Category Archives: Blog
Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas
Field Day 2015…Reaching the Top
As we awake out of our winter doldrums and into spring, there is already talk in some radio clubs of that summer operating event known as Field Day.
The Bullitt Amateur Radio Society (KY4KY) will soon be preparing for its yearly summer outing, with some additional operating assistance from the Kentucky DX Association (KY4XX). The BARS club of Kentucky did an outstanding job during the 2015 event, with the club having its most productive effort in the club’s history. KY4KY operated/entered in the 2F Category, which was supplemented by an allowed VHF/UHF station and a GoTA station.
- KY4KY (2F Category) QSO’s was 1,958.
- W4KBR (GoTA) total QSO’s was 98
- Total QSO’S was 2,056
This effort by the BARS club members & its guests provided:
- #1 Nationwide in the 2F Category
- #1 Great Lakes Division in the 2F Category
- #1 Kentucky for all entries
- #6 Overall placement in the Great Lakes Division (all categories)
- Top 100 finish out of all 2015 entries
The BARS Club had 44 registered attendees, guests, and radio operators. I am sure we had a few that slipped by the sign-in booth as the folks came by for their visit to our site. Many thanks to the handful of folks that come out each year just to help set up and tear down the event. Luckily, the weather for the 2015 event was abnormally cool temps which helped to keep a spring in our step and no need for extra water breaks.
Thanks to all the ops that spent just a few hours, an evening, or stayed for the entire event.
73 and see you on the bands again this June!
IARU 2015…It’s all about the F-U-N!
The IARU HF Championship that occured July 11, 2015 proved to be no disappointment for all of those that participated. Since my return to Amateur Radio as a full-time pursuit in 2006, I have really become fond of this particular contest event. I have participated yearly, with some years more fruitful than others as it relates to score and my overall placement.
For 2015, I decided that it would be interesting to gather a group of local contest talent and just see how well we could place with a dedicated effort from those very comfortable in front of the key or microphone. I invited several folks to the house for this event, planning out a loose operating scheme coupled with the treat of food from the grill and desserts lovingly created by the wife. It was a great learning experience, realizing what I did right in preparing for this event and then how I could improve and guide things for future events.
Fortunately, the bands were in relatively good shape, with activity not being hampered by any solar storms or by a K index that was over the top. One of the unique things about this year’s IARU Contest was the activity from all the WRTC stations on the air for the WRTC 2015 event, which interestingly enough was being convened in the USA.
Our single transmitter, multi-operator effort was a blast, with all that participated having a great time. One of the most important elements with any combined effort is that of achieving good results coupled with F-U-N.
Our operating effort was ended some 2-3 hours early due to some very active thunderstorm cells bearing down on our area. Even with this early exit from the airwaves, we were able to produce a very noteworthy entry.
We placed #1 in the ARRL Great Lakes Division for a multi-op, high power entry:
Displaying entries for Class=D and Power=C and Division=GL
| # | Call | Score | Power | QSOs | Mult | Class | Section | |||
| 1 | KE4KY | 290,427 | C | 763 | 131 | D | KY | |||
| 2 | K4FT | 69,960 | C | 242 | 106 | D | KY | |||
| 3 | KC9EEE | 21,873 | C | 121 | 69 | D | MI |
We placed #15 out of all the multi-op entries entered from the USA:
Displaying entries for Class=D and Division=US Only
| # | Call | Score | Power | QSOs | Mult | Class | Section | |||
| 1 | KD4D | 2,484,720 | C | 2,302 | 315 | D | MDC | |||
| 2 | N6DZ | 1,146,600 | C | 1,520 | 225 | D | EB | |||
| 3 | K0BJ | 956,535 | C | 1,507 | 215 | D | KS | |||
| 4 | AA4HP | 865,904 | C | 1,339 | 208 | D | SFL | |||
| 5 | KD2RD | 859,280 | C | 1,526 | 184 | D | NLI | |||
| 6 | K9ZO | 763,560 | C | 1,260 | 210 | D | IL | |||
| 7 | N2GC | 640,578 | C | 930 | 241 | D | NLI | |||
| 8 | NX6T | 578,664 | C | 1,346 | 141 | D | SDG | |||
| 9 | KC4D | 545,413 | C | 913 | 179 | D | VA | |||
| 10 | NK9N | 430,172 | C | 891 | 164 | D | NC | |||
| 11 | AC8Y | 398,546 | C | 619 | 202 | D | VA | |||
| 12 | KD0WAK | 393,210 | C | 826 | 153 | D | CO | |||
| 13 | N7BV | 366,177 | C | 747 | 159 | D | WWA | |||
| 14 | W4AQL | 302,216 | C | 690 | 148 | D | GA | |||
| 15 | KE4KY | 290,427 | C | 763 | 131 | D | KY | |||
| 16 | WR5O | 231,516 | C | 676 | 118 | D | WTX |
Well, the 2016 IARU will soon be upon us. Plans are being made already to again make a multi-op entry for KE4KY.
Who knows, maybe a a top 10 USA entry?? We can only hope!
tgp
Updates…
After an absence of updates, I am looking forward to being active on the blog again. I will again start posting some articles regarding the world of Amateur Radio in the Bluegrass State! With the ARRL Field Day 2015 right around the corner, I will look forward to posting the happenings of the KY4KY BARS Club effort.
Most of my Field Day work will be in the CW station, so I hope to put you in the log from our KY4KY 2F Field Day station.
73!
2014 – KY4KY Field Day
KY4KY – Bullitt Amateur Radio Society (Kentucky….of course!)
The 2014 Field Day effort of the Bullitt Amateur Radio Society (KY4KY) was a great success! The active and vibrant club located just minutes south of the Louisville Metro area has a great history of putting on very organized and successful Field Day outings.
The set-up began shortly after sunrise, with the placement of the camper/trailer for the CW Station, and a motorhome for the vhf/uhf station. The SSB and GOTA stations employed screened tent canopies for their operating shelters.
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| CW Station: Camper with air conditioning! |
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| VHF/UHF Station |
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| SSB Station |
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| GOTA Station |
Our effort was greatly enhanced by two of the newer members of the club stepping forward and taking on large areas of responsibility for this year’s effort. David N8ZFM volunteered to captain the SSB station, and John N4TVS took the reins of the GOTA station. It is truly heartening to see new members jump at the chance to deepen their activity with the club after being associated with the group for such relatively short period of time. David’s background is in the computer and IT field, so his skills were welcomed greatly when it came to the networking of the stations while using the N1MM logging program. John, although licensed for many years, has not been active on the airwaves and utilized this opportunity to truly begin his amateur radio career.
The forecast for the Ohio Valley was somewhat typical…hot and humid…, but the non-specific forecast of “hit & miss” showers had us wondering if we would be setting up and taking down in the rain.
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| KY4KY Station layout & view from the roadway |
Fortunately, the rain hit well after 2:00 p.m. local time, and did not interfere with the club’s annual cookout event. Although showers persisted in the region, our location stayed dry for the rest of the event.
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| The SSB station |
The bands were certainly active, with 20m and 40m being the most active for those much needed QSO’s. We found 10m and 6m to be virtually void of any activity, with only a very small number of contacts garnered from those higher bands. Unfortunately, 80m was very noisy and it truly was an effort to get those in the log that were able to be heard clearly over the noise.
The CW Station antenna farm:
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| 10, 15, & 20 meter rotatable dipole |
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| Rotatable dipole (up appx. 30 feet +/-) |
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| 80 meter dipole support |
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| 4BTV |
Thankfully, we were able to accomplish one Satellite QSO to satisfy some additional bonus points for our 2014 submission.
Breakdown of Field Day:
CW contacts: 946
SSB Contacts: 633
GOTA Contacts: 69 (all SSB)
Total Contacts: 1648
(9 DXCC Entities in the log)
Mostly…we had a lot of fun!
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| Ralph W4HK & Steve W4PF working CW |
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| Bob KC4HM on SSB |
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| John N4TVS: Enjoying being “on the air” |
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| Buddy KC4WQ: A very good CW op! |
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| John WA4UMR (rt): One of my Amateur Radio mentors |
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| The Bullitt Co. Judge Executive even stopped by (listening to some Morse) |
KY4KY took top honors in the 2F category last year, having the best overall score of all the 2F submissions. We can only hope that we do as well this year!
Hope you supported your club in their Field Day effort this year!
73!
GP
Mellish Reef 2014
The Mellish Reef DXpedition, although shortened by Cyclone Ita, was a success by every measure! I have finally added some content to the VK9MT 2014 tab on this blog…so click on the link and enjoy a snapshot of the DXpedition.
There will be many articles appearing this year on the DXpedition, the first of which was in the “How’s DX?” column found in the July 2014 QST. Many thanks to the QST staff and Bernie W3UR for this opportunity to profile the VK9MT effort.
I am so very lucky to have had the opportunity to be deemed worthy of inclusion with this project. The friendships and bonds that continue to grow as a result of our meeting on a prior DXpedition are a truly a gift and a blessing.
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| VK9MT Team |
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| VK9MT U.S.A. Ops |
73…See you in the next pile-up!
Out with 2013…In with 2014
Some say, as one gets older the years seem to pass more quickly. I am beginning to believe that they are correct! 2013 has been a busy year, with the pages of the calendar flipping at a unbelievably quick pace. I began the year still riding a large wave of enthusiasm and personal accomplishment having just returned home from my adventures in the sub-Antarctic. The Campbell Island (NZ) 2012 DXpedition continued to have “legs” throughout the year:
- A visit to the International DX Convention in Visalia, CA (April, 2013)
- ZL9HR Team reunion, Dayton Hamvention (May, 2013)
- Several Local radio club presentations regarding the Campbell Is. DXpedition
- Hosting a DX related forum at the Greater Louisville Hamfest (September, 2013)
What a wonderful experience, not to mention the great friendships that were forged during that great adventure.
As I write this, the VK9MT Mellish Reef 2014 DXpedition is only about 90 days from being “on the air.” Our Team has accomplished so much in the planning of this DXpedition. There is still many things to do, but the finish line is coming into view as we prepare to complete final logistical tasks prior to leaving for Australia.
Once in Australia, there will be very little downtime, as there is much to accomplish prior to sailing on the EVOHE. Enough cannot be said about the leadership and vision displayed by Gene/K5GS, Les/W2LK, and Pista/HA5AO during the course of this project.
It was great to have been a part of the fantastic 2013 ARRL Field Day effort put on by the Bullitt AmateurRadio Society (KY4KY). The BARS club was able to place first in the 2F Category, fulfilling a long-time quest by many of its active members. A few stats regarding this effort:
_ First Place, 2F Category _ 96th best score out of total 2,548 entries
_ #11 in overall score in the Great Lakes Division
_ #2 in Kentucky in overall score (beat by 6A station)
Kudos to event organizer, Rickey/KC4S, for his record keeping, organizational skills, and overall leadership during this event. I am already looking forward to Field Day 2014!
As the New Year looms on the horizon, I can only hope that it holds the promise of being as eventful and memorable as 2013!
Happy New Year!
Mellish Reef 2014
It almost seems surreal! After receiving my “break-through” amateur radio adventure opportunity in 2012 with the Campbell Island DXpedition, I now find myself once again involved with a significant Amateur Radio DXpedition project!
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| click on logo to go to webpage |
Mellish Reef is currently listed as the #25 most wanted DXCC entity on Club Log, and as #32 most wanted according to the 2013 survey by DX Magazines Most Wanted List. (info as of 9/2013)
“Where the heck is that?” you ask. Mellish Reef is located in the Coral Sea, approximately 1100 km northeast of Brisbane, Australia (Australia’s eastern coast).
The island is a small caye, measuring only 600 meters by 120 meters, being about 2 meters above the high-tide mark. The caye is the only exposed part of a large reef ecosystem that is boomerang shaped, approximately 10 km long by 3 km wide.
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| Mellish Reef (OC-072) |
The plan to activate Mellish Reef in early 2014 was conjured up by several of my former Campbell Island teammates this past June while in Budapest. Pista/HA5AO, Les/W2LK, Gene/K5GS, & George/HA5UK put forward the idea of activating this entity and began laying the ground floor for this project.
I did not know much of the initial details, but after receiving several emails labeled, “…Fellow Team Member…” I was compelled to call Gene/K5GS and ask what was up. He informed me that I was “on the team” unless I expressed an inability to participate with the project. After several days of crunching potential cost estimates, looking at the 2014 calendar, and explaining the project to the XYL….I decided I was in!
As I learn more about Mellish and its previous activations, I could not be more excited and thrilled to be part of this project.
Please follow our progress as we advance this project forward.
Hope to see you in the next pile-up!!
Radio Contesting Can be Fun!
Radio Contesting Can be Fun!
KY4KY: 2013 IARU Contest
Amateur Radio Contesting (also known as radiosport) is a competitive activity pursued by amateur radio operators. In a contest, an amateur radio station, which may be operated by an individual or a team, seeks to contact as many other amateur radio stations as possible in a given period and exchange information. (wikipedia.org)
Contest: any race, game, debate, etc., in which there is a struggle to be the winner. (Webster’s New Universal Dictionary)
Competition: a contest, a match. (Webster’s New Universal Dictionary)
“Endeavor to persevere.” Lone Watie, The Outlaw Josey Wales
Although I have been involved in amateur radio for thirty-eight years, it has only been the last six years I have actively participated in the art of radiosport. I am not an overly competitive person, realizing that in most of my personal pursuits there will always be someone that will out-do, out-score, and far surpass my own abilities. However…I am a person that enjoys a challenge, strives for improvement, and looks for ways to expand my skill sets. In 2006, I returned from a twelve year hiatus from the HF bands. A dramatic change in my career status once again allowed me the time to fully participate in the hobby I have been a part of prior to entering my teen years. As I reconnected with old friends while helping them with their tower and antenna projects, I felt that burning desire to get my own station back on the air. As my new experiences on HF began, I realized that amateur radio had changed dramatically, particularly with the coupling of the hobby with Internet technologies and the enormous amount of amateur related software now available. As I began my new learning curve of the amateur radio of the 21st century, I went immediately back to the basics….CW. I determined very quickly that my code speed.…well.…I had no speed! Since I was previously an avid DXer, much of my activity chasing those rare and semi-rare DXCC entities involved the use of CW. I began the search for a means to enhance my rusty code copying abilities and was subsequently pulled into the world of amateur radio contesting.I initially used the occasional contest just as a means to improve my code speed, but then I began to enjoy the competitive aspect of the events. As my participation increased with the more popular contests, my goals changed and morphed as I completed each contest event. My goals:
- Improving my CW skills
- Increasing my operating confidence
- Striving for a more consistent QSO rate
- Bettering my score from the last entry
- Having FUN
The largest hurdle yet for me to overcome is that of endurance. I need to drastically improve my A.I.S. skills (interpreted as: butt in seat). It would appear that the most accomplished contesters are masters of endurance, not allowing distractions of any kind during the contest period. Kudos to the top tier competitors that pull this off each major contest, year after year. In July of 2013, I opened my home station for members of the Bullitt Amateur Radio Society to come by and participate in the 2013 IARU HF Championship Contest.
Many of our club members had openly stated their desire for an opportunity to “contest” other than the annual ARRL Field Day event, which we all know is not a contest 😉 !! The IARU Contest is an exciting 24-hour operating event with a simple on-air exchange, with concurrent CW and phone elements, and with many stations or organizations participating around the globe. My goal was for experienced operators to coach and guide the less-experienced ops with initiating a contact, completing the required exchange, and then quickly moving on to the next QSO. With the help of Ralph W4HK and Buddy KC4WQ, we had plenty of contest experience to coach and guide those willing to come by and experience HF contesting at its best.
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| Ralph/W4HK: Churning out the SSB contacts |
While not recommended in most marriages, the husband and wife team of Buddy and Tina Sohl proved to be a formidable contesting pair. Tina responded very well to the coaching provided by Buddy while “running” a frequency during the very active late evening hours. Tina was doing quite well working the microphone as Buddy logged the contacts. I believe we will see more of this team again in the future.
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| Buddy/KC4WQ & Tina/KJ4QFK |
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| Buddy/KC4WQ doing what he does best…CW! |
Eddie K4EDH was eager to get behind the microphone. With the crowded conditions, an extra ear was needed to help Eddie pull some of the calls from the QRM. While on 40 meter SSB, he was able to work into Europe with ease while going up and down the band in S&P mode (Search and Pounce). Eddie was able to work his first DX contacts during this contest. Following a successful contact he would ask, “Where was he located?” I would respond with whatever European country it was….Eddie would initially have a look of disbelief. After several DX stations in a row, he quickly realized that contacting our European neighbors was not really that hard.
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| Robert/KF4TYF, Eddie/K4EDH, & Glenn/KE4KY |
Rick KC4S has been the club’s Field Day Chairman for the last several years. His exposure to the contest nature of the Field Day event has sparked his interest in the contesting format of other operating events. Being the owner of Elecraft KX3, he has a newfound interest in portable operations, such as the Summits on the Air event. Rick proved a quick learner and was smoothly going from one contact to the next while working SSB on 40 and 80 meters.
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| Rick/KC4S |
What was accomplished??
- Those that participated had FUN
- Some worked DX for the first time
- We all learned from the event
- Increased confidence while going from one QSO to the next
- Our Multi-op effort put KY4KY “on the air” during a major operating event
- After 20.5 hours of operation – 1175 QSO’s (~50% were CW)
There is much written about contesting in books and from chatter on the many Internet web pages, blogs and forums. You can learn much just by participating in one of many major contests, even if it is just for a few hours or for a handful of Q’s. If you are looking for another aspect of amateur radio to keep things interesting, consider participating in a few contests and add a new personal skill to an already great hobby.
My thanks to Eddie K4EDH, Rick KC4S, Tina KJ4QFK, Robert KF4TYF, Ralph W4HK, and Buddy KC4WQ for participating in this event. My special thanks to Ralph W4HK, without whom this event would not have been as successful as it was.
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| Glenn/KE4KY |
See you in the next contest!