our heroes. 28.420 12.260. Certificate. RDGULARA, c/o WA2VJA, 112 Prospect St, Nutley, NJ 07110-0716. rdgulara.org

Nov 11, 1300Z-1900Z, Brownsville, TX. Charro Amateur Radio Club, W5CRC. Return of the Snow Bird to South Texas. 28.335 21.335 14.335. QSL. Bob Austin, K5VC, 107 W Park Dr, Brownsville, TX 78520. www.qsl.net/w5crc

Nov 11, 1430Z-2039Z, Grand Rapids, MI. Michigan Amateur Radio Alliance, W8USA. Veteran’s Day. 14.250 7.250 14.070 7.040. QSL. W8USA, PO Box 670, Comstock Park, MI 49321. www.w8usa.org

Nov 11, 1500Z-2230Z, Baton Rouge, LA. Baton Rouge Amateur Radio Club, W5KID. Veteran’s Day. CW 28.060 21.060 14.060 10.106 7.040 SSB 14.250 to 24.320. QSL. W5KID, c/o USS Kidd Museum, 305 South River Rd, Baton Rough, LA 70802. www.lsu.edu/brarc/USS_Kidd.htm

Nov 11, 1500Z-2200Z, Waterloo, IA. Five Sullivan Brothers Amateur Radio Club, W0FSB. Veterans’ Day and the 64th Anniversary of the loss of the Five Sullivans. 50.140 21.240 14.240 7.240. Certificate and QSL. Five Sullivan Brothers Amateur Radio Club, 4015 Independence Ave, Waterloo, IA 50703.

Nov 13, 2100Z-0000Z, Fort Wayne, IN. Amateur Radio Military Appreciation Day, KC9HAJ. Military Appreciation Monday/DAV — Golden Corral. 21.240 14.260 7.240. Certificate. Emery McClendon, 6116 Graymoor Ln, Fort Wayne, IN 46835. www.armad.net

Special event 4U60UO to mark UNESCO 60th anniversary celebration

Members of the Association of Radioamateurs of Paris (ARP) will operate special event station 4U60UO to mark the conclusion of the 60-week long 60th anniversary celebration of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The station will be on the air from UNESCO Headquarters in Paris Saturday and Sunday, November 4-5. 4U60UO will operate all modes — including CW, SSB, SSTV, PSK31, satellites and hamDRM — and all bands from 1.8 MHz to 47 GHz (except for 6 meters). Chartered November 16, 1945, UNESCO marked its 60th anniversary by selecting 60 themes to highlight the 60 weeks between September 5, 2005, and November 4, 2006. A special QSL and certificate will be available from ARP.–Laurent Beugnet, F6GOX

KPH to mark International Radiotelegraph Conference centenary

The Maritime Radio Historical Society (MRHS) will join others around the world in marking the 100th anniversary of the International Radiotelegraph Conference. Delegates to the 1906 gathering in Berlin designated 500 kHz (600 meters) as the international distress and calling frequency and SOS as the distress signal, and they signed the International Radiotelegraph Convention, which eventually became the International Telecommunication Union Radio Regulations. MRHS’s KPH, which began operation in 1905, will activate at 0001 UTC on Saturday, November 4, on 500 kHz and on its working frequency, 426 kHz. “KPH will send special messages and marine information using 500 kc as frequently as possible, keeping in mind that other stations share this frequency,” says the KPH Chief Operator Richard “R.D.” Dillman, W6AWO. “Longer bulletins will be sent on 426 kc after an announcement on 500 kc.” Dillman says KPH will monitor 500 kHz at all times for calls from ships and will observe the silent period. KPH ops also will listen between 505 and 510 kHz for stations operating as part of the ARRL WD2XSH experimental group, although Dillman adds that contacts between those stations and KPH will not be possible. MRHS Amateur Radio station K6KPH will monitor 3550, 7050 and 14,050 kHz for calls from radio amateurs wishing to submit signal reports. To obtain a printed confirmation of KPH reception, send reports to D.A. Stoops, PO Box 381, Bolinas CA 94924-0381 USA.

Update

Attempted a lunch 40M CW QSO with Larry, N8LGG, but had a very hard time hearing him. Was able to get his name and QTH (Oakpark, IL) and that was about it.

Followed up with a QSO with the HG1956R special event station from Hungary. He a great signal and gave me a nice 59 report. I remember reading about this special event station somewhere. I’m looking forward to the QSL card.

… From The Shack

2006 CQ WW DX Contest: It has been a learning experience so far. Much more intense than Field Day. It seems as if the bands are jam packed – nothing but “CQ Contest” from 80M to 10M. I started last night a had contacts mostly on 80M, but also a few on 40M – mainly South America and the Caribbean. Today contacts are about even between 15M and 20M… more Caribbean island stations, Africa, and Europe. Not much heard from the Pacific. I did hear a KH6 station on 15M buried in noise.

When I wasn’t on the radio I was finishing the QSL cards from the W4M special event station. I now consider my QSLing activities for W4M complete.

I’ve also been cleaning up my log. As of right now, I’ve logged 1069 QSOs since I upgraded to General in Nov 2005. Of those, 102 are CW QSOs (the first was back in DEC 2005). I need to go back and look up FISTS information and see if I’m close to their basic award. I’ve contacted a total of 86 DXCC entities – maybe I’ll be able to get 14 more during the remainder of the contest. The total towards the Worked All States award is 47. I’m missing Hawaii, Alaska, and Wyoming. I’m also probably close to the basic award for Worked All US Counties. The basic award is for 500 counties, I think.

Best news this weekend – I got the ICOM CT-17 working!. It’s quite slick, I can now click on a DX cluster spot in my logging program and my IC-706MKIIG automatically flips to that frequency. Or, if I’m hunting and pouncing, the log will automatically grab the freq and mode from the radio and place it in the log. I wish I had done this earlier.

I also had a short 30M QSO with Bill, WD8RTW over in WV. The QSO was going well, but then he disappeared. He came back briefly but we ended the QSO.

Special Events for the end of October

Oct 25-Oct 29, 0000Z-2400Z, Portsmouth, VA. USCG Auxiliary/ISAR Special Event, N4I. International Search and Rescue Competition. 28.450 21.290 14.250 7.210. Certificate. Richard Cook, AB4U, 14288 Riverside Dr, Ashland, VA 23005. www.internationalsar.com.

Oct 26-Oct 30, 1400Z-2300Z, Sycamore, IL. Kishwaukee Amateur Radio Club, W9P. Sycamore Pumpkin Festival. 14.268 14.042 7.268 7.042. Certificate. Bob Yurs, W9ICU, 1107 Commercial St, Sycamore, IL 60178. www.kish-club.org.

Oct 27-Oct 29, 1600Z-0200Z, Point Pleasant, WV. Main Street Baptist Church, K8J. Centennial Celebration, 1906-2006. 14.240 14.050 7.240 7.050. Certificate or QSL. G.E. Hodges, Rt 1 Box 646A, Point Pleasant, WV 25550. http://webpages.charter.net/ab8s/K8J%20main%20street%20page.mht.

Oct 28, 1300Z-2100Z, Ann Arbor, MI. US Coast Guard Auxiliary, N8A. 67th anniversary of the US Coast Guard Auxiliary. 28.355 21.380 14.290 7.265. QSL. Tony Morris, WA8TM, 827 Asa Gray Dr #459, Ann Arbor, MI 48105-3522. www.cgaux.org.

Oct 28, 1300Z-2100Z, McKeesport, PA. US Coast Guard Auxiliary Division 9, KD3HQ. 67th anniversary of USCG Auxiliary. 14.250. QSL. Walter R. Gretz, 253 Henry St, Whitaker, PA 15120.

Oct 28, 1300Z-2300Z, Huntington, WV. US Coast Guard Auxiliary Division 2 8ER, K8E. Commemorating 67th anniversary of US Coast Guard Auxiliary. 28.350 21.340 14.280 7.282. QSL. Matthew Morris, PO Box 134, Cheshire, OH 45620.
Oct 28, 1400Z-2100Z, Carthage, TX. Panola County Amatuer Radio Club, WA5PC. Special Event from the grave site of country/western music star Gentaleman Jim Reeves. General phone bands. Certificate. Panola County Amateur Radio Club, 380 CR 1241, Gary, TX 75643. www.wa5pc.org. Weather permitting.

Oct 28, 1300Z-2300Z, Jacksonville, FL. US Coast Guard Auxiliary, W4W. 67th anniversary of the US Coast Guard Auxiliary. 28.490 21.410 14.255 7.290. QSL. Joe Mac Ivor, 12632 Blue Eagle Way, Jacksonville, FL 32225.

Oct 28, 1300Z-2300Z, St. Marks, FL. US Coast Guard Auxiliary District Eight Flotilla 1-2, N4A. Coast Guard Auxiliary Special Event Radio Day. 28.400 21.400 14.247 7.267. QSL. Tom Ziko, 7849 Briarcreek Rd W, Tallahassee, FL 32312.

Oct 28, 1300Z-2300Z, Philadelphia , PA. United States Coast Guard Auxiliary District 5-NR, K3G. Commemorating USCG Auxiliary 67th anniversary. 50.130 21.330 14.270 7.270. QSL. Joe Rzucidlo, 1013 Anderson St, Trainer, PA 19061.

Oct 28, 1400Z-2100Z, Flowery Branch, GA. United States Coast Guard Auxiliary, W4A. Anniversary of US & Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary. 21.360 14.278 7.278. QSL. Al Miles, 3325 Rangers Gate Dr, Marietta, GA 30062.

Oct 28, 1400Z-2200Z, Paris Landing, TN. US Coast Guard Auxiliary Division 8-8E-10, W4A. US Coast Guard Auxiliary 67th anniversary. 28.335 21.370 14.285 7.242. QSL. Kenny Johns, AB4EG, 52 Buttonwood Dr, Jackson, TN 38305. http://a0820810.uscgaux.info.

Oct 28, 1400Z-2200Z, Quad Cities, AL. US Coast Guard Auxiliary Division 24 8ER, W4F. Commemorating US Coast Guard Auxiliary 67th anniversary. 28.350 21.350 14.260 7.260. QSL. Roy Nagle, W4AQQ, 465 McClung St, Phil Campbell, AL 35581. http://a0530407.uscgaux.info/SED2006.html.

Oct 28, 1500Z-2000Z, Port Huron, MI. United States Coast Guard Auxiliary 091-14-03, W8A. Celebrating USCG Auxiliary 67th anniversary & ISAR Special Event. 28.320 21.310 14.260 7.260. QSL. Rodger Catt, 1840 Kern St, Port Huron, MI 48060.

Oct 28, 1300Z-2300Z, St Marks, FL. US Coast Guard Auxiliary District Eight Flotilla 1-2, N4A. Coast Guard Auxiliary Special Event Radio Day. 28.400 21.400 14.247 7.267. QSL. Tom Ziko, 7849 Briarcreek Rd W, Tallahassee, FL 32312.

Oct 28-Nov 2, 1400Z-2200Z, Wheatland, MO. USCG Auxiliary Flotilla 0504, N0N. 67th anniversary of the USCG Auxiliary. 14.280 7.280 3.963. Certificate. Richard E. Hunt, KC0FDF, PO Box 96, Wheatland, MO 65779.

Oct 31-Nov 1, 0600Z-0600Z, Frankenstein, MO. Warrensburg Amateur Radio Club, WØO. Frankenstein FunXpedition 2006. 28.370 21.378 14.265 3.945. QSL. Dennis Gedeon, KBØNHW, 1811 Hillside Ct, Oak Grove, MO 64075. www.waarci.org.

Oct 31-Nov 1, 1800Z-1400Z, Frankenstein, MO. Mid-MO Amateur Radio Club, WØO. Frankenstein FunXpedition 2006. 21.040 14.040 10.113 7.040 3.540. QSL (100%
direct). Tom Hammond, NØSS, 5417 Scruggs Station Rd, Lohman, MO 65053. www.mmccs.com/mmarc.

Busy In The Shack

WX Station: Yesterday after work I was able to reroute the cable for the wind direction/speed sensor from the radio room over to the garage. This included a quick trip up to the roof. I now need to figure out where I’m going to place the rain gauge. The location is tricky because I don’t want it under trees and it should also be accessible for maintenance/cleaning. Today I need to try and move the webcam from the window ledge outside the radio room to the garage window.

CW contacts: I had two on 80M last night, the first was from MI and the second was from AL. Band conditions were pretty bad. Yesterday at lunch I had a short CW QSO with a Polish station on 20M. I guess that’s my first CW QSO to Europe. The station was sending fast, so I only picked up about half of what was sent.

W4M Memorial Day Special Event Station: in a continued attempt to close out all the loose ends from the W4M special event station, I am now sending out QSL cards to all the remaining contacts that I have not yet sent anything to. These remaining folks never sent me anything, but I’d rather send them the W4M QSL card than hang on to a bunch of extra cards. I’m also including a return SASE for those in the US. I completed 30 last night and would like to do 40 tonight. I just want to get a QSL card out to every contact and then officially close the book on the W4M special event.