On The Cover of Rolling Stone (or QST at least)

The results were published today for the June 2009 VHF QSO Party in QST Magazine. My paltry efforts in the Unlimited Rover category resulted in a 3rd Place finish in that category and a listing of my name and callsign in the hallowed pages of QST.

Now, the league has lost some of it's luster since I was first licensed decades ago, but I'd be lying if I said that I didn't still get excited to see my name in the magazine, work W1AW on the air, or get a contest certificate in the mail. The years have made be wiser, and perhaps a bit more of a cynic, but there is enough romance left in these old bones to still get a warm feeling for these things.

In truth, my score of 24,000 was nothing to write home to mom about. And if the "Unlimited" category of Rover didn't exist, I wouldn't have placed in the Top 20 for Rovers. But for someone who operates with indoor antennas 90% of the time, and is always playing second fiddle to other stations, it was a nice morale boost.

Even this minimal showing would not have been possible without a lot of help from my VHF Elmers. First among them would have to be Jimmy Long, W4ZRZ. Jimmy not only loaned me equipment for my rover effort, but also provided a lot of training, set up support, and encouragement along the way. He always seems to be there with a pat on the back or a kick in the backside (whichever is needed) at just the right time to keep me motivated.

He's also one of the best VHF operators that you'll ever meet, and a heck of a contester. I've learned so much from him, and couldn't begin to repay him.

Bill Capps, AF4OD loaned me his 5Ghz and 10Ghz equipment for the contest when he saw that work would prevent him from making a major effort. He also has provided some valuable intel about good operating locations, and roving in general. Thanks Bill!

And lastly Jack, WA5UUD has indulged my endless questions about all things VHF---and is the first to call me on the one to alert me to openings. He also hung with me during my journey into EM61 where VHF operators are rare, and warned me of an approaching storm. Jack is one in a million, and I'm proud to call him friend. Thanks for staying with me Jack!

There are many more VHF Men who've helped out too---Marshall, K5QR comes to mind, and Bill Olson, and well, pretty much everyone on the VHF Reflectors, and e-mail lists. 

If I haven't said "Thank you" or told you that I'm grateful before, please let me do so now. It's quite a special fraternity that I've been allowed to join here. "VHF Man" is one of the best things that an amateur can be.

73,

N1LF

Grid #73 & The Jig To Come

Tropical Storm Ida and a cold front have put an end to the tropo for now, so what's a grid chaser with indoor antennas to do? Turn your eyes to the skies!

The Leonids Meteor shower will peak on November 17th, but even now the daily rates are starting to rise. Last night I had some limited operating time, but jumped on Ping Jockey to try a few contacts. My first attempt was with Terry Bess, K8JX in EN64, and we managed to pull off the 770 mile contact in a little over 15 minutes using WSJT software. This is Grid #73 on 2 Meters for me, and was a nice contact indeed.

Dan, VE2DSB monitored our QSO and decoded a couple of pings from me, and even managed to decode several from Terry off the back of the beam. After completing with Terry, Dan and I attempted a QSO for what must be the 30th time or so. Alas, no joy in Mudville. Dan and I were still not able to complete our QSO despite a half hour long attempt.

The ironic thing is that Dan was actually my first ever contact using the WSJT mode, but the QSO did not count because he walked me through it using the Ping Jockey Internet reflector. On that initial attempt, we completed in about 20 minutes, with Dan providing guidance and tips on operating the mode via the Internet logger. At the time, I think we both thought that we'd simply "do it again" for credit without the aid of the reflector later on.

Hours after the first contact (with three completed QSO's under my belt) we tried again without success. It's now turned into a running joke between the two of us. At 1,200 + miles it's no piece of cake for a meteor scatter contact, but both of us have completed longer ones.

Still the effort and the goal give us a glimpse into what the early VHF Men had to endure. Endless schedules in an attempt to complete a QSO, and seemingly endless disappointment. Dan and I are resolved to try around the 17th of this month during the shower peak to see if we can finally bag that elusive QSO.

I've got a bottle of bubbly chilling in the shack fridge to mark the event, when it finally happens, and have promised to dance a jig too. My wife is looking forward to that---you see, I can't dance, and all attempts to do so have become the stuff of legends in our family.

For those out there struggling with less than perfect antenna situations, hang in there, and remember that getting there isn't half the fun, it's all of it.

73,

N1LF

Scaring Up a Good Time-Halloween Tropo

Forgive my excitement---because I'm sure that this week's tropo openings in the Southeast and Midwest are not exactly the stuff of legends to most VHF men. But to a newcomer like me, it seems like the opening of a lifetime. Despite having only limited time to spend at the radio, I got all treats and no tricks!

 

On Wednesday night, I managed to work five new grids and dozens of stations that had previously only been worked via WSJT meteor scatter. The band was literally filled with signals, as I tuned across the band hearing QSO's in progress from 144.170 all the way up to 144.220. It was hard for me to believe!

 

I'm sure that this has something to do with the veil between ourselves and the spirit world being thinnest at this time of year, and all that. But be in voodoo, hoodoo, or just that Old Black Magic, I'll certainly take some of this witchcraft!

 

I worked stations from Iowa, Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, Florida, South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Kansas, Illinois, Indiana, and Arkansas, all in one magical evening!

 

You may say that these conditions were caused by atmospheric conditions, related to a pressure boundary, and all that scientific mumbo-jumbo, but you guys can't kid me. This was black magic! How else can you explain someone over 900 miles away telling a station with a 6 element indoor beam that his signal was "So loud, literally booming in!" Or reports from three states away of "S-9 +, you're the loudest signal on the band!"

 

Nah, I was married on Halloween, 27 years ago---so I know a thing or two about this darkest of holidays. You can try to feed someone else your lies about this tropo stuff. You guys should just come clean and admit that you've made a deal with the devil.

 

Regardless, as they say in Texas Hold 'Em...I'm all in! Now at 70 grids worked on 2 Meters with my indoor antennas, I'll gladly make a bargain with Lucifer for the next 30 grids!

 

Happy Halloween, indeed!

 

1st Ever Tropo Contact!

A couple of weeks ago brought another first for this VHF Man. A frontal boundary set up in the Southeast allowing for some medium range tropospheric propagation on 2 Meters, 222, and 432. Now based on what the experienced operators say, it was a "run of the mill" tropo opening, really nothing to write home about, but for this newcomer it was a blast!

I came late to the party, first hearing about the opening via an e-mail from one of the TV DXing e-mails lists. In years past, I was an avid DX'er of TV signals, and even though I'm not active in that part of the hobby these days, I still read the mail and plan to return to it someday.

I got the e-mail alerting me to an opening in Tennessee and North Alabama at about 7PM. I rushed out to the shack to see the APRS Map lit up in bright red all across my area. I turned on the rig and tuned to 144.200. Scanning around a bit, I heard nothing. I quickly checked the NOAA weather radio frequencies, and sure enough, some strange sounding material and city names indicated a strong opening towards the Mid-West.

Retuning to 144.200, I started using the voice keyer to call CQ. These went unanswered. On a whim, I filled on a 50 watt FM rig and tuned it to 146.520 Mhz (Simplex) and gave a quick CQ there too. To my surprise, I was immediately answered by Bobby Livingston, N5YLE in Little Rock, Arkansas! He was almost full quieting!

My FM rig has a three element beam, mounted vertically in the attic, and is fed with 1/2" hardline. While it's a solid performer on the local repeaters, it's no world beater. I was amazed!

Bobby turned out to be in EM34, which was a new one for me! Grid #64 went into the log book just that easily. Returning to SSB, I called several more times without answer. Suddenly, more and more stations began to appear. Most of them in EM55, EM65, etc. out to about a distance of 200-250 miles. Many of them were new calls in the log, but no new grids. The surprising thing is that even with my compromised antennas, many of them sounded strong like locals. Just working eight or nine stations on 2 Meter Sideband in a given evening was a thrill for me!

Sadly, the opening died off around 9PM, with no additional grids worked. But it was a taste of what tropo has to offer, and helped to build my hopes of making VUCC on 2 Meters from my indoor confines.

Thanks Bobby! My 1st ever tropo contact may have been on FM simplex, but it sill counts! The card is in the mail.

Grid #62 via WSJT Meteor Scatter!

WB3BEL PUTS GRID 62 IN THE LOG

Thanks to the skill and patience of Harry Johnson, WB3BEL, Grid #62 on 2 Meters went into the logbook this morning. We worked just after sunrise on 144.130 using WSJT Meteor Scatter software.

Just moments before Harry had worked another station in Alabama in EM64 in just a few minutes. I advised Harry that it might take longer due to my indoor antennas. We started the QSO, and within just a couple of sequences, I received a loud "ping" on the radio and a brief bit of audio. This decoded into 26 N1LF 2626 WB3BEL

For those not familiar with WSJT software messages, that means WB3BEL has received both call signs and is indicating that my signal strength is 26. Since I had now received both calls, I quickly shifted to sending my reply, which is simply R26.

Using the software, many proforma messages such as R26, RRR, and 73 can be sent using "short message tones" which really improve the performance in a weak signal environment. We had both agreed to use short message format prior to our attempted QSO.

Long minutes passed, and several more meteor pings brought me the same message over and over. This wasn't making sense. Harry has an impressive antenna array and should be hearing me fine. The issue is usually the receive side on my end. Literally, if I can hear them, I can work them.

I kept waiting for the "RRR" message from Harry that would indicate that he had copied my signal report and both calls...making the QSO valid. But instead, I just keep getting 26 N1LF 2626 WB3BEL. Something was wrong...but my XYL was making conversation, and we'd had less than four hours of sleep. My brain wasn't in "troubleshooting mode". As over an hour passed on, I finally spotted my error! I had forgotten to "check" the short message format box.

Harry's software had been hearing my replies but was unable to properly decode them! I switch to short message format and send "R26" again. Within two sequences, I got Harry's reply, "RRR". I responded with "73" and when he had copied that, I explained my error on the chat page.

So, special thanks to Harry for hanging in there! SASE from the village idiot is in the mail to you today, Harry. Thank you for Grid #62 and another step closer to my goal.

I've been seeing new callsigns on Pingjockey lately, and hope that more VHF Men will give WSJT a try. It's great to be able to work folks nearly around the clock, and is a great mode. With the Leonids meteor shower coming up in November, you're getting your feet wet at the perfect time. They should be plenty of good DX in the new couple of months. Give it a try!

Home Owners Association Antenna Issues

HOA Puts A "Stop" To Rover Antenna Too

Honestly, I'm trying hard to stay positive about living in a deed restricted neighborhood, and the impact that has on amateur radio activity. But I'm at my wits end.

Friday's mail brought a "warning notice" from my homeowners association informing me that I was in violation of the CC&R agreement which prohibits any outdoor antenna with the exception of small satellite dish antennas. According to the letter, the HOA had received a complaint from one of my neighbors who could see the "tip tops" of several large antennas in my backyard.

Since I have no outdoor antennas, I was more than a little puzzled. A quick stroll into the backyard revealed the problem. My PVC "rover rack" of large VHF/UHF Yagis was sitting on my patio table so that I could mow the lawn. Even with the privacy fence, the tops of it could likely be seen by one of my neighbors. I knew just which one is must be.

The Back Story: Just a few days prior to receiving the letter, my wife and I had been in the backyard spray painting some props for our Halloween decorations. We had placed a painters drop cloth on our patio and were doing a few touch ups during the early afternoon. We also used a Skill saw to cut a few PVC pipes for use in the props. A noisy and messy operation best done outside.

One of our neighbors was having several of her friends, and their children over for what Yuppies refer to as "play dates". Despite the emphasis on children, these are little more than excuses for the wives to dress up, act snotty, and gossip about their friends. During that afternoon, I had noticed several "hard looks" in our direction meant to convey her disappointment that we were doing labor in our backyard during her social event.  

My wife and I rarely even visit the backyard, and our college age kids have even given up using the hot tub, so I'm sure that she didn't expect anyone to be outside making noise during the afternoon. It should be noted that our temporary project is perfectly acceptable use of our property according to our neighborhood rules, leaving her little to complain about to the HOA. I suppose that when she spotted the antennas, she simply jumped on it as an excuse to make a fuss.

In any event, the experience has convinced me that any attempt to "hide" a tilt over mast would be futile. I'll simply have to learn to live with the reduced performance of attic mounted antennas, and place the rover rack into storage off-site.

There is little else that I can do until the economy improves and the demands for existing homes perks up. Maybe in a year or two, we'll consider selling the home, and moving to another neighborhood. Meanwhile, the quest for indoor VUCC on 2 Meters continues....

September Contest a Bust

Friday afternoon found one of our biggest client's with an emergency requiring me to spend most of the weekend in an editing suite. Instead of a full blown, six band Rover effort, we had to settle for some quick QSO's from the parking lot.


Our "normal" mobile setup is a Yaesu FT-857D feeding a 1/4 magnetic mount whip for 6 Meters, and a M2 Loop for 2 Meters. It's perfect for working some e-skip and locals on 2 Meters, but not what you'd want for a contest effort.

Despite that handicap, we managed about 40 QSO's, including several on FM during the Alabama ARES Simplex Exercise. (At least that part of the contest was a success!) We also worked a few QSO's on 222 MHz, using my HT.

We had planned to mount the PVC "Rover Rack" with nice sized Yagi's and rigs for all bands...but it just never happened. This is the first time since I've started on VHF almost two years ago that I didn't beat last year's score for a given contest. Disappointing, but at least the client was happy!

We'll be on for the Sprints and back in force for January. Until then, look for us most mornings on 144.200 and on WSJT modes too.