New from Elecraft & the weekend of 4/12 and 4/13

 POTA, whether you like it or not, seems to be a driving force behind new product development, whether it's smaller rigs, antennas or accessories. Elecraft has just announced a new antenna - the AX3, which they describe as "POTA ready".

I'm not going to go into the details here - they can be found at https://elecraft.com/collections/antennas/products/ax1_ax1-multi-band-whip-antenna-copy

My AX1 with the 40 Meter extension will pretty much do the same things, but that built in tripod is a nice addition! It appears to be a lot better solution than that "protractor" type support they were offering. The AX3 also comes with a waterproof nylon bag, which is a nice touch.

On to this weekend's events:

Contests to be aware of (busy weekend for contests!):

QRP-ARCI Spring QSO Party - which starts tonight! - http://qrparci.org/contest/spring-qso-party

JIDX CW Contest: - http://www.jidx.org/jidxrule-e.html

SKCC Weekend Sprintathon - https://www.skccgroup.com/operating_activities/weekend_sprintathon/

Yuri Gagarin International DX Contest - https://gccontest.ru/en/rules-gc-2025/

DIG QSO Party, CW - https://dig-contest.de/rules

Texas State Parks on the Air - https://www.tspota.org/

New Mexico QSO Party - http://www.newmexicoqsoparty.org/

Georgia QSO Party - https://gaqsoparty.com/

North Dakota QSO Party (for those of you needing ND for WAS, listen for this one!) - https://ndarrlsection.com/2025/2025_nd_qso_party_rules.pdf

International Vintage Contest HF - https://vintagecontest.webnode.it/residenti/

4 States QRP Group Second Sunday Sprint - http://www.4sqrp.com/SSS/sss_rules.pdf

And ........ you may hear this digital stuff on the bands:

IG-RY World Wide RTTY Contest, and the Africa FT4 DX Contest.

Special Event Stations:

04/12/2025 | Activation of State Parks in the State of TX Commemorating Tom King, WK5DX

Apr 12-Apr 13, 0800Z-2000Z, K5LRK, The Colony, TX. Lake Area Amateur Radio Klub. CW bottom of +40 kHz; Phone General segment +25 kHz and 28.350; VHF 50.200 144.200. QSL. Ken Rainy, AC3EZ, 529 Kenilworth Ave, Oak Point, TX 75068. www.k5lrk.com

04/12/2025 | Mississippi State Parks on the Air

Apr 12, 1300Z-2300Z, N5OS, Biloxi, MS. Jackson County MS ARA. 14.074. Certificate. Jerry Davis, P.O. Box 234, Gautier, MS 39553. 2nd Annual MS State Parks on the Air event https://jcmsara.org/mississippi-parks-on-the-air

04/12/2025 | Operation Frequent Wind

Apr 12, 1600Z-2300Z, NI6IW, San Diego, CA. USS Midway Museum Ship. 14.320 7.250 14.070 PSK31 DSTAR on Papa System Repeaters. QSL. USS Midway Museum Ship COMEDTRA, 910 N Harbor Drive, San Diego, CA 92101. www.qrz.com/db/ni6iw

04/12/2025 | Venice Florida Shark's Tooth Festival

Apr 12-Apr 13, 1020Z-1017Z, K4S, Venice, FL. Tamiami Amateur Radio Club. 14.136 21.136 28.136. QSL. TAMIAMI AMATEUR RADIO CLUB, PO BOX 976, Nokomis, FL 34274-0976. QSL includes a fossilized shark's tooth from the beach in Venice, FL when S.A.S.E. is sent to W4AC address on qrz.com tamiamiarc.org

Finally, for those of you who are NOT space buffs - April 12th is a significant day. In fact, April 12th is observed as the International Day of Human Spaceflight. On this day in 1961, Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin from the (at that time) USSR, became the first human being to orbit the Earth.

Some 20 years later, on April 12th 1981,  Astronauts John Young and Bob Crippen flew the Space Shuttle Columbia into orbit on the very first shuttle mission - STS-1. The shuttle was the first spacecraft designed to be reusable. It's a shame the shuttle project was terminated, it was a huge success.

And for those of you who just love OTA events, there actually is a NOTA - NASA On The Air program. This is a series of special events where the various Amateur Radio clubs at NASA facilities, or clubs with NASA affiliation get on the air to commemorate significant space events, past and current. You can read about it here - https://nasaontheair.wordpress.com/. And there's a Facebook page as well - https://www.facebook.com/groups/1101291730008122/

Have a great weekend, and hope to hear you in the QRP-ARCI Spring QSO Party tonight!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP -When you care to send the very least!

St. Maximillain Kolbe - Amateur Radio Operator

Today, August 14th, in the Catholic Church, is the Feast Day of St. Maximillian Kolbe, who was martyred this day in 1941 . 

He died in the Nazi concertation camp at Auschwitz. As the story goes, there was a successful prion break from the camp. In response, the Kommandant ordered that 10 men be executed as an example of what would happen to those who might attempt any further prison breaks  One of the 10 selected men begged that his life be spared as he had a wife and children. Fr. Kolbe volunteered to take his place. The 10 men were placed in a starvation bunker. Over the course of 10 days, the men perished leaving Fr. Max alone as the last surviving prisoner. The Kommandant ordered that Fr. Kolbe be given an injection of carbolic acid to stop his heart. 

St. Max is the only canonized saint in the Catholic Church that we know held an Amateur Radio license. His homeland was Poland and his call sign was SP3RN. As far as we can tell, he spent his radio time spreading the Gospel. I highly and sincerely doubt that he viewed Amateur Radio in the same way we look upon it as a hobby or pastitme.

St Max was canonized, that is officially declared a Saint, by Pope John Paul II in October of 1982. Present at the ceremony was Franciszek Gajowniczek, the man whose life Fr. Kolbe spared when he took his place.

There is a weekly HF SSB net devoted to St. Maximillian Kolbe. I try to check into the Sunday evening 75 Meter net. There is also a 20 Meter net held earlier on Sunday afternoons.  For more information, you can go to:https://www.saintmaxnet.org/

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Such is the way of life

Nothing is permanent. I discovered, quite by accident, that Drew W2OU, a close friend who became a Silent Key in 2021 has had his call sign re-assigned.

I know, firsthand, that this is the way of the FCC, that call signs are not permanent markers and can be re-assigned, but n my heart of hearts, there will never be another W2OU quite like Drew. I wish new W2OU, Dr. Thomas Pallan much success with the call sign. 

I do hope that some day he takes the time to do a little research on the "original" W2OU just as I have done for the original W2LJ. There's a rich legacy of mentorship and volunteering behind that call sign, and I hope he discovers it. If he wanted to, just by doing a search here on "W2OU" would provide him with a lot of background. Since I began that journey, my call sign has become more precious and meaningful to me now that I know more about the Ham who proudly bore it with such distinction, and his family who supported him, before it was granted to me, .

Call signs are so much more than just a random jumble of letters and numbers. They take on a life of their own and we come to associate the call sign with the person, as if it were an integral part of their name ....... and part of their personality, being and soul.

Thinking of you, Drew, on this hot summery day. RIP, my friend.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

More about the original W2LJ

This is going to be a long post. In our last episode, I was telling you all about the musings and thoughts I have had about the original W2LJ ...... who he was and what he was like.  The experience I have had over the past couple of days has just been amazing and more than I could ever have hoped for.

In my Google search, I had mentioned that Ed and Norma had a daughter. I also saw in the Google results that his daughter has a Facebook page. Not totally sure that I would be addressing the right person, I decided to send a Facebook message, anyway. I introduced myself and explained why I was contacting her. After all, I didn't want her to think that some creepy stranger from out of left field was contacting her for nefarious reasons. Lord, knows, we have enough of that, these days. Between scams, phishing and other evil intentions, I wanted his daughter to know this was harmless.

I didn't know what to expect, or even if I would ever get a reply. What happened next was one of the most gracious and kind exchanges from Carmen, Ted's (as he preferred to be known) daughter, and his grandson, Jon. Two of the most remarkable people who I am so glad to know, and will be eternally grateful to.

Carmen answered me via e-mail. (I have their permission to post - I would never do that without their consent):

Hi!

Yes, I am the daughter (and only child) of Edward (Ted) Roscoe Swoffer who was a ham radio operator since adolescence.  He was born and brought up in Walnut Grove, Minnesota one of eight children. He signed up for duty in World War !! And served on submarine duty (Peto and the Albacore).  The Albacore was torpedoed shortly after he got off to marry my mom.  He studied Electrical Engineering at Penn State and worked for Singer Link in Binghamton for many years.  He and my mom (Norma) were amazing grandparents to my three children and I am so grateful.

My father was very quiet and humble, never boasting of his many accomplishments.   He was not very social, although well liked by all.  I am not sure what all those letters mean concerning his equipment etc.   I do have many of his postcards from far and near and would be glad to send you one.  Let me know if you have further questions and let me know your address if you want one of his postcards from other ham operators.  I donated a Morse Code machine and some other stuff to a local museum called Tech Works.

I look forward to your response!

Carmen

Wow! I was floored! I was hoping for some kind of response and was so glad to receive such a warm and welcoming one!

I had cross posted to the AmateurRadio.com site hoping that other folks who might have known Ted would offer some tid bits about him. His grandson Jon replied there:

Hi Larry – Thanks so much for your post and your curiosity. Ted Swoffer (“Pappy” to his grandkids) was my grandfather. He was a great one. So much I could share with you about him. He started building radios as a kid in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, had multiple tours of duty in the pacific theater in WWII as a radio/sonar guy aboard two USN submarines (USS Albacore and USS Peto), and after the war graduated from Penn State with an engineering degree. Joined Singer Link in Binghamton, NY as an aeronautical engineer, working on flight simulators for several warbirds. While I spent much of my childhood being fascinated with his many hobbies, he was a quiet man. And amateur radio remained something that he did by himself. Perhaps that’s why nobody else in the family continued the craft. I think he would be so pleased to know that his call sign lives on through you.

And Jon also sent me an e-mail:

Hi Larry - attached is a wartime photo of Ted Swoffer.  Also attached is a picture of a collage of post cards to W2LJ from all over the world that I made a few years ago.  

I’ll look through other things to see if I have any other W2LJ stuff I could send you

And also from Jon:

Larry - thanks for sharing!  Very cool to see the W2LJ license plate.  

Ted was a Morse coder like you.  You two would have had a lot in common. 

And here's the photos that both Carmen and Jon sent.

 

Ted, the original W2LJ was an amazing man! And to borrow a radio term, I found some resonance between him and my own Dad. Both faithfully and bravely served in the Armed Forces during WWII. While Ted was a Navy sonarman, my Dad's first assignment with the Signal Corp was a detachment to the joint British/American team that was developing enhancements to radar. Unlike Ted, my Dad never went on to getting an Amateur Radio license. Perhaps that skipped a generation and was my destiny.

Carmen also informed me that her Dad was a CW man. Yay! I was elated to find that out. It makes me feel like i'm somehow carrying on his legacy, even though I never knew him. I did mention to Carmen and Jon that I wished I had known Ted back in 1978 when I was studying for my own Novice license and beyond. I know in my heart of hearts he would have been a fantastic Elmer, and boy, I could have used one back then.

As I said before, this was an amazing experience. I got to double dip! Not only did I learn so much more about this amazing man who originally held the callsign W2LJ, but I was also able to meet and converse with his daughhter and grandson - two of the most kind, warm, and friendly people you'd ever want to know. Thanks so much, Carmen and Jon! I can only hope that my Amateur Radio career would make Ted proud that W2LJ lives on.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

July 4th, 2024

 

Happy Independence Day !

72 de Larry W2LJ 

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Musing

I often wonder about Edward Swoffer. He was the original W2LJ before I took on the call sign. Ed lived in Binghamton, NY and other than that, I know not much about him.

Was he an SSB guy? Was he a CW devotee like I am? Was he into DX? Traffic Handling? Or maybe he was just an inveterate rag chewer? By some oddball chance, could he have been a QRPer? What clubs, if any, did he belong to? Did he participate in Field Day with his Ham buddies? What kind of station did he have? What was his antenna farm like? A search on Google maps shows their address (which is public info) has a decent sized back yard with lots of trees. I'm betting he was a wire antenna guy.

He was an Amateur Extra, so I have to believe that, at least for a while, he was more than just a casual operator. 

Doing a Google search on W2LJ doesn't lead to anything other than stuff about me. By doing some digging on the name Edward Swoffer AND Binghamton, NY I was able to find out that Ed was born in 1919 and died in 1993. That makes him two years older than my Dad.  He was married to Norma Thompson who passed away in October 2009, They had a daughter who earned a degree in Philosophy. Other than that, zip.

Why the fascination? No reason, really. It's just that it would be neat to sit down and talk with him and find out if we have anything else in common besides being W2LJ. Or, for that matter, a family member who could tell me more about him.

What would be the icing on the cake would be to somehow acquire one of his QSL cards. THAT would be a treasure!

History was my favorite subject in school. As a kid, I loved reading biographies and still do. I have an appreciation for things from the past. It would be fun to know more about the original W2LJ.

72 de Larry (the current W2LJ)

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

I sometimes wonder

if there will ever be another generation like "The Greatest Generation"?

Life for them was no picnic. My Dad was born in 1921, my Mom in 1929. They lived through the Great Depression, only to have that end with WWII.  It was like they couldn't catch a break. While it wasn't a cakewalk, my grandparents on my Mom's side were practically (almost) self sufficient. My grandfather was a carpenter by trade, but at home he raised turkeys, my grandmother raised chickens. They had a prodigious garden and a cherry and pear tree on their property. Being immigrants of strong Polish stock, they knew how to provide for themselves and their family.

When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, so many young men and women stepped up to the plate without a second thought.  That included my Dad and every single one of my uncles (and I had PLENTY of uncles) from both sides of my family served, save for one who had a medical condition that would not get him past the Army physical. They knew what their duty was, they knew what was at stake. They took the yoke upon their shoulders and bore it with exemplary bravery and dignity ...... and they persevered and were ultimately victors in the battle to save the world from fascism. 

My Dad, somewhere in the crowd of American G.I.s coming home from Europe aboard the Queen Mary.

They came home, started families and businesses, or went on to work for companies and they gave birth to one of the greatest economies the world would ever know. Their economy would aid in the rebuilding of the European continent from the ravages of war. Their generation gave birth to the Baby Boomer generation, of which I am part. Here's a staggering statistic that is sometimes hard for me to wrap my mind around - when my Dad passed away in 2001, WWII veterans were dying at a rate of 1,000 per day. It's hard to truly comprehend just how many young men and women served in our military during that conflict.

So we remember "The Greatest Generation", on this, the 80th Anniversary of D-Day. We were blessed by their presence, and we can truly say that without them, we would not be here today, and we would not have the freedoms with which we are blessed.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to save the very least!

Field Day and the weekend

I spent a little time (and money) on the Vistaprint site last night, designing an additional and special banner for SPARC's Field Day effort:

We will be marking the 10th Anniversary of our founding and 10 years of service to our community. There will be cake!  Oh yes, there will be cake!

I'm not a graphic designer, by any means, and I'm certain that a pro would've come up with something snappier and more eye-catching. But we'd also have to pay for that service, so SPARC will have to make do with my meager effort. With practicality in mind, I took special care not to mention "10th Anniversary" so that the banner can be re-displayed as needed in future years. Observers should be able to do the math in their heads, and if they can't, they can always whip out their cell phone calculators.

On to the weekend's doings:

Contests:

Tisza Cup CW Contest - https://www.tiszacup.eu/index.php/en/contest-rules

Wake-Up! QRP Sprint - http://qrp.ru/contest/wakeup/333-wakeup-eng

Kentucky QSO Party - http://www.kyqsoparty.org/rules/

IARU Region 1 Field Day, CW - https://www.darc.de/der-club/referate/conteste/iaru-region-1-fieldday/en/

ARRL Inter. Digital Contest (undoubtedly this will encroach down into the CW portion of the bands) - https://www.arrl.org/arrl-digital-contest

ARS Spartan Sprint (Monday evening) - https://arsqrp.blogspot.com/2023/05/what-is-ars-spartan-sprint-and-how-can.html

Special Events:

05/31/2024 | 45th Hank Williams Sr Festival

May 31-Jun 1, 1500Z-2359Z, W4H, Georgiana, AL. Jim Bell Wireless Association. 14250 SSB 7180 SSB 14074 FT8 7074 FT8. QSL. JBWA - W4H, 274 W Pettibone Rd, Georgiana, AL 36033. The festival celebrates the legendary Hank Williams Sr career with live entertainment and vendors. The special event station will be at Watson Park across from the festival grounds. Send a SASE for QSL. For additional information: hank@k4tns.com https://www.k4tns.com/hank

06/01/2024 | Audie Murphy 

Jun 1, 1400Z-2000Z, W2A, Christiansburg, VA. New River Valley Amateur Radio Club. 14.240. QSL. Danny Wylam, 710 McDaniel Dr., Christiansburg, VA 24073-3848. Commemorating Audie Murphy, America's most decorated soldier from WW2 dannywylam@gmail.com

06/01/2024 | Fox River Radio League 100th Anniversary

Jun 1-Jun 15, 0000Z-2359Z, W9CEQ, Batavia, IL. Fox River Radio League. 14.260 14.035 7.260 7.035. Certificate & QSL. FRRL - K9MMS, PO Box 673, Batavia, IL 60510. www.frrl.org

06/01/2024 | GB80 D-Day - WWII D-Day 80th Anniversary

Jun 1-Jun 28, 0000Z-2359Z, GB80DDAY, Berkshire, ENGLAND. Newbury and District Amateur Radio Society. All bands; all modes. QSL. See website for, QSL, information, ENGLAND. Operating from the Control Tower each Saturday, and Thursday June 6; remote other times. Other activities will occur throughout the event at the Control Tower. www.nadars.org.uk

06/01/2024 | Museum Ships Weekend - Nuclear Ship Savannah

Jun 1-Jun 2, 1300Z-2100Z, K3SAV, Baltimore, MD. Nuclear Ship Savannah ARC. 7.1 14.1 21.1 28.1. QSL. K3LU, 980 PATUXENT ROAD, Odenton, MD 21113. Single transmitter SSB and CW aboard N/S Savannah. Please check spotting networks for frequencies. Info on QRZ.com www.qrz.com/db/k3sav

06/01/2024 | Museum Ships Weekend Event

Jun 1-Jun 2, 0001Z-2359Z, NI6IW, San Diego, CA. USS Midway Museum Ship. 7.250 14.320 14.070 PSK31 DSTAR. QSL. USS Midway Museum Ship COMEDTRA, 910 N Harbor Drive, San Diego, CA 92101. www.qrz.com/db/ni6iw

06/01/2024 | Museum Ships Weekend Event - Special emphasis because this is New Jersey!

Jun 1-Jun 2, 0001Z-2359Z, NJ2BB, Camden, NJ. Battle Ship New Jersey Amateur Radio Station. 7272 14262 7044 14044. QSL. Margaret Burgess, 150 Schooner Avenue, Barnegat, NJ 08005. nj2bb.org

06/01/2024 | Museum Ships Weekend Event - USS Tennessee

Jun 1-Jun 2, 0000Z-0359Z, W4BSF, Oneida, TN. Big South Fork Amateur Radio Club and the USS Tennessee Battleship Museum. 40 20 15 and 10 meters. QSL. W4BSF USS TN BB43, P.O. Box 5029, Oneida, TN 37841. Please check spotting networks. QSL with SASE by July 15, 2024. bsfarc.org/museum-ship-weekend-2024

06/01/2024 | National Museum of the Great Lakes Museum Ships Weekend Event

Jun 1-Jun 2, 1400Z-1830Z, K8E, Toledo, OH. Toledo Mobile Radio Association W8HHF. 14.260 14.239 7.260 7.039. QSL. Col. James M. Schoonmaker, P.O. Box 9673, Toledo, OH 43697. www.qrz.com/db/K8E or www.w8hhf.org 

06/01/2024 | NB9QV USS Cobia Special Event

Jun 1-Jun 2, 1400Z-2000Z, NB9QV, Manitowoc, WI. NB9QV Cobia Club. 7.240 14.240. Certificate. See website, for information on receiving, certificate. An Electronic Certificate will be available. Please send your call sign, name, band, date and UTC time of contact to kc9yl@arrl.net to receive your PDF certificate via email. https://www.qrz.com/db/NB9QV

06/01/2024 | Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival

Jun 1, 0900Z-1000Z, W0R / WA0SDO, Sedalia, MO. Sedalia Pettis Amateur Radio Klub. 14.250 7.180. Certificate. Bret Kuhns, 1880 Quisenberry Rd, Sedalia, Sedalia, MO 65301-0445. We Will be operating on site at the Scott Joplin Ragtime Music Festival. www.wa0sdo.org

06/01/2024 | W2D D-Day Commemoration

Jun 1-Jun 14, 1300Z-2200Z, W2D, Hunt Valley, MD. Amateur Radio Club of the National Electronics Museum (ARCNEM). 14.244 14.044 7.244 7.044. Certificate & QSL. K3NY, 108 Brent, Arnold, MD 21012. Amateur Radio Club of the National Electronics Museum (ARCNEM) will operate W2D in commemoration of the anniversary of D-Day and the role of electronics in WWII. Primary operation will be June 1-June 6 with additional operation possible during June 7-14 as operator availability permits. Operation on 80M (3.544, 3.844), additional bands and digital modes possible during event. Frequencies +/- according to QRM. QSL and Certificate available via SASE; details at ww-2.us ww-2.us

A little bit more on the USS New Jersey. The battleship New Jersey is the most decorated battleship in the United States Navy. She served with distinction in more conflicts than any other in her class. Originally, the plan was that the USS New Jersey would be the ship on which the treaty for ending WWII would be signed. When President Franklin Roosevelt died, the war ended under the watch of President Harry Truman. President Truman was a native Missourian - so ................. the USS Missouri was chosen, instead.

Finally, next Thursday, June 6th, marks the 80th Anniversary of D-Day. Something to keep in mind on that day - please remember the brave men and women from around the world who fought to save the world from tyranny on that day and throughout the duration of WWII.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

How this all started!

 

Thanks to Drew W2OU, Rich W2PQ, Bob WB2UDC, Vic K2NBC and Rich W2VU for being part of that with me that day. It was an honor to give that presentation with them that day and who knew it would give birth to a blog that's lasted some 20 years!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least1

Bad boys, bad boys .....watcha gonna do?

 

Abbot and Costello were a favorite of my childhood, right up there with Laurel and Hardy. I always get a chuckle when I hear Lou Costello tell Bud Abbot, "I've been a baaaaaad boy!".

So what did W2LJ do that's so bad? Depends on your point of view. If you're a brother or sister Ham - nothing! To the uninitiated ..... "What do you need another radio for?"

I buckled under last night and ordered a QMX transceiver from QRP Labs. Not the kit, but a fully assembled-in-the-enclosure-80-to-20 Meter version. I've got too many kits in the pipeline that are waiting to be built. I don't need another. For that matter, I don't need another radio, either! But it's so tiny and can do so much and I've been wanting to get one for so long. I just couldn't sit on the fence any longer and last night I took the plunge. I figured I might as well order one while I'm still working full time. With retirement looming in the not too distant future, purchases like these might not be as easy to justify. I have no idea how long it will take to get here, but I'll wait. Oh, I know that it will be worth the wait!  (Just looked at the waiting list - if I'm lucky maybe September or October).

So in that way, some would say that "I've been a baaaaaad boy!' To which I might reply, "It's a Ham Radio thing ....... you wouldn't understand!"

By the way ....... Happy Marcon's birthday! The ol' boy would be 150 years old today. Better than lifting a glass - get on the air in his honor today! 

And I just stepped out of my office for a second or two to see that today is "Bring Your Kid to Work Day". It was exactly for this "day" back in 2005 that a bunch of us put on a presentation about Amateur Radio at the IEEE in Piscataway, NJ. Talking about "day" was my impetus for starting this blog - going on it's 20th year this year! 

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

April 12th

If you're a "Space Race Kid" like I am, April 12th holds significant meaning. It was on this day in 1961, that Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Vostok 1 to become the first human being to orbit the Earth.

Exactly 20 years later, on April 12th, 1981,  Astronauts John Young and Bob Crippen were launched into space aboard STS-1, the first manned flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia. April 12th is now known as the "international Day of Human Space Flight". A little bit of trivia - John Young had flown on Gemini, Apollo (piloting each the Command and Lunar Modules) and the Shuttle - he holds the record for an American Astronaut flying the most different variety of spacecraft.

How far manned spaceflight evolved in 20 years! 

On to the goings on for the weekend, and as always, we'll start with contests. Lots going on:

QRP ARCI Spring QSO Party - http://qrparci.org/contest/spring-qso-party

JIDX CW Contest - http://www.jidx.org/jidxrule-e.html

SKCC Weekend Sprintathon - https://www.skccgroup.com/operating_activities/weekend_sprintathon/

New Mexico QSO Party - http://www.newmexicoqsoparty.org/

Georgia QSO Party - https://gaqsoparty.com/

Hungarian Straight Key Contest - https://hskc.ha8kux.com/

4 States QRP Group Second Sunday Sprint - http://www.4sqrp.com/SSS/sss_rules.pdf

North Dakota QSO Party - https://ndarrlsection.com/2024/2024_ND_QSO_Party_Rule.pdf

New Mexico and North Dakota QSO Parties this weekend! These are two "rarer" states for those of you who are working towards Worked All States (of whatever flavor you might be working on - Basic, QRP, CW, etc.)

Special Event Stations:

04/09/2024 | Sun N Fun Aerospace Expo

Apr 9-Apr 13, 0300Z-1200Z, W4S, Lakeland, FL. Sun N Fun Fly In Inc. 146.685 (127.3) 14.225 7.250. QSL. Geoff Schuck, PO Box 90853, Lakeland, FL 33804. Frequencies will be spotted throughout the day on DX Summit. QSL cards are sent to all HF Contacts.

04/12/2024 | Halifax Resolves Special Event Station

Apr 12-Apr 13, 0000Z-2100Z, N4C, Halifax, NC. N4WFU. 7.180 14.250 21.325 28.350. Certificate & QSL. Barry Evans/N4C, P.O. Box 1533 , Roanoke Rapids, NC 27870. If requested, a certificate and QSL card will be provided to Ham operators around the world that make contact with this special event station; can also request a "QSL" card confirming the contact. Please sent a self addressed stamped envelope to: N4C P O Box 1533 Roanoke Rapids, NC 27870 Commemorating the signing of the Halifax Resolves April 12, 1776. Halifax Resolves was the first written instrument, in existence leading to our independence from England. The resolves were unanimously approved at the Fourth Provincial Congress gathered in Halifax, NC. It authorized the NC delegates, being sent to the Continental Congress, to vote for, and encourage other colony's delegates to the support independence.

04/12/2024 | National Library Week 2024

Apr 12-Apr 13, 1600Z-2100Z, K8L, Youngstown, OH. WF8U and KC3GFU. 14.074 7.074. QSL. K8L, 239 Elvira Ct., McDonald, OH 44437. Help us celebrate National Library Week 2024. We will be operating on both SSB & FT8, 20m and 40m. Send us a QSL to be displayed in our local libraries and share the magic of amateur radio! In return you will receive a SES QSL card with this year's theme. Please send QSL to: K8L, 239 Elvira Ct., McDonald, OH 44437. Find more information on QRZ or email kd8ely@gmail.com. www.qrz.com/db/kd8ely

04/13/2024 | Commemorating USS Midway conducting first airship ops on CV (7APR49)

Apr 13, 1600Z-2300Z, NI6IW, San Diego, CA. USS Midway Museum Ship. 7.250 14.320; 140.070 PSK31; DSTAR on PAPA System repeaters. QSL. USS Midway Museum Ship COMEDTRA, 910 N Harbor Drive, San Diego, CA 92101. www.qrz.com/db/ni6iw

04/13/2024 | Venice Shark's Tooth Festival

Apr 13-Apr 14, 1500Z-2000Z, K4S, Nokomis, FL. Tamiami ARC. 14.320 SSB. QSL. Tamiami ARC, PO Box 976, Nokomis, FL 34274. Celebrating the area in Florida known as the "Shark's Tooth Capital of the World". All QSLs with SASE receive custom event QSL and a genuine, prehistoric shark's tooth memento of the contact. tamiamiarc.org

I'm not sure how much I'll be able to get on the air this weekend. Our monthly K2ETS VE Session is tomorrow morning. Then on both Saturday and Sunday mornings, Hadley Communication Technologies, a NJ 501 (c) (3) corporation that helps to fund SPARC events is conducting a clothing drive fundraiser and I have to devote some time to that. This Sunday is also our regular Soup Kitchen Sunday that I try to help at each month. I really hope to join in on the 4 States QRP Sprint on Sunday evening, if I'm not all played out by then.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP -When you care to send the very least!

"Marc" your calendars

From the ARRL:

International Marconi Day 2024

03/22/2024

This year, International Marconi Day (IMD) is on April 27. Italian inventor and electrical engineer Guglielmo Giovanni Maria Marconi was born on April 25, 1874, and is credited for inventing the radiotelegraph system, creating Marconi's law, and sending the first wireless transmission over the open sea.

IMD was created to honor Marconi and is hosted annually by the Cornish Radio Amateur Club, GX4CRC. The purpose of the day is for amateur radio enthusiasts around the world to contact historic Marconi sites using communication techniques similar to those that he would have used.  

The 24-hour event will operate from 0000 UTC to 2359 UTC, and registration is required. Participants can register at GX4CRC's registration web page.  

Stations in the United States, including Marconi Cape Cod Radio Club, KM1CC, in Massachusetts, are already registering for the event. KM1CC hosts several on-air events each year to keep the accomplishments and story of Marconi and his wireless station site in South Wellfleet alive. In 1975, the Wellfleet station was listed as a National Historic Landmark on the National Register of Historic Places and is now part of Cape Cod National Seashore, a unit of the National Park Service. When possible, KM1CC sets up a temporary radio station inside the park. More information about KM1CC is available on their Facebook page.

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April 27th is a Saturday! And if memory serves me correctly, there's a Marconi Memorial at the intersection of Easton Avenue and JFK Boulevard in Somerset, NJ. The New Brunswick Marconi Station was located at that site. 

That's maybe about a 15 -20 minute drive from my house. I operated from there one time many years ago with the Raritan Bay Radio Amateurs when I was a member of that club before getting married and moving to South Plainfield. It's not a POTA site (but probably should be) but still might be fun to operate from on that day.  I'll have to drive by sometime this weekend and check it out.  SPARC event, maybe?

Since this weekend is Easter weekend, I'm going to post the weekend's goings on a day early. I doubt I'll be on the air - I'll be too busy coloring eggs, of course!

Contests:

QRP Sasquatch Stomp: https://www.pnwqrp.org/sasquatch-stomp

CQ WW WPX Contest, SSB - https://www.cqwpx.com/rules.htm

However, Monday evening we have:

ARS Spartan Sprint - http://arsqrp.blogspot.com/2009/02/so-whats-spartan-sprint-and-how-do-i.html

Special events:

03/30/2024 | Total Solar Eclipse in Hunt county Texas

Mar 30-Apr 10, 0000Z-2359Z, W5E, Greenville, TX. Sabine Valley Amateur Radio Association. 7.235 14.280 21.400 28.450. QSL. K5GVL Sabine Valley Amateur Radio Association, PO Box 843, Greenville, TX 75403-0843. The Sabine Valley Amateur Radio Association will be celebrating a once in a lifetime solar event. On April 8th 2024 our favorite star the sun will be totally eclipsed for over 4 minutes! This will allow direct observation of the suns corona in real time. The SVARA will be operating W5E "Whiskey 5 Eclipse" from March 30th until April 10th to celebrate this unique and magical event! https://k5gvl.com/w5e-total-solar-eclipse-special-event-station

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

He's getting ready !

It's Christmas Eve-Eve! Santa is busy today, starting to load up his pack with IC-705's, KH1s, KX2s, Penntek TR-35s, QRP Labs kits, Mountain Toppers, POTA Go-kits, paddles, antennas and all kinds of Ham goodies!

While there are no special event stations active this weekend, I want to make you aware of a very special one that starts up on Tuesday, the day after Christmas and runs through January 7th. This is being run by the DVRA, the Delaware Valley Radio Association and it commemorates the Battles of Trenton and Princeton.

Most people probably don't realize how important these two "minor" battles were to the cause of the Independence of the United States. By Christmas of 1776, things were very bleak for General Washington and the Continental Army. We had not won one single engagement since the Revolution began at Lexington and Concord and the Continental Army had been doggedly chased by the British Regulars out from New England all the way to Pennsylvania. In addition, enlistments for a majority of the Army were up as of December 31st. Morale was nonexistent and some of Washington's top generals were ready to seize his  command at the next misstep.

In a bold move, Washington decided to move the Continental Army from Pennsylvania across the Delaware River to Trenton, New Jersey and engage an outpost manned by the Hessians, who were fierce German mercenaries, hired by the British. He decided to do this under the darkness of Christmas Day evening, banking on the idea that the soldiers would be in less than optimal condition after Christmas Day celebration and merry-making.

The plan, which seemed to be an impossible task to his closest advisers worked and the Continental Army routed the German troops, killing their Commander, taking prisoners and commandeering some much needed munitions and supplies - without suffering a single casualty on the American side.

A few days later, another battle would be fought in Princeton, NJ. These two decisive battles made the overconfident British Army sit up and take notice. These Americans were serious and determined about their independence and this revolution was not going to be as easy to quell as they had thought. As a result, most all the soldiers decided to re-enlist and fight another day under the command of the General that they had come to love and admire.

These "Ten Crucial Days" are being commemorated by the DVRA with two stations W2T and W2P. There are special QSL cards available, as well as a certificate if you should desire one,

Mine, which I earned in 2019 are framed and are proudly displayed on my shack wall - Revolutionary War buff that I am. To find out more about this Special Event, please visit https://www.w2zq.com/w2t-and-w2p-special-event-stations-run-dec-26th-through-jan-7th/ for more details.

Once again, to underscore how majorly important the Battle of Trenton was to the cause of Independence, I highly recommend watching "The Crossing". It will give you a clue as to how dire the situation was, and how bold and utterly important Washington's move was. History, as we learn it in school can be so dry and sometimes just a memorization of dates. This movie will bring all this home.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Coffee is my friend this morning

It was busy here at work yesterday, but not THAT busy. Yet, when I got home I was feeling exhausted and was contemplating hitting the sack early and bypassing the 40 Meter Fox Hunts. As it was, I had  committed to running the NNJ Southern District ARES Net on 70 cm, last night at 0030 UTC. In a re-organization of ARES in the Northern New Jersey Section, the "Southern District" is comprised of Middlesex, Monmouth, Somerset and Union Counties. 

John Garmendi N2DV, our DEC was otherwise occupied and was unable to act as Net Control, so I volunteered when he announced that he was looking for an NCS. Unless there are a lot of check ins, these nets don't last all that long. As it turned out, there were the normal check ins that we see from month to month, but I was surprised that a lot of my compatriots from South Plainfield were absent last evening.

A half hour later at 0100 UTC is the monthly NNJ Section ARES Net, where the whole section gets together. This net comprises the counties from Monmouth County on up, the entire Northern half of the state, so it takes a bit longer. This net lasted roughly a half hour, and upon its ending the Fox Hunt was only a half hour away, so I decided that I'm re-addicted enough to stay up and chase the two Foxes. As it is, I have a commitment Thursday evening and will not be able to participate in the 80 Meter Fox Hunts. A whole week without chasing Foxes? Suddenly, this year, that has become unthinkable - hence my "re-addiction"!

And two good, experienced Foxes they were- John K4BAI in Georgia and Tim KR0U in Colorado. Since this was the 40 Meter Fox Hunt, I thought I had a good chance for hearing both, if not working both.

John K4BAI was the Upper Fox and I found his chasing pack of Hounds pretty quickly - not much dial twiddling there. Once I found them, I twiddled down carefully until I heard John, himself. Then it was a simple mater of equalizing VFO B with VFO A, hitting the split button and twiddling VFO B back to where I initially heard the pack. John was moving a bit up in frequency after each hound he worked. Once I figured that out, I was able to tune up a bit more and throw out my call sign, hoping it would stick out enough and that he would hear me. I hit paydirt at 0218 UTC and was awarded with a 569 report. I thought John was a little stronger than that and gave him a 579.

One Fox safely in the log, it was time to twiddle on down the band to find Tim KR0U. It was easy enough to find the chasing pack, but finding Tim was another matter entirely. Going down slowly, I was finally able to find Tim, but there was a very loud NAQCC station right on top of him. Last night was their monthly Sprint. John had mentioned this in his Fox announcement, but I had completely forgotten about it until the moment. 

And at that moment, I was hearing that song by The Clash playing in my head - "Should I Stay or Should I Go Now?". It didn't seem like this was going to be easy, but then again, anything worth doing  isn't always easy. So instead of pulling the Big Switch and heading off for some much needed ZZZZZZ's, I tightened up the filters, turned down the RF Gain, turned up the AF Gain and began to strain my ears for Tim. 

Slowly, his signal strength began to increase as propagation was changing in my favor. I was able to return the RF Gain and AF Gain to their normal operating levels and still hear Tim pretty well. Finally, at 0244 UTC, I heard Tim come back to me. I gave him a 559, and he gave me a 539. I hope he was able to hear the two "QHB"s that I sent at the beginning of my exchange as yesterday was his birthday.

With both Foxes in the log, I did pull the Big Switch and headed off to bed. The problem was that although I was tired from the day, I was wired from the thrill of the chase. I wasn't able to fall asleep until after 11:00 PM and I'm feeling it this morning. Thus the title of this post - coffee is indeed my friend today.

As I sit here writing this post, I have to admit that this QRP stuff still amazes me to no end. I've worked a lot of Fox Hunts over the years, both as a Hound and as a Fox. Last night, my meager 5 Watt signal made its way to both Georgia and Colorado.  If I took off in my car right now, and headed south for John K4BAI's QTH, I might make it there by dinner time ........MAYBE.  If I took off right now for Tim KR0U's QTH, I might make it there tomorrow or the next day?  I don't know, I've never driven to Colorado. I've flown to Denver for work once, but have never driven there. Yet, my 5 Watts of RF energy made it to both locations at the speed of light.

It was only 122 years ago, yesterday - December 12th, 1901, that Marconi, situated in St. John's Newfoundland, was able to receive an "S" sent via "wireless" (as it was called back then) from Cornwall in England, proving that radio waves could traverse the Atlantic. The "experts" of the day were convinced that radio waves would never travel farther than the curvature of the Earth allowed, So much for "settled science". eh? His antennas were massive monsters - John, Tim and I were using simple wires and verticals. I have a feeling that if Guglielmo were around to play around in a Fox Hunt, using today's Amateur Radio equipment, he'd be a dedicated QRP'er.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Unintended consequences of the KH1

Posted to the POTA Facebook page by Mike Maciel.

So ....... what's going on this weekend?

First off, the Zombie Shuffle is tonight! Can't forget about that!

ARRL EME Contest : https://contests.arrl.org/arrlemescoresubmission.php - I know that a local club here in NJ, The Delaware Valley Radio Association plans to be active and has actually been running classes on EME for those who have volunteered to participate in the club's effort.

CQ WorldWide DX Contest, SSB : https://www.cqww.com/rules.htm  Perhaps the biggest DX Contest running.
 

And again, the DVRA will also be running a Special Event Station this weekend:

10/29/2023 | 85th Anniversary of the War of the Worlds Broadcast

Oct 29, 1600Z-2100Z, W0W, Grovers Mill, NJ. Delaware Valley Radio Association. 7.225 14.255 21.300. Certificate & QSL. Delaware Valley Radio Association, P.O. Box 7024, Trenton, NJ 08628. webmaster@w2zq.com or www.w2zq.com

After my Dad passed away, my Mom sold our house and was living in a Senior Housing Residence in West Windsor, NJ. When I would drive down to visit her, I would pass the park in Grover's Mill that commemorates the landing spot of the Martians  My Mom was a little girl when Orson Welles made his famous radio broadcast and often commented on how crazily people acted that night. I once asked her if my Grandfather or Grandmother or any of my aunts and uncles got excited, and she just answered "No, we listened from the very beginning and knew it was a radio play show." Ah yes ....... the difference between hearing and listening!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Today was good HF day

Amid all the usual busy-ness of a typical Saturday. I made time to get to the shack and turn on the radio. Maybe I have tropical storm Ophelia to thank for this as her visit eliminated the possibility of getting any yard work done!

I got on 30 Meters around 11:00 local time and at 15:32 UTC, while dial twiddling on 30 Meters, I happened to come upon a QSO in progress. One of the participants was NJ2BB, the Battleship New Jersey, which is about an hour's drive south of me, in Camden, NJ.

It was an interesting conversation between the op on the battleship and a Navy veteran in Ohio who served on the Forrestal and the Wasp in the 50's. Anyway, when the QSO was over, I tail-ended the "73s" and threw my call in. Sure enough, I got an answer back! The op on the New Jersey was Tom and we had a brief exchange, and when he heard my QTH, I received an invitation to come down to Camden some Saturday morning to sit behind the key!

Back in 2012, Marianne and I brought Joseph and Cara down to Camden to visit the Aquarium. We spent quite some time there and after we took a stroll over to the New Jersey. We didn't board her, but I remember being impressed with her size. I certainly would love to go and operate from the radio room some Saturday morning. I'll have to do some research on how to go about that.

If I remember correctly from a documentary on the History Channel, the New Jersey is the most decorated battle ship in the history of the United States Navy. As I recall, she served in WWII, the Korean Conflict, the Viet Nam conflict and finally, in the Gulf War. It would be an honor to board a ship with such rich history and which served so proudly.

I also worked five POTA stations on 40 and 20 Meters. 40 Meters was in excellent shape with low noise and loud signals. 20 Meters was noisier, and the signals seemed to be lower, but I was still able to make contacts.

It was so good to be behind the key again!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Another "Day that will live in infamy"

Today's post is dedicated to all the First Responders in New York City, at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania who chose to run TOWARD the danger on this day 22 years ago, while thousands were running the other way. We hold a special place and prayers in our hearts for the ones that went to work that day and did not make it home to their families. These brave men and women are true heroes in every sense of the word.

We also remember and pray for all the victims, and their families and friends whose lives were forever changed that horrible day. As painful as it is, may we never forget.

To those who survived that day - thank you for your service.

To those who didn't - Requiesce in pace

"No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends." John 15:13

Larry W2LJ

Hard to believe it was 53 years ago today!

 

53 years! Where did the time go?

Buzz Aldrin is the only crew member left. The flight jacket he wore during the mission is up for auction with Sotheby's and is expected to go for more than 2 million. Wow!

I was 12 years old and was absolutely GLUED to the TV set that day. If you're old enough to remember, where were you?

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Wanna be part of QRP history?

Then you may want to get on the air tonight. John Shannon K3WWP, will be marking the 10,000th consecutive day of his streak of making at least one QRP QSO a day using simple wire antennas.

Think of that! 10,000 days! That's over 27 years! Not only is that mind boggling in and of itself, how many of those QSOs were made during the poor conditions of sunspot minimums, solar flares, and coronal mass ejections? Keep in mind that the recent phenomena of RFI pollution which plagues a lot of us with high S level background noise hasn't made this feat any easier.

For those of you not in the know, John lives in kind a row house type of house, so add to all of the above, the lack of real estate he has to contend with. Yet, here we are at day 10,000.

Technically, Day 10,000 is tomorrow, December 20th, but since we keep to UTC, 7:00 PM EST tonight is the beginning of Day 10,000, so the milestone QSO will be made tonight. According to his online "diary", this is how John is planning to operate tonight and tomorrow:

Sat Dec 18 5:54PM - The two contests, Croatian and SP 160 should make quick work of day 9,999 of the streak and set things up for day 10,000 on Sunday evening at 0000Z in the SST Sprint. Then on to the following schedule to which I've now added specific frequencies:

12/20 80M - 3526.6 or 3525.6 depending on QRM after the SST QSO shortly after 0000Z until 0200Z

12/20 20M - 14026.6 or 14025.6 depending on QRM 1500-1700Z

12/20 40M - 7026.6 or 7025.6 depending on QRM 2100-2300Z

Remember I have strong local QRN here, and you may have to use QRO power for me to hear you.

I'll call simple short CQs like CQ CQ DE K3WWP K3WWP K. If it is busy, please keep the QSOs short.

So if you want to work John tonight, after he makes his landmark 10,000 Day QSO, he will be on 80 Meters until about 9:00 PM EST and the he will be on 20 and 40 Meters tomorrow.

Whether you work him or not, this is quite the feat. I have John in my log 63 times. The first time we worked was on September 3, 1994 during the Hiram Percy Maxim Anniversary Event. And back in August 2015, while I was participating in a Ham Radio demo at National Night Out, I had the honor of being his first QSO for the 22nd year of his streak.

Other than to those who read his "diary" on a regular basis, I don't know how many QRPers out there really know about or appreciate this streak. You'd think something like this would be a hot topic for QST or QRP Quarterly, but it doesn't seem to get much mention.

I did the "QSO a Day" thing myself back in 2012. Let me tell you, by the time December 31st rolled around, I was ready to pull my hair out! Conditions were bad towards the end and I thought that I'd never make it. These things take on a life of their own and personally, I was glad it was over! How John has done this for over 27 years is beyond me! All I can say is that he is a way better operator and man than I'll ever be and may God bless him!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

On this date

Where would we be without transistors?  Definitely one of the major technical advances of our time.

No Hill Toppers, no Mountain Toppers, no LNRs. no KX's, no QCX's (just to name a few) and a whole lot more!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP _ When you care to send the very least!