Industry Canada reviewing its approach to spectrum management (Jun. 10 2005)

Many times each year, Industry Canada makes changes to the standards and procedures that govern the use of radio systems in Canada. Almost always, the proposed changes are discussed with spectrum users via the Radio Advisory Board of Canada (RABC), and occasionally the changes are also discussed with the general public, as was the case with their recent review of tower policies.

However, every few years an in-depth review is conducted, to look at the department’s policies and priorities, and decide if changes are needed to the way they make decisions, and how they manage the radio frequency spectrum. As with day-to-day rule changes, spectrum users are consulted, and their comments taken into account.

After a stable period of about 10 years, Industry Canada began a preliminary review in 2002 of its Spectrum Policy Framework, asking for comments on ideas for change. RAC participated, both through the RABC and through a direct letter to the department. Now, three years later, the full review is underway, and Industry Canada has published a draft set of changes on their web site. Over the summer, RAC and the RABC will be studying the proposals and preparing their comments and suggestions. RAC likely will respond both directly and through the RABC.

In general, the proposed changes would have most impact on commercial spectrum users. Most refer to how frequency assignments are made within the bands allocated to the fixed, broadcast and mobile services. However, there is also a continuing trend towards more license exempt devices, which share spectrum with authorized services at the discretion of the Minister, and towards a more “hands off” approach to spectrum management, both of which may be of concern to radio amateurs. Watch for further developments on the RAC web site, and in articles in TCA.

(RAC News Service)

Radio Amateurs of Canada Youth Education Program NEWSLETTER #13 June 12, 2005

The 2004-05 school year is rapidly drawing to a close and I suspect that neither students nor teachers will be sorry to get started on their the upcoming summer break. Don’t forget, the YEP Committee is looking forward to receiving a report from your school and your club about what you did and how you did it. Please let others benefit from your efforts and experiences. Last year, I sent out a questionnaire which generated some responses. I was hoping that it wouldn’t be necessary to go to that length this year.

The report, below, was just received from Ken Pulfer - VE3PU - and illustrates some extremely creative thinking on the part of those involved. Maybe next school year, your school will be able to monitor the signals sent down from a space suit in orbit!

I am proud to announce that today the ARISS-US team has delivered their portion of the Suitsat hardware to the NASA Johnson Space Center. NASA is in the process of shipping this hardware to Energia in Russia where it is expected to be certified and integrated with the Russian team's Suitsat equipment for eventual launch on the 19P Progress launch vehicle in the August/September 2005 timeframe.

The Suitsat amateur radio system, coupled with a school artwork DVD project that will be delivered later this month, is planned to be installed in an outdated Russian Orlon spacesuit in late September. It will then be deployed from the ISS during an Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA, or spacewalk). The Suitsat amateur radio system will beam down special messages and an SSTV image from within the Orlon space suit as it floats in space. Suitsat radio system will allow hams and students to track the suit and decode special international messages, space suit telemetry, and a pre-programmed Slow Scan TV image through its specially built digital voice messaging system and amateur radio transmitter. As built, Suitsat will be a transmit-only capability that will run on the space suit's battery power.

The idea for Suitsat was first conceived by the ARISS-Russia team, led by Sergey Samburov, RV3DR, and was extensively discussed at the joint AMSAT Symposium/ARISS International Partner meeting in October 2004. The project, also called Radioskaf or Radio Sputnik in Russia, is being led by project manager A. P. Alexandrov and Deputy Project Manager A. Poleshuk from RSC Energia, located in Korolev (Moscow area)

Russia. On the US side, the hardware project development was led by Lou McFadin, W5DID. Since October the Suitsat design concept matured and evolved due to the challenging development time constraints. A joint NASA letter, allowing the ARISS team to proceed forward with the Suitsat project was signed on May 10, 2005. In the four short weeks since that letter was signed, the US project team, has designed, built and tested a simple, yet fully featured system that we hope will inspire hams and students around the world.

On behalf of the ARISS International team, I want to congratulate the Suitsat hardware development team for their "Can Do" spirit and ability to deliver the Suitsat hardware on such a very challenging schedule.

Congratulations!!!!!
Frank H. Bauer, KA3HDO
ARISS International Chairman
AMSAT V.P. for Human Spaceflight Programs

I would like to sincerely thank Brian Jackson - VE6JBJ - of Chestermere Lake Middle School for this very thorough report, below. Unfortunately, Brian will be leaving this school to move to Airdrie next year. Hopefully, the program at Chestermere will be able to continue while Brian moves toward getting a program started in his new school.

It is hard to imagine that only a little over one year ago, we started using amateur radio in our classroom. It has become so woven into the fabric of my classroom that I truly can’t imagine what it was like without radio. Nor could I ever go back and not use it.

Here are the highlights of our year:
Eco-pals- In conjunction with Neil Carleton (VE3NCE), our classes participated in a program called Eco- Pals. This program randomly links schools across the country in a variety of different projects. However our initial proposal came in with a special request that we be partnered together and be allowed to introduce an amateur radio component. This opened up the whole world to us as we took the Eco-Pals project into a variety of directions. We started off with a project called “Class-to-Class” in which we exchanged artefacts that described our areas. At the same time, kids were matched up with a student in the other class and had the opportunity to introduce themselves to their partner on the radio. We followed this up with regular letters and a variety of other written projects. We started offering a Question of the Week, a project that had one class ask a question on Monday that could be surveyed in both schools and then shared the results on Friday. The next week, a group from the other school would send the question and then meet again on Friday to exchange results. We exchanged approximately 16 weeks worth of questions between the classes. Most recently, we have started Audio Book Reviews- a chance to share your favourite book and assorted details with your Ecopal. We have thoroughly entrenched amateur radio into this existing program to a point that I could not do the Eco-Pal program again without the radio component.

Antarctica- In September, we had the opportunity to research life in the Antarctic and ask any questions of Bill Hance, KD7CWA, a satellite operator and amateur radio operator at Palmer Station in the Antarctic. It was an amazing opportunity to find out about an area that we knew virtually nothing about.

Mount Everest- as many other students across the country did, we too joined in with R. Tait McKenzie Public School in Almonte, Ontario and contacted Professor Sean Egan, the University of Ottawa professor who was attempting to become the oldest Canadian to summit Mount Everest. Four students from the group of approximately 100 people who joined us for the event had a chance to ask Sean Egan questions about his experiences on Mount Everest. We had followed the expedition quite closely up until its tragic end.

Tasmania- Twice during the year, we researched and sent questions to amateur radio operators in Tasmania. We then followed them up with a contact that allowed them to ask their questions live over radio. Where I would normally have used two primary classes for most radio contacts, these two contacts were using a crosssection of other Grade Six students. These contacts went a long way to promote amateur radio in our community.

Australia- Where the Internet can answer a wide variety of questions, we proved it is not the only way to find answers. We proved that the answers can come more quickly if you put in a CQ to the area you would like to know more about and ask them directly. Such was the case when we wanted to know about the constellations that could be seen in the Southern Hemisphere. Hank, an amateur radio operator in Sydney, Australia, answered our call and our questions, despite the fact that it was 2:45 am in Australia. This left a very strong impression on the kids in my classroom.

Scotland, England- In order to introduce the entire program at the beginning of the year, we placed a large number of CQ calls to various IRLP nodes around the United Kingdom. It was amazing for both the students and me to hear so many pleasant, encouraging radio operators who were thrilled to be speaking to school kids. Their messages of support for amateur radio projects in schools were wonderful.

Mount St. Helens- During the eruptions of Mount St. Helens at the beginning of the year, we had the opportunity to speak to an operator who was only 90 miles away from the active volcano and who could vividly describe the atmosphere around his area. Through his descriptions, we could better understand the news that was being sent to us via the media.

England- most recently, we have connected up with David Mackinder , G4DWP, in Lincolnshire, England. David has an amateur radio club in his school and wrote looking for students with which he could connect his classes. After receiving permission from Industry Canada, we tried a series of “Greeting Messages”- short introductions between students that do not violate our lack of a Third Party Agreement. David’s students are currently working under a Foundation License and working towards their Basic License equivalents.

Teacher Professional Development- Virtually every morning for the past year, Neil Carleton VE3NCE and I have chatted together via IRLP. Where this started off as an opportunity to plan ways we could connect our classrooms and students together, it has become much more than that. Our conversations still seek for interesting new plans, but they have become philosophical, discussing the concepts behind education in two provinces. They have started looking forward to ways we can link classes in the school I will be in next year. They have become a very important source of professional development for me.

Related local events:
CARA Field Day - Our school has helped arrange a place for the Calgary Amateur Radio Association to hold a Field Day in late June. This will help promote amateur radio with the community as the students will be invited to visit the field station at the High School east of the town of Chestermere and participate in a field day. They will have the opportunity to witness and join in worldwide QSO’s.

UPCOMING:
Summits of Canada - In 2005-06, an expedition of climbers from across Canada will challenge the highest peaks across Canada. Amateur radio will travel along with them as they plan to use radio to communicate with the kids across the country who participate in the RAC YEP. This will be an exciting chance to follow a unique climbing experience and share in the experiences. More to come from this.

And, all the very best for an excellent summer break!

Bj. Madsen - VE5FX
RAC MidWest Regional Director
Chairman - RAC Youth Education Program
Box 2860 - Tisdale, SK - S0E 1T0
306-873-4346
E-mail: ve5fx@rac.ca

Industry Canada gives approval for Alberta Hams to use special callsign (May 6 2005)
 

The Calgary Amateur Radio Association (CARA), through Jeff Wilson, CARA DX Club Chair, has received permit from Industry Canada for All Alberta Amateurs to us special prefixes to celebrate Alberta's Centennial. VE6's can use VX6 and VA6's can use VG6 for the period from May 27 to June 25, 2005.  For more information about the CARA visit our website: www.cara.ampr.org (Jeff Wilson VE6GJ)

Special Call Sign 'VA7YVET' to commemorate the "YEAR OF THE VETERAN" (Jun. 4 2005)

Authority has been granted Doug Pichette VA7DP to use the special call sign VA7YVET to commemorate the "YEAR OF THE VETERAN". Valid from 4 June 2005 to 4 July 2005.

(RAC News Service)

An invitation. The Halifax Amateur Radio Club (HARC) is pleased to invite all contesters, DXers and HF enthusiasts to the second Maritime DX Forum. It will be held on Saturday, 6 August 2005 in Hackett’s Cove, Nova Scotia, just outside Halifax on St. Margaret’s Bay. From humble beginnings at the home of Scott, VE1QD, in 2004, the DX Forum is moving up both in terms of the venue, program and corporate sponsorship.

The venue. This year’s meeting will be held in the manufacturing facilities of Nautel Ltd., a world-class producer of very high quality, AM and FM (analogue and digital) commercial radio transmitters, airport beacons and other electronic products. They will provide a tour of their facilities for those attending.

In addition to Nautel, we have two other corporate sponsorships. The Cushcraft Corporation will provide both an outstanding speaker, Ed Hammond, Manager of Ham Radio Antenna Sales, and a great door prize. Elecraft Inc, the producer of innovative HF radio kits, will provide an opportunity for someone to purchase one of their tranceivers at an excellent discount. Examples of two of their units will be on display.

The purposes of the Maritime DX Forum are to: 1) share our excitement for all facets of contesting, DXing and HF operating; 2) encourage greater HF activity among hams currently operating only on VHF and UHF; and 3) enjoy ham radio friendships. Spouses are welcome too. If they are not interested in the presentations, they will find many things to do in this delightful tourist area. The evening BBQ is a social event for everyone. 

Program. A copy of the program is attached. There are two outstanding keynote speakers, including James Latham, TI2DU, from Costa Rica and Ed Hammond, WN1I from New Hampshire. They will bring a wealth of ham radio experience and a fascinating international perspective to the program. A wide-ranging panel discussion, a tour of Nautel’s facilities and an evening BBQ will round out the day.

Accommodations, Restaurants and Tourist Attractions. For those attending from outside the Halifax metro area and needing tourist facilities, a list of local bed and breakfast establishments, campgrounds and local restaurants will be provided when you register. For family members who are not participating in the DX Forum meetings, and those who wish to extend their holiday in the area, suggestions about tourist activities will be provided.

Registration and Cost. The deadline for registration is Wednesday, 3 August 2005. A registration form can be downloaded from the HARC website: www.halifax-arc.org

You can also contact Scott Wood, VE1QD, by e-mail if you have any questions: ve1qd@rac.ca The cost of attending the DX Forum is $25.00 and covers coffee and refreshments during the day of the meeting, lunch and a BBQ dinner at Scott’s home, only 5 minutes from Nautel. Your registration also gives you a chance to win a new Cushcraft MA6V – a six band vertical antenna that is an "out-of-the-box" wonder, i.e. you pull it from the box and hook it up to your HF radio and enjoy spectacular radio contacts!
 
 

Saturday, 6 August 2005

0900 Registration and Coffee begin at Nautel Ltd.

0930 – 1045 Keynote Presentation: From Ham Radio to International Broadcaster: Lessons Learned Along the Way 

Mr. James Latham, TI2DU, and General Manager and Chief Engineer for Radio For Peace International, Ciudad Colon, Costa Rica

1045 - 1100 Coffee Break

1100 – 1215 Keynote Presentation: DXing and HF: Current Status and Ideas for the Future

Mr. Edward V. Hammond, WN1I, Manager for Ham Antenna Sales, Cushcraft Corporation, Manchester, New Hampshire

1230 – 1330 Lunch at Nautel

1330 – 1445 Tour of Nautel’s manufacturing and R & D facilities

1445 – 1630 Panel Presentation: The Challenges and Joys of Award Chasing, Contesting and Dxpeditions

Dick Grantham, VE1AI Fred Archibald, VE1FA 

Scott Nichols, VE1OP Scott Wood, VE1QD (Moderator) 

1630 Closing Words

1700 DX Forum BBQ at the home of Scott Wood, VE1QD

Directions to the meeting venue and to the home of Scott Wood will be included in registration packages, or can be downloaded from the HARC website – www.halifax-arc.org - or by contacting Scott by email ve1qd@rac.ca On the day of the event we can talk you in on the local repeater – 146.685.

Central Alberta Amateur Radio Clubs annual picnic and Ham Fest. (June 17-19 2005)
 

The 35th Annual C.A.A.R.C. Amateur Radio Picnic and Hamfest will be held at Pine Lake starting the afternoon of June 17 through June 19 (fathers day weekend).  Raffle tickets are $5.00 each and can be purchased from CAARC club members. Tickets can also be obtained by mail. Send a cheque or money order to CAARC, PO Box 771, Red Deer, Alberta, T4N 5H3. Draw takes place Sunday 19 June 2005 at the AG Campground, Pine Lake, AB. License #R746375. Only 350 tickets printed

• Family weekend pass - $35.00 (Sunday breakfast included). No camping fees.
• Single weekend pass - $20.00 (Sunday breakfast included). No camping fees. 
• Family day pass - $15.00 
• Single day pass - $8.00 
• Saturday night Baron of Beef supper - $8.00 per adult, $3.00 per child under 12 years of age. 
• Sunday Pancake breakfast - $5.00 per adult, $3.00 per child under 12 years of age. 

FRIDAY JUNE 17
1700 - 2200:  Registration and Special Events Station....Campgrounds 
1900 - 2200:  Hospitality Hour.... Main Hall

SATURDAY JUNE 18

0800 - 1700:  Registration and Special Events Station Campgrounds 
1000 - 1100:  Red Cross Adult Disaster Awareness Training Main Hall 
1000 - 1200: Kid's Activities and "Ladies Time Out" West Hall 
1100 - 1200: Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) meeting Main Hall 
1200 - 1600: Tailgate Flea Market North side of the hall, West side of the main hall. Picnic tables are assigned for vendors. Please do not park in this area unless you are a vendor! NO EARLY BIRDS! 
1200 - 1300: Wiener roast (TBA) (sponsored by SARA) 
1300 - 1400:  Southern Alberta Repeater Association (SARA) meeting Main hall 
1300 - 1400:  Fox Hunt #1 Campgrounds - (bring your VHF/RDF gear) 
1400 - 1500: CANWARN presentation Main Hall 
1500 - 1600: Amateur Role in Municipal Disaster Planning and Response Presented by Ric VA6RIC, Red Deer County 
1600 - 1800:  Lots of visiting! Main Hall closed for supper set up 
1800 - 2000:  Roast Beef Supper Main Hall 
1930 - 2030:  "Junk Box Wars" (TBA) Teams compete to build a functioning communication system out of supplied junk box parts. Bring your cameras. 
2000 - 2300:  Past 100 years Fashion show and Dance Main Hall 
2030 - ?:  Fox Hunt #2 Campgrounds - (bring your VHF/RDF gear) 
2200 - sunrise?:  Bonfire Weather and fire restrictions permitting 

SUNDAY JUNE 19

0800 - 1000:  CAARC Pancake Breakfast Main Hall 
1000 - 1100:  Kid's games and egg toss Campgrounds 
1100 - 1200:  Liars contest, Radio Raffle and door prizes Main Hall 

For more info visit: the CAARC website at www.caarc.ca for information and a map. A great event!!

PEI Amateur Radio Flea Market  (July 9 2005)
Sponsored by: The Summerside Amateur Radio Club

Location: PEI Flying Association Bldg. "Old" Airport Terminal Bldg. 250 Brackley Point Road Charlottetown, PE
Opens: Vendor Setup 8:00 AM,  Buyers 10:00 AM
Cost: Tables for sellers, both private and commercial are $5.00 each, Price at the door is $3 per person
Talkin: VY2PEI on 145.150 (-)

Notes: Restaurant Services will be available on site. Please contact Rodney, VY2CGA, by email to reserve table space.

For more info visit: www.summersidearc.com

ONTARIO HAMFEST  (July 9, 2005)
Sponsored by: The Burlington Amateur Radio Club 

Location:  Milton Agricultural Fairgrounds...SAME as Last Year   Milton  ON 
Opens: Inside Vendors: 7AM Tailgater Vendors: 8 AM General Admission: 9 AM 
Cost:  Inside Vendors: $10 per table PLUS $6 Admission Tailgater Vendors: $6 Admission PLUS $5 per single width vehicle space GENERAL ADMISSION: $6.00 each..Children under 12 are FREE with Adult Accompaniment 

Talkin: 146.520 Mhz Simplex within Milton Area. 

Notes: This is our 31st Annual "FUN" Day..Don't Miss it! Amateur Radio & Computer Electronics & MORE One of the "few" Fleamarkets that has OUTSIDE/Tailgating & Inside Vendors.

For more info visit: http://home.cogeco.ca/~barc/Ontario%20Hamfest%202005.html
 

Saskatchewan Centennial Hamfest 2005  (July 22, 2005)
Sponsored by: The Saskatoon Amateur Radio Club/Meewasin Amateur Radio Society 

Location: Travelodge Saskatoon 106 Circle Drive West, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Canada 
Opens: TBA 
Cost: TBA 
Talkin:  Local 146.640- , Regional 146.970- 
Notes: 

For more info visit: http://www.saskhamfest.com

26th Annual Northwestern Ontario Hamfest (July 29-31 2005)
Sponsored by: The Rainy Lake Amateur Radio Club

RLARC will be the host for CAMP 807 2005, and they would like to extend an invitation to all Amateur Radio operators, their families, and other interested persons to participate in this annual family event. It's shaping up to be a great weekend! The Camp 807 committee hopes that you can include our region's annual Ham Radio gathering in your summer plans.

CAMP 807 2005 will take place the weekend of July 29th, 30th, and 31st at the Holiday Village Trailer Park and Campground, 1101 Mill Road by the overpass in East Fort Frances. 

There will be no RV camping at this site (new owners of property, no town licence to use as an RV campground) - but the activities will take place at this site. Across the road is the park, with space for about 20 RV's, on a first-come, first-served basis, and tenting area. There is also a sandy beach for swimming. 

Additional details will be posted as they become available. A final meeting before the onset of Camp 807 will be held on July 4th (tentative date). 

The VE3RLC repeater on 146.820 (-600) in Fort Frances will be used as the talk-in frequency. Club members will be monitoring the repeater in order to provide directions and assistance to those travelling to the event. 

More info: http://camp807.tripod.com/2005
 

VHARA Hamfest 2005  (August 27, 2005) 
Sponsor by: The Victoria - Haliburton Amateur Radio Association 

Location: Manvers Arena - Corner Of Hwy. 7A & 35 (North Of Bowmanville/South Of Lindsay) GPS: Lat. 44D 09M 40S, Long. 78D 39M 30S

Opens: Indoor Vendor Set-Up 7:00AM Free Vendor Continental Breakfast 7:00AM - 8:30AM Outdoor Tailgate Set-Up 9:00AM General Admission 9:00AM 

Cost: General Admission $5.00 Indoor Tables (With 1 Vendor Admission + 1 Continental Breakfast) $10.00 Additional Vendor Pass (Working Helper) + Continental Breakfast $5.00 Outdoor Tailgate Positions (With 1 General Admission) $5.00 
Talkin: VE3LNZ 147.195 + 

Notes: Limited Indoor Vendor 120V AC Power Available (Please Specify When Registering) Door Prize & Super Draw Prizes Will Be Drawn Throughout The Hamfest

For more info visit: http://www.va3kvd.ca/vhara/

Ottawa Amateur Radio Club 9th Annual Hamfest   (September 3, 2005) 
Sponsor by: TheOttawa Amateur Radio Club, Inc 

Location:  Carp Agricultural Fairgrounds 3970 Carp Road (at Falldown Lane) Ottawa (Carp), Ontario. From Ottawa, take Highway 417 West to Carp Road exit, North to the fairgrounds. We are in the arena, so follow the signs on the site. 

Opens: Building Vendor setup: 8 am Tailgaters Open: 9 am Building Opens: 10 am until 1 pm 
Cost:  $5 general admission $10/table (plus admission) $5/tailgate (plus admission) 
Talkin:  VE2CRA, 146.94 -

Notes:   Immediately following the fleamarket will be the RAC Forum and Technology Update moderated by RAC Ontario North Director, Doug Leach (VE3XK). Topics of interest to the amateur radio community are planned and admission is free.

For more info visit: http://www.oarc.net/fleamarket

Vancouver Island Ham Happenings  (September 10, 2005) 
Sponsored by: The Nanaimo Amateur Radio Association 

Location:  Departure Bay Activities Centre 1415 Wingrove Street Nanaimo BC ( Aka the old Departure Bay Fire Hall ) Take Departure Bay road from either end down to the beach, Wingrove st. is right across from the Departure Bay beach.
Please see map and directions on our web site. 

Opens: Sellers setup from 7am to 10 am, doors will be open to the Buyers and general public at 10am and close at 1pm 

Cost:  Cost of tables are $15.00 ea. includes 1 admission. There will be no charge for the table for anyone reserving a table from the lower mainland. Helpers and general admission $5.00 each. 

Talkin: VE7ISC at 146.640 open repeater 

Notes: There will be a RAC table, equipment manufactures tables, local dealers tables, a collectors display table and many, many sellers tables. We will be holding the annual QLF (Left foot CW) CW contest. There will be hourly door prizes as well as a major door prize of an Icom IC-V82 Handheld radio. If you are coming the night before we have many hotels and motels close by, and for RVs we have three malls in the area that allow overnight parking for self contained RVs. 

For more info visit: http://www.nara.nisa.com

Barrie Hamfest  (September 10, 2005) 
Sponsored by: The Barrie Amateur Radio Club 

Location:  Oro Medonte Fairgrounds Just north of Barrie on Hwy #11 to Oro-Medonte Line 7. Watch for Airport sign at exit. Take Line 7 Northwest 2 Km to the 15/16th sideroad and you're at the Fairgrounds. Co-ordinates are 44 30 17 N 79 33 17 W 

Opens: Open for Inside Vendors at 7 am, Taigaters at 8 am, General public at 9 am till 1 pm.
Cost:  General admission $5 , 8' tables $15 plus general admissions, Taigaters $5 plus general admissions. 
Talkin:  VE3RAG 147.000 + 

Notes:  Our second year at the new bigger location. Wheelchair accessable and handicap parking available.
Registration form and map on website. 

For more info visit: http://www.barriearc.com

Kingston Amateur Radio Club Annual Flea Market (Sept. 17 2005)

The KARC will hold its annual flea market on Saturday Sept. 17, 2005 The event will be held at Drill Hall "A", CFB Kingston. Doors will open to vendors at 0730 and the public at 0900

Admission is $ 3.00. Tables are $ 10.00 including one admission. Commercial tables are $ 20.00 but will be given free with a door prize.

Talk in: will be on the VE3KAR repeater, 146.940 ( -600)
Canteen will be available.

We will have a 50/50 draw to support the museum, many door prizes and possibly a major prize raffle. Door prizes include magazine subscriptions, dinner vouchers, sightseeing air flights, movie tickets, computer material, emergency radio etc.

The Canadian Forces Communications and Electronics Museum will be open for all to visit as well.   Free admission and only 5 minutes from the fleamarket)

Tables are available by contacting:

VE3TMT Max at mdonoghue@sympatico.ca
VE3GO Ron at ve3go@sympatico.ca or ( 613 634-4085)

London Amateur Radio Club 28th Annual Fleamarket   (Sept. 25 2005)

Sunday, September 25, 2005, located at the Western Fair Grounds Special Events Building, London Ontario. 9:00am to 1:00pm

Vendor setup at 7:30am. Admission: $6.00 , tables $ 10.00

Free parking, Air conditioned, commercial dealers, snack bar facilities, wheelchair accessible with handicap washrooms

Inquiries: email: hamfest2005@hamster.foxhollow.ca or phone / mail to Doug Tompkins, VE3IDT (519) 439-5113
54 Hammond Cres. London, ON  N5X 1A4

Website: http://larc.ca/newsletter/LARC-HAMFEST-2005.pdf

SHF 2005 Committee...Hamfest Update

The SHF 2005 committee has undertaken a centennial history project. Through the years, we have noticed a decline in the archiving of photographs and history of radio in our Province. We would like to restore our past and make it accessible for everyone.

Do you have old photographs that you can part with for a while? Can you make us copies?

How about writing up a few pages about what has happened over the last one hundred years in your home area. Anything you can help us with is much appreciated. Please contact the SHF 2005 Committee with any information you can share.

Also, as this is the celebration of the province’s one hundredth birthday, we want to make this the biggest, best hamfest the province has ever seen! Do you have ideas that you would like us to explore? Let us know!

The committee has also developed a survey for gathering input from the ham community. Visit the website, www.saskhamfest.com and fill it out online! 

Bob Comeau - VE1ARN - accepting a message in the Communications Room Nevertheless, this amount of precipitation over such a short period of time stressed the watersheds on the South Shore to the maximum, and the Town of Bridgewater was forced to declare a state of emergency.  The Emergency Measures Organization of Nova Scotia activated the Bridgewater Emergency Operations Centre, and this meant that the Lunenburg County Amateur Radio operators were immediately pressed into service.

How does that old winter-time chestnut go…….."Oh the weather outside is frightful….".  Well the weather here in southern Nova Scotia has indeed been frightful of late.  Over 250 mm of rain fell in many locations in southern Nova Scotia over a 48-hour period.  I suppose it could have been worse if it had occurred in the winter and had been snow instead of rain because that would have been about 250 cm of white stuff.  Red Cross ERV was here to transport supplies to the two shelters that were set up plus meals for those affected and involved. ATV reporter Nicole Carlin speaking with Red Cross Team Leader Dave Arsenault.

"Hi Howard - 

Yes it was a busy time. We were in the EOC (Emergency Operation Centre in Bridgewater) for a shift last Wednesday night then back again most of Thursday right through to early Saturday afternoon. There were eight or nine local amateurs plus one from Dartmouth who manned the EOC around the clock and showed us that we can effectively handle radio communications during emergency situations.  The experience also pointed out some deficiencies that need to be addressed."
 

There are a number of lakes that flow one into the other and eventually into Fancy Lake a popular cottage area just south of Bridgewater and the location of a number of large and expensive homes.  Fancy Lake is then drained to the ocean through a small river - Petite Riviere.  And the later is the problem.  Petite Riviere just did not have the capacity to handle the huge volume of water that descended from the skies over the period of May 21 to May 27, and as a result, Fancy Lake and Petite Riviere both overflowed their banks flooding roads and properties in the area.  Over 100 people were forced from their homes and into shelters or off to stay with friends and family in the area.

The following are excerpts from Bridgewater Bulletin on-line edition - 
 

Records broken as state of emergency declared 
By KEITH CORCORAN and LISA BROWN
HEBBVILLE - Parts of Hebbville and Fancy Lake remained underwater while several bridges and roads were still closed Monday after a weeklong plastering of rain. 

More than 235 millimetres of the wet stuff pummelled the county since May 22, prompting the Municipality of Lunenburg to declare a local state of emergency that spanned four days. 

A team of municipal officials, RCMP, Red Cross workers, Transportation and Environment representatives, Emergency Health Services people and communications experts (read Amateur Radio operators) worked tirelessly. They were aided by more volunteers from area fire departments and ground search and rescue groups. 

At the height of this weather event last week, estimates had close to 100 people vacated from more than 40 homes. Most of those were in areas around Hebb and Fancy lakes in Hebbville and down through the Petite Riviere watershed. 

While much of the attention was focused on the area between Hebbville and Petite Riviere, roads were also closed as far away as Kingsburg and Martins River north of Bridgewater towards Halifax. Several bridges were also damaged around the county.  The sheer volume of water and the massive emergency effort that followed this weather phenomenon is not something Lunenburg County will soon forget. 

As emergency measures co-ordinator Brian Keizer said last week, "It's certainly not something that we're used to doing here." 

Heavy rainfall warnings force soaked South Shore to brace for more flooding 

With much of the South Shore already under about a metre of water and more rain almost certainly on the way, the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg declared a state of emergency late Wednesday. 

The Emergency Measures Organization made the announcement at 5:30 p.m., urging residents in any low-lying areas to leave their homes.

The rain finally subsided by the end of May and the sun actually appeared.  It had been so long since we had seen the sun that some had a hard time recognizing what that bright sphere in the sky was!  On a positive note, the more recent warm dry days of early June have gone a long way to drying things up on the South Shore.  But, now the problem is that the woods in Nova Scotia are beginning to dry out too much, and with all of the dead and damaged trees that are left over from when hurricane Juan tore through the province two years ago, the woods in Nova Scotia are becoming a real fire hazard.  With forest fire season already beginning, Radio Amateurs may yet again be asked to assist local authorities over what is expected to be a long hot summer ahead.

ARES EOC Field Day 2005 Activities (Jun. 25-26 2005)

Amateur Radio Station (VE3EMO) at the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre (Emergency Management Ontario) will be activated for Field Day 2005 on June 25th between the hours of  7-11pm. Look for EMO between 3.740 and 3.775 on the 80 metre band or 7.055 and up on 40 Metres if conditions are poor on 80.

The following Emergency Operations Centres have reported being active on Field Day 2005; 

• Amateur Radio Station (VA3EOT) at the Toronto Emergency Operations Centre will be activated for Field Day 2005 on June 25th between the hours of  7-11pm. Toronto EOC will be active on all bands including PSK31.

• I had posted earlier in the week that (VE3SOO) would be on the air for Field Day, this is an error. The Algoma Club will be operating from an outdoor Field Day location.

• Amateur Radio Station (VA3OSE) at Owen Sound Fire & Emergency Services will be activated for Field Day 2005. Reported by Rod Pears VA3RP DEC Saugeen ARES.

As time is short please let us know as soon as possible. Please respond to the e-mail address listed below or phone.

73 Jim Taylor VA3KU
PEOC Chief Station Operator
'Emergency Management Ontario'
EMOARES@jus.gov.on.ca
416-466-9361

The Ontario Provincial Communications ARES (Procom) Net

In an emergency situation, the Procom Net would be used to pass traffic between Agency Control Centres across Regional Zones. It would be used be such agencies as The Red Cross, Salvation Army, St. John Ambulance as well as other Social Service Departments, Emergency Operation Co-Ordinators and other Emergency Departments. 

The Net meets every Thursday evening at 8:30pm using four linked UHF repeaters, one linked VHF repeater and one simplex frequency. The repeater list is as follows: 

VE3SNM 442.850 (136.5) Toronto
VE3WIK 443.675 (131.8) Carlisle 
VA3WAJ  442.425 (107.2) Niagara Falls 
VE3SED  442.200 (131.8) Baden 
VE3MBR  147.105 (131.8) Goring 
ARES Simplex 146.460 linked to VE3WIK 

For more information visit:oeco.hfradio.net/procom.html

Introducing the Escarpment Repeater Association (Jun. 17 2005)
 

The ERA is a group of independent repeater owners providing wide area communications services to most all of Southern Ontario. It is made available to amateur organizations for nets, and emergency communications services. For more information about the Escarpment Repeater Association visit thier website at: www.eraradio.ca

Quebec QSO Party--CW/Digital/Voice--sponsored by the Radio Amateurs du Quebec from 1700Z Jun 18-0300Z Jun 19. Frequencies: 80-2 meters, no repeater contacts. Categories: SOAB (150 W max), MO, QRP, VHF (QRP and VHF are VE2 and NA stations only). Exchange: RS(T) and Quebec region or S/P/C, /MM send ITU zone. QSO points: Voice--1 pt, CW/Digital--2 pts, VE2RIO--10 pts. Score: QSO points × VE2 regions and ITU Zones counted once per band and mode. For more information: www.raqi.ca/qqp. Logs due Aug 24 to qso-log@raqi.ca or Radio Amateur du Quebec (QQP), 4545 Av Pierre-de-Coubertin, CP 1000, Succursale M, Montreal QC, Canada, H1V 3R2.

Each year on July 1, the anniversary of Canada’s Confederation, Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC) sponsors the Canada Day Contest. Amateurs all over the world are invited to Canada’s Birthday Party on the air.

Contest Period: 0000 UTC to 2359 UTC July 1, 2005.

Bands and Modes: 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6 and 2 metres, CW and phone (SSB, FM, AM, etc.)

Suggested frequencies: CW - 25 kHz up from the band edge and for SSB - 1850, 3775, 7075, 7225, 14175, 21250, 28500 kHz. Check for CW activity on the half-hour.

Exchange: Stations in Canada send RS(T) and province or territory. VEØs and stations outside Canada send RS(T) and a serial number.

QSOs: Contacts with stations in Canada or VEØs are worth 10 points. Contacts with stations outside Canada are worth 2 points. Contacts with RAC official stations are worth 20 points. RAC official stations are: VA2RAC, VA3RAC, VE1RAC, VE4RAC, VE5RAC, VE6RAC, VE7RAC, VE8RAC, VE9RAC, VO1RAC, VO2RAC, VY0RAC, VY1RAC and VY2RAC. You may work any station once on each of the two modes, on each of the eight contest bands. It is prohibited to make CW contacts in the conventional phone sub-bands, phone contacts in the conventional CW sub-bands, or to make or solicit QSOs through a repeater during the contest period.

Multipliers: Thirteen in total, Canada’s 10 provinces and three territories. Each multiplier may be counted once on each mode on each of the eight contest bands. The multipliers, with their postal abbreviations and prefixes are: Nova Scotia [NS] (VE1, VA1, CY9, CYØ); Quebec [QC] (VE2, VA2); Ontario [ON] (VE3, VA3); Manitoba [MB] (VE4, VA4); Saskatchewan [SK] (VE5, VA5); Alberta [AB] (VE6, VA6); British Columbia [BC] (VE7, VA7); Northwest Territories [NT] (VE8); New Brunswick [NB] (VE9); Newfoundland and Labrador [NL] (VO1, VO2); Nunavut [NU] (VY0); Yukon [YT] (VY1); and Prince Edward Island [PE] (VY2).

Final Score: The total QSO points from all bands multiplied by the total number of multipliers from all bands.

Categories: The following 7 categories are eligible for a certificate or award

• Single Operator All Bands High Power
• Single Operator All Bands Low Power (max. 100 W output)
• Single Operator QRP (max. 5 W output) All Bands & Single Band **
• Single Operator Single Band, no power classification ***
• Multi-Operator Single Transmitter High Power *
• Multi-Operator Single Transmitter Low Power *
• Multi-Operator Multi Transmitter, no power classification

In the Multi-Single category only one transmitter and one band permitted during the same time period (defined as 10 minutes.) Exception: One, and only one other band may be used during any 10-minute period, if and only if the station worked is a new multiplier. In other words the Multi-Single Transmitter class allows a second station to "hunt" and work multipliers only on a separate band. Multi-Multi category stations may operate on several bands simultaneously.

* Single operators who receive assistance from a DX spotting system or Packet Cluster network during the contest must classify themselves as Multi-ops.

** Although there is only one QRP category, which qualifies for a certificate or award, it is intended that the published results would show All Bands or the Single Band of operation. To facilitate this break out of the listings, your entry should indicate the power class you used.

*** Although there is only one Single Operator Single Band category that qualifies for a certificate or award, it is intended that the published results would show High Power or Low Power. To facilitate this break out of the listings, your entry should indicate the power class you used.

Awards:
Plaques will be awarded to the top-scoring entrants in each category. Thanks to the following for their sponsorship:

Single Operator All Bands High Power - Radioworld
Single Operator All Bands Low Power - Durham Radio Sales and Service
Single Operator QRP (all band or single band) - QRP Canada
Single Operator Single Band (no power classification) - Elkel Products
Multi-Operator Single Transmitter High Power - Alfa Radio
Multi-Operator Single Transmitter Low Power - Tony Allsop VE3FTA Memorial by the Mississauga ARC
Multi-Operator Multi Transmitter (no power classification) - Radioworld
Single Operator, no power classification, Foreign Entrant - Larry Kayser, VA3LK Memorial by Alan
Goodacre VE3HX for the Canada Day contest and Jorge Bozzo LU8DQ Memorial by Alan
Goodacre VE3HX for the Canada Winter contest.

Certificates will be awarded to the top-scoring entrant in each category in each province, territory; US call district, and DXCC country. *

* to facilitate the proper allocation of certificates all US stations should indicate their actual US call district if different than indicated by their call prefix. DX stations should indicate the actual country of operation if different than indicated by their call prefix.

Results: Will be published in The Canadian Amateur magazine published by the Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC). The results will also be published on the RAC web site at www.rac.ca in the contest section.

Entries: All entries, electronic or paper logs, much be post marked or electronically submitted by July 31, 2005

Send paper entries to:
Radio Amateurs of Canada
720 Belfast Road, Suite 217
Ottawa Ontario Canada
K1G 0Z5
Canada

Paper mail entries must contain a summary sheet showing score calculation, a dupe sheet listing calls worked on each mode on each band, a multiplier check sheet and log sheets. Logs sheets must show time, band, mode, call of station worked, exchanges sent and received and points claimed for each QSO. New multipliers must be clearly marked in the log. Contest entry forms are also available on the RAC web site. Send e-mail entries to canadaday@rac.ca

Any entry with over 200 contacts should be submitted in digital form, either submitted by e-mail or mailed in via 3.5 MS-DOS/Windows formatted diskette. The preferred format is RAC Cabrillo in plain ASCII/TEXT format. For an interim period of time, while the commercial logging programs are updated, you may submit that logging programs log file for contest submission, but your file must be in ASCII/TEXT format. The RAC Cabrillo format is described and its detailed layout is shown on the RAC web at http://www.rac.ca/downloads/raccabrillo1.pdf. Please check to make sure your logging software is compliant with this format and layout.

Electronic logs should provide a summary sheet with the same information as shown for the paper log entries. The standard summary sheet provided by the typical logging program is generally acceptable, but you should confirm that it contains the same information as shown for paper log entries. A properly filled out Cabrillo header section will be sufficient for logs submitted in that format.

Ensure that you completely fill out the header information in the Cabrillo file. Name your file with your CALLSIGN and the file extension .LOG (e.g. yourcall.LOG). If you email your log, please send the file(s) as attachments. Do NOT paste the log file into the text of your message. This is often impossible to extract correctly.

Large files may be zipped if necessary. If you need help with preparing or emailing your log, please contact Bart Ritchie (VE5CPU) at ve5cpu@rac.ca

For the previous years contest results, visit the RAC Web site in the contesting sections. We will also be publishing a list of submitted logs and the categories enter on the RAC web site after the cut off date to assist in correcting any entry categorizations.

(RAC)

Maritime Swap Shop

The Maritime Swap Shop is held every Monday at 7:30pm local time on 3.750 MHz. All station are invited to checkin and post their wants and items for sale. The Maritime Swap Shop list can be found on many places on the internet, here are just a few: The Loyalist City Amateur Radio Club ,  hfradio.net ,    VE1AIC's Home Page  and  Truro Amateur Radio Club

Please Note: The Maritime (on-air) Swap Shop, which was formerly held on Tuesday evenings, will now take place on Monday evenings at 1930 local time on 3750.

Looking for that special piece of radio gear to finish off your ham station? Do you have extra radio gear you'd like to turn into some cash?

The Swap Shop list is posted every Monday on the Trans Provincial Net website, Ontario Swap Shop Listings , the swap shop list can also be found on packet by calling up VE3DID

(Nick VE3NJG)

The Manitoba Repeater Society Swap & Shop
 

This is a bi-weekly net, and listings are posted for four weeks.  Only HAM radio gear & computers may be posted.  www.ve4sss.ca/swapnshop.html

After a rocky landing - literally - on St. Paul Island, the CY9SS DXpedition continues to have its problems.

Robby Robertson, VY2SS, reports that the CY9SS St Paul Island DXpedition crew had a very rough landing the week of June 5th. While coming ashore, the team lost a generator and three tower sections overboard, and the landing craft's captain, a local lobster fisherman, hurt his leg.  High wind and rain also hampered efforts to set up camp on the island, but CY9SS has been up and running since early on June 8, with early activity on 80, 40 and 20 meter SSB (listening up).

 The CY9SS crew is now down to four operators because another Ham - David KY1V accompanied Krassy during the medical evacuation, but they will be back on the air as soon as they can manage. Tuesday morning, June 15th, another five operators are expected on the island, weather permitting. Despite the weather on the island the first three days of operation of CY9SS, the team will continue until about July 7th

St. Paul Island is of interest to amateur radio operators because a radio contact with an operator on St. Paul Island counts for various operating achievement awards. It usually stays somewhere around the 100th most wanted DXCC entity. It also has two lighthouses, and counts for the Canadian Islands award.

This is my fourth in a series of pieces on the progress of Richard Provonchee - K1RBP - as he sails solo from Cushing Maine to Portugal.

Saturday Morning June 4, 2005 - Richard has now completed his first night alone on the Atlantic.  As of the morning of June 4th he writes:
 

It looks like there were at lease three or four metre seas running  after a big blow on Friday evening; but the wind has died down completely.

"The night went all right. We were cranking. Up to 7 knots at times. I got quite a few catnaps so don't feel too bad this morning. The wind has died right down so am kind of floundering at the moment. I have a patch on. Actually I put it on Wednesday. I just made some coffee - which helps.

This morning, I'm going through all that stuff about why am I doing this and do I really want to. All the stuff we knew would happen. Haven't eaten much yet but will get to it soon. No Gatorade yet. Co-ordinates are > 42deg 50.5min N 67deg 15.25min W" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Saturday Afternoon June 4, 2005 - I have just returned from a Field Day Contesting Workshop run by the Halifax Amateur Radio Club out of our EMO Emergency Operations Centre in Dartmouth.

1630 hrs - Finally success!!  Richard is now far enough off the coast of Nova Scotia that a contact on 40 metres was successful.  He was about S-5, but the noise level was 5 to 6 making it difficult to hold a long conversation.  I did get his position logged and it was not much different from when he sent his position by email earlier today.  Apparently after quite stiff winds over night Friday and into Saturday morning, things got very quiet. 

In fact, he has been becalmed now for several hours; let me tell you, bobbing around like a cork in a 27-foot vessel in moderate seas is no fun at all!! Hopefully, the wind will pick later Saturday evening and he will put additional distance between us, further improving the chance of a solid voice contact tomorrow.  Daina plans to listen in tomorrow and if conditions permit, I will patch her through to Richard. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sunday Morning June 5, 2005 - I received this update this morning from Diana who has passed on excerpts of her most recent email from Richard onboard Vittoria.

Porpoise coming along side for a visit

Daina writes to the many friends who are following Richard's progress -  "Richard had an emotionally tough day yesterday. He was becalmed and stuck in the fog - feeling quite vulnerable. However this morning (Sunday) I think he's feeling better. Here are some excerpts from what he emailed me:  "Still no wind but the fog looks like it might lift. I did get a fair amount of sleep last night. I've made my coffee and had a bowl of oatmeal. My position today about the same as yesterday. I didn't drift as far as I feared."  Daina comments:  "The reference to "drifting" is because at one point on Saturday he thought he was actually drifting towards Nova Scotia!  Richard and I hope to connect this evening at 5:00pm via Ham radio link through Howard - VE1DHD.  I'll keep you posted." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Through the wonders of Amateur Radio, Winlink 2000 and "ShipTrack" we can see Richard's location as of 2005/06/05 15:54  at 042° 52' 00" N 066° 47' 00" W - reported becalmed and rolling.  His intended track is south-east to the 40th parallel; instead, he is drifting north-west towards Yarmouth Nova Scotia.

Sunday Evening June 5, 2005 - We did manage to make another successful voice contact with Richard on 40 metres, and this time I was able to patch Daina through for a brief chat with Richard. 

Unfortunately, it seems that he did drift northwards over the past 24 hours and was even closer to Nova Scotia today than yesterday.  As a result, his signal was not strong and to top it off, the Commercial Broadcasters in Europe were starting to come through on top of him during our contact at 2000Z.  Hoping for better luck mid week.

Lots of feathered friends but NO wind!!

Monday Morning June 6, 2005 - I opened my email this morning at 0630 to find the following:

Hi Howard (VE1DHD) and Neil (VE1ZY),

I have decided to head back to Cushing.  Lots of reasons but basically I've come to the conclusion that this trip is not for me.

I hope to be back in Cushing by Wednesday. I will fill you in then.

Thanks for your help and sorry for the inconvenience.

Richard
 

Dead Calm

I know that Richard is going to be disappointed at not being able to complete the trip of a lifetime that has been so long in the planning, but on the other hand I am confident that Daina is going to be relieved that he will soon be home.  It may be difficult for those who are not sailors and who have never sailed off-shore to understand what has happened here, but there are myriad factors that come into play when sailing alone on the open ocean.

The fact that Richard has been becalmed and socked in with fog for two solid days and was being tossed about on a reasonably rough sea without any effective steerage, just made things so much worse, particularly so early on in his trip.  As it turned out, instead of heading south-east towards the 40th parallel, he was actually drifting north-west back towards Yarmouth Nova Scotia.
 

Howard (VE1DHD) in his Shack in Seabright NS

Although this epic ended prematurely, it did nevertheless end safely, and Amateur Radio played a not so insignificant role in keeping communication lines open between Vittoria and Richard's wife Daina in Halifax.  Remember that WinLink 2000 is an Amateur Radio developed and supported system, and I must say that I found it incredibly interesting that Richard's Emails got through 100% of the time - thanks to Neil (VE1YZ) -  where I struggled to make voice contacts on SSB.

As they say - "All is well that ends well" and in that regard, this story does have a happy ending and I hope that you have enjoyed following along.

73 from Seabright Nova Scotia.

Howard - VE1DHD

I have been keeping you informed about the plans that Richard Provonchee - K1RBP - has for sailing solo from Cushing Maine to Portugal.  This is the third in a series of articles that I hope to provide on the progress that Richard is making. Richard (K1RBP) had hoped to set sail on his personal epic voyage on the Victoria Day long weekend in May but discovered that he needed special insurance to enter Portuguese waters.  He finally has that insurance but only after having his vessel surveyed, which necessitated grounding her.  He then set the US Memorial Day weekend as his starting date, but as you may have read in the papers, we have been deluged with rain (250+mm) and very high winds (gusts to 100km/hr) here on the East Coast for over two weeks and so his departure date was yet again set back.  The latest plan was for him to leave from Cushing on Wednesday June 1st, but that too was scuttled.

Well today (Friday June 3rd) I received the following from Richard via Winlink 2000 AirMail.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hi Howard,

I slipped the mooring at 8:30 this morning. Now at 43deg 36.2min N 68deg 38min W.
Rough ride but good weather.
I will plan to be looking for you tomorrow (Saturday) as per you suggestion.

Richard
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Richard is referring to our plan to try and make an HF contact on 40 metres at 1600hrs. ADT on Saturday.  If he had gotten underway on Wednesday I expect he might have been sufficiently far from my QTH near Peggy's Cove to make a good contact on 7.260HHz but I now have my doubts.  I will give it a try Saturday in any event and if that does not work, we will try Sunday, and Monday if need be.  Daina (Richard's wife) is obviously anxious about this trip and would like to be able to hear his voice.  She has already received an email from him, so his WinLink 2000 system running AirMail is working very well, but there is nothing like the personal touch of a human voice.

Daina dropped me this note late Friday pm along with this  nice shot of Richard at his "nav station" on Victtoria.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hi Howard, 
After several set backs and a false start yesterday due to the fog, Richard finally made it out this morning. I just received the first email from him. He says he's feeling pretty good emotionally and so-so physically. I guess it's pretty rough (he said he was having trouble keeping the computer on the chart table!) and he's a bit sea-sick.  However, from all that he's told me from what he's read, that is pretty normal.  Even under ideal conditions, the first few days are supposed to be the hardest, emotionally and physically. 

Please let me know when you make contact with him. Needless to say I'm anxious for any and all news. 

Daina
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hi Daina: 

Good to hear that Richard is finally out at sea. Yes, I remember my first open ocean trip from the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron in Halifax down to Marblehead Mass. What a trip!! Constantly battling the head winds and the waves.  If I could have walked on water, I would have gotten off at Liverpool for sure. But, after two days things got better and I was fine from then on. I expect that Ricahrd will be good by Saturday or Sunday. 

I don't know what to suggest about this weekend Daina. We had expected a Wednesday departure so with him not leaving until Friday, he won't have covered a great deal of distance by 4pm Saturday. The problem is that the 40-metre band (which is the one that we are most likely to make a contact on, at least until he hits mid-Atlantic) is not very effective for short distances and we were never really able to make a firm contact from Halifax to Cushing. The further he gets from Cushing the better. 

I will give him a try on Saturday at 4pm as planned. If you like, you can call as planned and I will put you on my speaker phone so you can hear as I try to establish contact. Then if we get a good connection, I will put you through the proper Phone Patch and you can have a chat. If Saturday does not work out, then I would say that we try for 5pm on Sunday (Jean and I are planning on going to the Valley on Sunday so don't want to cut things too close - 5pm should be fine.) The plan is that if I don't get through to him on SSB Voice Saturday I will immediately send an email to him outlining any issues and will set up a scheduled contact (SKED) for the next day. 

Hope to hear from you tomorrow. And thanks for the picture. That is great and I will include it in my weekly report. 
Cheers (or as we Hams say - 73) 

Howard - VE1DHD
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Until next week, this is VE1DHD - CLEAR.

There are many reasons why we get into Amateur Radio.  However I was surprised this year as co-ordinator of our Halifax Amateur Radio Club Basic Course to learn that several of the people who were attending the classes were doing so for the sole purpose of being able to operate SSB/HF in the Ham bands aboard their sailboats.  Coincidentally, I had been chatting recently with a friend and fellow Ham - Neil Hughes (VE1YZ) - about another individual who had been having problems with an HF installation on his sailboat.

For those of you who are contemplating, or who are in the process of installing SSB/HF on your boat, I am passing along a number of things that Neil reckons are critically important in this area.

1)   Assuming that you are using a backstay for an antenna, with an automatic antenna tuner, it is very important that the antenna tuner be mounted as close beneath the backstay as possible. The feedline from the antenna tuner must be an open piece of insulated wire (not coax - not even 1" of coax!), clear of other metal objects as much as possible. It should not be taped to the non-antenna part of the backstay, but rather held off on plastic standoffs. This is necessary to prevent arcing. Once an arc occurs, a pinhole develops in the feedlilne, which fills with salt water and shorts the antenna.

2)   Your antenna tuner must have a very heavy ground strap that runs directly to a good grounding point, such as a keelbolt or Dynaplate. The wire must be as short as possible. The best ground would be a wide copper strap (2" or more). If that is not available, a piece of #6 (automotive battery) cable would be a good choice. Copper tubing would also work. Flatten the ends and solder on connectors, or flatten and drill. The connections at each end must be perfect. If lugs are installed on the cable, they must be soldered. Connections at the keelbolt or Dynaplate must be clean, tight, and protected from moisture. 

NOTE: The piece of strap that runs from the ground connection on the tuner to the seawater ground is actually part of the antenna system. Making this strap as physically large (but short) as possible minimizes its effect.

3)   The radio should have a similar heavy ground directly to the same grounding point as the antenna tuner. A short (1'), smaller flexible piece of wire at the radio end would make the installation easier. Again connections must be soldered and perfect.

NOTE:  An engine bolt does not qualify as a ground for radio purposes. Other grounds such as lifelines are also not acceptable.  Unfortunately, many people install a very good radio, but pay little or no attention to the antenna and grounding system.

4)    The PTC-IIe Antenna Tuner must have it's own power source. In other words it can not be connected to the same circuit as the radio. It must have it's own circuit complete to the source of power. This is usually the culprit when RF gets into the PTC-IIe.  In some cases, to eliminate RF interference, I have found that putting the PTC-IIe on it's own battery cured it. Also, what works well is a 12V-inline filter for an automotive stereo radio. These are used to eliminate alternator whine in car radios. This filter should be mounted right at the PT-CIIe. In stubborn cases, mounting the 20-amp filter in the power line to the radio, right at the radio will help. These filters are usually available at automotive stores.

5)   Be sure that you have downloaded and installed the propagation predictor from the Airmail home page. It is a great tool. Each time you check into a WL2K, you will automatically download the current solar flux. This solar flux number is read by the propagation program, and the various WL2K PMBOs are assigned a probability of success, based on that number.

At this time in the solar cycle, HF communications will be difficult at best. There may be days with little or no propagation due to solar flares. Frequency selection and time of day will be critical.
 
 

Howard, Hi!

Just read issue 130 of the Bulletin and wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed your article on Grand Manan. I found it most interesting and as "professional" as any article I've ever seen in QST.

Well done!

John - VE2ZH / HK3AK  (May 29 2005)

Hi Howard,

I have got to tell you that the job you are doing as a correspondent from this region is just fantastic!  You are setting a standard that no other region has yet even begun to approach.

Your writing style is both entertaining and full of very useful information.  Moreover, you are making such effective use of digital photos, maps and other images.

I personal extend my thanks for your efforts!

I hope that we can get more people in this region subscribing to the bulletin, and reading and making use of the valuable information contained in the whole bulletin.

73,
Scott Wood VE1QD