Rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated! *UPDATED*

Hello all!

Just wanted to let you all know that I'm still here.

To be honest, I haven't had anything to blog about, radio related or not. I was working on one of my famous non-amateur radio related posts about the 100th anniversary of World War One, but I can't quite get the thoughts in my head and feelings in my heart to translate in to words on the page, so it may happen sooner, or later, or never at all.

As many of you know, I am in the middle of a dramatic, life and career change, and I have been working 8 hours a day, five days a week driving a forklift and moving lumber, to keep some cash flowing, then working the other two days a week and in the evenings twisting wrenches for my old gig... Then, this week, I found out my Plan A is kinda dicking me around. Unfortunately, I turned down Plans B, C, D and E because Plan A was supposed to happen in weeks, not months or years so I am kind of in limbo, with no time to play with radios or put my random thoughts down in a blog.

Anyway, I guess a post to tell you that I have nothing to post is pretty ridiculous, so please at the very least enjoy this picture of a rare evening off  tonight, which I spent listening to local traffic with my hastily setup station, and enjoying the sunshine and a cold drink... [more below the pic!]

* As I was typing that last sentence, a fire call came in for two local municipalities to respond to our city's airport for an "Aircraft emergency" which turns out is a plane on fire... stand by for details!

** Update for all my loyal readers who are at the edge of your seats: As soon as I heard the fire call come in, I also tuned to the local tower and heard some traffic about the emergency, but nothing of note. Being the thoughtful person I am, I thought it pertinent to call my dad, who not only has a scanner, but happens to live directly at the business end of main runway of the airport in question. My mom answered and informed me that my dad was on his bike and headed to a meeting at a local church on the other end of the airport. His route would take him along the entire north side of the airport, which has a complete unobstructed and elevated view of the airport... So, naturally, I called him immediately and was treated by an immediate update and then a live play-by-play! Long story short, the plane landed safely. Lots of lights and sirens, firetrucks, ambulances, and other traffic. No smoke to be seen, so it must have been in the cabin. But all turned out well. 

Moral of the Story: Sometimes, even dads are better in an emergency than radios! LOL

And, THANKS DAD!

Ask Shoey - Episode #2

Got a great question today from my good friend and new co-worker, and I've been getting lots of requests for more "Ask Shoey" segments, so here is it:

"Hey Mike, how are you doing in the ARRL Centennial Contest?"

              - Ray S.

                 Saanichton, BC

Great question Ray! I've actually had a couple of people ask me this lately, so it's  probably a good time for an update.

For those of you who don't know, it is the Amateur Radio Relay League's (ARRL), 100th anniversary this year and they are having lots of special events to commemorate the occasion. Among these is a "Worked All States" contest, where each week two different states are in the air. Over the year you have at least two opportunities to work all 50 states and if successful, get an award.

There are several other contests and other such events going on for the centennial, and you can find info on them, and the ARRL, on their website: www.arrl.org

Anyway, now for the bad news. I was really enjoying the Centennial WAS contest, despite getting a late start, I was kicking ass and taking names. From the beginning of March, through about mid-June, I had worked 33 or 34 different states in the contest.

That's when it all fell apart. 

Between my change of careers, my antenna problems and the general distractions summer brings, I haven't worked any of the ARRL portable stations, let alone much HF at all, in well over a month.

I'm not too disappointed as I don't plan on being around much in the fall anyway, so it would have come to an end anyway.

I had a blast working the contest while I had the the time and I'll try and pick up any new states I can when I'm on the air for the remainder of the year.

While I might not get the official ARRL Centennial Worked All States Award, but I am only 3-4 states shy of a general WAS Award, and for someone who still considers himself a relative newbie, that is more than enough for now. 

There are plenty of other Awards to obtain and upgrade in this hobby, it's hard to get bored with it.

Thanks again for the interest Ray!

^ Ray! ^

Random Observations - Episode #1

You know, I've made hundreds, if not thousands of trips to countless lumber yards over the years, and I always find nice, evenly stacked piles of lumber. As I dig through them I find myself wondering if I'm being too picky, or why I'm always the asshole who has to tear a pallet of wood apart to find the right number of boards that meet my standards when everyone else seemingly was able to just take what they needed right off the top and not make a mess...

That was until yesterday, when I discovered that the brave men and women labouring in our lumber yards stack and restack the lumber constantly. 

Marketing genius! 

Stay tuned this week for another edition of "Ask Shoey", a long awaited and highly demanded personal update, and as usual, daily updates from the shack.

Continuing On in to the Digital Arena

Okay, first the bad news:

My idea for hooking the FT-100D to my older laptop with the CT-62 cable that doesn't seem to be functioning didn't work. I tried every thing.

I'm officially accusing the ChiComs of sending me a dud. Oh well, I'll find another one later. It's not anywhere near the top of priority list.

Now for an update on my entering in to amateur radio's digital side:

After the FT-100D cable fiasco today, I stuck with my older laptop and pulled out my tried and true IC-756. I know it's interface cable works, and I've had it running of this particular laptop for a few years now. 

So after re-routing the antenna feed moving all of the necessary equipment to the Man Cave, (it was a miserable day here), I set it all up on my coffee table. 

My temporary setup.

I didn't dare take a picture, because my Man Cave is embarrassingly messy at the moment, but between the antenna cable, power wires, interface cables, internet cable, etc, etc, it was quite the mess of cords down there.

For some REALLY good news, the 756 tunes up again on all bands, except 80m, with the new feed line! I was a little worried that the internal tuner was shot, even after success on the FT-100D a few days ago.

After experiencing some computer problems and dealing with them, I fired up HRD and started Digital Master 780. 

"Getting Started" was actually quite frustrating. Between setting up connections between the radio and the computer, HRD and DM 780 and trying to interface it all together, and get HRD to work with DM 780, it took some time. 

After I *thought* I had it all  I turned in the waterfall and tuned around the digital sections of the bands...

Nothing but jibberush.

WTF?

After moving around cables and switching their various  ports a dozen or so times and trying every possible combination, I finally got to to the point where I could receive.

It's really frustrating the lack of info on such things online. It seems like if you don't have one of the three most popular radios out there that you're SOL if you want any real help with your rig.

After trying a few other things, like changing the cables around slightly, trying switching the speaker and mic wires, then switching them again, and playing with the settings in HRD and DM 780, I could still receive, but I was completely unable to transmit.

Nothing seems to want to work, not even holding down the PTT while the program is "transmitting".

I will look in to if and see what needs to be done, it would seemingly be something totally minor. And please, don't hesitate to offer and suggestions or guidance.

But, I'm shutting it down for today and declaring this a success. I'll will pick it up again later. As for tonight, I have a few things to do, and then I might re-acquaint  myself with my long lost love... (My IC-756!)

Almost legible, but no TX!

Quick Update

I had a unexpected surprise this afternoon. I had forgotten that my wife was going camping with her girlfriends tonight and my kids were going to their grandparents for a sleep over. After attempts to organize a guys night fell through, I decided to ride the wave of success I've been having lately and see if I could fix my main antenna.

I have blogged about it before, but literally overnight, my main wire dipole just mysterious stopped working. I tracked it down to one coax connector, which I tried to clean after it apparently somehow arched, but it hasn't worked good since.

So I found some more coax and replaced the current feed line. I had to dismantle my main station in my Man Cave, but it being summer, I haven't used it in months, and won't for 3 or 4 more. After replacing the coax, the antenna works beautifully and tunes on 40-6m... Why it doesn't tune on 80m is a mystery, because it also tunes on 160m and I have made a couple of contacts on that band.

Regardless, the antenna is back up and running and after the Ti-Cats game, I am set for a night of DXing.

New coax temporarily running through the yard...

 

Also, I am going to try the CT-62 CAT cable for the FT-100D I was having problems with on my other, older computer. I'm not sure why, I just have a feeling that an older radio might gel better with an older computer. But, what do I know?

Now, the past few days haven't been without setbacks...

Yesterday, my son spilled bubble solution on my netbook, which was the computer I used for all my radio logging, DX watching, etc. I don't know what's wrong with it, but the P, ", H, Enter and Backspace buttons now do not work. If anyone has any ideas on how to remedy this, please let me know. I love that computer!

Also, I'm down two substantial lengths of coax. One, the aforementioned arched coax from my main antenna, and another that when I was trying to remove it from my Man Cave station, somehow broke at the end. I'm not sure when I will be able to venture in to the big city for replacement parts, but I will add them to my already substantial parts list and I'll limp along for now.

I have NO IDEA how this happened...

 

But for tonight, GO TI-CATS GO and I am excited for a night of DXing. I might even bring the old IC-756 Big Rig Upstairs and try to re-ignite my love for that radio, but I am still not over the honeymoon phase with my FT-100D!

Have a good weekend everyone!!!



It's not going to be a night to be operating outside! 

 

I DID IT!!!!

Re: My previous post "My Entry in to The Digital Age"

WOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

After all the frustration, I finally got something to work! I sent my first packet!!!

Turns out, our local EmComm station is only "on the air" during the weekly net, so luckily, between soaking in my kids pool and enjoying the sunshine here in CN88, I thought to try it.while someone was in the radio room at our local Fire Hall and I was successful!

For now, I`m cashing in my chips while I am ahead. I might play around a bit more with it at a later date, and I still want to get on HF digital but I've been off the air for over two weeks, and I'd like to get back on HF soon. 

Proof of Success!

My Entry in to The Digital Age

After being quite impressed and inspired by my visit to our local emergency communications group last week and because I've got all the necessary equipment already, I decided I'd start playing around with it a little and see what I could accomplish. So after a hectic end to the week and a jam packed Saturday, I was finally able to find some time on Sunday to play around.

I figured it would be best to try a little VHF packet radio first, as I have been using my Kenwood TM-D710A for APRS both at home and mobile for quite some time, so at least I know it is working. So, I downloaded RMS Express, which is the packet software our EmComm group uses and hooked the radio up to my netbook.

I love this radio!

I spent about an hour trying to figure out why my computer would not recognize the TNC in the radio before I finally looked for some instructions and found that I needed to be using the COM port in the back of the radio head, and not the one in the back of the radio... DUH. After that, it was about 15 minutes of playing with menus in the radio and setting up the RMS Express software, but I finally got the radio and the computer gelling.

Okay, now to test a test packet to our local Fire Hall, (3kms away)...... Nothing. Timed out, disconnected.

Okay, no problem, I'll try the EmComm group just south of us (9kms)..... Nothing. Timed out, disconnected.

Hmmm... how about another station on the list, (13 kms away).....  Nothing. Timed out, disconnected.

Alright... time to check everything.

So, I tried all three again seperately.....  Three strikes. All timed out, disconnected.

After thinking for a while, I came to the conclusion that maybe the mag mount antenna sitting on the patio table two feet off the ground isn't the best setup. No problem! After a painter's pole, an old tobacco tin and half a dozen zap straps, I had my antenna at 18 feet up and I could start to hear packets being transmitted on the frequency.

Local Fire Hall:  Nothing. Timed out, disconnected.

EmComm group just to my south:  Nothing. Timed out, disconnected.

The next station down on the list: Well, I bet you can guess.

Improvised antenna setup

At this point, I was starting to get a little frustrated. These things always seem to work when people show me how to do them, but as soon as I try to do them myself it is a miserable failure.

After a few more tries and checking and re-checking all the connections, cords, menu setting, software settings and making sure everything matched up and was set to what it is supposed to be, I tried again. This time I tried all 20 stations listed in the software as online and reachable from my location. They ranged from 9 - 80kms away and were in all directions.

Nothing but "Connection Timed Out.... Disconnected."

By this time, It was high noon and I needed a break from the 30 degree heat, so I took my laptop inside and decided to a little research.


After two and a half hours of reading, texting questions to fellow hams, taking notes and watching painfully boring YouTube videos, I headed back out with a few new ideas and a fresh outlook.

ABSOLUTELY NO F**KING LUCK... Nothing but more of the same!

At this point, if I had to stare at the screen for 15 seconds one more time only to see "Connection timed out, Disconnected.", I was going to smash something, so I closed RMS Express and set the TM-D710A to scan some local emergency and transportation frequencies.

Station Under Construction

If I wasn't going to have any luck with VHF, fine. I'm not a big fan of VHF in the first place, and I was really only playing with it because it seemed easy enough. I really have no use for VHF/UHF packet anyway.

Good riddance, really.

What I am REALLY excited about in the digital aspect of Amateur Radio is the HF Digital modes. And they don't even require a TNC! So I set up my trusty FT-100D, found the CT-62 CAT cable and connected it all to my laptop and fired up HRD...

I have played around with Ham Radio Deluxe before, and sometimes it takes a couple or more tries to get the program to read the radio. It's always some setting or another that needs to be changed. There are multiple settings on start up, and I'm not computer literate, so I am patient with it.

Unfortunately, after trying every possible setting combination, switching COM ports and my usual checking, re-checking and re-re-checking of all the connections, and then checking all the driver software, etc, etc, etc... I still couldn't get HRD to acknowledge the damn radio.

Once again I hit the internet in search or answers, but after a while, I just closed the laptop, turned everything off and went inside to watch baseball. I was at my wits end.

I understand that there is a learning curve to this hobby, but to be totally honest: It's really starting to piss me off.

I've got another couple of days ahead where I will have to leave the radios alone, which is totally fine with me as it will probably take that long for my blood pressure to go down and for me to actually want to turn them on again. I might see if I can test that CAT cable to ensure it's actually working, as it was a $15 Chinese eBay deal, and I'll go from there. 

But, barring some epiphany as to what is wrong, I'll probably just stick to SSB on HF for the foreseeable future.

A beautiful night for endless frustration...

My Solution to the Steroid Problem in Baseball

Okay, I've promised a non-amateur radio related post, and here it is:

As the title clearly advertises, here is my *simple* and surely effective solution to the steroid problem in Major League Baseball:

Step One: Get one of those GIANT Russian planes, the Antonov Something.

Step Two: Round up all the records for Major League Baseball from 1994 (The year they had their season ending strike) through 2014, (yes, including the end of this season).

Step Three: Gather all the players who have used steroids. Either admittedly, or were caught, or indicted themselves by refusing to answer questions in front of congress.

Step Four: Load them all on the plane.

Step Five: Fly it in to the side of a mountain at the highest speed possible.

PROBLEM SOLVED!

In a few years, when my son asks me why there are no MLB records for 1994-2014, I'll just say to him, "Well son, baseball had been slogging on for over 100 years, and everyone got bored. So, they decided to take a couple of decades off, and sure enough, when they came back, we all fell back in love with the game."

And when he looks at me and asks "How long until you think someone will beat Roger Maris' home record of 61?" - I'll know we did the right thing.

PS: Ryan Braun is a cheat and a liar. He, and all like him, should be banned from baseball... AND PETE ROSE SHOULD BE IN THE HALL OF FAME!!!

Coming Up

I'm probably going to be busy for the next couple of days, or more, so I thought I'd give you a little preview of the things I'm working on and planning for the blog.

Here are but a few: 

An overview of my gear and antenna setups

Recommended online ham radio resources and sites. 

A look at my portable setup

Gear reviews

Getting in to digital modes

Portable power options

My strategies for chasing DX

Shortwave Radio

Ham radio and related apps

Working satellites

Cool stuff on the radio waves

How I got in to Amateur Radio

All about Whackers

A thank you list that will make Oscar winners blush

And of course, lots more "Ask Shoey"

Of course I will continue to post about various other subjects as they arise; as well as the daily goings on around my shack.

The initial mission of this little experiment was to provide an avenue for new amateur radio operators to see the successes and failures of another "newbie" navigating the hobby, and that will not change. But, my hope is that  there will also be plenty of other content for hams of all experience levels to enjoy and discuss.

Plus, I promise, I do have some non-ham related and very interesting things to post along the way.

Thanks again for taking the time to read my humble little blog!

Please comment, whether positive, negative and anywhere in between, I value your feedback. I will answer any questions and address all concerns.

Questions for "Ask Shoey" can be submitted via Twitter to @VE7KPM or by e-mail: ve7kpm@gmail.com

And of course, I'm good on QRZ! 

 

My First EmComm Net Visit

It's Wednesday once again, and instead of sitting at home calling in to our local Emergency Preparedness group's weekly net, the stars finally perfectly aligned and I was able to make it down to our brand new fire hall and check it out first hand. 

It was a double feature tonight, because our group was also running the regional net for all other municipalities and groups.

Now, first off, I give EmComm guys a lot of grief, and deservedly so, but we have a really good group here in my town, as I'm sure there are all over, so please save me the  "now you're one of them!" comments and emails.

For a little context, our group, the Peninsula Emergency Measures Organization (PEMO) is comprised of three municipalities on the, you guessed it: Peninsula where we live. Our region, is managed by the Capital Regional Emergency Radio Coordinators Commitee (CRERCC), and is comprised of 13 municipalities, 3 additional electoral districts all with their own EmComms groups. Additionally, 1 NGO (The Red Cross) & 1 Government ministry (Emergency Management BC) also take part in the regional net.

Confused yet?

Selfie with my official PEMO t-shirt at the Fire Hall

Back to our group, it's petty easy: at 7:00pm sharp we start the net, introduce ourselves, ask for news, then call for check-ins by municipality, (which as you remember, there are three). This process is done first on VHF simplex, then UHF, then HF (80m). 

It was a quiet night, I think we had two check-ins on VHF. It is normally much higher.

That part of it was pretty easy. Steve, VE7BBM, did all the work while Bruce and I shot the shit. 

It was all over and done with in a couple minutes and then we had 20 plus minutes to chat before the regional net started, which is when we started looking at the digital end of things. More on that later...

Once 7:30 rolled around both Steve and Bruce, VE7BWA, manned the VHF radio for the regional net, which is done via a local 2m repeater. With Bruce at the mic and Steve armed with a pen and paper it was pretty seamless. Reports came in from all involved which were all way higher than ours.

All-in-all it was actually a lot of fun and very informative. It may seem mundane and boring, but one day all the practice and equipment checking might come in handy.

I was pretty impressed by the wide range of capabilities our little group has, VHF, UHF, dual band packet, HF, HF pactor, etc, etc, etc... 

I don't know much out the digital end of amateur radio, I have all the gear and will look in to it soon (and will post all about it), but it plays a very important roll in emergency communications which I have to admit I was totally ignorant to. 

After the nets, we started playing around a bit with the digital end of things. Our group uses RMS Express for these activities. I have to confess, it was pretty neat. I'm actually kicking myself for not looking in to it sooner.

WARNING - This is where the nerd in me comes out: we managed to send an email via HF radio from Central Saanich to a WinLink station in Southern Mexico, which then sent it via the internet to my phone. I replied to WinLink which went from my phone via the internet to Halifax, which sent it to Port Angeles, Washington via HF radio and then back to us in Central Saanich via VHF radio... All in a matter of minutes.

I don't care who you are, THAT'S COOL!!!

I was really happy I went. I don't know how often I'll get to go in the future, but I will definitely head down wheneber I can. 

It's good to know that all the infrastructure and equipment is in place and being tested regularly. Not to mention all the devoted volunteers who man the stations take the courses and practise regularly. 

Where we live is a ticking time bomb when it comes to a big earthquake, so more than likely, we're going to put all this practising to work sooner or later.

That's about it, after everything I has a beautiful walk home in the summer twilight. 

Ask Shoey - Episode #1

Well, I've been promising it for a while after it was both suggested and requested that I do some Q&A's, and this weekend I actually got a Q I can and don't mind A-ing.

So here it is, the very first 'Ask Shoey' blog post:

Q: Hey Shoey, what is a young, cool and fairly normal guy like you doing in Ham Radio? Isn't it for old anti-social hermits and overweight losers with no life??

                                             Eric H.

                                             Victoria, BC

*Editor's note: This is an actual question I was asked, by a sober individual.

A: Well Eric, I would have to concede that the groups you describe are pretty well the accepted stereotypes of the average ham radio operator, I can assure you that the hobby is a lot more diverse.

There is no doubt that the average age of ham radio operators is significantly higher than that of people in today's more mainstream hobbies like parasailing and ultimate fighting, but there are a couple of big factors in play.

First, while amateur radio's popularity is increasing, it's hay day was back in the day when these septuagenarians were teenagers and it was the popular hobby of the time. 

Amateur Radio was the original Social Media, and you got 24/7 news from around the world decades before CNN hit the air!

Many, if not most have stuck with it, which should actually tell us something.

I suppose the idea of ham radio operators being anti-social hermits stems from sitting alone in rooms for hours on end playing with radios, which lots of people do, and did for many years because they had no other choice. Radios were big, heavy and fragile. The hobby is a lot more mobile these days and a lot more team oriented with clubs and group events, like contests. 

Secondly, amateur radio can be a time consuming hobby. I can tell you I don't get to put 1/10th of the time in to it that I would like, I don't have the gear and setup I'd like and when I do get to devote some time to hit the airwaves, I am often interrupted. See, I have these things called "a family" and "a job", and I can't ignore my wife, starve my kids, quit my job, let my property go to shit and default on my bills in order to be able to invest the time, effort and money in to the hobby that I'd like... But someone who is retired probably can. So the age demographic does sit a little higher. 

Now, as for the overweight losers, they're out there, LOTS OF THEM, and they're all in their parents basements thinking the world would cease to exist if they didn't check in to the weekly emergency nets. And, I'll let you in on a little secret: they're not all overweight! There are plenty of skinny losers too! 

They are in to ham radio because they can sit on their asses, stuff their faces and feel important, all at the same time.

We call them "Whackers", they are the idiots who drive around in $200 cars with 75 antennas on the roof and the only thing holding it all together is all the bumper stickers and magnets. 

It's sad, but they do give us all a bad name.

While we are on the subject, for more information on Whackers, visit Hamsexy.com and check out their Facebook page.

So yeah, the stereotypes are out there and there are reasons that the stereotypes exist, but overall my fellow hams are by far the nicest group of people I've ever met, and I run with some pretty damn nice groups of people! And, just for the record, they're are also lots of younger hams and a lot of younger female hams ;)

Now, to answer your first question: What am I doing in ham radio? Well, I fell ass backwards in to it, but I quickly fell in love with it. 

I've always been an information junkie, and having come of age right beside computers and the internet, I had never really heard about ham radio. Once I discovered it, which is a story for another blog post, I was hooked. I could not only talk to people across town and listen to all the local emergency and transportation channels, but I could talk to people around the world and listen to exotic news and entertainment programming from countries big and small. 

If I see something on the news, like say, the Arab Spring uprising a few years ago, I didn't have to take what CNN reported as gospel, I could listen to news coming straight out of Egypt, or talk to someone in the region. 

It's interesting to get other points of view. Case-in-point: North Korea has regular English programming that is downright hilarious to listen to.

Okay, I'm getting a little off topic, the listening aspect is more Shortwave radio, which is a nice side benefit of amateur radio, but it is something that anyone with a $100 radio and some wire can do, and I will do a blog post about that hobby one day too.

Amateur radio encompasses many aspects, the least of which includes talking to people via orbiting satellites, talking to astronauts on the International Space Station or bouncing signals of it. Some people even bounce signals off the moon to communicate around the globe. With the digital modes, you can text and chat via radio. Yes, I know, you can do that on your iPhone, but it's not nearly as cool! You can tweet from your phone? Well, I can tweet from my ham radio!!

I enjoy "going portable", which basically means packing my radio, antenna and a battery to various points, in my case mostly high hills around town and out in the woods, and using my radios from there. It's a bit of a challenge, but quite rewarding and a hell of a lot of fun.

Believe is or not, it's actually a very social hobby. I enjoy being a member of a couple of local clubs, and we have lots of events that include radio, and lots that don't.

Ham radio is also the perfect means of communication for outdoorsmen. CB radios are quite limited and constricted in what they can do, and FRS radios are a joke.

I think my favorite aspect of amateur radio is that with some basic gear, which can be as cheap or as expensive as you want, and simple antennas that I build myself, I can talk to people all over the world. It's a very satisfying part of the hobby, and in the age of the internet and all the technology we have to day it is too easy... anyone can do it!

It is a pretty open-ended hobby. You can spend as much, or as little time and money as you want, and there is always someone willing to help you and answer your questions. Most importantly, It is also a hobby that can be as challenging, or as easy as you want it to be.

That about covers it. I could go on, but I bet you're already sorry you asked....

The Weather Won

It's official, the weather won the weekend. 

I never got to fire up the FT-100D... But on the bright side, I didn't have to lug that damn battery to the top of a mountain. :)

My batting average has dropped a little, but I'm learning that, in this hobby, you celebrate your successes, no matter how small and forget the setbacks.

For now, I'll just keep working portable about town and from my patio.

I'm also going to work on a better setup for packing the gear around, a better, smaller solar charger and some minor wiring I want to change.

I'll be sure to keep the updates coming.

Not so portable...

It's the morning of Day Three of our camping trip and while I found the perfect spot for some portable ops while out exploring yesterday morning with my son and Father-in-law, getting there with a station is proving rather difficult. 

First off, and like the over zealous person I am, I totally underestimated the weight, size and logistics of my new "portable" battery. 

I've gotten everything else to fit perfectly and quite comfortably  in to my day pack, but it's all quite useless and fairly pointless without a battery.

The battery I have, the only battery right now, is over 17 pounds and not very tiny. I tried throwing everything in to my 90L hiking backpack and cinching it all down, but it was too cumbersome and everything was loose.

The spot I found is a ~12km round trip and 1100 feet up, so I can exactly Mickey Mouse my pack setup.

Next, the weather was my greatest foe. Our supposedly sunny weekend has turned to a grey, drizzly and miserable affair.

Now before I start hearing chicken noises, please let me assure you that I am a hardened outdoorsman, weather doesn't bother me in the slightest, but I'm not about to risk having to replace all my gear because it got wrecked while I was out trying to prove what a big man I am.

Hopefully later tonight the weather will clear and I'll be able to cart all the gear up the hill.

Then a third obstacle reared it's ugly head... I was going to head out last night after dark, but the kids went to bed late and just would not go down. As much as I would love to be walking out of camp mumbling to my wife that "they are you're  problem now...", sometimes my gut gets the best of me.

I wish I has known about ham radio when I was single, had money and spent my days romping through the backwoods of VE7, and silly things like weather and kids weren't even a thought in my mind.

But, I am undeterred. I'm going to spend the day figuring out this battery, praying for clear skies and running these kids in to the ground so they are in bed at a descent hour and for good!

Canada Day Contest

Just a quick note on the the RAC Canada Day contest that was held on from 0000-2359 UTC on July 1. 

That worked out to start at 5:00pm June 30 here on the west coast.

I had totally forgotten about the contest until I saw mention of it on Twitter two minutes before it started. 

Beautiful day for a contest!

I hastily set up my patio station and decided to try out the new battery. I quickly worked the RAC stations in Alberta and The Northwest Territories as well as a few BC stations on 20m.

Band conditions we're still pretty bad, and there is a ghost in my main antenna, so I switched to the portable dipole I still had up from field day, it wasn't ideal, but it does the job. 

Even my Baofeng was ready for Canada Day!

I didn't have too much success reaching out east. Between the antenna being in the worst possible configuration to hit Eastern Canada, the crappy conditions, and according to DX Watch: the lack of stations operating out east, I didn't have much of a chance to begin with. I did chase the RAC station in Quebec on and off most of the night, but with no luck.

After it got dark, I switched to 40m and worked Saskatchewan and a bunch more BC stations, and a mobile station in Alberta.

Operating portable under the stars.

Just before midnight local time, and just before I packed it in for the night, I worked Manitoba and Ontario in quick succession. It was a great way to end the night.

The next day, officially Canada Day, I got a bit of a late start. Between getting the kids ready to head of to the parade with mom and the Blue Jays / Brewers game, I didn't get to concentrate fully on the contest until after noon... But I did manage to made a couple of contacts during the commercial breaks.

I love that flag. Go Jays Go!

Once I got on the air, I was damned and determined to work the eastern provinces, but a few spins through the bands and a check of DX watch proved it was a fruitless effort. 

I did work Manitoba on 15m, and two Ontario Stations and another Saskatchewan station on 20m, as well as more BC boys. 

In the last hours of the contest, there were a couple of Quebec Stations, and a station in Newfoundland on the air, that I chased for a bit, but to no avail. Once again, whether it was band conditions, the antenna, or both, I don't know.

The creepy cloud that literally rained on my parade briefly.

I racked up over 20 QSO's from half the provinces and one territory and I didn't spend too much time at the mic. I had a lot more fun than I did for Field Day, and I've got to learn to relax and roll with the punches. When it comes to radio, you can't change the conditions.

While half my QSO's were from BC, when you consider the size of our province, most of them were quite respectable.

In all honesty, I didn't bother working American stations, even though they were working the contest, (with the exception if one Alaska station). It was nothing against them, I heard at least a dozen, and I hope they know we appreciate them participating, I just really liked seeing a long string of Canadian flags on my QRZ Logbook. 

Silly, I know.

All in all it was great fun and BEAUTIFUL weather. You can lose when your outside on days like those. 

I hope every one had fun, and a happy Canada Day. 

I look forward to working the contest again next year.... If I remember.

Canada Day selfie. New Jays hat and cheap (free) sunglasses.

Happy Canada Day!

Happy 147th Birthday to the most beautiful girl in the world!!

Go Jays Go!

Failed Day

Well Field Day 2014 has come and gone, and to be totally honest: I'm glad.

In this shack, the event will henceforth be known as "Failed Day" and will only be spoken of only in hush tones in the night.

I started with the best of intentions. I had two extra wire dipoles up, on top of my go-to tried and true dipole I have used since day one, and had great success with. I had thoroughly tested the two new antennas over the past weeks, and was quite impressed with the performance.

At the last minute, due to weather and family considerations, I set up my station on the kitchen table. I had my trusty FT-100D as my main transceiver and my ol' IC-756 set-up as a receiver and a back up rig should I need it.

My initial setup just minutes before the official start.
(Not pictured: High hopes)

Saturday morning, I was quite excited. This would really be my first Field Day operating with good equipment and plenty of time. Last year, I had a real POS homebrew antenna that was mickey moused together at the last minute and was a total flop.

As 11:00am drew closer, I checked and rechecked connections, power supplies, made sure pens worked, ensured the coffee pot was full and that my bladder was empty. The last hour before the start seemed like it took days, but finally - it was here. As I kissed my wife and kids goodbye, the voices on WWV announced that "at the tone it would be 1800 hours Universal Coordinated Time...........BOOP!"

My hand trembled as I flipped the switch on the power supply to 'ON' and the radios came alive....

Not a day to be operating outside.

..............................................................NOTHING..................................................................

................Every band: Static...........................All up and down each band: Static...........

I re-checked all the connections, antennas, switched out connectors, changed cables, re-attached wires...

.................................................Still, nothing...........................................................

Thankfully, a quick check of Twitter and a few texts to other local hams seemed to point to shitty band conditions, so I was somewhat relieved and plodded on undeterred.

Finally, after just over an hour, I managed to work a Hawaiian station. Then, five minutes later and thanks to a spot from a ham just down the road, I worked Alaska. Later that hour I had worked Hawaii and Alaska again, respectively. Things were looking up, and stations in other parts of the continent were beginning to be heard on the air.

After two hours of peering at the W5RP Station Live Stream, I could actually begin to hear them sporatically on 20m... Had I know how the rest of the contest would have gone, I would have tried to work them then.

After over two and half hours of spinning the dial on 20 meters and not being able to hear much and not working anything, I was just about to take a break and have some lunch when a hot tip came in from another local ham: VE8AU in The Northwest Territories was on 14.315 and booming in. I tuned it up and worked him on my first call - It was a new province for me, and in hindsight: the highlight of the contest.

It was another two hours before I worked another station, WA7NB in Arizona. Hardly DX but when the bands are like that, you accept any and all small victories.

The contacts came, but few and far between, and I was hard pressed to hit anywhere other than California. Slowly, I began to get the odd contact out east - Illinois, Maryland, New Mexico, then North Dakota amongst a handful more W6 contacts, but mostly dead air, static and faint distorted voices in the noise.

Things got a little crazy during the W5RP inspired "Topless Hour"

At about 6:00pm, and after a whopping 11 QSO's, I figured it might be time to check on my family and see what the plan was dinner. My wife, who could she the frustration in my eyes, and could hear the past seven hours of  "VE7KPM...... VE7KPM..... VE7KPM.....VE7KPM...... VE7KPM........ VE7KPM......................."

suggested I run to the store and get myself somthing special to eat for dinner, as her and the kids had made other plans in my absence, so that is exactly what I did.

Besides, I could also grab some sweet alcohol to numb my pain and relax my frustrations while I was out.

* In case you're interested, I settled on a Terriyaki Pork Kabob and a Caesar Salad kit.... AND VODKA.

While I was in the liquor store, I bumped in to the local ham who alerted me to the AK station hours before, so I asked him how our local club members made out operating out of our municipality's Emergency Communications van, and the news of terrible band conditions and few contacts made me a little more at ease with my own struggles.

Daddy & the birthday girl stocking up
for a long night of radio.

Regardless, just to be safe, when I got home and while my kabob was grilling, I once again re-checked, re-tightened, replaced, re-ran, re-re-checked, re-connected, and even streamlined my station. I removed the 756 and the laptop running it, I moved the 30A power supply further away and ran longer power lines to the FT-100D. I even removed any and all chargers I had - iPhone, iPad, two for HT's and even the one running my netbook.

After that, I could be sure my problems weren't electrical interference and the elimination of all those cables, wires and gear cleared up some valuable real estate on the table. I was running light and feeling good about it. And it was just in time, my Kabob and Caesar salad were ready to eat...

In hindsight, a terriyaki kabob wasn't exactly the greatest pairing for a caesar salad, or vice-versa, but I had a Vodka and Tonic on ice, a new lean mean
contest station and I wasn't worried about making the cover of Bon Appetit! 

With a full stomach and a quivering liver, I fired the FT-100D back up, and....... SUCCESS! The first station I heard on 20 meters was E51AND - an exotic call to be sure. A quick QRZ check confirmed some rare DX: one of only four stations in the DXCC Entity of the South Cook Islands.

This is what I needed: a nice rare DX to make up for all the wasted hours to date. Something I can brag about at the coffee shop to all the other hams... A pin to stick in the map the makes people say "Holy shit! You talked to someone all the way out there!?!?!" 

Chasing DX is what I do, so I poured a fresh drink, readjusted myself in the chair, did a quick stretch and I chased.... and chased... and chased.... FOR THREE HOURS.

Screen shot of E51AND in the South Cook Islands and my QTH with the infamous "Grey Line"

About an hour in, my lovely wife who had already endured eight hours of static and white noise and sporadic bursts the afforementioned "VE7KPM...... VE7KPM.....VE7KPM.....VE7KPM...... VE7KPM........ VE7KPM.......VE7KPM......VE7KPM......VE7KPM......VE7KPM......VE7KPM......VE7KPM......" suddenly burst in to the room with my headphones in hand and begged me to use them.

Undeterred, and with better sound, I called on. Calls close to me were getting through, and I have no problem reaching out to and even over the Pacific, my confidence was high. Despite the station having a bizarre fetish for YL Operators, I knew I could break through.

Alas, as soon as the Dark Grey Line crossed over my location, the signal suddenly disappeared, along with the hopes and dreams of my Field Day 2014.

After a few minutes of sober reflection, and some inspiration from my ham friends on Twitter, I plodded on. To hell with the Grey Line, I switched to 40 meters and prepared to dine on the flesh of the Damned Grey Line!!!

One of the more interesting calls I chased on 40 meters once the sun went down.

Once I hit 40 meters, it was more of the same.

I worked a station in Vancouver, who quite snippily asked me if I realized we were in the same zone, To which I replied, "SURE DID JACK!"

Then it was all California again. I chased far more than I worked, and the only real contact worthy of any mention was with Guam just before 1:00am PST.

Knowing that come morning, while it was still Field Day for the rest of the world, it was a 3 year old's birthday party in this house, I plodded on. Once again, tuning around white noise and voices in the distance.

Just after 1:30am, I heard WW1USA calling CQ from Missouri. Another quick QRZ check revealed that it is a Special Event Station at the National World War One Museum in Kansas City, Missouri, USA.

Now, other than my wife & kids and ice cold vodka tonics at 1:30 in the mornning, there are three things I love in life: History, Special Event Callsigns and... oh... I already mentioned the vodka tonics. Regardless, this station fulfilled my wildest non-DX ham radio dreams.

To say I am a World War One Buff, is an understatement. I had several family members serve in both the British and Canadian Armies during WWI, most for the duration of the war, and have had at least one of my ancestors at every major battle during the war on the western front. Two of my great-grand uncles are buried in France. Canada, my home and the greatest country on earth truly became a nation in the eyes of the world and it's own people at the Battle of Vimy Ridge in April 1917, (Yes my American friends, the war lasted a lot longer than three months.)

What I am getting at, is something like a WW1USA QSL card would be a very nice addition to the the pictures, awards, medals remebrances and even the actual flag that flew over my great-grandfather's base in Northern France during the war that are already proudly displayed in my Man Cave.

Despite having made a few contacts in that neck of the woods, and a complete lack of competition for their attention in the wee hours of the morning, I was unsuccessful.

A glance at the clock and I was alerted that it was well after 4:00 am, and I had to get at least some sleep if there was any hope of adding to my abysmal tally of 22 QSO's.

Not to mention the Vodka was gone.

Bloodshot eyes after 3 hours of sleep

Off to bed I went, but I set an alarm to be up bright and early to get some operating time in before anyone got up, and before the birthday festivities got in to gear.



I think I dreamed about that friggin South Cook Islands Station.


After three hours, my alarm went off and after scanning the sky, I was back to the kitchen table for a few hours of futility.

Sunday Morning, 7:00am - I'm not operating under THAT cloud.
Back to the kitchen table.

I have to admit, despite the lack of sleep, the hair of the dog, the previous day's disappointments and the nagging feeling that something is wrong with my gear, I was high spirits.

I quickly banged off three contacts on 20 meters... all of which, as you've probably guessed, were in California. (No offence W6'ers, but if I never work another 6 station in my life, I will die a happy man.)

After that the kids, including the birthday girl, were up and they wanted pancakes. So, in desperation, I clipped a couple HT's to my belt that were tuned to the 2m, 70cm and 6m calling frequencies, in the hopes of squeezing out just one more contact!

This is what desperation looks like...

After pancakes, including a special one for dad, (pictured below), I had lost all motivation, and entertaining the princess of the day after almost 24 hours of ignoring her, took priority.

The Now Famous Coffee Pancake!

So that's where I left it.

Grand Total - 25 QSO's - 21 on 20 meters, 4 on 40 meters

Estimated Time at the Radio: 16 hours.

To add insult to injury, I also found out yesterday that my wife "hates" George Carlin... she thinks he's "dumb".

I hope you were as bored and frustrated reading this, as I was writing it.

My messy station after the contest.

Field Day!

15 minutes to go until Field Day 2014, and here is the WX Report for the VE7KPM QTH (CN88hn15): 

I'M GLAD IM NOT OUTSIDE!!!

One more sleep...

It's here! It's finally here!!

I look forward to it all year. The anticipation is excruciating. The practice, the preparations and then the sweaty palms...

...I'm speaking of course, of my Daughter's birthday on Sunday.

But, to kill the time until then, I guess I'll work Field Day.

I will be operating 1 Bravo British Columbia, (Did I say that right?), either from my famous patio station or from my kitchen table, depending on the weather.

I haven't decided if I'll use my FT-100D or my old trusty IC-756, that will be a game time decision.

While I'm not a serious contester, I do enjoy the easy pickings for DX, seeing what pileups I can break through, the non-stop action and filling up the log book. (I'm normally pretty slow to wrack up the QSO's because of time constraints and chasing DX ad nauseum.)

Good luck to all, I hope to hear you on the air!

(Wish me luck with the weather!!)

Things are coming together...sort of.

Panoramic View of Central Saanich, BC - Taken from the top of Bear Hill, one of my favorite operating points.

Well, I did my first mock packing of my day pack yesterday. Everything fits very nicely... except for the radio, which, as you may realize, is kind of important.

No worries though, my FT-100D and either the auto or manual tuner and all the cables fit nicely in my netbook bag, which I can just sling over my shoulder. I will look for a better setup later on, and while we are camping next weekend, I will probably throw everything in my big hiking backpack. I'll do up a post about what I'm packing one day, but I am making it up as I go along right now and I'm sure there is going to be some trial and error.

PowerSonic 26Ah Battery - A whopping 17 pounds!

A giant thank you goes out to my good friend Kevin, VE7SXA, who not only gave me a 26 Ah battery, but loaned me a manual tuner, which doesn't require power AND gave me a power cable to fix my auto tuner. The 26 Ah battery is a little bigger and a LOT heavier than I thought, but I'm sure my $30 Coleman Max day pack is up to the task. Considering the 26 Ah battery is going to be a huge and welcome upgrade from the 4 Ah battery I was using, that I got from my neighbour's decommissioned security system, which I'd be lucky to operate for an hour with, I don't mind lugging around the extra weight.


So, the bags are packed, and I'm raring to go, but I've hit a bit of a road block(s)... I was planning on heading out tomorrow for a bit, just up a hill at the edge of our neighbourhood, but after taking 3 days off already this week, I should probably get some money in the bank tomorrow. No problem, right? It's the weekend AND Field Day in 36 hours, the perfect time to go work some portable HF... Weeeell, my son had an eye surgery done this morning, and will require some attention for the next few days and he isn't allowed to do anything fun, like go hiking with dad; and Sunday is my daughter's 3rd birthday, so I will be working Field Day from the back patio, if at all this weekend.

Mt. Baker to the east, as seen from the top of Bear Hill - Saanich, BC, Canada

Our camping trip next weekend will probably be my first "real" portable excursion, which is exactly what I was trying to avoid, but life has a way of taking all your planning and organizing and shitting all over it.

Right now, I'm off to see if I can reconfigure my packing to fit everything, including the boat anchor of a battery in to my day pack, or get my large back pack cinched down small enough to be practical. Then it's off to our year end Lions Club BBQ.

My Z100 Ultra Auto Tuner vs. the Versa Tuner II Manual Tuner
                                             (On loan from the VE7SXA Collection)

Next up I will do a short write up about the final touches to my station and let you know how the packing went...