WEBVTT 00:00:09.390 --> 00:00:12.210 Thanks for tuning in. HamTalk Live will be on 00:00:12.210 --> 00:00:30.170 the air shortly. Please stand by. Thanks for 00:00:30.170 --> 00:00:32.909 tuning in. HamTalk Live will be on the air shortly. 00:00:33.189 --> 00:00:37.929 Please stand by. This episode of HamTalk Live 00:00:37.929 --> 00:00:41.570 is brought to you by Tower Electronics. For connectors, 00:00:41.929 --> 00:00:47.409 cables and more, call 920 -435 -2973 or visit 00:00:47.409 --> 00:00:53.130 PL -259 .com and by ICOM. Heard it? Worked it? 00:00:53.229 --> 00:00:58.509 Logged it. Visit www .icomamerica .com slash 00:00:58.509 --> 00:01:02.369 amateur for more information about ICOM radios. 00:01:37.549 --> 00:01:41.230 Hey, good evening, everyone. It's time for HamTalk 00:01:41.230 --> 00:01:46.450 Live. It's episode number 176. SMC Fest with 00:01:46.450 --> 00:01:50.530 Craig K9CT recorded live on Thursday, August 00:01:50.530 --> 00:01:56.750 8th, 2019. I'm your host, Neil Rapp, WB9VPG. 00:01:57.090 --> 00:02:00.530 Thanks for tuning in to another episode of HamTalk 00:02:00.530 --> 00:02:03.430 Live. Tonight we're joined by Craig Thompson, 00:02:03.469 --> 00:02:06.549 K9CT, and we'll take your calls live in just 00:02:06.549 --> 00:02:10.000 a few minutes. Last week, Mark Brown in for BCD 00:02:10.000 --> 00:02:13.090 was here on the show to talk about. the Huntsville 00:02:13.090 --> 00:02:15.530 HamFest and if you missed the show you can listen 00:02:15.530 --> 00:02:19.669 anytime at HamTalkLive .com or on your favorite 00:02:19.669 --> 00:02:24.169 podcast app or YouTube or you can catch the rebroadcast 00:02:24.169 --> 00:02:30.830 on WTWW that's 5085 AM Saturday evenings at about 00:02:30.830 --> 00:02:34.669 6 30 p .m. Eastern Time. So get your contesting 00:02:34.669 --> 00:02:37.849 questions ready to go and we're going to talk 00:02:37.849 --> 00:02:41.669 about the Society of Midwest Contesters and SMC 00:02:41.639 --> 00:02:45.000 tonight if you're listening to us live on Thursday 00:02:45.000 --> 00:02:49.330 night you can give us a call in the interview 00:02:49.330 --> 00:02:52.129 segment or after the interview segment rather 00:02:52.129 --> 00:02:54.370 in the last segment of the show you'll be able 00:02:54.370 --> 00:02:57.909 to call it's 812 -NET -HAM -1 and I'll give you 00:02:57.909 --> 00:03:00.629 that number again in a second so you can write 00:03:00.629 --> 00:03:02.770 that down and have it ready it's not time to 00:03:02.770 --> 00:03:06.169 call just yet but it will be after we talk to 00:03:06.169 --> 00:03:09.689 Craig for a while so again the number is 812 00:03:09.689 --> 00:03:16.169 -NET -HAM -1 812 -638 -4261 and you can also 00:03:16.169 --> 00:03:21.650 tweet us HamTalk Live on Twitter and we'll be 00:03:21.650 --> 00:03:24.090 checking those throughout the night as well. 00:03:24.210 --> 00:03:26.789 So I'll be back with Craig right after this word 00:03:26.789 --> 00:03:30.789 from ICOM right here on HamTalk Live. 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Visit icomamerica .com 00:04:40.019 --> 00:04:44.720 slash amateur for more information on ICOM radios. 00:04:45.279 --> 00:04:48.019 Coming to you live from the glass -enclosed Faraday 00:04:48.019 --> 00:04:51.560 box, here's Neil Rapp with more HamTalk Live. 00:05:02.319 --> 00:05:05.839 Thanks to ICOM America for bringing HamTalk live 00:05:05.839 --> 00:05:08.839 your way each and every week and be sure to check 00:05:08.839 --> 00:05:13.019 them out at the Huntsville Ham Fest here in a 00:05:13.019 --> 00:05:17.439 week or so coming up. So don't miss that and 00:05:17.439 --> 00:05:20.000 we'll tell you more about ICOM a little later 00:05:20.000 --> 00:05:23.519 on. Ham talk lives on the air every Thursday 00:05:23.519 --> 00:05:26.060 night at 9 p .m. Eastern time right here at ham 00:05:26.060 --> 00:05:29.459 talk live comm and my guest this evening is Craig 00:05:29.459 --> 00:05:32.740 Thompson canine CT from Trevoli, Illinois Which 00:05:32.740 --> 00:05:36.079 is not too far from Peoria and Craig is an extra 00:05:36.079 --> 00:05:38.480 -class license holder and has been a ham for 00:05:38.480 --> 00:05:41.899 49 years He has a degree in electronics engineering 00:05:41.899 --> 00:05:45.939 technology from Bradley University as well as 00:05:45.939 --> 00:05:49.660 work toward an MBA and serving as operations 00:05:49.660 --> 00:05:52.240 manager and vice president of a small company, 00:05:52.540 --> 00:05:56.180 Craig started his own business in 1980. Thompson 00:05:56.180 --> 00:05:59.199 Electronics Company is a solutions provider for 00:05:59.199 --> 00:06:02.480 security, communications, audio, video, and fire 00:06:02.480 --> 00:06:05.500 alarm systems for industrial, government, education, 00:06:05.819 --> 00:06:08.800 hospital, and religious markets in central Illinois. 00:06:08.990 --> 00:06:11.889 And his combination of ham radio and electronics 00:06:11.889 --> 00:06:14.310 career has allowed him to build an impressive 00:06:14.310 --> 00:06:17.490 contesting station and participate in several 00:06:17.490 --> 00:06:20.389 de -expeditions. And Craig is a member of the 00:06:20.389 --> 00:06:24.170 society of Midwest contesters, which sponsors 00:06:24.170 --> 00:06:27.050 SMC Fest that we're going to be talking about 00:06:27.050 --> 00:06:29.529 tonight. So Craig, welcome back to the show. 00:06:30.350 --> 00:06:33.310 Well, thank you very much, Neil, for hosting 00:06:33.310 --> 00:06:36.910 this session and hosting me again. I appreciate 00:06:36.910 --> 00:06:42.339 it. And I should mention to our listeners that 00:06:42.339 --> 00:06:45.639 Craig's cutting out a little bit and it's my 00:06:45.639 --> 00:06:49.410 fault. Uh, I've been working on this system and 00:06:49.410 --> 00:06:51.930 we finally got Skype working to where you can 00:06:51.930 --> 00:06:54.149 call in now and got all this stuff going. And 00:06:54.149 --> 00:06:57.230 then the windows update comes out and I've had 00:06:57.230 --> 00:07:00.449 nothing but audio issues tonight and just finished 00:07:00.449 --> 00:07:03.129 up newsline production. So we're running a little 00:07:03.129 --> 00:07:07.149 behind. And so I apologize if it cuts out, hopefully, 00:07:07.149 --> 00:07:10.709 uh, it'll get a little better as we go, but, 00:07:10.750 --> 00:07:14.149 uh, it's understandable. It's just kind of annoying 00:07:14.149 --> 00:07:17.410 right now. Hopefully that will do a little bit 00:07:17.410 --> 00:07:20.050 better as we go here. But Craig, tell us a little 00:07:20.050 --> 00:07:25.870 bit about the history of the SMC Fest. Well, 00:07:25.870 --> 00:07:27.850 you know, it started out very informally and 00:07:27.850 --> 00:07:30.230 what I did, I actually manually turned down my 00:07:30.230 --> 00:07:33.209 microphone level here. And if this doesn't work, 00:07:33.370 --> 00:07:41.629 we can switch to DW, I suppose. Anyhow, SMC has 00:07:41.629 --> 00:07:45.089 been around since about 1985. We celebrated that. 00:07:45.290 --> 00:07:49.589 obviously 30 years, just a few years ago. And 00:07:49.589 --> 00:07:53.370 we're, you know, very excited about that. The 00:07:53.370 --> 00:07:58.509 club is very active. We have over 300 members. 00:07:58.610 --> 00:08:01.329 In fact, it always surprises me every week we 00:08:01.329 --> 00:08:04.670 get new members. And I think that's speaks to 00:08:04.670 --> 00:08:08.810 the vitality of contesting and I guess our club 00:08:08.810 --> 00:08:13.329 too. But SMC Fest has grown out of an informal 00:08:13.329 --> 00:08:17.500 get together that was hosted once a year at K9 00:08:17.500 --> 00:08:21.060 ZO and we used to call it the ZO Fest and he 00:08:21.060 --> 00:08:24.199 would have a barbecue and hosted in his at his 00:08:24.199 --> 00:08:26.939 home and later his business and then we decided 00:08:26.939 --> 00:08:29.220 well we have so many people coming maybe we ought 00:08:29.220 --> 00:08:33.399 to formalize this a little bit so we about six 00:08:33.399 --> 00:08:36.919 or seven years ago maybe a little longer created 00:08:36.919 --> 00:08:40.519 what we call SMC Fest and started hosting it 00:08:40.519 --> 00:08:46.139 at hotels and making it an all -day thing, and 00:08:46.139 --> 00:08:48.620 it's been very successful. Actually, it's grown 00:08:48.620 --> 00:08:52.559 way beyond our expectations. In fact, this year, 00:08:53.240 --> 00:08:57.299 we were fortunate. We were named a ARRL sanctioned 00:08:57.299 --> 00:09:01.539 event, specialty convention, which is really 00:09:01.539 --> 00:09:05.480 very nice. And we had some speakers coming in 00:09:05.480 --> 00:09:10.200 actually from ARRL, W9JJ, who is in charge of 00:09:10.240 --> 00:09:14.360 the contest area, among other things. And then 00:09:14.360 --> 00:09:19.919 we also have N9ADG coming, who actually does 00:09:19.919 --> 00:09:23.399 the contest update newsletter that comes out 00:09:23.399 --> 00:09:27.059 every other week from ARRL. So besides the ARRL 00:09:27.059 --> 00:09:29.340 officials that will be there, it's really kind 00:09:29.340 --> 00:09:33.820 of a nice thing to, you know, be christened that, 00:09:33.820 --> 00:09:37.139 I guess, by the ARRL or, you know, asking for 00:09:37.139 --> 00:09:40.460 that and receiving that was very nice. So this 00:09:40.460 --> 00:09:43.679 year, we will definitely have in excess of 100 00:09:43.679 --> 00:09:47.179 people there. Most of these people are very fairly 00:09:47.179 --> 00:09:50.279 serious contesters. And one of the things that 00:09:50.279 --> 00:09:52.539 we try to do at this event is talk about things 00:09:52.539 --> 00:09:57.539 that you may not hear or read about in normal 00:09:57.539 --> 00:10:02.320 contest literature. And so we have asked people 00:10:02.320 --> 00:10:05.980 to speak on a variety of subjects, which is quite 00:10:05.980 --> 00:10:09.240 interesting to people. Just so you also know 00:10:09.240 --> 00:10:14.700 SMC also sponsors a contest university and it's 00:10:14.700 --> 00:10:17.320 in conjunction with K3LR and the contest university 00:10:17.320 --> 00:10:23.799 at Dayton at the Pamvention and ours has been 00:10:23.799 --> 00:10:26.600 held every year the day before W9DXCC which is 00:10:26.600 --> 00:10:29.940 just a month from now. So we do some training 00:10:29.940 --> 00:10:33.299 that's repeated every year and any new member 00:10:33.299 --> 00:10:36.980 or anyone that wants to improve their skills, 00:10:37.220 --> 00:10:41.179 we actually have an event that I recommend people 00:10:41.179 --> 00:10:44.440 attend if they get the opportunity. So this event 00:10:44.440 --> 00:10:47.039 is you're going to learn a lot. I guarantee you 00:10:47.039 --> 00:10:50.580 somebody coming here will leave with several 00:10:50.580 --> 00:10:53.320 new things and besides the networking that ham 00:10:53.320 --> 00:10:57.340 radio operators love to do anyhow, you'll find 00:10:57.340 --> 00:11:01.120 that it's just a really fun event to go to and 00:11:01.120 --> 00:11:04.399 I tell you in the past years, some of the most 00:11:04.399 --> 00:11:07.000 interesting conversations have been some of our 00:11:07.000 --> 00:11:10.940 members standing, going to the front in a forum 00:11:10.940 --> 00:11:14.679 setting and discussing topics and how they do 00:11:14.679 --> 00:11:19.500 it. And not debating, but each person talking 00:11:19.500 --> 00:11:22.100 about how they do a certain thing, like operate 00:11:22.100 --> 00:11:26.080 SO2R and that sort of thing. So the room is absolutely 00:11:26.080 --> 00:11:28.320 silent when those conversations are going on 00:11:28.320 --> 00:11:31.379 and the questions are really very, very good. 00:11:33.179 --> 00:11:36.480 That's the sort of an atmosphere we have. I think 00:11:36.480 --> 00:11:41.500 that the program that we have this year, I briefly 00:11:41.500 --> 00:11:45.419 touched upon that, was Brian N980G, who actually 00:11:45.419 --> 00:11:47.940 lives in Washington, the state of Washington, 00:11:48.419 --> 00:11:51.899 and he's the editor of the AWRL Contest Update. 00:11:52.320 --> 00:11:55.320 He put together a really interesting presentation. 00:11:55.379 --> 00:11:57.620 It's entitled, How I Learned to Stop Worrying 00:11:57.620 --> 00:12:02.019 and Love Sweepstakes. And he says he's presented 00:12:02.019 --> 00:12:04.679 this before and people really like it. So he's 00:12:04.679 --> 00:12:06.460 looking forward to making that presentation to 00:12:06.460 --> 00:12:09.960 us. And besides that, he's from the area. And 00:12:09.960 --> 00:12:12.700 so we're glad to have him back. And then he will 00:12:12.700 --> 00:12:16.200 also briefly cover what it's like to do the ARRL 00:12:16.200 --> 00:12:19.799 contest update. So that's just an example of 00:12:19.799 --> 00:12:22.039 one of the programs, one of the subjects. I mean, 00:12:22.039 --> 00:12:24.980 we can go through the whole thing, if you'd like, 00:12:25.379 --> 00:12:27.980 Neil, as to who's going to speak about what. 00:12:28.700 --> 00:12:32.379 Yeah. Well, it sounds like a great event that, 00:12:32.379 --> 00:12:35.220 you know, has grown over the years and like a 00:12:35.220 --> 00:12:39.139 lot of fun ham radio events and successful ones, 00:12:39.320 --> 00:12:42.360 it just grew from a few people getting together 00:12:42.360 --> 00:12:45.000 and throwing some ideas out and all of a sudden 00:12:45.000 --> 00:12:51.019 it comes alive and that's always great when things 00:12:51.019 --> 00:12:54.980 work. And in fact, I found the audio conflict. 00:12:54.980 --> 00:12:59.799 We got it fixed. It was a driver conflict, so 00:12:59.799 --> 00:13:02.860 I was able to get it right after you started 00:13:02.860 --> 00:13:06.360 talking, so we got that taken care of. But yeah, 00:13:06.360 --> 00:13:10.539 let's take a look at this year's SMC Fest. Let's 00:13:10.539 --> 00:13:15.159 run down who's going to be talking and about 00:13:15.159 --> 00:13:20.519 what and what you can learn by taking a day and 00:13:20.519 --> 00:13:26.019 going to SMC Fest. Well, sure. I guarantee there's 00:13:26.019 --> 00:13:28.419 going to be more talked about than what I'm going 00:13:28.419 --> 00:13:31.500 to cover, but we have formal presentation on 00:13:31.500 --> 00:13:36.700 lightning protection in the shack. We have a 00:13:36.700 --> 00:13:41.799 Wyatt, by the way, that's by Randy NA9RB, then 00:13:41.799 --> 00:13:45.820 a Wyatt AC0RA. Many of your listeners probably 00:13:45.820 --> 00:13:49.580 know who he is because he's been doing some very 00:13:49.580 --> 00:13:54.169 successful roving in contests and actually winning 00:13:54.169 --> 00:13:57.830 the contests. And he's just a young guy. I, you 00:13:57.830 --> 00:14:00.110 know, well, definitely younger than I am. I would 00:14:00.110 --> 00:14:05.870 say he's not that guy. He has built an impressive 00:14:05.870 --> 00:14:08.610 roving station. He's going to actually talk about 00:14:08.610 --> 00:14:11.970 that. And I also asked him if he would speak 00:14:11.970 --> 00:14:15.789 about grid -peditioning. He did a, him and Dave 00:14:15.789 --> 00:14:20.710 KG5 CCI Did a just a super job this this year 00:14:20.710 --> 00:14:24.190 in six meter East season and went out into the 00:14:24.190 --> 00:14:27.389 western states and went to some very rare grids 00:14:27.389 --> 00:14:31.029 and They did just a super job of doing this and 00:14:31.029 --> 00:14:33.769 so they're going to talk about He's going to 00:14:33.769 --> 00:14:36.090 talk about you know all of the roving issues 00:14:36.090 --> 00:14:38.149 how to set up a station how to be successful 00:14:38.149 --> 00:14:40.850 And how to make that happen. I think everybody's 00:14:40.850 --> 00:14:44.250 going to be find that fascinating then we actually 00:14:44.250 --> 00:14:48.710 have a time set aside for some ARRL leadership 00:14:48.710 --> 00:14:53.289 people, our director, vice director, and the 00:14:53.289 --> 00:14:57.149 section director will also speak, but only about 00:14:57.149 --> 00:15:00.929 really contest -related things. And they usually 00:15:00.929 --> 00:15:05.190 come and they bring awards, like if SMC has won 00:15:05.190 --> 00:15:09.909 a gavel, they'll hand it out at the time. And 00:15:09.909 --> 00:15:13.350 I am also a member of the Contest Advisory Committee 00:15:13.350 --> 00:15:17.679 for the And I'll be speaking about the things 00:15:17.679 --> 00:15:21.100 that CAC is doing. And the CAC in the last year 00:15:21.100 --> 00:15:24.039 and a half has become quite active. They've become 00:15:24.039 --> 00:15:27.460 activists. And actually we've had some results 00:15:27.460 --> 00:15:30.440 from just actually the last ARRL board meeting 00:15:30.440 --> 00:15:33.419 that we'll be able to discuss it at that meeting. 00:15:33.899 --> 00:15:37.360 So we're very happy with that. And then we've 00:15:37.360 --> 00:15:39.419 got a person that's been very successful. He's 00:15:39.419 --> 00:15:42.490 going to talk about SO2R from a city lot. and 00:15:42.490 --> 00:15:44.590 how he has successfully set up a station, and 00:15:44.590 --> 00:15:49.529 that'll be by CJ, WT2P, and a lot of people know 00:15:49.529 --> 00:15:54.429 him, especially on CW, but he's also been a team 00:15:54.429 --> 00:15:57.350 operator at my station. He's a great guy and 00:15:57.350 --> 00:15:59.629 really has done a super job setting that up from 00:15:59.629 --> 00:16:04.149 his home. And then Jim, N9JF, who a lot of people 00:16:04.149 --> 00:16:06.450 would know maybe from county hunting, but he's 00:16:06.450 --> 00:16:10.690 also been very successful contesting in QSO parties 00:16:10.690 --> 00:16:13.100 and traveling around from state to state and 00:16:13.100 --> 00:16:17.159 going during the QSO parties and activating different 00:16:17.159 --> 00:16:19.559 counties. And he's going to speak about how he 00:16:19.559 --> 00:16:23.759 does that because he's very, very good and quite 00:16:23.759 --> 00:16:31.460 successful. One of the writers for the NCJ and 00:16:31.460 --> 00:16:34.580 also he has his own ham radio business, Unified 00:16:34.580 --> 00:16:38.080 Microsystems, is Gary W9XT. And he's going to 00:16:38.080 --> 00:16:40.870 be speaking about a subject a lot of guys that 00:16:40.870 --> 00:16:43.529 don't have time to do full -time contests will 00:16:43.529 --> 00:16:45.009 probably really appreciate, and that's called 00:16:45.009 --> 00:16:48.389 maximizing your part -time scores. And I think 00:16:48.389 --> 00:16:50.870 a lot of people will appreciate that. And then 00:16:50.870 --> 00:16:55.490 Bart, W9JJ, who's actually from Wisconsin but 00:16:55.490 --> 00:16:58.470 is now in the leadership team at ARRL, is going 00:16:58.470 --> 00:17:01.570 to be out speaking about ARRL and contest updates 00:17:01.570 --> 00:17:04.490 because they've made a lot of changes and improvements. 00:17:04.910 --> 00:17:07.130 And he's going to be discussing that and going 00:17:07.130 --> 00:17:12.140 through how it all works. And of course, I will 00:17:12.140 --> 00:17:16.279 be the moderator and we'll have some comments 00:17:16.279 --> 00:17:18.720 and remarks as the time goes on. But that is 00:17:18.720 --> 00:17:22.279 a full program. And I guarantee you, if you look 00:17:22.279 --> 00:17:27.559 on our website, w9smc .com and go to the SMC 00:17:27.559 --> 00:17:30.859 Fest link, you'll see actually what some of the 00:17:30.859 --> 00:17:34.019 attendees have even said that we've tried to 00:17:34.019 --> 00:17:36.950 make this something that's just as good or better 00:17:36.950 --> 00:17:39.589 than a contest forum except that it's all day 00:17:39.589 --> 00:17:44.609 and I think I think everybody leaves going This 00:17:44.609 --> 00:17:47.009 was really a full day. In fact, we we have to 00:17:47.009 --> 00:17:50.410 do We really work at trying to keep it on schedule 00:17:50.410 --> 00:17:53.710 But boy we fill the day with a lot of very good 00:17:53.710 --> 00:17:55.890 discussions and everybody is very quiet and they 00:17:55.890 --> 00:17:58.849 pay attention There's a lot of very interesting 00:17:58.849 --> 00:18:04.680 Information being passed along Neil Yeah Always 00:18:04.680 --> 00:18:07.940 great when you can get people together and share 00:18:07.940 --> 00:18:11.579 ideas and you know, you mentioned Contest University 00:18:11.579 --> 00:18:15.819 with K3LR and I've been fortunate enough to go 00:18:15.819 --> 00:18:18.900 to that for several years and you know these 00:18:18.900 --> 00:18:21.660 events like this that are just great and and 00:18:21.660 --> 00:18:25.150 you always Run out of time. There's never enough 00:18:25.150 --> 00:18:28.730 time to do everything you want. So this is a 00:18:28.730 --> 00:18:34.509 packed day of great information so for people 00:18:34.509 --> 00:18:38.869 who aren't familiar with it and want to find 00:18:38.869 --> 00:18:40.890 more information you just gave out the website 00:18:40.890 --> 00:18:43.750 but but tell them how they can go and and how 00:18:43.750 --> 00:18:48.930 they can register and and Or are you full? You 00:18:48.930 --> 00:18:53.160 know what? How would people go to this and is 00:18:53.160 --> 00:18:57.160 there any way that they can participate without 00:18:57.160 --> 00:19:01.160 physically going there or is streaming not available 00:19:01.160 --> 00:19:04.660 right now? Yeah, we've preferred not to do streaming 00:19:04.660 --> 00:19:11.740 because we really want people to attend. Whenever 00:19:11.740 --> 00:19:13.759 you do something like this, and I'm sure everybody 00:19:13.759 --> 00:19:16.640 that's listening totally gets this, when you 00:19:16.640 --> 00:19:19.470 make an arrangement with a hotel to host something 00:19:19.470 --> 00:19:23.049 you are you have to guarantee them room sold 00:19:23.049 --> 00:19:26.609 and you have in the restaurants and everything 00:19:26.609 --> 00:19:29.009 that you have to guarantee so many meals and 00:19:29.009 --> 00:19:31.650 so we have to make sure we have as many people 00:19:31.650 --> 00:19:34.109 attend as possible and what we've done this year 00:19:34.109 --> 00:19:37.630 last year we were very near capacity for the 00:19:37.630 --> 00:19:42.829 room set up we had 108 seats and we had 107 attend 00:19:43.259 --> 00:19:45.660 And so we had them change the configuration this 00:19:45.660 --> 00:19:49.460 year so that we can actually hold more attendees. 00:19:50.859 --> 00:19:53.420 But people are welcome to register. We're nearing 00:19:53.420 --> 00:19:57.799 capacity. So the sooner the better, obviously. 00:19:58.920 --> 00:20:02.019 The 24th is not really that far away. But if 00:20:02.019 --> 00:20:07.859 you go to our web page, w9smc .com, and you just 00:20:07.859 --> 00:20:10.319 click on SMC Festival, be able to actually see 00:20:10.319 --> 00:20:12.720 who's attending. where it's at, where to make 00:20:12.720 --> 00:20:16.140 a reservation, and also how to register. You 00:20:16.140 --> 00:20:17.980 just click, click, click all the way through 00:20:17.980 --> 00:20:21.500 and it's very easy. There's a PayPal link and 00:20:21.500 --> 00:20:23.460 you just fill it out and you're done. So it's 00:20:23.460 --> 00:20:27.579 quite simple. We actually offer and we actually 00:20:27.579 --> 00:20:31.240 have some students attending. SMC will underwrite 00:20:31.240 --> 00:20:36.619 anybody under the age of 25. And so we actually 00:20:36.619 --> 00:20:39.740 have some attendees that are younger than the 00:20:39.740 --> 00:20:46.319 age of 25. And as a side note, SMC started the 00:20:46.319 --> 00:20:49.799 North American Collegiate Championship and association 00:20:49.799 --> 00:20:55.980 with the NAQP. And we will be making presentations 00:20:55.980 --> 00:21:01.720 to the winners of the NAQP Ready to Bradley University, 00:21:02.000 --> 00:21:08.059 W9JWC, and also for NAQP Sideband to Purdue University, 00:21:08.200 --> 00:21:11.799 K9IU. And we'll have representatives from both 00:21:11.799 --> 00:21:14.480 universities. Now living in Bloomington, Indiana, 00:21:14.539 --> 00:21:17.619 I'm going to care about that. Because you said 00:21:17.619 --> 00:21:27.440 K9IU and Purdue. Right. So Purdue is W9YB. Yeah, 00:21:27.480 --> 00:21:29.420 you're right. I'm wrong. I said that wrong. It's 00:21:29.420 --> 00:21:34.460 K9IU. What am I saying? I'm sorry. I should know 00:21:34.460 --> 00:21:40.200 better than that. But anyhow, K7. JOE is their 00:21:40.200 --> 00:21:43.380 leader there, I guess, advisor, and he will be 00:21:43.380 --> 00:21:45.359 there, and he's been advising them, and he's 00:21:45.359 --> 00:21:50.420 a member of SMC. And so he's going to be receiving, 00:21:50.559 --> 00:21:54.140 along with his contingent, the Indiana University. 00:21:54.220 --> 00:21:56.160 And I've got to tell you, there's an article 00:21:56.160 --> 00:21:59.920 coming out in NCJ about how they battled to first 00:21:59.920 --> 00:22:07.069 place against Georgia Tech. And all of these 00:22:07.069 --> 00:22:09.750 university competitions are online. I mean, they're 00:22:09.750 --> 00:22:14.869 obviously on the air, but you can watch the battle, 00:22:14.910 --> 00:22:17.509 the contest, as it goes along between the universities. 00:22:18.690 --> 00:22:22.150 And it's just a lot of fun. And so I think what 00:22:22.150 --> 00:22:25.170 we're trying to do is attract young people, and 00:22:25.170 --> 00:22:28.970 I know you do too, Neil, to contesting in particular. 00:22:29.470 --> 00:22:31.630 And so we're doing everything we can to encourage 00:22:31.630 --> 00:22:35.269 these sort of activities and to invite young 00:22:35.269 --> 00:22:38.730 people to these activities so that they can do 00:22:38.730 --> 00:22:42.369 it. So that's another positive little thing that's 00:22:42.369 --> 00:22:47.069 going to happen at SMC Fest this year. We're 00:22:47.069 --> 00:22:51.930 very proud of our university clubs and our school 00:22:51.930 --> 00:22:56.400 clubs in the Illinois and Indiana regions here. 00:22:57.460 --> 00:23:00.740 We're glad that Bradley, your alma mater, was 00:23:00.740 --> 00:23:05.460 able to pull off the win and then just cross 00:23:05.460 --> 00:23:09.240 the road and down the street a little bit at 00:23:09.240 --> 00:23:14.640 K9IU and Joe, K7JOE, does a lot of work with 00:23:14.640 --> 00:23:18.059 my high school club here and we kind of help 00:23:18.059 --> 00:23:21.359 each other. So congratulations to Joe for that. 00:23:22.990 --> 00:23:25.970 And we've got our the president of their club 00:23:25.970 --> 00:23:29.130 is a former president of the high school club 00:23:29.130 --> 00:23:33.950 that I sponsor. So we're proud of them and we're 00:23:33.950 --> 00:23:39.029 glad that SMC has put together these competitions 00:23:39.029 --> 00:23:45.319 within the other. contest to get the colleges 00:23:45.319 --> 00:23:49.819 a chance to battle back and forth. And it's been 00:23:49.819 --> 00:23:52.680 a lot of fun to even just sit back and watch 00:23:52.680 --> 00:23:57.980 the scoreboard. So it was a pretty exciting time. 00:23:59.070 --> 00:24:02.509 Thank you for that. Well, we're going to take 00:24:02.509 --> 00:24:05.930 a break right now and when we come back we're 00:24:05.930 --> 00:24:08.869 going to take your calls and your questions and 00:24:08.869 --> 00:24:11.750 we'll talk some more contesting with Craig Thompson 00:24:11.750 --> 00:24:15.190 K9CT right after this word from Tower Electronics 00:24:15.190 --> 00:24:19.490 right here on HamTalk Live. Is this getting serious? 00:24:19.869 --> 00:24:23.730 I think so. Well, how do you feel about it? Just 00:24:23.730 --> 00:24:27.829 imagine if you hadn't run out of PL -259s. Just 00:24:27.829 --> 00:24:30.009 imagine if your connectors weren't from Tower 00:24:30.009 --> 00:24:32.910 Electronics. Consider the sophisticated quality 00:24:32.910 --> 00:24:35.630 of connectors from Tower Electronics. Their silver 00:24:35.630 --> 00:24:38.309 -plated end connectors are so good, they've even 00:24:38.309 --> 00:24:40.589 been used on the International Space Station. 00:24:41.250 --> 00:24:44.250 I'm not so sure why I ever used any other PL 00:24:44.250 --> 00:24:48.109 -259s. Mine are better. Besides, you deserve 00:24:48.109 --> 00:24:51.099 the best. You know I love you. Don't be caught 00:24:51.099 --> 00:24:54.619 without PL259's. Visit Tower Electronics at a 00:24:54.619 --> 00:24:57.220 ham fest near you or visit them online anytime 00:24:57.220 --> 00:25:04.400 at pl -259 .com or call 920 -435 -2973. They 00:25:04.400 --> 00:25:07.099 also have ham sticks, mobile antennas, and meters 00:25:07.099 --> 00:25:11.440 too. See the whole catalog. Go to pl -259 .com 00:25:11.440 --> 00:25:14.339 Tower Electronics, the hams dime store since 00:25:14.339 --> 00:25:18.970 1978. Join the conversation. Give us a call at 00:25:18.970 --> 00:25:25.769 812 -NET -HAM -1. That's 812 -638 -4261. Now, 00:25:25.809 --> 00:25:34.910 here's more HamTalk Live. We're not sure what's 00:25:34.910 --> 00:25:37.309 up with the fifth dentist, but four out of five 00:25:37.309 --> 00:25:40.150 dentists recommend listening to HamTalk Live. 00:25:52.680 --> 00:25:55.420 Thanks to Tower Electronics for sponsoring the 00:25:55.420 --> 00:26:00.160 show tonight. On the HamFest Tour again this 00:26:00.160 --> 00:26:03.200 weekend. They'll be in Huntington, West Virginia 00:26:03.200 --> 00:26:07.440 on August 10th. Then next weekend at Huntsville, 00:26:07.440 --> 00:26:10.779 Alabama August 17th and 18th. Then it's off to 00:26:10.779 --> 00:26:14.240 Shelby, North Carolina August 30th, 31st and 00:26:14.240 --> 00:26:18.180 September 1st. Findlay, Ohio September 8th and 00:26:18.180 --> 00:26:21.859 then over in Craig's territory. It'll be the 00:26:21.799 --> 00:26:26.319 Peoria Superfest, September 14th and 15th, but 00:26:26.319 --> 00:26:30.000 you can visit them wherever you are and whenever 00:26:30.000 --> 00:26:34.839 you want at pl -259 .com. HamTalk Live is on 00:26:34.839 --> 00:26:37.880 the air every Thursday night at 9 p .m. Eastern 00:26:37.880 --> 00:26:40.700 Time, right here at hamtalklive .com. Be sure 00:26:40.700 --> 00:26:43.920 to check us out on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, 00:26:44.059 --> 00:26:47.670 and it is time now for your calls. So if you 00:26:47.670 --> 00:26:50.210 have a question for Craig, give us a call at 00:26:50.210 --> 00:26:57.890 812 -638 -4261. Now is the time to call 812 -NET 00:26:57.890 --> 00:27:04.609 -HAM -1. 812 -638 -4261. I'll jinx it and say 00:27:04.609 --> 00:27:08.650 the phone lines have been fixed. We found the 00:27:08.650 --> 00:27:13.730 firewall problem and the Skype problem. dare 00:27:13.730 --> 00:27:17.609 I say, it's been fixed. So give us a call. 812 00:27:17.609 --> 00:27:22.849 -638 -4261. You can also tweet us. It's at HamTalk 00:27:22.849 --> 00:27:25.849 Live. We'll be watching that. And if you're listening 00:27:25.849 --> 00:27:29.910 to us on WTWW or the podcast edition, you're 00:27:29.910 --> 00:27:32.269 not going to reach anybody because the show's 00:27:32.269 --> 00:27:34.970 already over if you're listening to us that way. 00:27:35.690 --> 00:27:39.869 So Craig, we'll talk a little bit about contesting 00:27:39.869 --> 00:27:42.069 here while we're waiting on some of those questions 00:27:42.069 --> 00:27:45.400 to roll. And, and one of the things that I, that 00:27:45.400 --> 00:27:49.799 I really enjoy about, uh, SMC is kind of the 00:27:49.799 --> 00:27:54.660 motto or slogan of, of contesting from the black 00:27:54.660 --> 00:28:00.019 hole. So what are the challenges of contesting 00:28:00.019 --> 00:28:05.180 from the black hole that is the Midwest? Well, 00:28:05.180 --> 00:28:07.980 I guess it always depends on which contest there's 00:28:07.980 --> 00:28:10.559 really. two major types of contest. There's the 00:28:10.559 --> 00:28:14.640 DX contest and there's domestic contest. And 00:28:14.640 --> 00:28:18.119 let's take NAQP or sweepstakes, which are domestic 00:28:18.119 --> 00:28:20.779 contests. You're right in the middle of the country. 00:28:21.019 --> 00:28:25.700 So which way do you aim your antenna? And so 00:28:25.700 --> 00:28:29.539 you can imagine the difficulty of competing with 00:28:29.539 --> 00:28:32.900 the coast stations or the border stations as 00:28:32.900 --> 00:28:37.349 they cut across the country. So It's more of 00:28:37.349 --> 00:28:40.369 a challenge. You have to have antennas pointed 00:28:40.369 --> 00:28:43.609 in different directions, and you have to be so 00:28:43.609 --> 00:28:46.269 cognizant of which way the bands open and when. 00:28:47.230 --> 00:28:49.890 Not that somebody on the coast doesn't, but generally 00:28:49.890 --> 00:28:52.009 if they're aimed at the population areas, they 00:28:52.009 --> 00:28:56.109 don't have to move their antennas. So, but on 00:28:56.109 --> 00:28:59.309 a DX contest in particular, and of course we 00:28:59.309 --> 00:29:01.730 won't get any sympathy from the West Coast guys, 00:29:01.890 --> 00:29:06.109 but our propagation to Europe is an hour and 00:29:06.109 --> 00:29:10.250 a half after it hits Maine, you know, or Massachusetts. 00:29:10.869 --> 00:29:13.349 So they got always an hour and a half head start 00:29:13.349 --> 00:29:16.650 on us by the time it opens. And unfortunately, 00:29:17.109 --> 00:29:21.029 the auroral oval will sometimes slide down and, 00:29:21.029 --> 00:29:23.430 you know, provide some absorption between us 00:29:23.430 --> 00:29:25.529 and Europe. So when we do get the chance to finally 00:29:25.529 --> 00:29:27.910 get it opening, the signals may not be very strong. 00:29:28.329 --> 00:29:32.079 So I guess... That's the challenges of the black 00:29:32.079 --> 00:29:37.440 hole. The physics don't lie. But we have a lot 00:29:37.440 --> 00:29:39.960 of fun and we're competitive and we just do the 00:29:39.960 --> 00:29:43.740 best we can. So that's what we mean by that. 00:29:44.460 --> 00:29:46.579 And anybody that's from this area knows exactly 00:29:46.579 --> 00:29:48.640 what I'm talking about and I'm sure you do too. 00:29:51.680 --> 00:29:55.319 So we're real proud if we can make a top 10 or 00:29:55.319 --> 00:29:58.880 we can be competitive in the category that we 00:29:58.880 --> 00:30:01.680 happen to choose for a contest. So it's just 00:30:01.680 --> 00:30:03.740 like anything you're really competing against 00:30:03.740 --> 00:30:07.259 yourself and you just work on your own skills 00:30:07.259 --> 00:30:10.539 to become a better operator and improve your 00:30:10.539 --> 00:30:13.259 own station and maybe your strategy and decision 00:30:13.259 --> 00:30:16.680 making during a contest. Those are all very good 00:30:16.680 --> 00:30:19.920 skills that people learn when they're in contests. 00:30:21.480 --> 00:30:26.079 812 -638 -4261 is the telephone number to call, 00:30:26.140 --> 00:30:29.539 so give us a call. 812 -NETTAM1, if you have 00:30:29.539 --> 00:30:33.960 a question about SMC Fest or contesting in general, 00:30:34.079 --> 00:30:39.359 give us a call. 812 -638 -4261 or tweet us at 00:30:39.359 --> 00:30:43.039 HamTalkLive. We're talking with Craig Thompson, 00:30:43.099 --> 00:30:48.980 K9CT from Trevoli, Illinois. Nice big contest 00:30:48.980 --> 00:30:53.940 station over there, and he's moderating the SMC 00:30:53.940 --> 00:30:58.059 fest coming up later this month uh... so give 00:30:58.059 --> 00:31:00.900 us a call or give us a tweet and we'll we'll 00:31:00.900 --> 00:31:03.579 talk about that and we'll preview next week we're 00:31:03.579 --> 00:31:06.759 going to be talking about building a modest contest 00:31:06.759 --> 00:31:10.940 station uh... fred denon w w four l l and uh... 00:31:10.940 --> 00:31:14.519 steven arduci w nine s n will be here and we're 00:31:14.519 --> 00:31:16.819 going to talk about building a station next week 00:31:16.819 --> 00:31:19.099 so we've got a little contesting thing going 00:31:19.099 --> 00:31:22.599 on here uh... for a couple weeks as we do from 00:31:22.599 --> 00:31:26.799 time to time so uh... hope you can Tune in for 00:31:26.799 --> 00:31:34.039 that one. So Craig, what's your advice to contesters 00:31:34.039 --> 00:31:36.000 and maybe there are some of those that you know 00:31:36.000 --> 00:31:38.880 we were talking earlier about one of your forums 00:31:38.880 --> 00:31:43.039 is going to be about the part -time contest or 00:31:43.039 --> 00:31:46.660 you know the casual contest or and maximizing 00:31:46.660 --> 00:31:51.140 those scores. What's your advice to people who 00:31:51.140 --> 00:31:54.160 are out there You know, trying to deal with the 00:31:54.160 --> 00:31:56.900 band conditions the way they are right now and 00:31:56.900 --> 00:32:00.720 trying to contest. Well, you know, there's a 00:32:00.720 --> 00:32:05.319 contest every weekend. So, so I'd recommend that 00:32:05.319 --> 00:32:07.980 you stick your toe in the water and try it. And, 00:32:08.200 --> 00:32:09.839 uh, the, the point of all of this, of course, 00:32:09.839 --> 00:32:12.700 is not only is it fun, but it makes you a better 00:32:12.700 --> 00:32:16.220 operator and a better understanding of, of ham 00:32:16.220 --> 00:32:19.279 radio, the, the physics of it, and also the, 00:32:19.279 --> 00:32:22.410 the station building aspect. So. There's many 00:32:22.410 --> 00:32:25.809 ways to be satisfied doing this with the band 00:32:25.809 --> 00:32:28.190 conditions the way they are for just normal rig 00:32:28.190 --> 00:32:29.769 chewing and things like that. You'll find that 00:32:29.769 --> 00:32:35.109 the bands are always open for a contest and you 00:32:35.109 --> 00:32:36.970 laugh, but there's a lot of truth to that. Oh, 00:32:37.029 --> 00:32:40.049 there is a lot of truth to that. Yeah. Two weeks 00:32:40.049 --> 00:32:43.769 ago we had NAQP ready and 10 and 15 meters were 00:32:43.769 --> 00:32:47.829 open because of eSkip. And the big delight at 00:32:47.829 --> 00:32:49.789 the end of the contest and all the comments was, 00:32:49.970 --> 00:32:53.589 wow, 10 and 15 meters were open. And no one would 00:32:53.589 --> 00:32:55.730 have known that if it wasn't for activity in 00:32:55.730 --> 00:33:01.670 a contest. So I'd recommend that you always stick 00:33:01.670 --> 00:33:04.009 your toe in the water and give this a try. But 00:33:04.009 --> 00:33:06.130 probably the most important thing, I think, is 00:33:06.130 --> 00:33:09.670 try to find a club of similar interested people 00:33:09.670 --> 00:33:13.019 that you can network with. and learn from them 00:33:13.019 --> 00:33:15.380 and find out what contests that they like to 00:33:15.380 --> 00:33:18.660 do and participate with them because that's there's 00:33:18.660 --> 00:33:21.859 nothing better than being part of a team which 00:33:21.859 --> 00:33:26.140 is what a contest group is and sharing ideas 00:33:26.140 --> 00:33:29.119 among yourselves which is what we do at SMC Fest 00:33:29.119 --> 00:33:33.519 but I got to tell you joining a club like SMC 00:33:33.519 --> 00:33:37.140 and most other clubs have similar things we have 00:33:37.140 --> 00:33:40.220 a group reflector and it's probably where our 00:33:40.220 --> 00:33:42.700 most of our value is if somebody's having trouble 00:33:42.700 --> 00:33:46.460 with software or radio or anything, they put 00:33:46.460 --> 00:33:49.440 it on the group and you got so many people that 00:33:49.440 --> 00:33:52.920 will help you out just within minutes of your 00:33:52.920 --> 00:33:56.359 question. And I've seen all kinds of discussions 00:33:56.359 --> 00:34:00.460 from, you know, 160 antennas to, you know, how 00:34:00.460 --> 00:34:05.410 do I do a QSO party? or how do I do FT8 or FT4 00:34:05.410 --> 00:34:09.190 or whatever and get help right away, that's where 00:34:09.190 --> 00:34:11.349 the value is. It's just getting quick answers 00:34:11.349 --> 00:34:14.989 that you just can't find very quickly by yourself. 00:34:15.369 --> 00:34:18.530 So the networking aspect is fantastic. So I'd 00:34:18.530 --> 00:34:21.809 recommend that to anybody that wants to try it. 00:34:22.010 --> 00:34:25.070 Number one, it should be fun. And the other thing 00:34:25.070 --> 00:34:30.159 is we've got online scoreboards now too. When 00:34:30.159 --> 00:34:32.760 you check it out, check out the contest online 00:34:32.760 --> 00:34:38.820 scoring. VA 2WA hosts one up in Quebec that is 00:34:38.820 --> 00:34:42.960 really good and you can compete against your 00:34:42.960 --> 00:34:46.079 peers and see how you're doing real time. It's 00:34:46.079 --> 00:34:48.960 really a lot of fun. I guarantee you that if 00:34:48.960 --> 00:34:50.360 you thought you were going to sit down for 30 00:34:50.360 --> 00:34:52.579 minutes, you might be there for an hour or an 00:34:52.579 --> 00:34:55.619 hour and a half once you start seeing the real 00:34:55.619 --> 00:34:59.159 time scoring. Almost everybody says that. makes 00:34:59.159 --> 00:35:02.260 them want to operate more once they see the real 00:35:02.260 --> 00:35:06.940 -time scoring that goes on. I wanted to mention 00:35:06.940 --> 00:35:10.360 one other thing that the SMC is involved in, 00:35:10.940 --> 00:35:15.679 and that is club competition with PVRC and the 00:35:15.679 --> 00:35:19.460 NCCC, Northern California Contest Club, and the 00:35:19.460 --> 00:35:22.519 Potamac Valley Radio Club. They're really great 00:35:22.519 --> 00:35:25.059 contest clubs, and they're, I would say, three 00:35:25.059 --> 00:35:27.260 of the biggest in the country, and there's other 00:35:27.260 --> 00:35:31.150 contest clubs, but We decided to compete against 00:35:31.150 --> 00:35:35.230 each other each year, and we have a cup, a trophy, 00:35:35.929 --> 00:35:40.630 that is won each year by one of the clubs. And 00:35:40.630 --> 00:35:45.510 so we use the NAQP Ready, Phone, and CW contests 00:35:45.510 --> 00:35:48.570 that are held in the winter and in right now, 00:35:48.590 --> 00:35:51.469 in fact, to compete against each other. And boy, 00:35:51.489 --> 00:35:54.929 I tell you, every club member gets busy, and 00:35:54.929 --> 00:35:58.050 it's just a lot of fun. And we have real -time 00:35:58.050 --> 00:36:01.869 scores. You can see the scoring. And right now, 00:36:02.969 --> 00:36:05.570 the last two years, SMC has won it. That's the 00:36:05.570 --> 00:36:07.230 first time that's ever happened, that it was 00:36:07.230 --> 00:36:11.250 back to back. But PDRC right now is just really 00:36:11.250 --> 00:36:14.670 tough. They really get the guys out. And so SMC 00:36:14.670 --> 00:36:18.690 is battling with PDRC right now to see if we 00:36:18.690 --> 00:36:21.570 can retain the trophy. And that has added a lot 00:36:21.570 --> 00:36:27.039 of fun to, I can guarantee you, both clubs. So 00:36:27.039 --> 00:36:29.780 I'd recommend getting involved in a club because 00:36:29.780 --> 00:36:32.960 I think you'll just have a lot of fun and if 00:36:32.960 --> 00:36:37.599 you're interested in the live scoring that Craig's 00:36:37.599 --> 00:36:39.840 talking about I'll refer you back to ham talk 00:36:39.840 --> 00:36:44.860 live episode 149 when we had those guys on and 00:36:44.860 --> 00:36:48.760 tells you all about the Online scoring and it 00:36:48.760 --> 00:36:52.699 really does add a new element to things. So if 00:36:52.699 --> 00:36:56.019 you didn't catch that episode, go back and catch 00:36:56.019 --> 00:36:59.579 that one. It's pretty interesting how that all 00:36:59.579 --> 00:37:03.920 works and how it changes the game. It really 00:37:03.920 --> 00:37:08.820 does. 812 -638 -4261 is the phone number. If 00:37:08.820 --> 00:37:11.260 you have a question for Craig Thompson K9CT, 00:37:11.639 --> 00:37:14.539 we're wrapping things up here shortly. But if 00:37:14.539 --> 00:37:17.000 you have a question, give us a call or send us 00:37:17.000 --> 00:37:21.039 a tweet at HamTalk Live. I'll check that again 00:37:21.039 --> 00:37:25.510 momentarily. As long as I'm, I'm slipping plugs 00:37:25.510 --> 00:37:28.170 in for things, you know, there's another good 00:37:28.170 --> 00:37:33.210 resource out there, uh, that, um, Scott, uh, 00:37:33.210 --> 00:37:36.510 KZeroMD and Fred K4IU will be happy that I, that 00:37:36.510 --> 00:37:39.329 I say this and that's the national contest journal. 00:37:40.110 --> 00:37:44.989 Oh, yes. They're actually sending 50 magazines 00:37:44.989 --> 00:37:49.179 to our SMC Fest for us to hand out. So your timing 00:37:49.179 --> 00:37:51.460 is excellent. I should mention that I don't do 00:37:51.460 --> 00:37:54.099 this in a vacuum. I've got a great support. I've 00:37:54.099 --> 00:37:57.920 got a board of directors that do a lot of the 00:37:57.920 --> 00:38:02.739 legwork on this. Just are so helpful in so many 00:38:02.739 --> 00:38:05.940 different ways. So I couldn't do that, do this. 00:38:05.980 --> 00:38:08.599 We couldn't do this SMC Fest without everybody 00:38:08.599 --> 00:38:11.199 helping. Somebody's got to be the local contact 00:38:11.199 --> 00:38:15.699 for the hotel. Somebody's got to track down prizes. 00:38:17.059 --> 00:38:19.980 We have somebody making the the trophies and 00:38:19.980 --> 00:38:21.960 I mean the plaques for the awards and that sort 00:38:21.960 --> 00:38:23.420 of thing There's just so much that has to be 00:38:23.420 --> 00:38:27.639 done. So Please look on our website and see you 00:38:27.639 --> 00:38:30.039 all that you'll you'll recognize every call on 00:38:30.039 --> 00:38:36.840 there. I Guarantee you and be 9l WB 9 Zulu k9 00:38:36.840 --> 00:38:39.599 zeddo just some of the guys that are on the board 00:38:39.599 --> 00:38:43.519 so I don't mean to take any credit for this that 00:38:43.519 --> 00:38:47.039 they they do a lot of work and it's a You'll 00:38:47.039 --> 00:38:48.860 find if you're in a club like this, there's going 00:38:48.860 --> 00:38:52.380 to be some really great people that are in leadership. 00:38:53.300 --> 00:38:56.119 And we were fortunate to have some of those people 00:38:56.119 --> 00:39:00.820 in our club. Well, here's the last chance to 00:39:00.820 --> 00:39:05.260 get your question in 812 -638 -4261 or tweet 00:39:05.260 --> 00:39:11.460 us at HamTalk Live and give us a call and ask 00:39:11.460 --> 00:39:15.349 your question. And if not, we'll We'll wrap things 00:39:15.349 --> 00:39:19.869 up here and, you know, uh, SMC Fest is, is a 00:39:19.869 --> 00:39:23.070 great opportunity to get some of this. Uh, if 00:39:23.070 --> 00:39:25.829 you're not going to travel to the Midwest, uh, 00:39:25.929 --> 00:39:28.210 you know, Huntsville is coming up here in a week 00:39:28.210 --> 00:39:30.309 and there's going to be a big contesting forum 00:39:30.309 --> 00:39:33.230 there. I'll be down there. Um, and I know, uh, 00:39:33.269 --> 00:39:36.849 Fred Reganiter, K4IU, uh, from the deputy at 00:39:36.849 --> 00:39:39.230 a dear of the national contest journal will be 00:39:39.230 --> 00:39:42.679 there. to talk about some stuff and so there's 00:39:42.679 --> 00:39:45.579 some opportunities there and there are other 00:39:45.579 --> 00:39:48.980 regional events kind of like SMC Fest that are 00:39:48.980 --> 00:39:52.460 around so take a look at those but tonight we're 00:39:52.460 --> 00:39:57.139 talking about operating from the black hole so 00:39:57.139 --> 00:40:01.559 just wanted to get that in there but we're going 00:40:01.559 --> 00:40:05.360 to check one more time for questions here and 00:40:05.360 --> 00:40:08.940 then Craig we're going to let you get on your 00:40:08.940 --> 00:40:12.780 way here, but I don't see anything here yet tonight. 00:40:13.780 --> 00:40:18.679 So any final comments here before we go? No, 00:40:18.679 --> 00:40:21.960 but thank you very much for talking about SMC 00:40:21.960 --> 00:40:25.880 Fest and allowing, you know, a little plug there 00:40:25.880 --> 00:40:29.059 for the Society of Midwest Contesters. And we've 00:40:29.059 --> 00:40:31.340 got over 300 and some members and we'd be glad 00:40:31.340 --> 00:40:34.980 to have more. But at the same time, if you're 00:40:34.980 --> 00:40:38.579 outside of what The geography, I'd welcome you 00:40:38.579 --> 00:40:40.920 to please, uh, encourage you to please join a 00:40:40.920 --> 00:40:43.699 contest club. If you have that interest, I think 00:40:43.699 --> 00:40:46.840 it'll really, you'll find it very helpful. And 00:40:46.840 --> 00:40:49.699 thanks Neil for giving us this opportunity. Appreciate 00:40:49.699 --> 00:40:53.619 it. No problem at all. And I totally agree. You 00:40:53.619 --> 00:40:58.280 know, when you can get some help, you know, with, 00:40:58.440 --> 00:41:01.179 like you said, on the message boards or reflectors 00:41:01.179 --> 00:41:06.369 or whatever, uh, you have. and can get some support 00:41:06.369 --> 00:41:08.489 from people who've been there and done that. 00:41:09.130 --> 00:41:11.730 It makes a world of difference. So thank you 00:41:11.730 --> 00:41:13.869 for putting this on. Thank you for coming on 00:41:13.869 --> 00:41:17.530 the show and talking about it. And I look forward 00:41:17.530 --> 00:41:20.750 to having you on again soon. Well, thank you, 00:41:20.809 --> 00:41:22.989 Neil. You have a nice evening. 73 to everybody. 00:41:24.039 --> 00:41:27.219 All right, seven three Craig and that is a wrap 00:41:27.219 --> 00:41:30.699 for this week's edition of ham talk live Thanks 00:41:30.699 --> 00:41:33.599 to my guest Craig Thompson canine CT and everyone 00:41:33.599 --> 00:41:37.960 out there in cyberspace for listening in and 00:41:37.960 --> 00:41:40.559 I invite you back next Thursday night at 9 p 00:41:40.559 --> 00:41:45.300 .m. Eastern time when Steve Narducci w9s in and 00:41:45.300 --> 00:41:50.480 Fred Denon ww4 ll from be loud dot us We'll be 00:41:50.480 --> 00:41:53.360 here to talk about building a modest contest 00:41:53.360 --> 00:41:56.360 station, and for a list of our upcoming guests, 00:41:56.699 --> 00:42:00.119 visit HamTalkLive .com. And if you like the show, 00:42:00.199 --> 00:42:03.320 please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever 00:42:03.320 --> 00:42:05.980 you listen. That helps others find us faster. 00:42:06.420 --> 00:42:10.039 So for now, this is Neil Rapp, WB9VPG, saying 00:42:10.039 --> 00:42:30.800 7375, and may the good DX be yours. Thank you.