Subj : Dayton Hamvention Roundup Friday, May 19, 2023
To : QST
From : ARRL de WD1CKS
Date : Sat May 20 2023 04:09 pm
05/20/2023
by Mark H. Derks, KC1RVQ, ARRL Acquisitions Editor
The Calm Before
The first official day of 2023 Dayton Hamvention[1]� began with half an hour of
calm on the show floor. All the transceivers and whips, the coils of coax, and
bins of SMA connecters lay abed beneath their evening coverings -- white
plastic tablecloth in the ARRL exhibit space, black canvas covers for
neighboring Icom, and others beyond that. Almost quiet beneath the Tesla
building's steep-pitched ceiling, exhibitors shuffled in and peeled back
coverings to bare their wares. Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R, Director of Marketing and
Innovation at ARRL, took to the center of the ARRL exhibits and raised his
arms. "Attention ARRL team! Everybody gather 'round. Time for the team photo."
Those working in the booth put down their projects and gathered loosely before
Inderbitzen. From somewhere, a two-step stool. He climbed and held up his
phone. "Squeeze together."
"Everybody showered this morning," a sudden extra standing beside him joked.
"Nothing to be afraid of."
Photos were taken of the big ARRL team -- a mix of staff, Board members,
Section Managers, and many other member-volunteers.
Then came a shout from a passerbyer. "They opened the gates!"
Within minutes, the ARRL Expo space was full of people sizing t-shirts,
checking QSL cards with DXCC volunteers and ARRL Radiosport staff, and flipping
through issues of QST. ARRL CEO David Minster, NA2AA, and ARRL President Rick
Roderick, K5UR, engaged in what would be a day of conversations, primarily with
members, but also with anyone who wanted to catch a little of their time in the
surrounding crowd.
Until almost the day's last minutes, the busyness didn't relent.
Learning and Innovation
Outside Tesla, fair-food trucks and the sprawling flea market. In one of the
day's first sessions, ARRL Lab Manager George Spatta, W1GKS, overviewed
procedures for QST's Product Review section, and provided a wealth of
background information about the new program, the ARRL Clean Signal initiative.
Key objectives of the program are developing specifications and test procedures
that will influence equipment design and manufacturing, and educating amateurs
regarding signal purity -- like avoiding and overcoming poor-quality signals.
The initiative is designed to incentivize manufacturers to clean up transceiver
emissions beyond those that the FCC regulates. Spatta also promoted the two
available jobs in the ARRL Lab (www.arrl.org/careers[2]). ARRL RFI Engineer
Steve Anderson, W1EMI, followed up with information about detecting and dealing
with RFI, especially from evolving sources, such as grow lights and solar
panels.
Later in the afternoon, the Antenna Forum, moderated by Tim Duffy, K3LR, of DX
Engineering, drew a sizeable crowd. There were a few spots available deep in
the rows of chairs, but even the wall-space was full of hams eager to hear from
Frank Donovan, W3LPL; Jim Breakall, WA3FET; Nathaniel Frissell, W2NAF, and
Anthony Luscre, K8ZT.
Donovan's talk was called, "Six Meter Long Distance Propagation During the Next
Four Years of Solar Maximum," and it started with an overview of contemporary
propagation literature, including the 100th Edition of the ARRL Handbook for
Radio Communications[3], the upcoming 25th Edition of the Antenna Book (October
2023), and the soon-to-be-released new ARRL title, Here to There: Radio Wave
Propagation. He then discussed Sporadic E, which he expects to remain
relatively reliable as Solar Cycle 25 climbs to its peak. As for
Transequatorial Propagation (TEP) on six meters, his second topic, he talked
about how conditions have already improved for this elusive propagation type.
To illustrate his point he detailed six-meter contacts he made with Angola and
Fiji from his station in Maryland.
Because the conditions for six-meter Sporadic E and six-meter TEP openings will
remain short lived and unpredictable throughout the solar cycle, he suggested a
variety of automations and alert systems using WSJT-X and JTAlert programmed to
announce when exact call signs are hearable. For example, the TEP to Fiji
lasted only long enough for he and another nearby ham to make their contacts
before fading.
Jim Breakall then discussed the benefits and shortcomings of various antenna
modeling software, and detailed a new method for determining the correct length
of a dipole. It turns out, the 468/frequency method dates back to the 1910s and
only provides accurate lengths when using three-inch diameter legs. His
investigation was informed by a paper Ward Silver, N0AX, authored on eHam.net.
He then detailed a method for using two measurements to determine the proper
length of a dipole and, in the spirit of innovation, urged the audience to test
the method with real dipoles, something he has not yet done.
The last session observed during day was "Mastering SOTA - Tips and Tricks,"
which proved to be a short, lively, presentation that highlighted the
close-knit nature of the Summits on the Air community and left ample time for
questions. Keith Schlottman, KR7RK, provided an excellent overview of planning
a SOTA activation. Brian Betz, W7JET, drove home the importance of preparing
for the worst-especially for getting lost or injured and making sure you have
the best possibility that you can of being rescued. Finally, Charlie Brown,
NJ7V, discussed keeping SOTA fun, even after you've achieved some of your
goals, like the Mountain Goat award. Tactics include setting personal goals,
joint activations, pursuing unique or new summits, improving your gear, and
experimenting with new modes and techniques.
Youth Abound
Back in the ARRL exhibit area, a banner emblazoned with "ARRL Collegiate
Amateur Radio Program" hangs above a booth adorned with university pennants and
swarming with young 18 to 20-somethings. Student-hams from colleges and
universities around the country have volunteered to help ARRL promote the
program and the participation of their radio clubs and schools. These young
hams greet attendees with stories of how amateur radio is furthering their
interest in wireless communications and other areas of STEM education. Their
experiences are also leading to advanced careers in radio technology and
related fields. The bright spotlight on young hams contributes a welcome
message to all who pass by: the next generation of radio amateurs is already
here, and they're already active. The ARRL YouTube channel[4] includes a short
video with some of the student participants.
Overall, the first day of Hamvention provided numerous educational
opportunities, great camaraderie with fellow hams, and just enough sun to set
the buildings baking by the end of the day. An excellent start!
[Follow ARRL's photo album from 2023 Dayton Hamvention at
https://tinyurl.com/ARRL-at-2023-Hamvention[5].]
�
[1]
http://hamvention.org/
[2]
https://www.arrl.org/careers
[3]
https://handbook.arrl.org/
[4]
https://youtu.be/KzG0MBx-xbs
[5]
https://tinyurl.com/ARRL-at-2023-Hamvention
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