07/11/2004 | W9RH I was able to participate in the Milwaukee Radio Amateur Club Field Day site for a limited time this year, but each successive FD is more enjoyable than the last. I arrived about 6pm on Saturday, and toured the site. We setup on the grounds of Pioneer Village, a re-creation of a village from the pioneering days of Wisconsin and worthy of a visit in its own right even when it isn't Field Day. After looking around at the antennas and stations (we were 5A this year), I noticed that the 10m SSB station had an empty seat but the speaker was alive with signals. It was also conveniently located near the food! I sat down and operated for several hours, filled in a page and a half of log sheets, learned about how to create and use a dupe sheet, and enjoyed myself immensely. Many were surprised at the good conditions on 10m, and how long they persisted (past 10pm). I was able to pause from search-and-pounce and call CQ for about 40 minutes, with never more than 3 minutes between contacts. Hardly qualifies as a pile-up, I know, but it was a first for me. I think I suffered slightly from the orientation of the antenna; lots of 4s in the log. I swear I worked every FD station in Georgia. But also NC, FL, TX, LA and VI. I moved on to 20m later in the evening, but that was harder work even with a rotatable beam. On 10m, I came back to several stations who barely budged the S-meter and was heard, but on 20m even stations that came booming in didn't always seem to hear, and I heard many stations asking for fills. The food was great again this year, and the RF kept the mosquitoes away. I did hear hams talking about bugs .. the VW kind. The only thing missing this year was my daughter Sarah, KB9ZNC, who has been my accomplice at FD but was out of the country this time around. FD has been the highlight of my ham radio year, and I am already looking forward to FD 2005! -- AB9FH