Miscellania

Logbook of the World seems to be back. I was able to log on and see my QSOs - which reminds me, I haven't done an upload in a while. I'll make sure to do that over the long holiday weekend. I also checked to see if our July 13th VE Session was removed from the calendar. It wasn't, even though I had sent an e-mail to the ARRL requesting that be done. I received a reply informing me that they still could not access that server. I'll be away that day and rather than put the onus on someone else to act as "Liaison for the Day", I decided to cancel.

Our annual trip to Lake George will be happening soon.  This year, in addition to the AlexLoop and the AX1, I'm going to bring along the PAR ENDFEDZ 40-20-10 as well as my drive on mast base and my 20 foot crappie pole. I'd like to bring the Jackite, but it doesn't slip into the mast holder - it's too wide/thick. Usually, each time we go up to the Lake, I take some time to head up to Mt. Prospect (which is not a SOTA peak) and set up in the parking lot that is near the summit. There's a solitary picnic table there (in the parking lot!) and in the past I've parked the car some 20-30 feet away and have used the end fed as a sloper. There are other picnics tables in a wooded grassy area off to the side, but those are usually occupied by picnickers. Who wants to picnic in a parking lot, right? I usually have that table to myself. I can do a POTA activation as it's part of the Adirondack State Park - US-2001.

We had a CERT meeting in town last night and Marv K2VHW and I were asked to do some kind of licensing class for the CERT members in town. The two words I hate to hear the most were bandied about - "Ham Cram".  I know Marv feels the same way I do. But what I'm thinking is maybe to have a period of reading the licensing manual beforehand with some Zoom meetings interspersed where we can answer questions and explain more "difficult" topics culminating in a day of review - the "cram" - followed by the exam session.

Looking at the QRP Labs website, I'm calculating that based on the number of built kits that leave the factory every month, I may see my QMX sometime in August. It would be neat to have it for the Skeeter Hunt. I was smitten by that HB-1B that I was given the opportunity to play with. I'm looking forward to adding the QMX to my small herd of radios.

Finally, I signed up and am Bumble Bee # 57 for this year's FOBB. The Heinz Bee - LOL! I will probably head over to Cotton Street Park for the event, although if I decide to head up to Washington Rock State Park it would be a two-fer ...... FOBB and a POTA activation.

Thirteen Colonies started Sunday night, I guess. I've no interest in participating in that at all, for reasons which I will not go into here. The best I can say about it is that it generates a lot of activity on the bands. I'll leave it at that.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

For you, or someone you know

who might be interested.

This was posted by Craig Buck on Facebook. Sounds great for the newbie or neophyte Ham:

FREE ON-LINE AMATEUR RADIO OPERATING CLASS

 A free, weekly, 3-hour Amateur Radio Operating Class on Zoom will begin on Thursday April 4 and run through June 20 at 6:30 PM Eastern time.  The presenters will be various experienced folks in the various subjects.

 A detailed syllabus will be published before the classes begin.  Attend them all, or any that you like, but you must register for the classes.  To receive registration information, contact Rol Anders, K3RA, at roland.anders@comcast.net. 

Subjects will include:

All About Operating--A general Introduction

Amateur Radio Organizations—Local to International

Ham Radio Awards

DXing-History and Tips from the Experts

QSLing-How to get that needed card for DXCC or WAS

VHF/UHF Weak Signal Work and “Roving”

Image Operating—Slow Scan and Fast Scan TV

Remote Station control over internet

Learning CW in the no-code era

Digital Modes—From RTTY to FT8 and beyond

Contesting—How to get started, tips for the beginner and intermediate contester

Logging Software—What’s available, how to use

Propagation—A general intro to HF Propagation

Amateur Satellites—How to get started

Portable (backpacking) operation—Tips from an expert

Setting Up a Modern (or not so modern) HF Station

Lightning Protection and Grounding

Traffic Handling

Public Service, Emergency Communications      

Thanks,   Rol, K3RA

_________________________________________________________________

All they need is a class entitled "QRP - have fun with less power!"

And again, don't forget! Hi Hi! (THE original LOL!)

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Yes ...... yes it does!

Make sure to read Dan KB6NU's blog post - https://www.kb6nu.com/yes-learning-about-radio-does-matter/

He touches on a subject that always strikes a chord with me; and is one of the reasons I really hate "Ham Crams". Yes, I know the goal is to get people licensed - but at what cost? I have assisted at several Ham Crams and the results from the exams have ranged from mediocre to horrible.

When K2VHW and I have taught what I consider to be "traditional" licensing classes, they consisted of 8 weekly sessions. One weeknight for 8 weeks, for 2-3 hours per session - with review and exam at the last session. Our passing rate has never dipped below 85% - and I personally know that many of the participants that we have guided through the theory have gone on to become active Amateur Radio operators,

Again, I'm a dinosaur, but my feeling is that if you're not willing to put in the time to learn this stuff the right way - then why even bother? It ends up being a waste of your time and my time. Maybe my grandfather had a saying that put it best (he grew up on a farm) - 'Never try to teach a pig to sing. it will frustrate you and annoy the pig."

My apologies - I think I've been doing a little too much ranting these past few weeks.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you car to send the very least!

I am a dinosaur

A curmudgeon, a crab, sourpuss, stick-in-mud, killjoy ........whatever you want to call me. I freely and openly admit it.

So what's W2LJ going on about now?

Knowing that I am a VE Liaison, someone (who shall remain nameless) approached me and asked to see the copies of the new Element 3 General exams that took effect on July 1st that were sent to me by the ARRL. I immediately and outrightly refused.

After I calmed down (my temper flared), I asked this person (an Extra) why exactly did they want to see them? The answer was (paraphrased) "I want to teach a General licensing class" - Ham Cram style.

So I directed this person to the NCVEC website, where the new question pool has been available since April. But that wasn't good enough - again paraphrasing,  "I want to know which questions are actually on the tests."

Again came the answer - unequivocally and forever "NO!" And then I got the "Why not?" attitude. Maybe because this my license and my VE credentials, my honesty, my reputation and my integrity on the line?

And this is where the curmudgeonliness comes in. I am probably going to raise a lot of hackles with this, but I loathe Ham Crams just for the sake of Ham Crams. They definitely have their place and purpose and ARE very worthwhile when used properly. In my book, you teach a licensing course - properly and traditionally- and then you can use a Ham Cram as a sort of final review before exam time. This way, you teach the theory and the Ham Cram will make the candidate comfortable with what they might find on the exam, as well as jog their memories on any finer points they may need reinforcement on.

This has been my personal experience where I have been involved in running VE Sessions for both scenarios. In the VE sessions where beforehand the material was taught traditionally (ie. hold classes and/or home study where the students read the license manual, the instructor reviews that material with them, answers questions for them, explains and tries to simplify the theory that wasn't clear to them) and the Ham Cram was used only as a final review, the passing rate was 85% or higher. In the sessions where the only exposure to the material was the Ham Cram itself on the day of testing, the passing rate was closer to 10-15%. I asked one of the participants at one of the latter types of sessions if they looked at the material at all before coming to take part of the Cram and I was answered "I looked at it on my way over here." I held my tongue, but probably rolled my eyes.

The point being, are you teaching theory or are you just teaching people how to take a test? Allowing students to memorize answers without understanding a scintilla of the background behind them is a fool's paradise. I hate to sound snobby, demeaning or condescending, but I've run across way too many Amateur Extras who have no idea how to build a simple dipole for themselves. Even worse, it seems they don't even have the wherewithal to go and look up the information for themselves! 

My $00.02 is that the hugest tragedy that ever occurred was when the FCC eliminated the Novice license. For years this was a training ground that led to the higher class licenses. We had our own little "playground" of spectrum, we made our abundant mistakes, we learned from them, we made friends, and if our interest was high enough - we upgraded and moved on.

Cranking out licensees for the sake of cranking out licensees - what's the value in that? Like so many other things in life, if there's just a mild curiosity about the Amateur Radio experience with no real passion behind it, you're just inflating numbers for the sake of looking good. And in the end, that does no one any good, except maybe for the lobbyists and the equipment manufacturers.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Hot, hot, hot!

Like many places around the country, this past weekend in Central New Jersey was pretty brutal. The high on Saturday (according to my weather station) was 98F (37C) and with the humidity factored in, the "real feel" was around 112F (44C). Sunday it reached 99F with a real feel of about 118F (48C) as it was a bit more humid.

Due to the excessive heat and the associated demands on the power grid, there were a couple of instances where we lost power, but for only a few seconds. Those are unnerving, because when the power goes out, you have no idea how long it will last. Public Service Electricity and Gas quickly re-routed electricity to our part of the grid, so the disruptions ended up being minor.

Earlier in the day, Marv K2VHW and Drew W2OU and I were on hand at the South Plainfield CERT building for a HamCram.  I really don't like HamCrams very much, as my experience is that a fully structured class yields much more positive results. HamCrams are only successful if the participants studied faithfully on their own and use the Cram as a review session and as an opportunity to clear up any remaining quandaries that they may have.

I have to admit, this one was successful. It was held by Eric KD2ONY and SPARC's responsibility was to provide the meeting space and to conduct the VE exams. There were 11 participants and 8 walked away with their Technician class licenses, including a 7 year old girl who is the daughter of one of our members.

Eric put on a good review session and it became obvious to us right away that most of the people in the group had dome some serious study on their own. The answers to the review questions, for the most part, were answered correctly with no hesitation. As always, the toughest parts seemed to be the sections on decibels, metric numeric conversion (kilo, mega, micro, pico) and the frequency privilege boundaries.  Despite that, the new Techs did well on their exams with no "close shaves". Those who passed, passed with few errors.  Only one of the three that didn't earn a license came so close, missing by only one question. We assured that person on how close he was and assured him with just a little more study, that he will be a Tech in no time. Just so you know, we did offer him the chance to take another version of Element 2, but he declined.

Shortly after I got home, after preparing and eating dinner, my cell phone started going crazy with alerts that our area was under a severe thunderstorm alert until 10:30 PM. I went down the basement to disconnect the antennas and around 7:30 PM, we had a brief but strong storm pass through. We must have had another at around 10:30 PM, as my weather station indicated that we got about a 1/2 inch of rain around that time. By then, I was out like a light and dead to the world. If there was lightning and thunder, I sure didn't see or hear any of it.

Looking at the long range forecast this morning, next Sunday looks (at this point in time) to be sunny with a high of 87F (37C). I hope so, as next Sunday is the Flight of the Bumblebees. The plan is to go up to Washington Rock State Park in Greenbrook and operate from one of the picnic tables that is shaded by one of the tall antenna supports (trees) that are located there. I am looking forward to a fun and relaxing afternoon of outdoor QRP fun. There haven't been enough of those, lately.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

That wasn't good - that was great!

180 degree opposites! As much as I feared that I wasn't into Field Day this year, that's how much it turned out to be a truly great experience! Just as I thought, as soon as I gathered together with my fellow South Plainfield Amateur Radio Club members, that's just how quickly the adrenaline got to flowing and the fun and excitement began. And thanks be to God, we never got any of the rain or thunderstorms that were predicted for Saturday.

In addition to the gratification that you get from doing a job well done, some added satisfaction came from a lot of the public that came by and visited our enhanced information booth this year. In addition to the normal ARRL informational handouts, we added some multimedia. We set up a 24" TV which was hooked up to my laptop which was running a continuous loop of a video about Amateur Radio.

We had chairs set up so that people could sit down in the shade of the canopy to watch the entire 30 minute video if they wanted to and more than just a few people did. One woman that I spoke to, in order to ask if she needed any more information about our hobby exclaimed to me, "This is great! I learned so much today! More people should come by to watch this." So in that regard, we did what I think was a pretty good job of creating public awareness for the benefits of Amateur Radio.

Marv K2VHW set up some code keys and code practice oscillators in the info tent for people to try. One man brought his nephew along with him to visit our setup and the youngster really got a kick out of the keys. Marv showed him how to use them and he had fun trying to use Morse Code.

The next day, his uncle came back to visit again to tell us that his nephew got such a kick out of Morse Code and Amateur Radio in general, that he spent hours with his friends on the telephone Saturday evening, telling them all about what he saw and did.  That's called "planting the seed", my friends.

This was SPARC's fifth Field Day and you could tell that we are beginning to get into a routine and really know what we're doing now. I think that "they" would call us a "well oiled machine" - thanks mostly to KD2FSI, W2OIL and KC2YRC and Phil KD2HPG who designed and built our HF tower. We started setup at 10:00 AM and were pretty much finished by Noon. Some final incidental "finishing touches" were taken care of and we were absolutely ready by 1:00 PM with an hour to go.  

As always, Ron N2LCZ had our mini logging computer network up and running flawlessly. He was even able to tap into our Wifi account through the help of a wireless router that Bill W2AOF brought along, so that we had full internet access on site ........ in the middle of Spring Lake Park. It was awesome!

Antennas went up as smoothly as a hot knife through butter and with the help of Dave W2OIL and Dan KC2YRC, I was able to get the W3EDP antenna up even higher this year. We had it as high in two trees as we could get it and it sloped from about 40 feet high in a maple to about 30 or 35 feet at the other end in a pine tree, where it terminated. While the W3EDP was my main stay on 40 and 20 Meters, I was able to make at least one contact on all bands, 160 through 10 Meters with it.  However, for 80 Meters, Dave KD2FSI had me hooked up to his 80/40 Meter Inverted Vee and that wire was simply magnificent. With 5 Watts, I was able to work absolutely everyone that I was able to hear on 80 Meters.

While we had a generator going to run the info booth, all the computers were run off solar power charged batteries, so that we could explain to people about how easy it is to make use of alternative sources of power. We had two solar arrays up and running. These were purchased through Harbor Freight and it was amazing (to me at least) that they supplied ample power even under the overcast conditions that we had.

When "go time" came at 2:00 PM, we got down to the serious business of making contacts. Through the entire 24 hour period, I can honestly say that we had all the radios occupied for at least 90% of the time. Dave KD2FSI and I forsook our customary "middle of the night" 10 winks of sleep this year. The group is probably tired of hearing it from me, but once again I was telling them that "these contacts aren't going to make themselves" and it showed, as we reached our highest number of QSOs this year.  We also had our share of guest operators, including some new Hams from the area who got their first taste of HF thanks to Field Day. Their excitement was palpable.

And even one of our Town Council members took a turn behind a radio, while our Mayor and some other members spent some time talking and visiting with us. SPARC is really dedicated to making Field Day more than just making contacts. We really try to make this a fun weekend "Amateur Radio Awareness Event".

 But we also "put our money where our mouths were" and got down to the busy task of making contacts. Our classification was 3A Battery, so by ARRL definition, we were limited to 5 Watts output - true QRP.  We made well over 300 CW contacts and came somewhere around 175 phone contacts for the weekend, with a goodly amount of digital contacts thrown in for good measure, courtesy of Dave, KD2FSI.

KD2HPF getting "artsy" with a photo of yours truly!

So when 3:30 PM on Sunday came around and all was torn down and put away for storage until next year, I came home tired (no, make that exhausted), but yet thoroughly pleased and happy. I had just spent 24+ hours with people I absolutely enjoy being with, doing something that I absolutely love and enjoy doing. How can you possibly ask for anything more than that?

One final shot of SPARC Field Day 2018.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least.

Special thanks to Mario KD2HPF for a lot of fantastic photos of the weekend.

Technician class

Our Technician class ended last night with the administration of exams. It was a mixed bag of results. At the beginning of the class, we had eleven students. Two of the students were actually licensed during our last class and were attending this class as a refresher in addition to home study in preparation for taking the General class exam.

One student decided to take the exam a few weeks ago and passed. Another student had to temporarily move up to Massachusetts because of a family issue and is going to take the test up there. Three students couldn't make it last night and are coming to our normal, monthly VE session, the next of which will be on Saturday, April 14th.  One was away competing in a track and field event. I'm not sure what he plans to do about the exam.

So that left five students to take their exams last night. Four took the Technician and one took the General. Three passed their Technician test and the one student upgraded to General.  The one who did not pass was crushed. I am sorry to say. However, the good news is that a local hospital has had some employees engage in a self study course. They are holding a one day review and exam session this coming Friday.  Our candidate was made aware of that; and I am fairly sure she is going to attend.  I think with a little more review and pin pointed study; that she will be successful in getting her license.  It's not that she doesn't know the material, I think she's just one of those people for whom taking tests is difficult.  During our classes she was always quick to answer practice questions correctly.  Put a test paper in front of her and the pressure mounts. Unfortunately, that is a situation many of us face.

All our students who took the Tech exam and passed, also took the General exam.  We tell them that it is normal for most new Techs who have not studied for the General to get about 50% of the answers correct. One of our new Techs missed his General by one question!  He will also be coming back on April 14th and I'm sure he'll pass with flying colors.

It will be interesting to see the results from this Friday and April 14th.  It's always our goal as instructors that everyone who attends our classes walks away with their ticket.  I hope that holds true.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Technician License Class

On Tuesday evening, Marv K2VHW, Drew W2OU and I started another eight week foray towards helping another group of people earn their Amateur Radio license. Like another class we held two years ago, this one is being sponsored by the Clark, NJ Office of Emergency Management. The initial goal was to get some of their CERT members licensed, but it seems to have branched out from there.  In addition to the Clark CERT members, we also have a few "civilian" type walk ins from the community at large who are also interested in obtaining a license.

The first session went well; and the students seem to be motivated and enthusiastic. A tell tale sign that this is going to be successful class was that there were a significant amount of general questions that were asked the first night.

We are going to follow the format that has worked so well for us in the past. Eight sessions following the material found in the ARRL's Technician License manual. Then one session with a brief review and the actual license exam administered to the students.  If this class is typical of the ones we've held before, we expect an 85 - 90% success rate.

Winter is a bad time to hold one of these; as the weather is so unpredictable. But "God willing and the creek don't rise", we'll get this done and we will hopefully have a bunch of new people embarking upon a journey into the fun filled world of Amateur Radio.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

New kit offering

From QRP Labs (Hans Summers - with whom I've had the pleasure to work on the air) - a 5 Watt Transceiver Kit.

Yeah, I know what you're thinking, "5 Watt transceivers have been done to death!".

Well, look at this one!

And here's the features:

* Easy to build, single-board design, 10 x 8cm, all are controls board-mounted
* Professional quality double-sided, through-hole plated, silk-screen printed PCB
* Choice of single band, 80, 40, 30, 20 or 17m
* Approximately 3..5W CW output (depending on supply voltage)
* 12..15V supply voltage
* Class E power amplifier, transistors run cool… even with no heatsinks
* Good 7-element Low Pass Filter to ensure regulatory compliance
* CW envelope shaping to remove key clicks
* High performance receiver with at 50+ dB of unwanted sideband cancellation
* 200Hz CW filter without ringing
* Si5351A Synthesized VFO with rotary encoder tuning
* 16 x 2 blue backlight LCD screen
* Iambic keyer or straight key option included in the firmware
* Simple Digital Signal Processing for a CW decoder, displayed real-time on-screen
* On-screen S-meter
* Full or semi QSK operation using fast solid-state transmit/receive switching
* Frequency presets, VFO A/B Split operation, RIT, configurable CW Offset
* Configurable sidetone frequency and volume
* Connectors: Power, 3.5mm keyer jack, 3.5mm stereo earphone jack, BNC RF output
* Onboard microswitch can be used as a simple straight Morse key
* Built-in test signal generator and alignment tools to complete simple set-up adjustments
* Built-in test equipment: voltmeter, RF power meter, frequency counter, signal generator
* Beacon mode, supporting automatic CW or WSPR operation
* GPS interface for reference frequency calibration and time-keeping (for WSPR beacon)


All for $49 - and available for later this month.  This looks like a great project for the budding, incoming young Ham.  Keep this one in the back of your minds, Elmers!  Lots of opportunities to teach soldering and kit building skills, CW, and operating techniques among other things. The actual Webpage is found at http://qrp-labs.com/qcx.html
While I was there, perusing around, I purchased his passband filters for 80, 40, 20 and 15 Meters. Those will be used next Field Day in conjunction with the coaxial stub filters for even more isolation between our stations. Lots of good stuff available at QRP Labs!
72 de Larry W2LJ QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Great quote!

Kudos to Bill Vokac K9BV, who offered this on Facebook today, when the subject of Elmering and licensing came up:

"Passing on the respectful culture of ham radio is at least as important as "getting them licensed"."

Bravo! That sums up my opinion of Ham Crams.  I know they are the rage today, but to be honest with all of you, I detest them!

A one or two day session may be enough to pass on the bare bones - but why do you want to pass on only the bare bones?  Amateur Radio is more than the sum of its parts.  Besides the technical and operational aspects, there's a rich history to pass on.  There's also so much that the teachers can pass on of their own experience, so that the students don't make the same mistakes the teachers made when they were "wet behind the ears".

You can't do any of that in one or two eight hour sessions. That's NOT Elmering and it's not responsible teaching.  Then we wonder why so many newly licensed Techs are losing interest?  Why would they stay licensed when no one has taken the time to impress upon them the "magic" of our service/hobby?

Let me add something...... as I don't mean to demean Ham Cram study aides.  Sites like W1UL's site are wonderful and he has a proven track record. If you want to go that way - fine, more power to you. I think Ham Cram study guides, such as Urb's are a wonderful resources for those who are genuinely dedicated to getting their license via a self study program, or a traditional class program.

But if you're going to get involved with teaching in a Ham Cram type session ..... make sure the participants do their due diligence and actually read the material and study before doing a one or two day session.  My experience has shown that if they're not really serious about getting a license, the results are just going to be disastrous.

I've had a much greater success rate with traditional style Amateur Radio licensing classes. In addition to getting across the needed exam material, you also get the opportunity to get the "flavor" of Amateur Radio across to the students and actually get them even more eager and excited about getting on the air. Additionally, in my mind, the commitment required by attending a multi session class speaks volumes about the intent and desire of the students.

Lastly - the process can't end with a newbie Ham walking away with a CSCE.  They have to be cultivated into the Amateur Radio community.  You have to get them involved in a club and activities where they can ask questions, bounce ideas off people, see equipment before they buy it, etc. Keep in touch with them before, during and after the licensing process - this way, they're no longer students, but also life long friends.

Of course, this is all my humble opinion and YMMV.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Now what?

Yesterday was Labor Day in the USA - the unofficial end of Summer. School resumes, vacations end (for the most part), everybody gets back into the swing of things. With the resumption of routines, comes less dispensable free time. That being said, there are a few things that I want to accomplish before the weather turns cold and nasty as we head into "those" months.

1) I purchased a 150' length of RG213 from DX Engineering this summer. I want to get that run to the Butternut, replacing the 15+ year old coax that is there, before the weather turns.

2) Get the W3EDP redeployed if it comes to that. I hope my neighbors don't dilly-dally with their decision on that maple tree.

3) Get a few more NPOTA entities activated. The NJ Coastal Historical Trail beckons as well as the Appalachian Trail.  Dave Hackett KD2FSI has a spot in mind that would entail some hiking. Perhaps during foliage changing season, that would be a worthwhile endeavor.

4) Play around some more with the magnetic loop antenna that I built. In particular, I am looking to the New England QRP Club's "QRP Afield" and the NoGA "Peanut Power Sprint" to help in that regard.

5) Marv K2VHW and I will be starting another Technician licensing class beginning September 13th at SPARC HQ. We will run every Tuesday night for eight weeks. We have several South Plainfielders who are interested in earning their licenses and one or two who eventually want to become CERT/RACES operators, also.

My one winter time project will be to homebrew band pass filters for 80, 40, 20 and perhaps 15 Meters to be used at SPARC Field Day next year, so that the stations can operate more freely without interfering with each other.

What are your Amateur Radio plans for the Fall and Winter?

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

A word of advice

This past Saturday, I served as a Volunteer Examiner at the finish line of a "Ham Cram". The Middlesex County Office of Emergency Management offered the day long session in order to allow CERT members from various municipalities throughout the county the chance to earn their Technician licenses. There were twelve participants, and at the end of the day, half of them had earned their licenses.

All of these people were all enthusiastic and determined to become Amateur Radio operators. So what went wrong? Why wasn't there a higher success rate? What went wrong was a lack of lead time and mis-communication.  Some had learned of the Ham Cram session only three days beforehand. The information about the session was directed to the participants through their local municipal OEM directors. Middlesex County OEM did their due diligence by sending out the information in plenty of time, but we all know that information that goes through the chain-of-command can travel particularly slowly, especially if the "powers that be" aren't all that familiar with the information they are passing on. Not realizing that this information was time sensitive proved to be a major handicap.

For those of you who are not familiar with the term, or the concept, a Ham Cram is defined as a six or more hour long session where prospective Hams are crammed with the info they need to earn their license.  Think of the all-nighters you may have endured before a particularly tough exam in college. The concept is the same.

The problem with the Ham Cram concept is that many people think they can walk into one as a blank page, and will then walk away as a book filled with all the knowledge they need to pass the license exam.

For the Ham Cram concept to work (and it works remarkably well if implemented correctly), the students need to get their hands on a license manual and read and study for six to eight weeks prior to the Cram session. The Ham Cram session educator needs something to work with. It's highly improbable that someone can walk "cold" off the street and earn their ticket after only six hours of cursory study - unless of course, you have a photographic memory.

Again, going back to the "all-nighter" session in college.  That exam prep marathon came after an entire semester of classes.  You were, in essence,  reviewing what you had hopefully learned throughout the proceeding months. We all know that if you waited until that evening to crack open a book, then you were toast.

Or if you want to think of it another way, the Ham Cram instructor is like a diamond cutter. With a raw diamond he can produce a work of art. Give him a piece of coal and he'll be out of his element. So if you know of a prospective Ham and he or she is talking about participating in a Ham Cram, then the sagest advice you can impart upon them is that they should begin the studying process WAY in advance (weeks/months).  Then they'll arrive at the Ham Cram as a rough diamond ready to be polished into a prized jewel.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Exciting times in Middlesex County!

Last evening, I attended a CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) "Meet & Greet" that was hosted by the Middlesex County Office of Emergency Management.

First, a little background .... Middlesex County is the second largest county, population-wise in New Jersey. Only Bergen County has a larger population. We are one of the most densely populated counties in New Jersey with a density of 2,621.6 people per square mile (as of 2010). There are several major thoroughfares that pass through Middlesex County, including the New Jersey Turnpike (I-95), the Garden State Parkway, I-287, as well as US Route 1, US Route 9 and US Route 130 - just to name a few.  In addition, there are numerous miles of railway (both freight and passenger) that run through the County. All this to give you an idea of how busy it is around here.

Last night's meeting was designed to bring the various municipal CERT Coordinators and their teams together, to meet each other as well as to be informed about goings on at the County and State levels. And what was so good to hear is that both the State of New Jersey and Middlesex County are dedicated to the CERT program - funding it, training it, deploying it, making use if it.

The State and County are not only dedicated to fully utilizing CERT, but are also dedicated towards enlarging and improving the existing CART team (Community Animal Rescue Team), which is like CERT, but for animals. Many times during a natural disaster, such as Hurricane Sandy, residents are forced to leave their homes for temporary shelters. Unfortunately, only service animals are allowed in the shelters.  Middlesex County has a team that will temporarily shelter house pets for the duration of an event like this. The one that was activated during Sandy was in operation for three weeks.

In addition to hearing about what already exists, we were made aware of some plans for the future. One part of the plan is increased training and drills, which will commence in 2016. And on the Amateur Radio side (which of course, is of great interest to me), John Garmendi N2DV, the RACES/ARES Bureau Chief for the County, gave a talk about how Amateur Radio fits into the scheme of things as far as CERT, the County and the State are concerned.

A show of hands indicated that many of our municipal CERT Team members are already licensed Hams. Another show of hands indicated that quite a few of the unlicensed CERT members are very interested in earning their tickets.  I raised my hand and volunteered the fact that Marv K2VHW and I, under the auspices of SPARC, will most likely be holding another licensing class in the Spring. It's our hope, that if we can secure a centrally located facility, that maybe we can fit the bill for these people. A class of about 30 or so CERT members becoming licensed Hams would be truly awesome, indeed.

It is certainly an exciting and interesting time to be a CERT member in South Plainfield and Middlesex County. I am eagerly looking forward to the days ahead, and am dedicated to assisting the effort in any way that I can.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Rookie Roundup

The South Plainfield Amateur Radio Club ran a station for the ARRL Rookie Roundup today. While we ourselves were ineligible to operate, we did put out an invitation to all the newly licensed Technicians from our Fall and Winter classes to come out and get their feet wet in HF. The idea, of course, was to show them that there's a whole other world out there in Amateur Radio beyond what they hear on VHF/UHF.

Club member Dave KD2FSI, who qualifies as a Rookie by time, volunteered to set up the station. I say Dave qualifies as a Rookie by time, because by the rules of the contest, he does - he was licensed less than three years ago. However, he is certainly not a Rookie by experience. He has already upgraded to General and is a very busy Ham, diving headfirst into many different facets of the hobby, portable operations being one of his favorite. I wish I could take credit for steering him in that direction, but Dave discovered that joy on his own, without my help.

We had agreed to meet at Putnam Park in town at Noon, in order to set up for the 2:00 PM start. By the time I got there, Dave already had things quite well in hand.

Marv K2VHW and Drew W2OU served with distinction in the coaching perspective. Marv is quite the instructor. He has a gift and a natural talent for teaching and was able to make our Rookies feel like Old Pros in no time.

Here's a picture of Marv explaining to Mario the ins and outs of making a SSB Contest QSO. Mario made his very first HF QSO today, and the process was amazing to watch. The first few QSOs were halting and tentative, but due to Marv's excellent guidance, Mario was having a blast within short order.

Within a short amount of time, our Rookies were able to handle QSO and logging chores while we stood in the background as control operators for NJ2SP.

The opportunity seemed golden. HF operating under portable ops conditions. With QRPTTF next weekend, how could I not bring the QRP gear along? It's always good to perform a test run, no?

I bungeed my 31' Jackite pole to a nearby post and set up the EARCHI antenna as a sloper.In between my stints as an HF coach, I went to town working stations on 20, 17, 15 and 10 Meters. A lot of the contacts were MM contest QSOs, but there was one ragchew in there, also. I worked

9A7R
ZW8T
OX3XR
CO8EH
WD4MSM - ragchew
KP2F
TM9B
EG8TRV - Special Event Station
HA8VK

Not bad for the time I had, in between helping with QSO procedures, serving as a helping set of ears, and talking with some of our other newly licensed Techs about equipment, making recommendations, etc.

The Rookies had a blast as well. 10 Meters was open to Texas and the West Coast and our newbies were amazed that "talking to a guy in Idaho" was as easy as talking to a guy on the local 2 Meter repeater - and that the guy in Idaho sounded better than the guy on the 2 Meter repeater!

In all it was a fun day. I'm not sure who had more fun - our new Techs in getting their feet wet in HF, or us veterans watching their fun and excitement. It was definitely rewarding, and I hope we pushed some people a little more deeper into this fine hobby.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Eight new Hams

Last night we concluded our Technician Class license course with a VE Exam Session. Of the fifteen students who originally started in January, ten kept with it and made it to the end. Of those ten, eight earned their licenses last night.

It was gratifying to see a new class of Amateur operators emerge from all these weeks of study.  The two who need a bit more study time have been invited to our next regular VE Session on April 11th.

As satisfying as all that was (as if it wasn't enough), I actually made it home in time to fully participate in the 40 Meter QRP Fox hunt.  Wow, wow, wow!

Both Foxes, Todd N9NE in WI and Tom KV2X in NY were both 599. In fact, at times Tom was 599+. And I had the most difficult time working both of them.

Go figure.

There was a high ambient noise level, there was also some VE SSB, and there was the SKCC monthly weeknight sprint to deal with. All those added up for a tough night of Fox hunting. Todd was first in the bag and he turned out to be the relatively "easy" catch.  I nabbed Tom with about 10 minutes to go, but am not sure I can really count on his pelt.  According to the log he published last night, he copied my exchange perfectly, but he had my call as W2RJO.  I don't know if that was a typing error, a transcription error (from paper log to computer log - I've done that plenty of times!), or he just didn't hear me well enough to get it correctly.  If it's a case of the latter, and I'm scrubbed from the log, it will probably be the first time in over a decade of Fox hunting that I have failed to make a QSO with a 599+ Fox. Que sera', sera'!

Wacky evening on 40 Meters last night, indeed, and a tip of the ol' call sign cap to both N9NE and KX2X for doing a phenomenal job with the poor hand the Propagation Princess dealt them.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Hoping

I am hoping to get out to the Jeep during lunch hour today, for what feels like the first time in decades. In reality, it's probably for the first time in about two months or so. We seem to finally be out of the pattern of polar vortices, with warmer air making its way back. The high for the day is supposed to be around 57F (14C), so sitting inside the Jeep and operating the radio would not be torture.

I really miss these lunch time operations. Take this past weekend, for example. There was just so much to do, between playing chauffeur and other chores, that I was able to get on the air for about an hour or so. Well, that's not totally true. There was opportunity to get on the air for longer than that, but I do have to sleep some time!

Having an hour to get on during the daytime may not fatten my logbook by that much, but it's still better than nothing. And if past practice holds true, then every now and then I should come across something exciting and juicy.

The other good thing is that tomorrow night is the official last class of this Technician License class course that I have been assisting with. Next Tuesday evening is exam night, and after that, I have my Tuesday evenings back to myself. Not that I mind teaching, but it will be nice to be able to get back to the 40 Meter QRP Fox hunts on a normal basis (just in time for the season to end in early April). For the record so far, I am 17 out of 32 in the 40 Meter hunts and 21 out of 32 in the 80 Meter hunts. That puts me smack dab in the middle of the Hound pack, which is to be expected given my antenna situation. Among my circle of closest Hound friends, I am at the bottom of that pack - so much for their good influence rubbing off on me! Heh.

Our team's teaching reputation and success rate must be preceding us, as mention has been made to me of yet another local town wanting a Technician Class held for their CERT members. If that comes to fruition, I will undoubtedly offer my time and whatever meager talents I possess, once again. I'm hoping for a couple month break, though.

It's my humble opinion that if you're going to offer a license class, the best time to do it is either in the Spring or Fall.  Winter comes with too many possibilities for postponements due to inclement weather. Summer brings vacation and family time, so classes really aren't practical then. No, if you're going to offer a class - offer it in either the Spring or Fall - those seem to be the best times.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

UPDATE - I got out at lunch time! It was a great feeling. 15 Meters seemed to be hopping with DX. Unfortunately, I was not able to make myself heard.  I tried chasing S01WS on 12 Meters for a while (I have them in the log, but not QRP) and had no joy there, either.

Silver lining?  Even though I didn't make a single contact, my signal was getting out (the couple of time when I called CQ), according to RBN:

 

As a QRPer, you know there will be days like this. Some days you can't catch fish no matter how hard you try - other days, you catch the legal limit without even trying.

Ring that school bell!

Our second Technician License class started last evening. This time, instead of being open to just the "public", this one is primarily intended for the Clark, NJ CERT Team. Drew W2OU, Marv K2VHW and yours truly met with, introduced ourselves to, and began the process of instructing 15 potential new Hams.

It's always fun and exciting to be with a group of people who show genuine interest in Amateur Radio, as was the case last night. All of these folks showed enthusiasm and curiosity and an eagerness to learn.

 That's Marv K2VHW on the left and W2LJ on the right. 
Notice the coffee cup - gotta have cup of coffee before class, after a long day at work!

We will become "buddies" over the course of the next seven Tuesday evenings, and hopefully after that, we will add more people to the ranks of Amateur Radio.

And if the teaching gig isn't enough, I was thinking of home brewing a magnetic loop this winter. My line of thinking is that I could build one for let's say 40-10 Meters. From what I understand they're not huge. Then, when it gets really frosty in the basement, I could just set the loop up on the main floor and operate temporarily from the dining room table or something like that.  Just a thought, though, as funds are kinda tight.  I have some spare coax (enough for a loop), and I think the only expense at this point would be the tuning capacitor. It doesn't need to be one of those expensive vacuum jobs, so maybe I can find something reasonable on eBay.

My inspiration for this has been Greg, N4KGL. I've been following his posts on Google+ and through his blog.  He seems to be having so much success with his loop that it seems like a worthwhile endeavor. That, and the fact that I feel like building something.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Joy and Disappointment

Last night, our Technician Licensing class formally came to an end.  We held a VE Session which was at once extremely gratifying and at the same time, bittersweet.

It was a bit of a whirlwind evening for me, so I'm a bit shaky on the numbers. Of the 16 student we started with, about 10 showed up for exams last night.  Two couldn't make it due to doctor appointments and one get held up at work. What happened to the other three is beyond me. I had everyone's e-mail and was sending out regular announcements. These three individuals haven't come to class for the last couple of weeks.  There was no indication of a lack of interest, or lack of understanding the material - so maybe it's been personal issues.  Life happens, we all know that, and most people are reluctant to talk about their circumstances.

Everyone who turned out last night earned their Technician class licenses with the exception of two.  The two who missed, missed by very little - the bittersweet part.  Just about everyone who passed took a stab at the General, and one actually earned it.  That was very gratifying.

We have decided to hold another VE session this Saturday morning at 8:00 AM at the EOC.  The people who couldn't make it last night will get their opportunity. The people who missed get the chance to dust themselves off and give it another go.  And maybe some will return for a second crack at upgrading to General.

Everyone was invited to the monthly South Plainfield Amateur Radio Club meeting tonight. The real "Elmering", the real teaching starts now. It's one thing to help someone to get their license. It's another thing entirely to transform these newbie Hams into confident, knowledgeable, content and active Amateur Radio operators.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

For any readers from the greater NYC region

The following came from Mike Lisenco NY2BB, our ARRL Hudson Division Director:

Gordon "Gordo" West, WB6NOA, author, lecturer and creator of many Ham Radio study guides and related products will be in town this weekend and next week. 

He will be at KJI Electronics this weekend, where he will be holding Technician and General Class license review classes followed by an exam session.  Advanced registration is required as space is limited.  Go to www.kjielectronics.com for more information.

He is the scheduled guest speaker at the Suffolk County Radio Club Meeting on Tuesday, November 18 at 7:00 PM (Time change! From 8:00 PM to 7:00 PM!).  Guests are always welcome so feel free to attend:

Grace Lutheran Church
240 Mastic Road
Mastic Beach, NY

For more information, the club website is: http://suffolkcountyradioclub.net/

He will also be at the Great South Bay Amateur Radio Club on Thursday November 20th at 8:00 PM:

Babylon Town Hall
220 East Sunrise Highway
Lindenhurst, NY. 

Talk-in on the W2GSB repeater 146.685 MHz 110.9 HZ PL For more info go to the club website: http://www.gsbarc.org/

This information appears too good not to share - so I re-posted.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Review session

The last class of our Technician License course was held last night. We had what I guess you could call a review session.  Drew W2OU provided me with two practice exams, which I printed out and distributed to the class members.  We treated last night as the actual exam session. So not only did they get practice, but they also now know what to expect for next week.

After each exam was completed, we went over the tests together as a group.  It appears that on both exams, no one got more than six answers incorrect.  Since a passing grade allows for nine incorrect answers, it would appear that we are looking at a bunch of new Amateur Radio ops as of next Tuesday night.

To break things up a bit, we showed an Amateur Radio video in between the two exams. In all, I thought last night's session was exceptional. Our class members have proven to be eager, bright, inquisitive, and open to what we have been presenting to them.

It has been an honor and a privilege to work with them, as well as with my two fellow instructors, Marv K2VHW and Drew W2OU.  These two are amazing Amateur Radio ops and have an amazing amount of experience behind them.  The fact that Marv K2VHW is a retired broadcast engineer from WABC with a couple of Emmy Awards under his belt doesn't hurt, either!

I am looking forward to next week, and I just sent the group a final e-mail, detailing what to bring next week and basically telling how proud of them that we are. It's great to be able to help increase the ranks of Amateur Radio.  I also reminded them to relax. This is supposed to be fun, and besides, in the scheme of things, it's not like we're looking to cure cancer or end world hnger.

Oh, and by the way, I did work John K4BAI in Georgia, one of the 40 Meter Foxes last night.  I tried to work Kevin W9CF in Arizona, but I think the good props between NJ and AZ were over by the time I got home and wolfed down dinner. I see from his Fox log that Kevin worked some NJ stations, but that was while I was still in class.  By the time I was trying to work him, he was 229 - 339 at best and I just couldn't make myself be heard. There is nothing more frustrating than calling a station who is sending a CQ in the clear, only to have them resume calling CQ after you send your call!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!