 April 10, 2013 Editor: Ward Silver, NØAX | |||||||
IN THIS ISSUE
NEW HF OPERATORS - THINGS TO DO If you got your license in the past three years - the ARRL Rookie Roundup is for you and April 21st is the SSB edition. Grab a microphone and have at it! Thanks to Bruce WA7BNM, results will be compiled and published automatically on the online web page immediately following the score submission deadline. If you aren't a Rookie - find somebody who is and show them how to give HF a try! Clubs - here's a great pre-Field Day training opportunity for a multi-op or a team challenge - how about a PVRC team versus an NCCC team? BULLETINS There has been a frequency shift for the ARRL Frequency Measuring Test (FMT) taking place this evening (April 10th in North America) as announced by event manager, Connie K5CM: "I have been monitoring the 80 meter FMT frequency and it seems the frequency I chose is problematic for QRM...the new reference signal will be exactly on 3598 kHz and the FMT signal near 3600 kHz." If you're not doing anything this evening, why not test your frequency measuring capabilities? It begins on 20 meters at 10:30 PM EDST. BUSTED QSOS Nothing particularly terrible was reported from the previous issue. CONTEST SUMMARY Complete information for all contests follows the Conversation section April 13-14
April 20-21
From the Daily DX, "K7SO, Doc, makes note of the upcoming April 20/21 Worked All Provinces of China (WAPC) Contest as "a good opportunity to pick up some new China provinces". This first full running of the contest follows last October's initial test and places China front-and-center on the international radiosport roster. Results from the October contest are posted and this is a great opportunity to meet a lot of new contest call signs on the air!
Congratulations to Terry Zivney, N4TZ who was just named the new Director of the CQ WPX Contest program! Terry is a very active contester, including as a competitor in WRTC2010. Terry says in his CQ press release, "As a long-time low power contester I especially appreciate the WPX contest because its unique mix of exotic DX and plentiful domestic contacts ensures that great fun will be had by all participants regardless of the propagation conditions. I look forward to harnessing the momentum this contest has developed under the leadership of K5ZD and respecting the legacy of former directors K6AW, N8BJQ, and W8IMZ." Thanks, as well, to Randy K5ZD for managing both the WW and WPX contest programs until a new WPX Director could be named. Pete N4ZR needs a volunteer, too: "I've been running the World HF Contest Station Database since 1999. Thanks to donated server space from W2QO and programming help from NF4L, my duties as admin have been limited to the updating process (entries are changed manually based on input from stations). Recently, however, my other interests and involvements are such that I have not been able to keep up with the flow of additions and changes, much less work on improvements to the site. Instead of feeling guilty, I've decided to see if someone would like to take over for me." Contact Pete if you're interested in helping - he estimates it would take about 15 minutes per week of on-line effort. To QNZ or not to QNZ? There's no need to dither about it because wiggling the Big Knob has been automated! Effective with version 13.04.02, the N1MM logging software team has "added a Telnet Window option to "Add small random offsets to incoming CW spots". This will add or subtract 30 or 60 Hz randomly to incoming CW spots to help spread out pileups for the running stations that you call. THE DEFAULT IS ON. You can turn it off permanently by toggling the option." Here's an interesting event coming up at the Dayton Hamvention: The Friday morning TAPR Forum will include a presentation by KD2BMH on the handheld Software Defined Radio (SDR) Whitebox transceiver project. The low-power 144 and 440-MHz radio supports a variety of digital modes, as well as AM, FM, and SSB. Chris will be showing the radio from 9:15-11:00 AM in Room 1.
If you aren't making the trek to the Dayton Hamvention from the West Coast, the San Mateo edition of the wildly popular Maker Faire could serve as a substitute - although without all the cool radio bargains. Held on the same weekend as the Hamvention, the event attracts many thousands of people to the more than 1000 "maker" booths and demonstrations of Do-It-Yourself - everything from home cooking to giant Tesla coils and the like! James W. Cutler, KF6RFX, Assistant Professor, Department of Aerospace Engineering at the University of Michigan (developers of the successful RAX cubesat mission) invite amateur satellite operators to participate in the Ground Station Survey. The engineering team is collecting information on global ground station availability to improve satellite communication capabilities. Their goal is to survey existing and underutilized ground antennas to improve satellite communication opportunities. (From AMSAT bulletin ANS-090) QRP To The Field (QRPTTF) is about three weeks away and the theme this year is "Happy Trails". That is, operating from some historic trail. Contest sponsor, Paul NA5N, reports that there will be several Summits On the Air (SOTA) activations and other interesting stations on the air during this outdoor event. Just how did we get our original ham bands? Back before WARC was a gleam in our eyes, A. L. Budlong, W1BUD wrote a couple of articles explaining it all - the August and September 1959 issues of QST tell the tale in "Geneva - 1959" in the online QST archives. Hams were recently credited with the "un-discovery" of an island. Huh? Gene N7EO found this interesting article about how some hams looking for a DXpedition location determined that the intended destination...wasn't! Web Site of the Week - There is a brand-new score reporting service at the improved and upgraded 3830scores.com website constructed and managed by Bruce Horn, WA7BNM. Instead of waiting for emailed score summaries, it just takes one click to get a full report. (A final summary will still be emailed out to the 3830 reflector.) Not only is there a new format, but you can set your preferences so you don't have to enter your email address, club, call sign, operator, etc every time. You can also view a summary of contest activity from any call sign, including for the operators of multi-op entries, for the past few years, and compare activity from contest-to-contest, too. This has been in the works for a while. As Bruce relates, "It's something that I had thought about doing for the last 5 or more years, but never had found the time to finish it." I can hardly believe that 3830 started 15 years ago and can't imagine radiosport without it, not being able to share and compare claimed scores within minutes of the contest! A big tip of the contester's cap to WA7BNM. WORD TO THE WISE Deadline - something not to be missed, particularly when it applies to your hard-won contest logs. Log submission deadlines are tightening up "considerable" all around the radiosporting world so don't procrastinate! The 5-day deadline for WPX SSB logs doesn't seem to be hurting participation, though - the CQ WPX Logs Received Page shows 5219 in the database at publication time! How much does not being zero-beat in a pileup matter, anyway? Listen to these four short samples and see which pairs of tones are easier to separate: 0 Hz separation, 20 Hz, 40 Hz, and 60 Hz. Now imagine sorting those tones for 48 hours straight! Where do you think your signal would be the easiest to copy?
AMSAT-NA has also announced a dedicated YouTube channel for videos on and about amateur satellite operations. These will include demonstration videos as well as presentations at the AMSAT-NA Dayton Hamvention Forum and yearly General Membership Meeting and Symposium. The channel also links to the AMSAT-UK and AMSAT-DL channels for additional views and perspectives. (From AMSAT bulletin ANS-097) I can identify with the sentiments expressed in this remix of "I Want To Be An Engineer" by Only Won. (Thanks, Tim K3LR) Participation pins and Clean Sweep mugs for the 2012 ARRL Sweepstakes contest were shipped on April 2nd. Look for them to start arriving soon! (Thanks, ARRL Contest Branch Manager, Sean KX9X) With the arrival of April CQ Magazine comes the results from CQ WW SSB 2012 - months earlier than in previous years! That means the updated WRTC-2014 event scores are now posted, adding scores from over 10,000 operators! In other scoring news, 41 scores in the "Junior" and "Silver" categories for 2011 All Asian DX CW and 24 scores for 2011 All Asian DX SSB were revised along with an operator change in the RDXC 2012 contest. Official results for 47 of the 55 qualifying events are now included and over 29,000 different operators have submitted scores in those events. (Thanks, WRTC-2014 Team Selection Director, Dan, K1TO)
CQ WW Director, Randy K5ZD checks in to let us know that, "The final log checking reports for all entries in the CQ WW DX CW Contest 2012 are now available. An email with a link to the report has been sent to everyone who submitted a log with more than 25 contacts." If you didn't receive your report, it might be due to a bad email address (or check your spam filter's quarantined messages) so contact Randy with the year, mode, and call sign of your entry. By the way, more participation records for CQ WW were also set with 8,181 logs submitted for SSB and 7,214 for CW! With the SSB results are now in the April issue of CQ Magazine, CW WW results will be in the May issue. The Rochester DX Association is pleased to publish the results of the 2012 New York QSO Party, held last October. Thanks for all the hard work, Bruce KC2QLJ and Paul K2DB, NYQP Coordinator and Advisor. OPERATING TIP Back up! It's not so much an operating tip as a management tip so you don't lose the results of your operating. Larry K8UT presents an aggressive strategy for backing up your data in the April 2013 issue of the PVRC Newsletter. [Apologies - this issue had not been made available to non-members as of the publication date - check the site later in the month - Ed.] The use of an external SDR receiver as a panadapter requires acquiring the IF signal from the main radio. To isolate the two radios and prevent loading of the main IF, it's a good idea to use a buffer amp as shown in this modification for the IC-910H VHF/UHF radio by VK2DAG. (Thanks, Les N1LF)
It's bug-nest-building season again north of the Equator and the wee beasties will be investigating every suitable home, including antenna traps and other outdoor enclosures with drain holes. Keep the little buggers on the right side (that would be the OUT side) of your electronics by covering the hole with a little piece of window screen. Electrical tape or an outdoor glue will hold it securely. (Thanks, Brian K3KO) Talk about hand tools - here's the pump drill - one of the oldest of all and it still might have an application in the field! For building that new receiving array, Frank W3LPL recommends these inexpensive 24-volt microwave SPDT RF relays sealed in a DIP package from Electronic Goldmine as having superb isolation. It takes only 8 milliamps to drive the coil. Roger VE3ZI notes that he uses some surplus hardline with an aluminum outer and a solid copper inner conductor. In the cold temperatures of the Ontario winters, the different thermal expansion characteristics of the two metals causes the copper conductor (which expands and contracts more) to pull a contact completely out of a connector! To keep this from happening, form the hardline into an S-bend next to the connector. If there is a joint between two cable runs, make one bend on each side of the joint. "Antenna 4 Has No Base Current" is the title of a recent Design News magazine "Sherlock Ohms" column. Anyone who has wrestled with technical problems will enjoy reading through these engineering detective short stories. As camping, fishing, and gardening take off, watch for sales and specials of materials that also make good "ham stuff". For example, fishing tackle boxes, fencing wire, rope, and other outdoor recreation supplies are all useful around the shack and antenna farm! Technical Web Site of the Week - A bias tee allows you to send dc on a coax feed line without affecting RF signals on the same feed line. The general design parameters are discussed in this Wikipedia article. For use with Beverages, Les W2LK recommends using 0.1 µF capacitors and 100 µH inductors rated for the load current. If you want to use ac current instead of dc, check out the Ameritron RCS-4 remote coax switch circuit. Any Category Imaginable Recent exchanges on the CQ-Contest Reflector have mulled over the possibilities of less than full-time categories in major contests. Would that encourage more participation? Would it hurt participation by reducing the incentive to operate longer? Would the usual competitive operators jump on the opportunity to win yet another category? It's hard to say without trying. Doug KR2Q posted some statistics from a recent CQ WW CW:
In addition, Chris DL8MBL (with the help of KD6MHW) reviewed open logs to see how long people actually operated and tried different methods of calculating what is considered "on" and "off" time. As you can see, most contesters don't enter even the big contests for anything close to full-time.
This could be because we are getting older and less able to park our rear ends in the shack chair for long periods. It could be because everyone is busier and has less time to devote to contesting. Who knows? Yet there certainly seemed to be a lot of interest in the short-term categories. I'm sure contest sponsors watched the discussion with interest. Adding categories to a contest is not free - even if all of the administrative effort is volunteered. Software needs to be rewritten and debugged. Reports and results tables get changed, along with records which now have before-and-after dates. New certificates and any other awards need to be generated and delivered. So adding a category requires some consideration of practicality. And then there is the inevitable follow-up, "If you created THAT category, why not MY category?" Trey N5KO came up with the idea of the "extended line score" some years ago in which, along with the data used by the sponsor to populate the existing categories, additional data would be published as information. No awards would be based on the extra data but it would be public if anyone was interested. With today's online publishing tools, making the data available as a downloadable table has never been easier. We already see some great things being created from public logs, as well, by websites such as cqcontest.ru. The extended line score already exists for some contests - take a look at recent results of a DARC VHF+ contest. The data for each score includes:
The result tables are published in order of just one of those bits of data - Score. The rest is available to the contesters to sort and arrange however they wish. Operating time would be just another column in the table. If public logs were available, operating time could even be calculated from the logs. We have "contests within a contest" that play by the existing rules to compete in a new way. Isn't that just about the same thing as a new category, anyway? Why not compromise? Most contest sponsors are already short of administrative resources so why not just publish more data - at zero cost beyond creating the table - and let the contest community create the categories? WRTC has used this approach to qualify the participants based on published scores. If there turns out to be sufficient interest, the sponsors may consider adding the category. How can you tell if there is sufficient interest? I suppose the tongue-in-cheek response would be to watch for arguments about it - then you have a category. What categories could you create? With the fertile minds and programming skills in the contest community, the sky is truly the limit if given the data - any category you can imagine. 10 April through 23 April An expanded, downloadable version of QST's Contest Corral in PDF format is available. Check the sponsor's Web site for information on operating time restrictions and other instructions. HF CONTESTS ARRL Rookie Roundup--Phone, from Apr 21, 1800Z to Apr 21, 2359Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Exchange: Both calls, name, check, S/P XE# or "DX". Logs due: See web. Rules NAQCC Monthly QRP Sprint--CW, from Apr 10, 0030Z to Apr 10, 0230Z. Monthly on 2nd Tuesday or 3rd Wednesday local time (alternating). Bands (MHz): 3.5-14. Exchange: RST, S/P/C, and NAQCC mbr nr or power. Logs due: 4 days. Rules CWops Monthly Mini-CWT Test--CW, from Apr 10, 1300Z to Apr 10, 0400Z. Multiple operating periods, twice monthly on 2nd and 4th Wed. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Frequencies (MHz): 18 to 28 kHz above band edge. Exchange: Name, member number or S/P/C. Logs due: 2 days. Rules EU Spring Sprints--CW, from Apr 13, 1600Z to Apr 13, 1959Z . Bands (MHz): 3.5-14. Frequencies (MHz): 3.550, 7.025, 14.040. Exchange: Both call signs, serial, name. Logs due: 15 days. Rules Montana QSO Party, from Apr 13, 0000Z to Apr 15, 0000Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50-432. Exchange: S/P/C or MT county. Logs due: 7 days. Rules Japan International DX Contest--CW, from Apr 13, 0700Z to Apr 14, 1300Z . Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Exchange: RST, JA prefecture or CQ Zone. Logs due: 30 days. Rules New Mexico QSO Party, from Apr 13, 1400Z to Apr 14, 0200Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50, Frequencies (MHz): CW-1.85, 3.55, 7.045, 14.05, 21.05, 28.05, 50.095; SSB-1.85, 3.815, 7.26, 14.28, 21.38, 28.38, 50.13. Exchange: Call sign, name, and NM county or S/P/C. Logs due: May 4. Rules Georgia QSO Party, from Apr 13, 1800Z to Apr 14, 0359Z. Multiple operating periods. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50. Frequencies (MHz): CW 1.815, 3.545, 7.045, 14.045, 21.045, 28.045, 50.095; Phone 1.865, 3.810, 7.225, 14.250, 21.300, 28.450, 50.135. Exchange: RS(T), S/P/C or GA county. Logs due: May 15. Rules Yuri Gagarin DX Contest--CW, from Apr 13, 2100Z to Apr 14, 2100Z . Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Exchange: RST, ITU Zone. Logs due: May 14. Rules International Vintage Contest, from Apr 14, 1200Z to Apr 14, 1800Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5,7. Frequencies (MHz): Multiple operating periods. Exchange: RS(T), grid square. Logs due: May 30. Rules Run For the Bacon--CW, from Apr 15, 0200Z to Apr 15, 0400Z. Monthly on 3rd Sunday night (local). Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Exchange: RST, S/P/C, Flying Pig nr or power. Rules Holyland DX Contest, from Apr 19, 2100Z to Apr 20, 2100Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Exchange: RS(T), serial or Israel district. Logs due: May 31. Rules TARA Skirmish Dig Pfx Contest--Digital, from Apr 20, 0000Z to Apr 20, 2359Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50. Exchange: Name, prefix. Logs due: May 17. Rules ES Open HF Championship, from Apr 20, 0500Z to Apr 20, 0859Z . Bands (MHz): 3.5,7. Exchange: RS(T), serial, dupes OK once/hour. Logs due: May 21. Rules Worked All Provinces of China--Phone,CW, from Apr 20, 0600Z to Apr 21, 0559Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Exchange: RS(T) and serial or province abbreviation. Logs due: 7 days. Rules CQMM DX Contest--CW, from Apr 20, 1200Z to Apr 21, 2359Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Exchange: RST, continent, and category. Logs due: Jun 30. Rules EU Spring Sprints--Phone, from Apr 20, 1600Z to Apr 20, 1959Z . Bands (MHz): 3.5-14. Frequencies (MHz): 3.730, 7.050, 14.250. Exchange: Both call signs, serial, name. Logs due: 15 days. Rules Michigan QSO Party, from Apr 20, 1600Z to Apr 21, 0400Z . Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Frequencies (MHz): CW 45 kHz from band edge, Phone 3.825, 7.200, 14.250, 21.300, 28.450. Exchange: Serial and MI county or S/P/C. Logs due: 30 days. Rules EA QRP Contest--CW, from Apr 20, 1700Z to Apr 21, 1300Z . Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Exchange: RST, category, M if EA QRP member. Logs due: 30 days. Rules Nebraska QSO Party, from Apr 20, 1800Z to Apr 21, 1800Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50,144, Frequencies (MHz): CW: 1.805 and 35 kHz above band edge,Nov/Tech--10 kHz above band edge; Phone--1.915, 3.865, 7.265, 14.265, 21.365, 28.465, 146.460. Exchange: RS(T), NE county or S/P/C. Logs due: May 31. Rules South Dakota QSO Party, from Apr 20, 1800Z to Apr 21, 1800Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Frequencies (MHz): CW - 3.58, 7.035, 14.07; Phone - 1.845, 3.855, 7.180, 14.255, 21.355, 28.455 on SSB; RTTY - 3.585, 7.038, 14.075, 21.075; PSK - Clg Freq. Exchange: RS(T) and SD county or S/P/C. Logs due: Jun 1. Rules North Dakota QSO Party, from Apr 20, 1800Z to Apr 21, 1800Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50,144. Exchange: RST and ND county or S/P/C. Logs due: May 15. Rules Ontario QSO Party, from Apr 20, 1800Z to Apr 21, 0500Z. Multiple operating periods. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50,144. Frequencies (MHz): CW 30 kHz above band edge; Phone 1.870, 3.735, 3.860, 7.070, 7.260, 14.130, 14.265, 21.260, 28.360; VHF-SSB: 50.130, 52.540, 144.205, 146.550. Exchange: RS(T), S/P/C or Ontario QTH. Logs due: May 18. Rules Feld-Hell New Member Sprint--Digital, from Apr 20, 2000Z to Apr 20, 2200Z. Monthly on 3rd Saturday. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Exchange: RST, S/P/C, Feld-Hell member nr. Logs due: 7 days. Rules YU DX Contest--CW, from Apr 20, 2100Z to Apr 21, 0500Z. Multiple operating periods. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Exchange: RST and ITU zone. Logs due: 30 days. Rules VHF+ CONTESTS VHF Spring Sprints, from Apr 16, 7 PM to Apr 16, 11 PM. Bands (MHz): 222. Exchange: Grid square (6-character preferred). Logs due: 14 days. Rules Worldwide EME Contest, from Apr 13, 0000Z to Apr 14, 2400Z. Bands (MHz): 10G+. Exchange: TMO/RS(T) and "R". Logs due: Jul 14. Rules Montana QSO Party, from Apr 13, 0000Z to Apr 15, 0000Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50-432. Exchange: S/P/C or MT county. Logs due: 7 days. Rules New Mexico QSO Party, from Apr 13, 1400Z to Apr 14, 0200Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50, Frequencies (MHz): CW-1.85, 3.55, 7.045, 14.05, 21.05, 28.05, 50.095; SSB-1.85, 3.815, 7.26, 14.28, 21.38, 28.38, 50.13. Exchange: Call sign, name, and NM county or S/P/C. Logs due: May 4. Rules Georgia QSO Party, from Apr 13, 1800Z to Apr 14, 0359Z. Multiple operating periods. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50. Frequencies (MHz): CW 1.815, 3.545, 7.045, 14.045, 21.045, 28.045, 50.095; Phone 1.865, 3.810, 7.225, 14.250, 21.300, 28.450, 50.135. Exchange: RS(T), S/P/C or GA county. Logs due: May 15. Rules TARA Skirmish Dig Pfx Contest--Digital, from Apr 20, 0000Z to Apr 20, 2359Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50. Exchange: Name, prefix. Logs due: May 17. Rules Nebraska QSO Party, from Apr 20, 1800Z to Apr 21, 1800Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50,144, Frequencies (MHz): CW: 1.805 and 35 kHz above band edge,Nov/Tech--10 kHz above band edge; Phone--1.915, 3.865, 7.265, 14.265, 21.365, 28.465, 146.460. Exchange: RS(T), NE county or S/P/C. Logs due: May 31. Rules North Dakota QSO Party, from Apr 20, 1800Z to Apr 21, 1800Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50,144. Exchange: RST and ND county or S/P/C. Logs due: May 15. Rules Ontario QSO Party, from Apr 20, 1800Z to Apr 21, 0500Z. Multiple operating periods. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50,144. Frequencies (MHz): CW 30 kHz above band edge; Phone 1.870, 3.735, 3.860, 7.070, 7.260, 14.130, 14.265, 21.260, 28.360; VHF-SSB: 50.130, 52.540, 144.205, 146.550. Exchange: RS(T), S/P/C or Ontario QTH. Logs due: May 18. Rules LOG DUE DATES 10 April through 23 April 2013
ARRL Information Click here to advertise in this newsletter, space subject to availability. Your One-Stop Resource for Amateur Radio News and Information ARRL membership includes QST, Amateur Radio's most popular and informative journal, delivered to your mailbox each month. Subscribe to NCJ - the National Contest Journal. Published bimonthly, features articles by top contesters, letters, hints, statistics, scores, NA Sprint and QSO Parties. Subscribe to QEX - A Forum for Communications Experimenters. Published bimonthly, features technical articles, construction projects, columns and other items of interest to radio amateurs and communications professionals. Free of charge to ARRL members: Subscribe to The ARRL Letter (weekly digest of news and information), the ARES E-Letter (monthly public service and emergency communications news), Division and Section news -- and much more! ARRL offers a wide array of products to enhance your enjoyment of Amateur Radio. Visit the site often for new publications, specials and sales. Donate to the fund of your choice -- support programs not funded by member dues! Reprint permission can be obtained by sending email to permission@arrl.org with a description of the material and the reprint publication. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ARRL Contest Update wishes to acknowledge information from WA7BNM's Contest Calendar and SM3CER's Contest Calendar. | |||||||
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