Volunteers Needed – April 19-20 – Old Dominion Rides – No Frills Equine Race

Outdoor Ready – 2 Meter Capable Radio Amateurs needed – registration required – April 19-20, 2024

WHAT: Volunteer Ham Radio Spotters needed for course coverage for the NO Frills Equestrian Race. Race Sponsor: Old Dominion Equestrian Endurance Organization, Inc.

WHEN: April 19-20 2024

EQUIPMENT NEEDED:  2m HT with extra battery and/ or a 2m mobile in a vehicle. 

CONTACT To Help: KE4RL, Randy Lilly, randylilly2 [at] gmail.com

MORE INFO: https://www.OldDominionRides.com

Background: 

•The Old Dominion Equestrian Endurance Organization (ODEEO, a 501(c)3 organization) will kick off the endurance ride season with the No Frills Race on April 19-20 2024.

•Equestrian Races of 30 and 55 miles will start each day, Friday and Saturday, from Base Camp in Star Tannery, VA. The course follows trails in the GW National Forest on both sides of the border with West Virginia. Due to the mountainous terrain, ham radio spotters are stationed throughout the trail and at checkpoints to monitor the progress of the competitors and inform ride management.

•Communications are maintained primarily through local 2m repeaters. Southwest Virginia AUXCOMM provides an organized backbone and net control functions.

•Additional licensed amateur operators are needed to supplement or fill outlying stations.

•Equipment needed is just a 2m HT or a mobile in a vehicle.

•Options ARE available if you want to bring more. (P.S. Great time to activate a POTA!)

•If you have a few hours either day, (or would like to camp with us the entire weekend!) and would enjoy watching some world class equestrians and their horses course through scenic trails, please contact Randy Lilly, KE4RL, radio team administrator for the No Frills Ride: randylilly2 [at] gmail.com

 

 

Bob Heil, K9EID, Heil Sound, Silent Key February 28, 2024

From ARRL.org – 3/1/2024

 

The man who defined the sound of live rock ‘n’ roll music and brought audio engineering principals into mainstream amateur radio use, Dr. Bob Heil, K9EID, has passed away February 28 at the age of 83. He was an ARRL Life Member and in the ARRL Maxim Society. A Facebook post from Heil Ham Radio paid tribute to their founder: “Bob fought a valiant, yearlong battle with cancer, and passed peacefully surrounded by his family.”

Heil founded Heil Sound in 1966, through which he created the template for modern concert sound systems for musicians like the Grateful Dead, The Who, Joe Walsh, and Peter Frampton. The talk box used on iconic live record Frampton Comes Alive! was of Heil’s design. His audio engineering products have been featured in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and he was honored in 2007 with the Parnelli Audio Innovator Award for his impact on the live sound industry. “My life has been about achieving great sound, whether on the concert stage or in the amateur radio world,” Bob Heil recounted in 2022. “I’ve watched Heil Sound go from a regional sound company to a world-class microphone manufacturer. This company has been my passion,” he said.

Parallel to his commercial and artistic success in live music, was his passion for amateur radio. He was active in ham radio from a young age and merged his expertise in audio engineering with his love for radio. Heil Ham Radio was founded to produce microphones, headsets, and other gear for radio amateurs with an emphasis on high-quality audio.

Heil was known as a mentor who enjoyed helping others find success in ham radio. Recently, his grandson Charlie Hartley, KF0OOP, became a licensed ham to surprise Heil for his birthday. The pair attended the ARRL Midwest Convention/Winterfest in St. Louis, Missouri, on January 27, 2024.

Heil was a generous donor to amateur radio organizations, including ARRL. Recently, he donated a host of new audio gear to the Hiram Percy Maxim Memorial Station, W1AW.

His generosity and kind nature will be missed by many, including ARRL Director of Development Kevin Beal, K8EAL. “Bob was a titan in many areas. He was generous with his time, offered keen insights, and had the heart of a philanthropist in the ARRL Maxim Society,” Beal said. “He was a gentleman to his core, making friends easily and everywhere he went, from rock stars to captains of industry. I consider it a real privilege to have become a friend to him, too, all because of amateur radio.”

Heil was known for his passion for AM operations. He served for many years as an on-camera host of the Ham Nation podcast. Tributes to Heil have been flooding social media, including from his co-hosts.

ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR, said Heil’s passing is a significant loss. “Bob Heil’s technical achievements that brought high-quality audio to amateur radio pale in comparison to his generosity and willingness to help his fellow ham. He’s long been known as someone eager to help mentor and teach. His legacy on our hobby will be long-lasting. Our thoughts are with his loved ones.”

#

ed. note: Bob Heil’s legacy and innovation lives on with heilsound.com and heilhamradio.com

Amateur Radio Operators Needed for Help with Solar Eclipse Project

Cross-posted from ARRL

The Case Amateur Radio Club, W8EDU, the club station at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, is asking for amateur radio operators to help with a research project centered around the April 8, 2024, solar eclipse.

W8EDU club member Adam Goodman, W7OKE, said the project centers around studying the effects of the eclipse on propagation to better understand the recombination time of the ionosphere.  

“To do this, we are recruiting North American amateur stations interested in recording the Canadian time standard station CHU (Canada’s WWV) for two weeks surrounding the eclipse,” added Goodman. “Anyone with a KiwiSDR or a rig that can interface with analysis/recording software such as Fldigi is encouraged to reach out to us to participate.”  

W8EDU club member and project software manager Maris Usis, KE8TXG, said that while the software is simple to use, there is some detailed work involved. “We can help make it easier and there are good online instructions as well,” said Usis.  

All of the participation details are on the club’s website at https://w8edu.wordpress.com/chu-eclipse-data-collection/.  

W8EDU club faculty advisor David Kazdan, AD8Y, said the research project has received positive attention from the ARRL Collegiate Amateur Radio Programcommunity, the Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation (HamSCI) community, and Case Western Reserve University’s engineering deans. “It is already a truly international effort, and we are collaborating with more than 20 stations across the continent, from collegiate and high school stations, to a representative from the Radio Amateurs of Canada, to a station in Mexico,” said Kazdan.  

The 2024 solar eclipse will over Mexico, the United States, and Canada. ARRL is a partner with HamSCI to help promote this opportunity for radio amateurs to participate in an active science experiment, through the Solar Eclipse QSO Party.

W4RKC Club Members make Park to Park QSO New Zealand to British Columbia!

Sometimes you just have to stretch the imagination, and ask for what you want. SVARC Club Members Janine, KI5WI, and husband Larry, KQ4GUY are traveling in Janine’s home of New Zealand. While being interviewed by a fellow New Zealand Radio Amateur, ZL1BQD, Roly, Larry and Janine  made a very special contact called a QSO from their park to another ham, Simon VA7BIX,  activating a park on the other side of the Pacific Ocean in British Columbia, Canada.

Below are two videos from this contact.  The first video is the full interview with Larry and Janine with Roly, ZL1BQD. Starting at approximately 9’45” is Janine’s contact with the park in British Columbia. [Park to Park DX]

 

Here is how Larry and Janine were heard from VA7BIX’s station in British Columbia. This video starts at 44’30” and the contact begins to be made about 30 seconds later. Listen carefully as Larry and Janine are a faint signal, but readable. 

Larry and Janine’s QSO and use of Chameleon Antenna antenna got them noticed also by Chameleon Antenna and were highlighted on the company’s Facebook page. Nice Job Larry and Janine! 

Janine, KI5WI and Larry, KQ4GUY highlighted by ChameleonAntenna.com while the couple were traveling in New Zealand.

Larry and Janine have been radio amateur’s since March 2023, currently both hold Amateur Extra licenses and have activated well over 300 Parks in about 6 months of effort. Larry and Janine are traveling with their Yaesu 991A radio and a Chameleon Tactical Delta Loop antenna. 

Amateur Radio is a small community of just over 3 million licensed radio operators globally. Radio Amateurs are involved in many areas of business technology, entrepreneurs, global leaders, even astronauts. Learn more and get started on your journey of instant friends and fine adventures, visit winchesterhamtest.com right now and register for our next exam.

ARDC.net Community Meeting 2/24/24 1PM ET

For those of you interested in Amateur Radio Digital Communications, the next Amateur Radio Digital  Community Meeting is Saturday, February 24, 2024 at 1800 UTC (10 am PST, 1 pm EST, 6 pm GMT, 7 pm CET). 

You can find Zoom information for the meeting below.

Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) is a California-based foundation with roots in amateur radio and the technology of internet communication. Our mission is to support, promote, and enhance digital communication and broader communication science and technology, to promote amateur radio, scientific research, experimentation, education, development, open access, and innovation in information and communication technology.

Find out more at https://ardc.net

—————————–——–

ZOOM INFO

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85231994557?pwd=cFVVSS9Ea25ZN092cFZ6RjMrWDk5dz09

Meeting ID: 852 3199 4557

Passcode: 604443

One tap mobile

+19292056099,,85231994557#,,,,*604443# US (New York)

+13017158592,,85231994557#,,,,*604443# US (Washington DC)

Dial by your location

• +1 929 205 6099 US (New York)

• +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)

• +1 305 224 1968 US

• +1 309 205 3325 US

• +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)

• +1 646 931 3860 US

• +1 507 473 4847 US

• +1 564 217 2000 US

• +1 669 444 9171 US

• +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)

• +1 689 278 1000 US

• +1 719 359 4580 US

• +1 253 205 0468 US

• +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)

• +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)

• +1 360 209 5623 US

• +1 386 347 5053 US

Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kcZmiiptW4