less than a week from now, ARRL Sweepstakes Phone !!!

Most of the antenna farm repairs that can be done are now done
I replaced one long cable run, that Dick WA6MDI helped me identify as having failed
Removed one bad ICE Lighting arrestor from the cable run to the KT-34xa
Attempted to get the rotor position indicator pot working for the Telrex Pair - with no luck, so beam position for that array will be by way of closed ciruit TV monitor

Rates last year we very good for just a few periods of time

which band at what time.............
we need to watch our rates and move if they fall too low
where to set the mark of too low is the question !!!

Last year we had a good run and if I had not gotten bogged down with the amp issue we may have beat AE5T

Total Q's last year (2009) was 1436

142 on 80m
501 on 40m
792 on 20m
1 on 15m
0 on 10m

In 2008 we had 1033 Total Q's
BUT I over slept and we were only on the air for 23 not 24 hours !!!

289 on 80m
323 on 40m
378 on 20m
43 on 15m
0 on 10m

2007 we had a total of 1034 Q's

390 on 80m
76 on 40m Wow low number for 40m
542 on 20m
26 on 15m
0 on 10m

2006 we had a total of 1046 Q's We won Delta Division here

80 on 80m
449 on 40m
418 on 20m
99 on 15m
0 on 10m

I think we need to break into 1800 Q's this year
that is going to be tough !!!

That would be an Q rate of 75 for every hour on the air
1600 Q's if more realistic goal but every year since 2006 everyone is placing Higher Q totals and with the increased activity in SS I am sure this will continue !

cheers!

steve

ARRL SS Sweepstakes at KG5VK

I am building the list of OPS that will join us for ARRL Sweepstakes Phone contest on November 20th
The Contest starts at 3pm local Saturday November the 20th, 2010

here is the list of ops scheduled to be here so far.......

KA5M
K5SL
N5SH
W5WZ
and of course myself

don't see your call listed but want to play
send me an email !!!!!!!!

Steve
KG5VK

DX and Contest infi is close at hand for Delta Division members

check this out !
Propagation forecasts for the current week-end for us
Delta division members already made !!!

73
steve

W5WZ

A friend needs a blessing you can see more here

please wtach this vid for more info Thank You !

For Men of Morse

http://www.k9ya.org/
Click Here
Lots of neat notes and short articles on Morse code

cheers !
steve

13 Colonies special event stations

http://www.13colonies.info/

Skim Scan for use with Skimmer

Here is the link to this great software for those using skimmer to watch for band openings
click here
Cheers !

ARRL FD what is it

ARRL Field Day: “Hams” take it to the streets June 26-27

Shreveport/Bossier City, Louisiana - Amateur Radio activities are growing and many radio operators, often called “hams,” will be showing
off their capabilities June 26-27 at The Gazebo near the public boat launch on Arthur Teague Parkway on the Bossier City side of the Red River.
Thousands of Amateur Radio operators will be Erecting radio stations at community parks, campgrounds, schools and emergency centers around the country, they will hold a “Field Day” showing their emergency communications capabilities while having fun talking and texting to friends with their radios.

Far from fading in the age of cell phones and Internet,
Amateur Radio has been growing in the US and 2009 saw over 30,000 new
people became “hams.” Figures from the ARRL, the national
association for Amateur Radio, show consistent growth for the past five
years. The technical skills of hams also improved as almost 50% of
American Amateur Radio operators now go beyond the entry level FCC
licensing requirements and pass the more difficult testing to earn
higher class federal licenses. There are now more than 682,000 Amateur
Radio operators in the US, and 2.5 million around the world.

In past months, many reports of ham radio operators
providing critical communications in emergencies have been in the news.
From Haiti to California, during floods, fires, earthquakes, tornados
and other crises, Amateur Radio volunteers are providing emergency
communications for many rescue and recovery groups. Amateur Radio
operators are often the first to report critical information to
responders in the first hours of crisis situations. FEMA, DHS, the
National Weather Service, and emergency management offices include
Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES®) operators in their
communications plans. On June 26-27, the public will be able to meet
and talk with the hams and see for themselves what Amateur Radio is all
about. Using everything from Morse code to modern digital and satellite
systems, voice communications and even Web-radio hybrid capabilities,
they prove “It’s not just your Grandfather’s radio anymore.”

Several of the local Shreveport/Bossier amateur radio operators have deployed in the past during times of disaster, when normal communications were disrupted.

The amateur operators will construct temporary, emergency
style radio stations around the country for the weekend and send
messages in many forms -without the use any other infrastructure that
can be compromised in a crisis. Over 35,000 Amateur Radio operators
across the country participated in last year's event. To learn what
modern Amateur Radio systems can do, go to www.ARRL.org/fieldday.
There you can find information about the locations the Amateur Radio
operators will set up in your home area. They can even help you get on
the air!

For more info
http://www.arrl.org/field-day
Steven Lott Smith
Shreveport Amateur Radio Association 2010 Field Day Chairman
KG5vk@arrl.net

DXCC

Many years ago a great friend KR5D got mne interested in getting some coveted wall paper on my Shack walls
The DXCC award is very valuable to me and those that have it displayed are in great company
Of course Honor Roll is a long way off for me, but we all start the journey with one step at a time
My thanks to Tom KR5D for mentoring me into the DXCC awards program

Here is my current standings..........
it's a bit tough to read unless you just look at the last number on each line

AwardSelectedAppliedAwardedTotal / Current
Mixed *630143206 / 203
CW94026120 / 120
Phone *540121175 / 172
RTTY420648 / 48
160M9009 / 9
80M300333 / 33
40M800585 / 85
30M7007 / 7
20M *470111158 / 158
17M150015 / 15
15M82019101 / 99
12M2002 / 2
10M4702875 / 74
6M2002 / 2
Challenge3210163--- / 484
* = Award has been issued

I eligible for CW DXCC Now as well as 15m (Mixed)
and only 15 Q's away from getting 40m mixed

cheers !

New Mobile Antenna

I now have the new Rav4 configured for HF operation
Yesterday I installed the Little Tar Heel HP (High Power)
with my IC-706 Mark IIG
This morning I had a pleasant QSO with N5BOS from Alexandria, LA
while in the relatives driveway here in Texas
We will be on 20 or 40 meters while heading home tomorrow
So far the Little Tar Heel is performing well, I'll have a good review after I get home

http://www.tarheelantennas.com/little_tarheel_ii

Cheers!

SV2KBS and KG5VK

Steve KG5VK gets to visit with the prettiest and one of the most experienced DX OPS at Dayton, Victoria is from Greece at was at Dayton during the largest gathering of Ham Radio enthusiast in the world.

KA5M Turns in QSL cards and may soon join Honor Roll

N0AX and KG5VK at Dayton 2010

Ward Silver N0AX and Steve Smith KG5VK at Dayton 2010

Dayton 2010-DX/Contest Dinners were Memorable

Got to meet KL7RA, VU2PAI, and VQ9LA...and many others. I walked by a table and as we all do glance at call sign badges. I stopped when I saw KL7 Radio Alaska! About 8 or 9 years ago I set up a JOTA station at a local catholic church picnic area for the 40 or so scouts there. That afternoon on 15m I was called by a very loud KL7RA. I thought he was in CF not Alaska. He said I had a great signal up there and he had been listening and going back to when he was a scout in Bossier City-while his dad was stationed @ Barksdale. Said he remembered getting his swimming merit badge on Lake Bisteneau, and was it still there and a lake you could swim in.
He then told me he was testing out his 4(yes 4) stacked array of yagi's on a 100' tower for SS.
Needless to say his great sig, and this qso was a real show stopper for scouts and parents alike there that afternoon. He told me he remembered the qso like yesterday..
VU2PAI was my first India on 17m, phone and cw ever-qso only 2 mo or so ago. He kinda remembered it, as La not often worked on 17m. (Said QSL for sure!) I mentioned he and VQ9La were the "voice of the Indian Ocean"..He responded "he is here also-met him 30' away 2 min later! GREAT!

look for my high school buddy this week-end in CQ WPX CW

Ward Silver N0AX will be running the 15 meter band in CQ WPX CW this week-end with the callsign KU0W

73
steve

New Green Herone Products in KG5VK's shack

http://www.greenheronengineering.com/download-files/wireless-cable.pdf
One base unit and Four remotes from the product shown in the above pdf
The new dual coupler board for my digital watt meter
Some clip on ferrites (rfi cures) and some heavy duty ground clamps
73
kg5vk

What is Radio Sport, you prob know but if you need help expalining it to a friend this may help

http://www.icomamerica.com/en/media_events/videos/irn5/default.aspx
Icom with the help of a talented young lady by the name of Ashley KI4MTU
do a great job in show casing what Radio Sport is like

cheers!
steve
KG5VK

Are we a League or a Internet Vendor?

Are we a League or a Internet Vendor?: "The ARRL new website perhaps replaces an outdated webpage style, but at a cost – blatant commercialization. The useful portion of the ARRL homepage has gone down, and now it is tarted-up but with a result of being blah, busy and overloaded with “sales focused web features.” Lets look at the new website, first as [...]"

It's Time to travel to Mecca, Dayton Ohio

Randy Fulco K5SL and I (KG5VK) will be departing early Thursday morning by air
to Dayton, Ohio

It has been about trwenty years since my last trip to Dayton
and Randy and I are eager to see and do as much as we can
We both have tickets to the Conetst and DX dinner and are looking forward to meeting up with other friends during Dayton.

Speaking of old friends Ward Silver is an old High School buddy
of course most of you know he is very active at the ARRL
Ward also has a Blog up for keeping track of Dayton happings......
http://www.arrl.org/ham-zero-dayton-blog-by-ward-silver-n0ax

73 Steve
KG5VK