Subj : Amateur Radio Newsline (B)
To : All
From : Daryl Stout
Date : Fri Apr 13 2018 01:34 pm
IN CANADA, AN UNEXPECTED OVERNIGHT ACTIVATION
STEPHEN/ANCHOR: In Canada, one well-planned anniversary celebration
took an unplanned turn recently, as we hear from Caryn Eve Murray,
KD2GUT.
CARYN: WHen he first set out to commemorate the anniversary of an event
known as the Bell Island Boom, Christopher Hillier, VO1IDX, didn't
expect his special event station to become a camping trip. He just
wanted to mark some Canadian history.
CHRISTOPHER: I knew they were coming up on 40 years since an electrical
phenomenon occurred on Bell Island, Newfoundland, that became known as
the Bell Island Boom. There is skepticism as to whether it was a
military plane with electromagnetic weapons, or if it was superlightning.
There have been various stories throughout history.
CARYN: With the special callsign VD1BOOM, and the Canadian Coast Guard's
permission, he plans to activate the lighthouse as much as possible
until the end of April.
CHRISTOPHER: Because of the logistics, I didn't opt to go there every
day. It's a little bit expensive as well, and it's difficult to get off
the island sometimes.
CARYN: Little did he know how true those words would ring on Friday,
April 6, when he headed out with Aaron Abbott, VO1FOX, who was to operate
CW, while Christopher made contacts on SSB.
CHRISTOPHER: It was kind of bad weather that day, when we set out over
there, and when we arrived, the lighouse keeper had actually mentioned
"you guys are crazy for coming over here today", and he left early to
go home.
CARYN: The winds kicked up to 80 to 90 kilometers and so.....
CHRISTOPHER: We didn't get out that night, we had to spend the night in
the lighthouse.
CARYN: So what happens when you have two hams, 100 watts going into a
G5RV that's radiating across the ocean into the U.S. and Europe -- and
you're stuck there all night?
CHRISTOPHER: There's two nice recliners that we could lay back in, and
relax, but instead of doing that, we decided to use our time on the
island for what we came to do. We did that until about 1:30 in the
morning, and when band conditions finally drifted away, we had nothing
left to do. we went out there and tore the antenna down, and packed
everything away. We wanted to make sure we got off the island the next
morning.
CARYN: VD1BOOM will be back on the air April 16 through April 20th, and
again on the weekend of the 28th and 29th. So, at least until the end
of this month, that's no mysterious noise you may hear coming from Bell
Island. That's Christopher Hillier booming out at 100 watts as VD1BOOM.
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Caryn Eve Murray, KD2GUT.
**
CAUGHT IN THE NET - AND RUNNING IT
STEPHEN/ANCHOR: What's better than marking the 1st anniversary of your
license, than running a net for the first time? Paul Braun, WD9GCO, met
up with a 14-year-old who did just that.
PAUL/ANCHOR: We here at Newsline like to highlight our young hams
whenever we can. Last week, we were tipped off that a young ham was
about to run his first net that Friday, and I wanted to know more about
him.
Connor Lovell, K7CBL, is 14, and has been licensed a little over a year.
He and his father, Donn Lovell, K8DLL, are involved in the KZ6BSA Boy
Scouts club, and are members of the Mad Scientist Amateur Radio Club in
San Mateo, California. However, the club's president is 89 years old,
the vice-president is 96. In fact, the youngest member is 51 - until you
get to Lovell at 14.
I asked Lovell how the 37-year age gap affected him:
LOVELL: It doesn't honestly affect me at all. I know that they have a
lot more knowledge, because they've been around a lot longer than me.
It's better going to a fellow member, than going to Google, and possibly
getting an incorrect question. And the age gap - everyone kinda of treats
each other the same, so it's not that big of a deal.
PAUL/ANCHOR: Last Friday evening was Lovell's first turn as net control
for the club's weekly net. I asked him how things went:
LOVELL: I feel like it went smooth. In fact, there were no real issues
on Friday night, and I feel like it was a pretty easy thing to do.
PAUL/ANCHOR: Lovell's next goals are to get his General ticket, and start
an amateur radio club at his high school - the same school where his
father attended, and also got interested in radio:
LOVELL: The club is something I've been looking forward to doing since
it hasn't been at my school for a while now.
PAUL/ANCHOR: I asked Lovell what he thought was needed to attract more
young people to the hobby:
LOVELL: I would honestly say that people need to show, especially the
digital side of things, and using computers and whatnot, and possibly
the Technician Class exam be looked at again by the FCC, because some
of those questions, basically, you're never going to need to know them,
no matter how far you go, even if you're an Extra Class.
PAUL/ANCHOR: So, congratulations to young Connor Lovell on a successful
first stint as net control, and we here at Newsline wish him well in
his efforts to start a club at his school. Young hams are the future
of our hobby, and we need all we can get.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Paul Braun, WD9GCO.
**
BREAK HERE:
Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio
Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world, including
the K7UGE repeater atop the Westgate Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas,
Nevada, on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. local time.
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