Ham Stuff

This year, I am pleased to announce that I will be activating the Boy Scouts of America’s Rancho Los Mochos during the annual, international Jamboree On The Air on October 15, 2011. With the help of KF6H and perhaps others, we will be putting Webelos and Boy Scouts on the air from 9am-5pm Pacific Daylight Time.

Continue reading “Point your antennas at CM97fn for JOTA 2011”

Tonight, I completed the 150th QSO for the ARRL’s Triple Play Award. I started thinking the award was a possibility last November when I worked 40 ARRL sections by CW during the ARRL November Sweepstakes. It has been my primary ham radio goal for the past 3 or 4 months.

The last QSO to complete the award was with Ted, KN5O, in Louisiana by CW. A Bay Area ham, John (KI6BEN), recommended Ted for a QSO, and I set up a sked with him via email. Conditions on 20m weren’t all that great. His RST was a 569, and mine was 559. He had it uploaded before I did. Thanks Ted!

15m was the money band for the CQ WPX SSB contest. I got ten new entities.

1. Antigua & Barbuda
2. Belgium
3. Croatia
4. Czech Republic
5. England
6. Fiji
7. Ireland
8. Italy
9. Slovak Republic
10. Switzerland

I wish I had more time to operate.

I got 116 CW QSOs with 49 sections for a total of 11,368 points and 325 SSB QSOs with 68 sections for 44,200 points. We had terrible weather Saturday night. We had heavy rain with lightning in the area. I powered down for an hour or so because the noise level was so high, and there was the threat of lightning.

I worked ZL8X before having to send my Yaesu FT-450AT to Yaesu for service. When I tried working them barefoot, no reply. Turned on the borrowed linear, and ZL8X replied on the first call. Now I am sending in my rig to get the CW plug fixed.