WEBVTT 00:00:10.539 --> 00:00:13.259 Thanks for tuning in. HamTalk Live will be on 00:00:13.259 --> 00:00:31.199 the air shortly. Please stand by. Thanks for 00:00:31.199 --> 00:00:33.960 tuning in. HamTalk Live will be on the air shortly. 00:00:34.240 --> 00:00:40.890 Please stand by. This episode of HamTalk Live 00:00:40.890 --> 00:00:44.509 is brought to you by Tower Electronics. For connectors, 00:00:44.909 --> 00:00:50.369 cables, and more, call 920 -435 -2973 or visit 00:00:50.369 --> 00:00:56.210 pl -259 .com. And by ICOM, heard it, worked it, 00:00:56.509 --> 00:01:01.469 logged it. Visit www .icomamerica .com slash 00:01:01.469 --> 00:01:05.349 amateur for more information about ICOM radios. 00:01:35.920 --> 00:01:38.819 Hey, good evening everyone. It's time for HamTalk 00:01:38.819 --> 00:01:44.519 Live. It's episode number 138. The VP6D Doocy 00:01:44.519 --> 00:01:48.079 Island D Expedition recorded live on Thursday, 00:01:48.140 --> 00:01:52.900 October 25th, 2018. I'm your host, Neil Rapp, 00:01:53.120 --> 00:01:57.200 WB9 VPG. Thanks for tuning in to this episode 00:01:57.200 --> 00:02:01.439 of HamTalk Live. Tonight we're joined by Glenn 00:02:01.439 --> 00:02:07.989 Petrie, KE4KY. and Gene Spinelli K5GS and we'll 00:02:07.989 --> 00:02:12.189 take your calls live in just a few minutes. Last 00:02:12.189 --> 00:02:15.229 week here on the show Russ Woodman K5TUX and 00:02:15.229 --> 00:02:19.509 the LHS podcast gang was here to talk about Linux 00:02:19.509 --> 00:02:22.050 in the ham shack. So if you missed that listen 00:02:22.050 --> 00:02:25.710 anytime you want at HamTalkLive .com or your 00:02:25.710 --> 00:02:31.520 favorite podcast app or on YouTube. A few announcements 00:02:31.520 --> 00:02:34.240 again, lots of things going on right now, so 00:02:34.240 --> 00:02:36.479 we do have a few announcements I need to get 00:02:36.479 --> 00:02:42.319 in here. My friend Kevin Zerry, KK4YEL down at 00:02:42.319 --> 00:02:46.280 Kennedy Space Center, wanted us to announce that 00:02:46.280 --> 00:02:50.060 the NASA radio clubs have a very special slow 00:02:50.060 --> 00:02:54.360 -scan television event planned for Saturday at 00:02:54.360 --> 00:02:59.189 about 1000 Zulu. The ARIS and Russian international 00:02:59.189 --> 00:03:01.610 partners have enabled a special transmission 00:03:01.610 --> 00:03:06.550 of 12 images to celebrate NASA on the air. So 00:03:06.550 --> 00:03:11.629 tune in on 145 .800 and for more about this tune 00:03:11.629 --> 00:03:14.930 into my story on Amateur Radio Newsline which 00:03:14.930 --> 00:03:18.069 comes out tomorrow morning at arnewsline .org 00:03:18.069 --> 00:03:23.020 or a repeater near you. So don't miss the Special 00:03:23.020 --> 00:03:26.580 slow scan television event from the International 00:03:26.580 --> 00:03:31.000 Space Station The t -shirts for ham talk live 00:03:31.000 --> 00:03:35.680 the made the grid square be yours shirts We're 00:03:35.680 --> 00:03:37.539 gonna go one more week, and then we're gonna 00:03:37.539 --> 00:03:39.699 get that order placed So if you haven't ordered 00:03:39.699 --> 00:03:41.780 yours, and you want yours go to ham talk live 00:03:41.780 --> 00:03:46.120 comm click on the link for the Schedule and there's 00:03:46.120 --> 00:03:49.360 a link there for the shirts And you can fill 00:03:49.360 --> 00:03:52.180 out the Google form and then you can PayPal the 00:03:52.180 --> 00:03:54.159 money or if you need to mail a check. If you 00:03:54.159 --> 00:03:57.099 don't do PayPal, that's fine. But this is the 00:03:57.099 --> 00:04:00.719 final week to place an advance order. And then 00:04:00.719 --> 00:04:04.400 I'm sure we'll have a few extras to sell afterwards 00:04:04.400 --> 00:04:06.120 as well. But if you want to make sure to get 00:04:06.120 --> 00:04:11.080 your size, get your orders in this week. And 00:04:11.080 --> 00:04:15.199 last thing, the ARRL division director ballots 00:04:15.199 --> 00:04:20.519 should be in your mailbox by now. So if you're 00:04:20.519 --> 00:04:23.220 an ARRL member in the Central, Hudson, New England, 00:04:23.459 --> 00:04:25.959 Northwestern or Roanoke divisions, you should 00:04:25.959 --> 00:04:30.480 have a ballot. So make sure you vote and those 00:04:30.480 --> 00:04:33.180 ballots are due back to Newington by November 00:04:33.180 --> 00:04:36.240 16th. So be sure to check your mail and vote 00:04:36.240 --> 00:04:39.939 and if you didn't get yours, let ARRL staff know 00:04:39.939 --> 00:04:42.939 so that way they know that... you know, there's 00:04:42.939 --> 00:04:46.040 something wrong there and they can work with 00:04:46.040 --> 00:04:50.180 you. So don't forget about that. So we're going 00:04:50.180 --> 00:04:52.920 to talk de -expeditions tonight. Ducey Island 00:04:52.920 --> 00:04:54.939 is the big one right now, so we'll talk about 00:04:54.939 --> 00:04:58.779 that and we'll give you a chance to talk to them 00:04:58.779 --> 00:05:02.579 live via satellite phone hopefully as long as... 00:05:02.509 --> 00:05:06.550 the satellite phone works. So get your questions 00:05:06.550 --> 00:05:09.209 ready to go. And after the interview, you can 00:05:09.209 --> 00:05:12.569 give us a call at 812 -NET -HAM -1. That's 812 00:05:12.569 --> 00:05:17.529 -638 -4261. Or you can Skype us. It's HamTalk 00:05:17.529 --> 00:05:21.870 Live on Skype. You can also tweet us at HamTalk 00:05:21.870 --> 00:05:24.870 Live on Twitter. And I'll be back with Glenn 00:05:24.870 --> 00:05:27.430 right after this word from ICOM America right 00:05:27.430 --> 00:05:32.709 here on HamTalk Live. Heard it? Worked it? Logged 00:05:32.709 --> 00:05:35.149 it. It's time to get the transceiver that is 00:05:35.149 --> 00:05:38.610 best suited for your lifestyle. ICOM offers a 00:05:38.610 --> 00:05:41.649 variety of high performance and innovative products. 00:05:41.790 --> 00:05:43.810 See how you can make the most out of contest 00:05:43.810 --> 00:05:46.709 season with one of these transceivers. First, 00:05:46.829 --> 00:05:50.550 the ICOM IC7851, the competitive edge you've 00:05:50.550 --> 00:05:53.209 been looking for. Raise the bar and hear what 00:05:53.209 --> 00:05:57.269 others cannot with this flagship HF and 50 megahertz 00:05:57.269 --> 00:06:00.290 transceiver. It has reciprocal mixing dynamic 00:06:00.290 --> 00:06:03.990 range. crystal clear LO design, a spectrum scope, 00:06:04.269 --> 00:06:07.050 dual receivers, and digital voice recorder. The 00:06:07.050 --> 00:06:12.009 ICOM IC7610 is the SDR every ham once and just 00:06:12.009 --> 00:06:15.170 in time for contesting season. This high -performance 00:06:15.170 --> 00:06:17.889 SDR has the ability to pick out the faintest 00:06:17.889 --> 00:06:20.970 of signals even in the presence of stronger adjacent 00:06:20.970 --> 00:06:25.879 ones. The new ICOM IC7610 is a direct sampling 00:06:25.879 --> 00:06:28.600 software -defined radio that will change the 00:06:28.600 --> 00:06:31.899 world's definition of an SDR transceiver. Featuring 00:06:31.899 --> 00:06:36.439 RF direct sampling system, 110 dB RMDR, independent 00:06:36.439 --> 00:06:39.839 dual receiver, and dual digicel. and then the 00:06:39.839 --> 00:06:43.740 ICOM IC7300 is changing the way entry -level 00:06:43.740 --> 00:06:46.819 HF is designed. This high -performance, innovative 00:06:46.819 --> 00:06:50.100 HF transceiver with a compact design will far 00:06:50.100 --> 00:06:54.000 exceed your expectations with RF direct sampling, 00:06:54.399 --> 00:06:58.079 15 discrete bandpass filters, a large 4 .3 -inch 00:06:58.079 --> 00:07:00.600 color touchscreen, real -time spectrum scope, 00:07:00.720 --> 00:07:03.620 and an SD memory card slot. Be sure to visit 00:07:03.620 --> 00:07:07.699 icomamerica .com slash amateur for more information 00:07:07.699 --> 00:07:13.120 on The early bird may get the worm, but the second 00:07:13.120 --> 00:07:15.860 mouse gets the cheese. You're listening to Ham 00:07:15.860 --> 00:07:35.040 Talk Live with Neil Rapp. Thanks once again to 00:07:35.040 --> 00:07:38.019 ICOM for sponsoring the show tonight. They help 00:07:38.019 --> 00:07:42.120 bring you AMTALK LIVE each and every week. Our 00:07:42.120 --> 00:07:46.160 guest tonight is Glen Petrie, KE4KY. He's been 00:07:46.160 --> 00:07:49.420 a licensed amateur radio operator since 1975. 00:07:50.500 --> 00:07:55.519 First as WN4CSH and then WA4CSH. Glen spends 00:07:55.519 --> 00:07:57.959 his time chasing DX or participating in the major 00:07:57.959 --> 00:08:00.759 contests throughout the year, especially with 00:08:00.759 --> 00:08:04.980 CW and RIDDY. He's been on the expeditions himself, 00:08:04.980 --> 00:08:11.480 including ZL9HR and VK9MT, along with Gene Spinelli, 00:08:11.519 --> 00:08:16.379 K5GS, who we will hopefully talk to live on Ducey 00:08:16.379 --> 00:08:20.319 Island at the bottom of the hour. He is the chief 00:08:20.319 --> 00:08:24.379 pilot for the VP6D Ducey Island De -Expedition, 00:08:24.379 --> 00:08:28.779 and his wife has excellent taste in what college 00:08:28.779 --> 00:08:32.519 team to cheer for, but just to show that I Don't 00:08:32.519 --> 00:08:35.720 discriminate as a Kentucky Wildcats fan. Yes, 00:08:35.820 --> 00:08:38.860 I've invited a Louisville Cardinals fan to be 00:08:38.860 --> 00:08:42.279 on the show. Glenn, thanks for coming on. Well, 00:08:42.299 --> 00:08:43.879 thank you very much. And I'm very happy to be 00:08:43.879 --> 00:08:47.659 able to represent the EP6D De -Expedition team 00:08:47.659 --> 00:08:51.340 on your show tonight. And we won't mention anything 00:08:51.340 --> 00:08:55.600 about red or blue. No, we won't. But just real 00:08:55.600 --> 00:08:59.169 quick. My wife Alinda we're gonna have a 35th 00:08:59.169 --> 00:09:02.110 wedding anniversary in a few days So I can't 00:09:02.110 --> 00:09:04.169 thank her enough for her allowances for over 00:09:04.169 --> 00:09:06.830 the years Here especially here recently to let 00:09:06.830 --> 00:09:09.350 me go on the 2d Expeditions that I went on because 00:09:09.350 --> 00:09:11.610 it did take a lot of time a lot of resources 00:09:11.610 --> 00:09:14.350 And I couldn't have done it without the without 00:09:14.350 --> 00:09:18.090 the help of her You're a very smart man to remember 00:09:18.090 --> 00:09:23.740 to say that so yeah brownie points Exactly Well, 00:09:23.779 --> 00:09:27.320 tell us how this DXpedition for Ducey Island 00:09:27.320 --> 00:09:32.899 came about and the website and all the funding 00:09:32.899 --> 00:09:36.740 and everything about getting this one off and 00:09:36.740 --> 00:09:41.320 rolling. Well, the VP6D DXpedition was formed 00:09:41.320 --> 00:09:46.200 after the 2017 International DX Convention out 00:09:46.200 --> 00:09:49.519 in Visalia, California. The people that organized 00:09:49.519 --> 00:09:57.519 this one also organized VK9MT, also TX3X, Chesterfield 00:09:57.519 --> 00:10:01.620 Islands here just in 2015. So basically what 00:10:01.620 --> 00:10:03.679 they did was they formed up a team with the team 00:10:03.679 --> 00:10:07.220 leaders, Gene being one of the co -organizers. 00:10:07.399 --> 00:10:12.639 The team leader for this is Dave, K3EL, Les, 00:10:12.720 --> 00:10:18.100 W2LK. What they try to do with our mission statement 00:10:18.100 --> 00:10:22.720 is we try to go to rare, semi -rare DX locations, 00:10:23.000 --> 00:10:25.480 entity locations. Basically, when you're starting 00:10:25.480 --> 00:10:27.740 to get in the wheelhouse of being in the top 00:10:27.740 --> 00:10:31.740 30, top 25, you're in those areas where this 00:10:31.740 --> 00:10:34.820 team likes to try to organize their DX expeditions. 00:10:35.200 --> 00:10:38.100 And the funny thing was is that after this was 00:10:38.100 --> 00:10:43.100 formed, what we determined was because of what 00:10:43.100 --> 00:10:45.820 Club Log did to a lot of their statistics, it 00:10:45.820 --> 00:10:49.740 kept rising in its most wanted status. It was 00:10:49.740 --> 00:10:53.159 in the high 20s. And then as they started to 00:10:53.159 --> 00:10:56.000 do some research with the numbers and the gentleman 00:10:56.000 --> 00:10:58.019 that runs Club Log started crunching numbers, 00:10:58.179 --> 00:11:01.279 it ended up being number 19 overall most wanted 00:11:01.279 --> 00:11:04.379 as far as Club Log is concerned. So we were very 00:11:04.379 --> 00:11:08.039 happy that this ended up being a top 20 de -expedition. 00:11:09.019 --> 00:11:13.740 And the last time Doocy was on the air as a D 00:11:13.740 --> 00:11:18.700 expedition with VP6DX in 2008. Sometimes you'll 00:11:18.700 --> 00:11:20.799 see some overlap of some people that have been 00:11:20.799 --> 00:11:23.399 somewhere before, but all of the team members 00:11:23.399 --> 00:11:26.399 that are on VP6D, this is their first trip to 00:11:26.399 --> 00:11:29.480 Doocy. One thing about it is that the Braveheart 00:11:29.480 --> 00:11:32.059 also went to Doocy in 2008, and that was their 00:11:32.059 --> 00:11:33.779 transportation of choice after they started. 00:11:34.200 --> 00:11:36.919 trying to cull all of the opportunities to get 00:11:36.919 --> 00:11:40.379 to the island. The Braveheart was the was the 00:11:40.379 --> 00:11:42.840 choice, the best choice for this particular de 00:11:42.840 --> 00:11:45.559 -expedition. So they were able to to use a repeat 00:11:45.559 --> 00:11:49.259 on that. One thing about Ducey Island is it's 00:11:49.259 --> 00:11:52.720 uninhabited. It basically is ran by the Pitcairn 00:11:52.720 --> 00:11:56.019 government. It's in a protected marine area, 00:11:56.039 --> 00:11:58.220 which means you have to do a lot of extra special 00:11:58.220 --> 00:12:01.830 things. And when it comes to these de -expeditions, 00:12:01.850 --> 00:12:05.110 sometimes the funding becomes more important 00:12:05.110 --> 00:12:07.950 because it's harder to get into some of these 00:12:07.950 --> 00:12:11.470 areas because of the protected status. And so 00:12:11.470 --> 00:12:14.070 it's in a protected area, which means it takes 00:12:14.070 --> 00:12:16.309 a little bit more for an operator of a boat, 00:12:16.570 --> 00:12:20.899 a ship, to be able to get in there. After the 00:12:20.899 --> 00:12:23.059 formation of the team, the most important thing 00:12:23.059 --> 00:12:26.360 obviously was getting the license, getting the 00:12:26.360 --> 00:12:29.679 permission to actually be on the island, securing 00:12:29.679 --> 00:12:34.879 everybody's passport and credentialing to be 00:12:34.879 --> 00:12:36.980 able to get in through customs and so forth. 00:12:37.759 --> 00:12:41.960 It's about 535 kilometers east of Pitcairn Island. 00:12:42.919 --> 00:12:44.539 Another de -expedition has just stated they're 00:12:44.539 --> 00:12:48.440 going to Pitcairn here pretty soon. And Pitcairn 00:12:48.440 --> 00:12:51.620 Island has a historical context from the standpoint 00:12:51.620 --> 00:12:55.600 of the Christian, Tom Christian, Mutiny on the 00:12:55.600 --> 00:12:58.679 Bounty that a lot of us have seen the movie and 00:12:58.679 --> 00:13:01.899 also read the book. So it kind of places it in 00:13:01.899 --> 00:13:05.240 an area of the Pacific Ocean that a lot of us 00:13:05.240 --> 00:13:07.840 can have visions of what it's like to be there 00:13:07.840 --> 00:13:10.850 already just from those different things. Right 00:13:10.850 --> 00:13:13.570 now the team is composed of 14 radio operators. 00:13:13.649 --> 00:13:16.129 I can go through those later if somebody would 00:13:16.129 --> 00:13:20.169 like to, to be able to go over the operators. 00:13:21.529 --> 00:13:23.870 Most of the operators on these de -expeditions, 00:13:24.870 --> 00:13:28.929 usually in these, the ones that are the most 00:13:28.929 --> 00:13:31.970 wanted, you're gonna see a lot of people that 00:13:31.970 --> 00:13:34.669 have had prior de -expedition experience before. 00:13:35.190 --> 00:13:38.889 They come from a background of de -expeditioning. 00:13:39.840 --> 00:13:44.000 extensive contest experience and so that's where 00:13:44.000 --> 00:13:46.419 our team pretty much comes from is from people 00:13:46.419 --> 00:13:49.139 who have either done the expeditions large or 00:13:49.139 --> 00:13:52.399 small or they're accomplished in the the contesting 00:13:52.399 --> 00:13:57.600 world as well and so equipment is one of the 00:13:57.600 --> 00:14:00.980 biggest problems with with the logistics of getting 00:14:00.980 --> 00:14:04.200 all the equipment there how do you get it there 00:14:04.200 --> 00:14:07.470 getting it shipped there through customs and 00:14:07.470 --> 00:14:10.029 then suppliers for the equipment. We cannot thank 00:14:10.029 --> 00:14:12.950 the people that have helped us out with equipment 00:14:12.950 --> 00:14:20.450 such as Ellicraft, the antenna suppliers, just 00:14:20.450 --> 00:14:24.610 everything that we can think of. And I encourage 00:14:24.610 --> 00:14:28.210 everyone to go to the VP6D website and look at 00:14:28.210 --> 00:14:32.110 the people that have been supporters of the D 00:14:32.110 --> 00:14:35.370 Expedition from the standpoint. of corporate 00:14:35.370 --> 00:14:38.629 sponsors, and those are the people that you see 00:14:38.629 --> 00:14:41.690 routinely supporting de -expeditions, whether 00:14:41.690 --> 00:14:45.470 it's ours, whether it's Heard Island, or anybody 00:14:45.470 --> 00:14:47.970 else that you can think of for good, the Baker 00:14:47.970 --> 00:14:50.090 Island, the one that just finished, you're gonna 00:14:50.090 --> 00:14:52.269 see the same corporations, the same companies 00:14:52.269 --> 00:14:56.769 that have stepped up each time to support de 00:14:56.769 --> 00:14:58.889 -exing in the amateur radio ranks, and so try 00:14:58.889 --> 00:15:02.029 to support those people that support us. Yeah, 00:15:02.129 --> 00:15:04.789 it's really important that you have that support. 00:15:04.909 --> 00:15:09.470 I know these things are not cheap and It's really 00:15:09.470 --> 00:15:12.490 important to have all that equipment around so 00:15:12.490 --> 00:15:16.419 you can be ready to go and deal with things that 00:15:16.419 --> 00:15:19.240 may not work right and all that. You know, you 00:15:19.240 --> 00:15:21.860 can't just run out to the store and pick up something 00:15:21.860 --> 00:15:26.179 while you're on Ducey Island. So it's real important 00:15:26.179 --> 00:15:29.379 to have that. So let's talk a little bit about 00:15:29.379 --> 00:15:33.159 the funding of this. How did the funding go? 00:15:33.220 --> 00:15:37.419 How's the fundraising going? And tell us a little 00:15:37.419 --> 00:15:39.279 bit about that and if people want to donate, 00:15:39.279 --> 00:15:43.149 how they can do that. Well, they can still donate 00:15:43.149 --> 00:15:47.649 to the vp6d .com page. We'll be more than happy 00:15:47.649 --> 00:15:50.389 to accept any donation, large or small, and it 00:15:50.389 --> 00:15:53.250 doesn't have to be all that big. Corporately, 00:15:53.509 --> 00:15:57.169 if more DXers just chipped in in a small sort 00:15:57.169 --> 00:16:00.730 of way, it could help these DXpeditions in a 00:16:00.730 --> 00:16:04.519 big fashion. Think the funding goal for VP 60. 00:16:04.600 --> 00:16:07.639 I was looking on the website. It has been met 00:16:07.639 --> 00:16:10.679 since the expedition started, but I believe it 00:16:10.679 --> 00:16:14.539 was the total I have it right in front of me 00:16:14.539 --> 00:16:19.299 the total of the of the D expedition budget was 00:16:19.299 --> 00:16:21.220 about a hundred seventy five thousand dollars 00:16:21.220 --> 00:16:23.940 was budgeted for the for the D expedition to 00:16:23.940 --> 00:16:26.779 cover all of our costs And what we were hoping 00:16:26.779 --> 00:16:29.779 to raise on the website was about $65 ,000. And 00:16:29.779 --> 00:16:32.480 according to the website, when I looked at it, 00:16:32.480 --> 00:16:35.299 it doesn't give a total amount. But we have exceeded 00:16:35.299 --> 00:16:39.220 what our goal was just through the web page of 00:16:39.220 --> 00:16:43.419 $65 ,000. So anything that anybody gives beyond 00:16:43.419 --> 00:16:45.600 this is just going to help defray some of the 00:16:45.600 --> 00:16:48.720 additional costs that we incurred for shipment. 00:16:49.379 --> 00:16:53.600 The team is trying to pick up about 50 % or better 00:16:53.600 --> 00:16:57.480 of the de -expedition cost. And so any of the 00:16:57.480 --> 00:17:00.460 donations that come in just help to defray that 00:17:00.460 --> 00:17:07.259 and help the de -expeditioners because none of 00:17:07.259 --> 00:17:11.259 the monies that's donated by any of the foundations, 00:17:11.440 --> 00:17:16.420 clubs or individuals go for airfare, go for the 00:17:16.420 --> 00:17:19.380 stay or food or anything like that of the teams 00:17:19.380 --> 00:17:22.160 while they're positioning and ready to go on 00:17:22.160 --> 00:17:24.559 the de -expedition. All of those all of those 00:17:24.559 --> 00:17:28.680 monies go directly to de -expedition related 00:17:28.680 --> 00:17:32.059 costs. So the de -expeditioners themselves have 00:17:32.059 --> 00:17:34.900 to come up with a lot of money. Sometimes it's 00:17:34.900 --> 00:17:36.920 more than others depending on where they're going. 00:17:37.859 --> 00:17:39.960 for airfare to get to where they're going to 00:17:39.960 --> 00:17:43.559 stage, to stay for the two or three days before 00:17:43.559 --> 00:17:46.400 and after the de -expedition in order to get 00:17:46.400 --> 00:17:48.559 equipment and other things sorted out, loaded 00:17:48.559 --> 00:17:51.259 on a boat or loaded on a plane, depending on 00:17:51.259 --> 00:17:53.839 where they're going. So all of those costs are 00:17:53.839 --> 00:17:56.019 absorbed by the de -expeditioners themselves. 00:17:56.920 --> 00:17:59.839 So anytime that there's any extra that can be 00:17:59.839 --> 00:18:02.480 left over to help defray some of the extra costs 00:18:02.480 --> 00:18:04.680 that the team decides to pick up on their own, 00:18:04.940 --> 00:18:07.500 it goes a long way. Trust me, it's not a making 00:18:07.500 --> 00:18:12.079 venture for any of the DXpeditioners. All of 00:18:12.079 --> 00:18:15.220 the money that's spent, I mean still a lot goes 00:18:15.220 --> 00:18:19.059 out of the DXpeditioners pocket and so it's just 00:18:19.059 --> 00:18:22.279 nice and it's very nice for the DX community 00:18:22.279 --> 00:18:25.559 to be able to look at the DXpeditioners and thank 00:18:25.559 --> 00:18:28.200 them for what they're doing, for going out and 00:18:28.200 --> 00:18:31.220 doing this by supporting them as best they can 00:18:31.220 --> 00:18:35.759 individually. Well, that's an understatement. 00:18:36.359 --> 00:18:40.039 And we really appreciate all that they've done 00:18:40.039 --> 00:18:43.440 and appreciate all those that are supporting 00:18:43.440 --> 00:18:45.819 the cause. Well, we're going to talk a little 00:18:45.819 --> 00:18:50.380 bit about how to work the team and I'm just going 00:18:50.380 --> 00:18:54.359 to play a couple of clips here actually. Monday 00:18:54.359 --> 00:18:57.759 night I got on from home on the dipole at 10 00:18:57.759 --> 00:18:59.920 o 'clock at night on 20 meters Which was a bad 00:18:59.920 --> 00:19:03.400 idea to start with and and I could hear but it 00:19:03.400 --> 00:19:06.460 was really weak I couldn't get through so kind 00:19:06.460 --> 00:19:11.920 of gave up quick, but Yesterday I ran up to the 00:19:11.920 --> 00:19:15.809 school shack after school And just thought, oh, 00:19:15.849 --> 00:19:18.329 we'll see if I can have any luck. And I had them 00:19:18.329 --> 00:19:21.849 within two minutes. No more than got the radio 00:19:21.849 --> 00:19:25.589 on, set the split up, and was on the air and 00:19:25.589 --> 00:19:29.250 got them on the first call on 20 meters. So I 00:19:29.250 --> 00:19:32.230 decided, well, we'll run over to 15 and see what 00:19:32.230 --> 00:19:35.990 we get. And I get there on 15, and I have to 00:19:35.990 --> 00:19:39.230 work at it for a little while. But then I hear 00:19:39.230 --> 00:19:42.170 this. Kilo Echo, four kilo Yankee, Haigland, 00:19:42.369 --> 00:19:48.220 five nine. Thanks, yeah, well we're getting some 00:19:48.220 --> 00:19:49.940 good numbers really pleased with it and thanks 00:19:49.940 --> 00:19:58.119 for all your support Yeah, we hope so we're shooting 00:19:58.119 --> 00:20:00.599 for that 7 -3 Glenn have fun. This is Victor 00:20:00.599 --> 00:20:05.220 Papa 6 Delta 5 to 15 So I caught you working 00:20:05.220 --> 00:20:10.200 them This is awesome. That is absolutely awesome. 00:20:10.200 --> 00:20:13.019 I when you sent me that I was so surprised that 00:20:13.019 --> 00:20:18.579 that was just just great So I hung in there for 00:20:18.579 --> 00:20:21.740 a few more minutes and and this is how mine went. 00:20:46.160 --> 00:20:50.559 You know Bravo eight Romeo Yankee five nine I 00:20:50.559 --> 00:20:52.900 Mean there's some there's some stateside stuff. 00:20:52.900 --> 00:20:56.259 That's not that clear. I mean that they were 00:20:56.259 --> 00:21:00.480 just booing in Yes, they were absolutely booming 00:21:00.480 --> 00:21:03.319 in and very quickly when I when I worked Steve 00:21:03.319 --> 00:21:06.440 yesterday or the other when you got that clip 00:21:06.779 --> 00:21:09.160 I was just sitting there listening to him for 00:21:09.160 --> 00:21:12.000 probably close to an hour and he just kept building 00:21:12.000 --> 00:21:15.079 and building in strength. And so finally I just 00:21:15.079 --> 00:21:17.440 decided to give it a try. And so it took about 00:21:17.440 --> 00:21:19.740 maybe five minutes worth of trying out. I didn't 00:21:19.740 --> 00:21:22.299 flip on the amplifier. It was just the 100 watts 00:21:22.299 --> 00:21:25.440 with the 10 element log that I have up about 00:21:25.440 --> 00:21:29.119 60 feet. And it didn't take too long, I don't 00:21:29.119 --> 00:21:31.980 feel like it took too long, but it was very good 00:21:31.980 --> 00:21:34.759 to be able to speak to a team member. I've worked 00:21:34.759 --> 00:21:36.859 with him on the back side, doing some testing 00:21:36.859 --> 00:21:39.380 with some things, so it was just very gratifying 00:21:39.380 --> 00:21:41.940 to be able to speak to a team member and express 00:21:41.940 --> 00:21:43.880 to them how good of a job that they're really 00:21:43.880 --> 00:21:45.920 doing because sometimes when you're there and 00:21:45.920 --> 00:21:47.680 you're tired, you're fatigued, you're either 00:21:47.680 --> 00:21:50.079 hot, you're either cold, depending on where you're 00:21:50.079 --> 00:21:52.319 at, it's just very good to be able to have a 00:21:52.319 --> 00:21:54.420 friendly voice, somebody you know go say, hey, 00:21:54.599 --> 00:21:56.579 you all were just doing a bang. job, just keep 00:21:56.579 --> 00:22:01.259 it up. Yeah. And I had to laugh at the, uh, he's 00:22:01.259 --> 00:22:05.660 working the split because Monday night I went 00:22:05.660 --> 00:22:09.400 upstairs, got on the X summit, found out what 00:22:09.400 --> 00:22:12.059 the split was, put, put everything into both 00:22:12.059 --> 00:22:17.180 VFOs had it all ready to go. And about a minute 00:22:17.180 --> 00:22:20.500 later I hear he is working split. And I'm thinking, 00:22:20.680 --> 00:22:23.589 Oh geez, you know, somebody's not. not doing 00:22:23.589 --> 00:22:26.589 this right and then I look down and oh that's 00:22:26.589 --> 00:22:30.789 me I forgot to hit the split button I had had 00:22:30.789 --> 00:22:33.029 all the frequencies in everything ready to go 00:22:33.029 --> 00:22:36.690 so it's been happening quite a bit in fact uh 00:22:36.690 --> 00:22:39.950 even saw a post 12 ago somebody said we should 00:22:39.950 --> 00:22:43.670 start a VP 60 drinking game that uh every time 00:22:43.670 --> 00:22:47.509 you hear he's working split you take one so I 00:22:47.509 --> 00:22:54.779 don't know so so they're working split Yes. So, 00:22:55.079 --> 00:22:58.259 we can remember that. We all do that, you know. 00:22:58.500 --> 00:23:00.500 Yeah, I mean it happens to the best of us that 00:23:00.500 --> 00:23:03.359 we don't hit split button or something catches 00:23:03.359 --> 00:23:05.940 our, or we're trying too fast to get to where 00:23:05.940 --> 00:23:08.579 we're going, but as long as you recognize it 00:23:08.579 --> 00:23:10.640 quick, it's just recognized as something that 00:23:10.640 --> 00:23:15.400 happens. The other thing that's happening is 00:23:15.400 --> 00:23:20.559 FT8, new mode for the Expeditions. You know just 00:23:20.559 --> 00:23:24.980 recently that started being used and there's 00:23:24.980 --> 00:23:30.259 still some misconfigured FT8 stuff going on Well, 00:23:30.259 --> 00:23:33.500 what's happening is and there was just a I just 00:23:33.500 --> 00:23:35.420 received an email something that's going to be 00:23:35.420 --> 00:23:40.660 going out to all of the the editors DX world 00:23:40.660 --> 00:23:44.470 DX news some of the bulletins and so forth And 00:23:44.470 --> 00:23:46.589 what they have here is they have two camps. They 00:23:46.589 --> 00:23:49.390 have a sideband camp, a CW camp, and in the middle 00:23:49.390 --> 00:23:53.930 is a headquarters. And the two station camps 00:23:53.930 --> 00:23:57.890 are a kilometer apart. And so what they have 00:23:57.890 --> 00:23:59.730 is they have this infrastructure that they had 00:23:59.730 --> 00:24:02.609 to lay out in order to be able to send the data 00:24:02.609 --> 00:24:04.589 back and forth, in order to be able to get up 00:24:04.589 --> 00:24:09.309 to DXA, in order to be able to get to the logs 00:24:09.309 --> 00:24:12.589 and so forth, the way the computers are networked 00:24:12.589 --> 00:24:16.569 for logging. And so this network infrastructure, 00:24:16.970 --> 00:24:20.470 it has just been tenuous. It has just been difficult 00:24:20.470 --> 00:24:23.309 for them to keep up. They've been drenched for 00:24:23.309 --> 00:24:25.150 the last couple of days. And I'm sure if Gene 00:24:25.150 --> 00:24:26.970 gets on, he will tell you that they just started 00:24:26.970 --> 00:24:30.289 drying out today from some torrential rains that 00:24:30.289 --> 00:24:31.970 they've had, some storms, a little bit of wind, 00:24:32.069 --> 00:24:34.589 but nothing that caused any damage. And so it's 00:24:34.589 --> 00:24:36.490 just one of these things where these networks 00:24:36.490 --> 00:24:42.160 are just, they're not 100%. And so they're noticing 00:24:42.160 --> 00:24:44.759 a lot of dupes, a lot of duplicates. And what 00:24:44.759 --> 00:24:47.019 they're going to be asking is that if you've 00:24:47.019 --> 00:24:48.920 already worked them, just give them a chance. 00:24:49.680 --> 00:24:54.299 And I have been assured that there are no lost 00:24:54.299 --> 00:24:58.359 QSOs. Now, some people are saying it shows up 00:24:58.359 --> 00:25:01.259 on DXA, but it doesn't show up in the log. Then 00:25:01.259 --> 00:25:05.339 vice versa. I have a FTA 17 meter contact that 00:25:05.339 --> 00:25:08.619 showed up on DXA. My call rolled over the internet. 00:25:08.829 --> 00:25:12.750 on DXA just like it should. It registers on DXA 00:25:12.750 --> 00:25:15.650 as a band slot, but it's yet to be uploaded to 00:25:15.650 --> 00:25:17.869 the log. I'm personally not going to worry about 00:25:17.869 --> 00:25:20.509 it because it's one of those things that in order 00:25:20.509 --> 00:25:23.009 for it to get to DXA, it had to go through a 00:25:23.009 --> 00:25:26.089 log, so it's somewhere. So I'm sure they'll work 00:25:26.089 --> 00:25:31.509 it out. And it's caused a little bit of angst 00:25:31.509 --> 00:25:35.339 among the DXers because Number one, they want 00:25:35.339 --> 00:25:37.460 to see it on DXA. And then number two, there 00:25:37.460 --> 00:25:41.019 have been some FTA CUSOs that have not ended 00:25:41.019 --> 00:25:45.059 up in the log. There's also been some CW contacts 00:25:45.059 --> 00:25:47.539 that did not initially end up in an upload. And 00:25:47.539 --> 00:25:49.559 I think they've caught up with that because the 00:25:49.559 --> 00:25:53.140 network was down because of the rain that they 00:25:53.140 --> 00:25:56.119 were experiencing. And I think that was addressed 00:25:56.119 --> 00:25:58.579 in a statement that came out from the island 00:25:58.579 --> 00:26:02.519 today. Gene is able to send some things to Twitter, 00:26:02.880 --> 00:26:04.940 and I think you could probably tell when it's 00:26:04.940 --> 00:26:07.539 me doing things on social media, either Facebook 00:26:07.539 --> 00:26:10.259 or Twitter, as opposed to the statements that 00:26:10.259 --> 00:26:12.200 sound like they are coming directly from the 00:26:12.200 --> 00:26:15.539 island itself. So Gene does have the ability 00:26:15.539 --> 00:26:17.380 to be able to send those Twitter posts, and I 00:26:17.380 --> 00:26:19.099 think there was something that was sent out today 00:26:19.099 --> 00:26:22.700 about don't worry about the lost CWQs. They're 00:26:22.700 --> 00:26:26.420 there. They'll get up. So it has been a little 00:26:26.420 --> 00:26:29.339 bit of a challenge for them and my inbox has 00:26:29.339 --> 00:26:33.680 been overloaded with emails about the FT8, the 00:26:33.680 --> 00:26:38.019 DXA, and some missing QSO issues. The best I 00:26:38.019 --> 00:26:41.180 can tell you is I can't do anything about what 00:26:41.180 --> 00:26:44.920 is either in the log or not in the log. I can't 00:26:44.920 --> 00:26:47.460 check the log. I don't have access to logs. All 00:26:47.460 --> 00:26:49.380 I can tell you to do is if you think you have 00:26:49.380 --> 00:26:52.980 a good QSO, if you can get a snippet or a screenshot 00:26:52.980 --> 00:26:58.279 of it, save it. If you can print the FTH string 00:26:58.279 --> 00:27:01.819 that shows that you got the Roger Roger 73, keep 00:27:01.819 --> 00:27:04.920 it. After the de -expedition is over with, well 00:27:04.920 --> 00:27:06.940 after the de -expedition is over with, let the 00:27:06.940 --> 00:27:10.740 guys come home, unpack their suitcases, and then 00:27:10.740 --> 00:27:14.529 you can start our webpage very clearly states 00:27:14.529 --> 00:27:17.750 if you think you have a busted call and not in 00:27:17.750 --> 00:27:20.069 log and you are sure that you made the contact 00:27:20.069 --> 00:27:22.829 there is a mechanism for you to do an inquiry. 00:27:23.180 --> 00:27:25.079 And that's what we're asking everybody to do 00:27:25.079 --> 00:27:28.000 is just be patient. And so there's a mechanism 00:27:28.000 --> 00:27:31.319 there to try to get you your cue and get you 00:27:31.319 --> 00:27:34.980 credit for it. And I'm sure that we have on the 00:27:34.980 --> 00:27:37.400 island, I know of two guys that are programmers. 00:27:37.660 --> 00:27:39.599 There's probably some other folks that are there 00:27:39.599 --> 00:27:43.180 on the island that are also IT equivalent. So 00:27:43.180 --> 00:27:46.480 it's not like this is. something that's escaping 00:27:46.480 --> 00:27:49.519 them because of inexperience or inability. I 00:27:49.519 --> 00:27:53.019 think it just has a lot to do with a lot of issues 00:27:53.019 --> 00:27:56.400 with the infrastructure, the rain, the networks 00:27:56.400 --> 00:27:58.339 that are having to use. And so it's just one 00:27:58.339 --> 00:27:59.740 of those things. It's just one of those things 00:27:59.740 --> 00:28:02.599 that happen. And all you can do is say, we're 00:28:02.599 --> 00:28:05.880 sorry for it, but we're marching forward. All 00:28:05.880 --> 00:28:07.759 right. Well, I want to get to our break because 00:28:07.759 --> 00:28:10.519 we're expecting a call from Gene and we don't 00:28:10.519 --> 00:28:14.039 want to keep them on hold with satellite phone 00:28:14.039 --> 00:28:16.160 calls. So we're gonna take a break. We'll be 00:28:16.160 --> 00:28:19.160 back with Glenn and hopefully Gene live from 00:28:19.160 --> 00:28:21.680 Ducey Island right after this word from Tower 00:28:21.680 --> 00:28:25.339 Electronics right here on HamTalk Live. Hey honey, 00:28:25.799 --> 00:28:30.779 have you seen the PL259s anywhere? No, I haven't. 00:28:30.920 --> 00:28:36.140 Come on kids. Let's go. There's just one place 00:28:36.140 --> 00:28:39.140 to go for all of your connector needs. Tower 00:28:39.140 --> 00:28:44.119 electronics. A giant warehouse of connectors 00:28:44.119 --> 00:28:47.119 and adapters for every occasion. Thousands to 00:28:47.119 --> 00:28:49.460 choose from in every shape, size, and color. 00:28:49.660 --> 00:28:52.400 And they have antennas, soldering supplies, cables, 00:28:52.680 --> 00:28:55.420 meters, and more. Where do you go if you want 00:28:55.420 --> 00:28:57.759 to buy a connector at a fraction of retail cost? 00:28:57.859 --> 00:29:01.700 Tower electronics. Tower electronics. Tower electronics. 00:29:02.180 --> 00:29:04.420 And this weekend only, take advantage of our 00:29:04.420 --> 00:29:07.359 special liquidation sale. Buy nine solder -type 00:29:07.359 --> 00:29:10.700 PL259s. Get the tenth one for just one penny. 00:29:12.900 --> 00:29:18.539 They make great Christmas presents. And what 00:29:18.539 --> 00:29:21.119 better way to say I love you than with the gift 00:29:21.119 --> 00:29:28.559 of a PL259. Tower Electronics. Hi, I'm Scott 00:29:28.559 --> 00:29:32.200 Cole, KB9AMM, president of Tower Electronics. 00:29:32.559 --> 00:29:34.799 I like the company so much that I bought it. 00:29:34.859 --> 00:29:37.240 Tower Electronics. Coming to a hand fest near 00:29:37.240 --> 00:29:42.339 you or online at PL -259 .com and we're in the 00:29:42.339 --> 00:29:45.059 yellow pages under amateur radio connectors. 00:29:45.299 --> 00:29:48.700 My, wherever did you get that lovely PL -259? 00:29:48.880 --> 00:29:54.940 Tower Electronics, PL -259 .com or call 920 -435 00:29:54.940 --> 00:30:01.130 -2973. Do we sell PL -259 connectors? Join the 00:30:01.130 --> 00:30:04.329 conversation. Call us on voice with Skype at 00:30:04.329 --> 00:30:08.369 HamTalk Live or give us a call at 812 -NET -HAM 00:30:08.369 --> 00:30:14.529 -1. That's 812 -638 -4261. Now, here's more HamTalk 00:30:14.529 --> 00:30:38.259 Live. Copy 594 from HamTalk Live. Tower electronics 00:30:38.259 --> 00:30:41.680 will be in LaGrange, Georgia this weekend on 00:30:41.680 --> 00:30:45.380 the 27th and then coming up Stone Mountain Lawrenceville, 00:30:45.380 --> 00:30:48.500 Georgia November 3rd and 4th Montgomery, Alabama 00:30:48.500 --> 00:30:51.619 November 9th and 10th and Fort Wayne, Indiana 00:30:51.619 --> 00:30:54.539 on November 17th and 18th or you can visit them 00:30:54.539 --> 00:30:59.880 anytime at PL -259 .com and HamTalk lives on 00:30:59.880 --> 00:31:02.829 the air every Thursday night at 9 p .m. Eastern 00:31:02.829 --> 00:31:05.609 time right here at hamtalklive .com and be sure 00:31:05.609 --> 00:31:09.029 to check us out on Facebook Twitter and Instagram 00:31:09.029 --> 00:31:13.910 and We're hoping to get a call here from Jean 00:31:13.910 --> 00:31:18.609 here in just a moment And we've got some of your 00:31:18.609 --> 00:31:21.890 tweets coming up, but we'll We'll kind of hold 00:31:21.890 --> 00:31:25.329 off on that until we see if Jean can get through 00:31:25.329 --> 00:31:30.799 on the on the satellite phone but We hope to 00:31:30.799 --> 00:31:33.900 have a report from him live. So we'll give him 00:31:33.900 --> 00:31:37.539 a minute or two Glenn one thing that we wanted 00:31:37.539 --> 00:31:40.900 to talk about was on the other end on the user 00:31:40.900 --> 00:31:44.940 end of FT8 A lot of people are not configuring 00:31:44.940 --> 00:31:49.359 their their FT8 correctly to to be heard down 00:31:49.359 --> 00:31:53.420 there Yes, they need to make sure that they're 00:31:53.420 --> 00:31:59.180 using one of the latest versions of the FTA program 00:31:59.529 --> 00:32:01.349 I should have written it down, but I don't. But 00:32:01.349 --> 00:32:06.130 they can go to our p6d .com page, and they will 00:32:06.130 --> 00:32:09.809 find the FT8 instructions there. The most important 00:32:09.809 --> 00:32:12.710 thing is to be in the Fox Hound mode. If you're 00:32:12.710 --> 00:32:15.930 not in Fox Hound mode, you're going to be causing 00:32:15.930 --> 00:32:21.490 a lot of inadvertent QRM. I imagine what it could 00:32:21.490 --> 00:32:24.029 do is if you thought you were parking yourself 00:32:24.029 --> 00:32:27.309 on top of their transmit frequency, the streams 00:32:27.309 --> 00:32:29.490 that they're they're transmitting out is you 00:32:29.490 --> 00:32:31.230 would just be blocking them from somebody that 00:32:31.230 --> 00:32:33.230 they're trying to work. So it's very important. 00:32:33.230 --> 00:32:37.309 I think we've got Gene on the line here. So let's 00:32:37.309 --> 00:32:41.150 hang on. We'll come back to that. Gene. Hey, 00:32:41.309 --> 00:32:43.829 welcome to Hamcock Live all the way from Ducey 00:32:43.829 --> 00:32:49.740 Island. Thank you. We're happy to be here. All 00:32:49.740 --> 00:32:53.920 right, this is Gene Spinelli K5GS live on Ducey 00:32:53.920 --> 00:32:57.180 Island. So Gene, I know you don't have a whole 00:32:57.180 --> 00:33:00.859 lot of time here. So tell us what's going on 00:33:00.859 --> 00:33:05.759 at the moment. Well, at the moment the rain has 00:33:05.759 --> 00:33:08.579 finally stopped. It's been raining here for about 00:33:08.579 --> 00:33:12.740 three days and we've been heavily saturated both 00:33:12.740 --> 00:33:16.789 outside and inside the tents. having a little 00:33:16.789 --> 00:33:19.549 difficulty, but I think as of this afternoon 00:33:19.549 --> 00:33:22.650 we're drying out. I'm standing on the northeast 00:33:22.650 --> 00:33:25.069 side of the island staring out at the Pacific 00:33:25.069 --> 00:33:29.210 Ocean. The Braveheart is anchored about 300 meters 00:33:29.210 --> 00:33:35.990 from shore. We have three camps built. One camp 00:33:35.990 --> 00:33:38.529 is the central camp we call the headquarters, 00:33:38.670 --> 00:33:41.809 where we keep our computers and satellite uplinks. 00:33:41.869 --> 00:33:46.079 We have another tent called the single sideband 00:33:46.079 --> 00:33:50.700 tent camp there are four stations in that camp 00:33:50.700 --> 00:33:53.039 and then on the other side of the island we have 00:33:53.039 --> 00:33:58.880 the cw camp with four more stations i am staring 00:33:58.880 --> 00:34:03.859 at the satellite antennas and uh and uh we have 00:34:03.859 --> 00:34:08.260 a six meter eme antenna that we've installed 00:34:08.260 --> 00:34:12.000 yesterday in a rainstorm and we're working with 00:34:12.000 --> 00:34:15.239 that over the next couple of days But it's been 00:34:15.239 --> 00:34:17.300 wonderful. The weather, other than the rain, 00:34:17.599 --> 00:34:23.420 is pleasant. It's 65 to 75 degrees and sometimes 00:34:23.420 --> 00:34:26.480 humid, sometimes not humid, but the sun is always 00:34:26.480 --> 00:34:31.360 very hot. The consistency of the island is a 00:34:31.360 --> 00:34:34.619 lot different than the previous islands we've 00:34:34.619 --> 00:34:37.559 landed and done the expeditions from being Melish 00:34:37.559 --> 00:34:41.619 Reef and Chesterfield Island. Those islands were 00:34:41.619 --> 00:34:46.639 comprised of crushed coral, and some low vegetation. 00:34:47.500 --> 00:34:49.880 This island surprised me a little bit because 00:34:49.880 --> 00:34:53.500 it is about three meters above sea level and 00:34:53.500 --> 00:34:56.940 heavily vegetation, heavy vegetation, trees and 00:34:56.940 --> 00:35:00.599 shrubs, I would say consistent of what you would 00:35:00.599 --> 00:35:03.420 find in a jungle. So it's pretty interesting. 00:35:05.619 --> 00:35:07.860 There was a de -expedition here 10 years ago 00:35:07.860 --> 00:35:11.260 this month. And we found their old camp, and 00:35:11.260 --> 00:35:14.239 we're set up in one of their old camps. So that 00:35:14.239 --> 00:35:17.920 saved us a lot of work. Oh, nice. The boat crew 00:35:17.920 --> 00:35:20.380 is supporting us. Yeah, it's really cool. The 00:35:20.380 --> 00:35:22.280 boat crew is supporting us. We have a couple 00:35:22.280 --> 00:35:26.679 of crew members here, 7 by 24, to keep the generators 00:35:26.679 --> 00:35:30.300 running and to keep the team fed. We have 14 00:35:30.300 --> 00:35:35.179 men from, I think, five different countries. 00:35:37.510 --> 00:35:42.969 We're operating 7 by 24 All right Yeah, how are 00:35:42.969 --> 00:35:45.309 things going on the air? What what what are your? 00:35:46.090 --> 00:35:48.630 What are your best bands and modes so far and 00:35:48.630 --> 00:35:53.650 that kind of thing? To wear on all bands almost 00:35:53.650 --> 00:35:57.449 the pileups have been fantastic propagation and 00:35:57.449 --> 00:36:02.789 wonderful 1720 I would tell you are the most 00:36:02.789 --> 00:36:05.909 active that I can tell you about 40 meters of 00:36:05.909 --> 00:36:09.590 course at night We've made quite a few contacts 00:36:09.590 --> 00:36:14.590 on 160 already and 80. So, you know, those are 00:36:14.590 --> 00:36:17.969 the traditional DX edition bands. The pileups 00:36:17.969 --> 00:36:20.909 have been relatively, how shall we say, well 00:36:20.909 --> 00:36:24.329 behaved. Sometimes they get a little out of hand. 00:36:25.090 --> 00:36:28.090 But nonetheless, we're pretty happy with the 00:36:28.090 --> 00:36:31.960 way it's been going, the way the DX is. who are 00:36:31.960 --> 00:36:35.539 calling us are following the traditional protocols 00:36:35.539 --> 00:36:40.420 for DXPILOT. Probably the one question or one 00:36:40.420 --> 00:36:43.360 request that we have is we ask the people to 00:36:43.360 --> 00:36:46.119 stop, not to dupe us, there's a lot of people 00:36:46.119 --> 00:36:49.579 we know need this for an all -time new one and 00:36:49.579 --> 00:36:51.400 they want to make sure they're in the log so 00:36:51.400 --> 00:36:54.800 they call us twice and that's kind of wasting 00:36:54.800 --> 00:36:57.519 our time and taking a contact away from somebody 00:36:57.519 --> 00:37:01.050 else. Yeah, I was listening yesterday actually 00:37:01.050 --> 00:37:03.670 worked you guys yesterday and heard a lot of 00:37:03.670 --> 00:37:05.969 times that you know They'll say oh, you know, 00:37:05.969 --> 00:37:07.949 we've already got you in the log. Here's the 00:37:07.949 --> 00:37:10.190 date. Here's the time We've already got you and 00:37:10.190 --> 00:37:13.130 so please don't you know, don't do that again. 00:37:13.570 --> 00:37:20.489 So I know that's that's been Go ahead no, go 00:37:20.489 --> 00:37:24.469 ahead No, I said I've been doing this for a long 00:37:24.469 --> 00:37:27.750 time I can understand somebody's enthusiasm for 00:37:27.750 --> 00:37:29.590 something like this and they want to make sure 00:37:29.590 --> 00:37:33.030 they're they're in the long This island probably 00:37:33.030 --> 00:37:36.489 will not be activated for another 10 years So 00:37:36.489 --> 00:37:40.869 it's it's it's in demand and and we'll try to 00:37:40.869 --> 00:37:44.289 We'll try to become very bored by our last operating 00:37:44.289 --> 00:37:47.269 day, which is about seven days from now If we're 00:37:47.269 --> 00:37:49.110 bored, that means the pileups is pretty much 00:37:49.110 --> 00:37:56.139 subsided Now Jeff wheel guess kb9 BVL Posted 00:37:56.139 --> 00:37:58.480 earlier on Facebook said we're going to come 00:37:58.480 --> 00:38:02.800 up with a VP 6d drinking game that that every 00:38:02.800 --> 00:38:06.920 time you hear somebody call on your calling frequency 00:38:06.920 --> 00:38:11.300 You take a drink. So we got to remind people 00:38:11.300 --> 00:38:16.679 that you're running split Well, fortunately, 00:38:16.679 --> 00:38:19.219 I can't hear them calling on my frequency, so 00:38:19.219 --> 00:38:26.219 I guess I go without drinking. All right. Well, 00:38:26.219 --> 00:38:31.039 Jeff, there you go. So what advice do you have 00:38:31.039 --> 00:38:35.500 for people who are trying to get you? I just 00:38:35.500 --> 00:38:38.659 played a clip actually yesterday of both Glenn's 00:38:38.659 --> 00:38:42.360 contact on 15 and mine. And I mean, it was clear 00:38:42.360 --> 00:38:46.610 as a bell. But what advice would you give to 00:38:46.610 --> 00:38:51.329 people trying to get you in the log? Well, you 00:38:51.329 --> 00:38:53.829 know, I think it's the same with any of the expedition. 00:38:54.030 --> 00:38:56.489 You have to listen, just have to listen a lot 00:38:56.489 --> 00:39:01.309 and listen a lot more than you talk and try to 00:39:01.309 --> 00:39:03.730 understand what the operator is doing, trying 00:39:03.730 --> 00:39:08.519 to follow the operator's technique. Some in a 00:39:08.519 --> 00:39:11.400 split will move up slowly and work people along 00:39:11.400 --> 00:39:14.619 the way and then work down the split slowly and 00:39:14.619 --> 00:39:17.460 work people along the way. You just have to learn 00:39:17.460 --> 00:39:20.599 what the operator is doing. Position yourself 00:39:20.599 --> 00:39:24.320 where you think there's an open spot and the 00:39:24.320 --> 00:39:26.559 operator will find you. I've done that a lot 00:39:26.559 --> 00:39:29.760 myself. It's a lot easier than sitting there 00:39:29.760 --> 00:39:31.719 calling and calling and calling. So you just 00:39:31.719 --> 00:39:35.170 look for what the operator is doing. And of course, 00:39:35.269 --> 00:39:38.010 you have to do it when you can hear us. You'd 00:39:38.010 --> 00:39:40.409 be surprised at the number of people that will 00:39:40.409 --> 00:39:42.789 continually call even though they don't hear 00:39:42.789 --> 00:39:46.989 the DX very well. So you've got to play propagation. 00:39:47.429 --> 00:39:50.989 You listen for the loudest signals for your location, 00:39:51.989 --> 00:39:54.809 for your time of the day, and that's when you 00:39:54.809 --> 00:39:57.190 should be in here calling us, not when you can 00:39:57.190 --> 00:39:59.670 barely hear us because we can barely hear you. 00:40:00.619 --> 00:40:02.719 Well, I know you've just got a couple of minutes 00:40:02.719 --> 00:40:05.280 left here on the sat phone but we did want to 00:40:05.280 --> 00:40:08.400 take a call and we do have a Call on the line 00:40:08.400 --> 00:40:13.099 here. So I believe this is Scott. Yes Yes, it 00:40:13.099 --> 00:40:16.119 is. It's killer zero Mike Delta and I know gene 00:40:16.119 --> 00:40:19.960 because he was my first Contact this the expedition 00:40:19.960 --> 00:40:23.760 on DC gene. I'm I appreciate you hearing my call 00:40:23.760 --> 00:40:28.780 Yeah, I've got how are you I remember a thing 00:40:28.780 --> 00:40:32.230 in the log Yeah, I know I'm well you guys are 00:40:32.230 --> 00:40:35.389 doing a wonderful job I wanted to just say I'm 00:40:35.389 --> 00:40:37.989 really impressed having worked you and listened 00:40:37.989 --> 00:40:42.250 to your pileups on 12 meters through 160 what 00:40:42.250 --> 00:40:45.389 a great job your operators are doing I've not 00:40:45.389 --> 00:40:47.849 encountered the expedition where everyone is 00:40:47.849 --> 00:40:51.289 just so good so calm so logical so patient with 00:40:51.289 --> 00:40:54.590 all of the callers It's best I can tell you guys 00:40:54.590 --> 00:40:57.030 are Well on your way to becoming the Expedition 00:40:57.030 --> 00:40:59.610 of the Year with your team. And Glenn, thanks 00:40:59.610 --> 00:41:01.969 for all your support with Gene and the team. 00:41:02.190 --> 00:41:05.329 You guys are just really incredible. Mike, congratulations. 00:41:06.170 --> 00:41:10.610 Thank you, Scott. And Scott, thanks for your 00:41:10.610 --> 00:41:14.210 comments. We saw your comments on the pilot reports 00:41:14.210 --> 00:41:16.050 that we received this morning. So thanks for 00:41:16.050 --> 00:41:19.210 your comments. You're very welcome. Thanks for 00:41:19.210 --> 00:41:21.130 being there and doing it. And safe travels home 00:41:21.130 --> 00:41:23.739 in a couple of weeks. I still see a lot of Twitter 00:41:23.739 --> 00:41:26.199 reporting today about people still excited to 00:41:26.199 --> 00:41:27.820 work you. So I think the pileups are going to 00:41:27.820 --> 00:41:30.219 stay deep and hungry for a while. Are you guys 00:41:30.219 --> 00:41:32.039 going to be on the contest this weekend at all 00:41:32.039 --> 00:41:37.420 by chance? Yes, we are. We will be in the CQ 00:41:37.420 --> 00:41:40.599 Worldwide SSD Contest. I can't tell you where 00:41:40.599 --> 00:41:42.639 right now, but we just made that decision about 00:41:42.639 --> 00:41:45.860 an hour ago. Well, that would be really exciting. 00:41:46.280 --> 00:41:47.659 And Glenn, I hope you can put that on Twitter. 00:41:47.739 --> 00:41:49.500 That's going to really excite the contest to 00:41:49.500 --> 00:41:52.460 have this zone available for the first time in 00:41:52.460 --> 00:41:56.199 a long time 73 thanks again congratulations neil 00:41:56.199 --> 00:42:00.000 as well on a great show tonight thanks scott 00:42:00.000 --> 00:42:02.340 all right gene i i don't want to keep you much 00:42:02.340 --> 00:42:05.480 longer here so any uh we'll talk to glenn a little 00:42:05.480 --> 00:42:08.280 bit about some of the qsl information that kind 00:42:08.280 --> 00:42:11.900 of thing but any uh any last uh comments here 00:42:11.900 --> 00:42:15.900 before you take off uh And for everybody that's 00:42:15.900 --> 00:42:18.780 listening, and that's great news about deciding 00:42:18.780 --> 00:42:25.199 to operate CQ worldwide. No, I think all I ask 00:42:25.199 --> 00:42:29.960 people to do is be patient and just persevere, 00:42:29.980 --> 00:42:34.059 because that's the key in getting into a de -expedition 00:42:34.059 --> 00:42:38.019 like this that's in heavy demand. But by next 00:42:38.019 --> 00:42:40.480 week, we'll be operating for seven more days, 00:42:40.579 --> 00:42:43.320 at least seven more days. unless there's some 00:42:43.320 --> 00:42:46.599 dramatic change in the weather or some other 00:42:46.599 --> 00:42:49.360 emergency. We'll be operating for seven more 00:42:49.360 --> 00:42:53.059 full days and that should give everybody an opportunity 00:42:53.059 --> 00:42:57.199 to get in the log, especially with FTA. FTA has 00:42:57.199 --> 00:43:00.920 been just amazing. On the other bands die, we 00:43:00.920 --> 00:43:04.139 go to FTA and there they are, there's people 00:43:04.139 --> 00:43:07.860 calling us. It's just a wonderful mode. We've 00:43:07.860 --> 00:43:09.719 got one more call here real quick mark Brown 00:43:09.719 --> 00:43:12.980 in for BCD chimed in earlier and we've been so 00:43:12.980 --> 00:43:15.059 busy We hadn't had a chance to to get him and 00:43:15.059 --> 00:43:16.639 I know he's been trying to get through here. 00:43:16.639 --> 00:43:21.340 So mark go ahead Great if gene is still on the 00:43:21.340 --> 00:43:24.679 on the sat phone It is just a truly a pleasure 00:43:24.679 --> 00:43:28.900 to to say hello and to say that you guys have 00:43:28.900 --> 00:43:31.719 been doing it Absolutely over -the -top fantastic 00:43:31.719 --> 00:43:36.000 job down there at Ducey Island I got a lot of 00:43:36.000 --> 00:43:37.760 contacts in the log, I know a lot of other folks 00:43:37.760 --> 00:43:41.500 do, and I just wish you guys safe travels, and 00:43:41.500 --> 00:43:46.800 again, great job. Okay, thanks a lot, I appreciate 00:43:46.800 --> 00:43:49.179 the comments, and you know, we also have to recognize 00:43:49.179 --> 00:43:52.420 the crew of the Braveheart. These guys are absolutely 00:43:52.420 --> 00:43:54.639 amazing, what they've done. When you see the 00:43:54.639 --> 00:43:58.400 pictures, you won't believe it, what they put 00:43:58.400 --> 00:44:02.360 together for us. It's just wonderful. I'm excited 00:44:02.360 --> 00:44:05.019 to work you guys or see how things work in CQ 00:44:05.019 --> 00:44:09.519 World Wide Phone this weekend. And I'm appreciating 00:44:09.519 --> 00:44:14.280 to Tom, KE4KY. for putting out there the DXA 00:44:14.280 --> 00:44:16.679 cluster and letting us know that there's another 00:44:16.679 --> 00:44:20.059 place to find our contacts in the log. And sure 00:44:20.059 --> 00:44:22.099 enough, I've been listening to the program tonight. 00:44:22.659 --> 00:44:24.840 I contacted you guys on 10 meter phone today. 00:44:25.019 --> 00:44:29.280 And honestly, you guys were 10 to 20 over 9 here 00:44:29.280 --> 00:44:33.019 in middle Tennessee on 10 meters at 4 o 'clock 00:44:33.019 --> 00:44:36.829 local time. It was just amazing. That contact 00:44:36.829 --> 00:44:40.429 is in the log there on DXA. So yeah, I understand 00:44:40.429 --> 00:44:43.849 your concerns about folks trying to work here 00:44:43.849 --> 00:44:46.809 multiple times. We just got to be patient and 00:44:46.809 --> 00:44:49.670 it's nice to know there's another source of information 00:44:49.670 --> 00:44:52.130 out there that we can get our contacts confirmed 00:44:52.130 --> 00:44:57.380 over OQRS too. OK, we're going to let Gene get 00:44:57.380 --> 00:44:59.460 off the phone here, but Gene, thanks so much 00:44:59.460 --> 00:45:02.039 for being here and best of luck with the rest 00:45:02.039 --> 00:45:05.019 of the DXpedition and CQ Worldwide this weekend 00:45:05.019 --> 00:45:09.860 and thanks so much for calling in. OK, Neil, 00:45:09.880 --> 00:45:11.860 thanks a lot. I appreciate the opportunity to 00:45:11.860 --> 00:45:15.480 speak to the DX community. I did lose you and 00:45:15.480 --> 00:45:17.860 I came back on the phone. I lost the satellite, 00:45:17.960 --> 00:45:21.420 but I just called back and thanks a lot for the 00:45:21.420 --> 00:45:23.760 opportunity. We'll see you guys when we get home. 00:45:24.619 --> 00:45:27.679 All right. Thanks and safe travels home. That's 00:45:27.679 --> 00:45:32.760 Gene smell Spinelli K5 GS live on Ducey Island. 00:45:32.760 --> 00:45:38.619 Thanks so much gene and seven three Yeah, and 00:45:38.619 --> 00:45:41.719 mark three, bye bye and mark thanks for calling 00:45:41.719 --> 00:45:45.239 in we appreciate it Yeah, Neil. This has been 00:45:45.239 --> 00:45:47.920 a one of those over -the -top great the expeditions 00:45:47.920 --> 00:45:50.420 I've I've got a matrix here in front of me that 00:45:50.420 --> 00:45:52.760 a whole bunch of boxes checked off still more 00:45:52.760 --> 00:45:55.530 to go but These guys have been doing an absolutely 00:45:55.530 --> 00:45:57.570 fantastic job and thanks for the opportunity 00:45:57.570 --> 00:46:00.449 to call in. And Tom, again, thank you for the, 00:46:00.610 --> 00:46:03.510 uh, for mentioning that D X a as a web source 00:46:03.510 --> 00:46:07.889 for confirming our contacts. Okay. Thank you. 00:46:08.389 --> 00:46:12.599 All right. Nope. See you, Mark. Take care. 812 00:46:12.599 --> 00:46:16.019 -638 -4261 is the number. We'll go a little over 00:46:16.019 --> 00:46:18.539 time here tonight because we do have a few things 00:46:18.539 --> 00:46:20.440 we want to get in. But if you want to give us 00:46:20.440 --> 00:46:26.300 a call, you can. It's 812 -638 -4261. Glenn, 00:46:26.300 --> 00:46:30.219 before we get too far here, we were talking about 00:46:30.219 --> 00:46:33.440 configuring the FT8 and I think we got that pretty 00:46:33.440 --> 00:46:36.880 well taken care of. But let's talk about the 00:46:36.880 --> 00:46:40.500 QSL information real quick here before things 00:46:40.500 --> 00:46:45.980 get away from us. Yeah, VP6D .com if you go there, 00:46:46.440 --> 00:46:51.400 there's a log search feature. All of the contacts 00:46:51.400 --> 00:46:53.800 that are there for the maritime mobile contacts 00:46:53.800 --> 00:46:57.739 that were made are there. It's very easy to navigate 00:46:57.739 --> 00:47:01.019 and once you're there it shows you how you can 00:47:01.019 --> 00:47:04.500 and tells you how you can get your QSL card. 00:47:05.260 --> 00:47:10.030 Gene and company created some software that they've 00:47:10.030 --> 00:47:15.250 shared with M0URX and some other people, I believe, 00:47:15.389 --> 00:47:19.030 as far as QSLing. And so it enhances the QSL 00:47:19.030 --> 00:47:21.349 process for these guys that handle thousands 00:47:21.349 --> 00:47:26.389 and thousands a month. And so the online QSL 00:47:26.389 --> 00:47:29.969 process is very easily explained on our website, 00:47:30.309 --> 00:47:32.590 and it should not be very hard to get the card 00:47:32.590 --> 00:47:36.050 at all. If you got your card from TX3X, it's 00:47:36.050 --> 00:47:38.429 going to be the same procedure. So very easy 00:47:38.429 --> 00:47:45.349 to get the QSL, and the LOTW, for most people, 00:47:45.710 --> 00:47:48.710 will probably be about five or six months after 00:47:48.710 --> 00:47:51.590 the DEXpedition is over with, and you can read 00:47:51.590 --> 00:47:55.250 the QSL policy there that the team has developed 00:47:55.250 --> 00:48:00.099 on the webpage. as well. All right, very good. 00:48:01.039 --> 00:48:06.039 And Jim, KF4WLS wants to know, is there a set 00:48:06.039 --> 00:48:09.619 schedule for listening in the general class band 00:48:09.619 --> 00:48:14.199 on 20? Not to speak out of school as far as a 00:48:14.199 --> 00:48:16.820 strategy or anything like that, but obviously 00:48:16.820 --> 00:48:23.170 the pileups for these wanted Entities can be 00:48:23.170 --> 00:48:26.469 very the competition is very stiff. And so I 00:48:26.469 --> 00:48:28.610 think what the what they're doing is is they're 00:48:28.610 --> 00:48:31.550 working down the piles They're they're barely 00:48:31.550 --> 00:48:34.849 at their halfway point if if they say that they 00:48:34.849 --> 00:48:38.469 got another seven days They're reaching their 00:48:38.469 --> 00:48:41.269 halfway point on this de -expedition. You are 00:48:41.269 --> 00:48:43.590 probably going to start seeing shifts on the 00:48:43.590 --> 00:48:46.469 things that they do just a little bit more. I've 00:48:46.469 --> 00:48:50.130 been receiving emails from the RTTY guys. When 00:48:50.130 --> 00:48:53.170 are you going to do RTTY? Because so far on the 00:48:53.170 --> 00:48:54.769 stats that I have in front of me, and I can talk 00:48:54.769 --> 00:48:57.090 about that in a minute, there's not very many 00:48:57.090 --> 00:49:02.030 RTTY contacts in the log versus FTA. So hang 00:49:02.030 --> 00:49:04.050 in there. Hang tough for the people that don't 00:49:04.050 --> 00:49:07.119 have extra class privileges. They started today, 00:49:07.340 --> 00:49:09.360 it's already been posted on social media and 00:49:09.360 --> 00:49:12.739 some other places, some forums. I believe 14 00:49:12.739 --> 00:49:16.300 -281, they were listening all the way up there 00:49:16.300 --> 00:49:18.880 from time to time to try to get some folks in 00:49:18.880 --> 00:49:21.519 the log. And I think that you will see as the 00:49:21.519 --> 00:49:25.500 de -expedition progresses and the pile -ups actually 00:49:25.500 --> 00:49:29.079 start to decrease in intensity, broadening that 00:49:29.079 --> 00:49:31.219 out a little bit. Because if you went straight 00:49:31.219 --> 00:49:34.539 up into the general band, the pileups are still 00:49:34.539 --> 00:49:37.599 going to be the same. And so, uh, it, it, I think 00:49:37.599 --> 00:49:42.119 it's just a strategy to kind of lessen the pileups 00:49:42.119 --> 00:49:44.840 a little bit and then move and just adjust and 00:49:44.840 --> 00:49:47.000 vary what you're doing to try to get the whole, 00:49:47.000 --> 00:49:51.179 uh, the whole spectrum. Yeah. I know yesterday, 00:49:51.179 --> 00:49:54.079 uh, my contact on 20 was, they were on, uh, I 00:49:54.079 --> 00:49:58.480 think 14, 185 and then it was 14, 281 that they 00:49:58.480 --> 00:50:00.719 were listening on. So they were already in the, 00:50:01.019 --> 00:50:03.699 And the general part of the band. So that's, 00:50:03.699 --> 00:50:06.179 uh, that's good news for those people who were 00:50:06.179 --> 00:50:08.340 doing that. Uh, you know, just because they're 00:50:08.340 --> 00:50:09.719 transmitting down there, it doesn't mean you 00:50:09.719 --> 00:50:13.280 can't work them. It's just, uh, um, a very big 00:50:13.280 --> 00:50:17.099 split. So, uh, let's see, we're trying to catch 00:50:17.099 --> 00:50:19.679 up here with all the tweets. This is a bit of 00:50:19.679 --> 00:50:22.880 a popular one. Uh, Troy Simpson, W nine KVR says, 00:50:22.880 --> 00:50:25.960 uh, we got them today on 20 on FT eight first 00:50:25.960 --> 00:50:31.579 call. 17 on sideband. Very strong signal. Better 00:50:31.579 --> 00:50:33.699 than anything we had during school club roundup 00:50:33.699 --> 00:50:35.980 this week. And boy I agree with that Troy. Those 00:50:35.980 --> 00:50:40.000 school club roundup conditions were awful. And 00:50:40.000 --> 00:50:43.139 he said Fox and Hound worked really well. So 00:50:43.139 --> 00:50:48.340 thank you Troy for that. And we got Dr. Scott 00:50:48.340 --> 00:50:53.579 Wright in here. We got Mark in here. We got Jeff, 00:50:54.179 --> 00:50:59.460 and so I think we're caught up. So let's see, 00:50:59.599 --> 00:51:03.500 anything else on the list here? I think we got 00:51:03.500 --> 00:51:07.559 it. So Glenn, anything else that we need to talk 00:51:07.559 --> 00:51:10.559 about here before we go? Well two things I want 00:51:10.559 --> 00:51:13.860 to cover when I got the the stats for where the 00:51:13.860 --> 00:51:16.960 d expedition is standing at this point in time 00:51:16.960 --> 00:51:22.940 and 1806 Zulu was the last log upload today 1806 00:51:22.940 --> 00:51:30.699 Zulu 51 ,827 total queues on that last log upload 00:51:30.699 --> 00:51:34.280 is in the log. Now, DXA may show much more than 00:51:34.280 --> 00:51:40.519 that by now, but 51 ,827. 50 % of those are USA. 00:51:40.900 --> 00:51:46.679 Well, that's a given because the USA, it's right 00:51:46.679 --> 00:51:51.619 in our back door. European contacts are 25%. 00:51:52.110 --> 00:51:55.110 Asia is 13 % and then the rest of the geographical 00:51:55.110 --> 00:51:58.590 areas really start declining there a little bit. 00:51:59.530 --> 00:52:10.369 CWQs, 28 ,743. Sideband QSOs, 13 ,520. FT8, 8 00:52:10.369 --> 00:52:14.329 ,910. That could be 16, according to my writing. 00:52:14.469 --> 00:52:21.150 So it's 8910, we'll just say. RTTY 646. So we're 00:52:21.150 --> 00:52:25.389 really hitting the bands hard. It has just been 00:52:25.389 --> 00:52:30.110 phenomenal with what I have seen. Other de -expeditions 00:52:30.110 --> 00:52:33.750 have done very well. But I tell you what, this 00:52:33.750 --> 00:52:37.429 one has just, it just surprised me how quick, 00:52:37.829 --> 00:52:42.190 once they got on the air fully, Monday into Tuesday, 00:52:42.710 --> 00:52:45.769 how fast the QSOs were just adding up. The other 00:52:45.769 --> 00:52:52.360 thing I want to mention is, We have an additional 00:52:52.360 --> 00:52:55.659 North American pilot. You can find his information 00:52:55.659 --> 00:53:00.360 on VP6D .com under the team section. That's Mason, 00:53:00.440 --> 00:53:05.300 KM4SII. He's a 14 -year -old. He may be 15 by 00:53:05.300 --> 00:53:07.239 now, but I got to meet him up in Dayton this 00:53:07.239 --> 00:53:09.139 year. He's assisting me with some of the North 00:53:09.139 --> 00:53:12.860 American pilot duties, and he's an up -and -coming 00:53:12.860 --> 00:53:16.199 ham. Starting to see him in some of the contests. 00:53:17.630 --> 00:53:20.269 One of the, he's involved in one of the Young 00:53:20.269 --> 00:53:25.369 Ham activities for the youth. Up and comer there, 00:53:25.409 --> 00:53:29.610 look for him in the future to possibly be the 00:53:29.610 --> 00:53:32.130 next big D Expeditioner in the next 15 or 20 00:53:32.130 --> 00:53:35.869 years. We also, I also want to thank our pilots 00:53:35.869 --> 00:53:41.489 from all over. Africa, Europe, Japan, Asia. Asia, 00:53:41.730 --> 00:53:45.630 we have a pilot from Asia who covers the Baltic 00:53:45.630 --> 00:53:49.269 states, the Eastern European region, Oceania 00:53:49.269 --> 00:53:51.550 and South America. So all of the regions are 00:53:51.550 --> 00:53:54.030 covered. They're sending information and data 00:53:54.030 --> 00:53:56.730 to me. And you go, well, what does a pilot do? 00:53:57.489 --> 00:54:01.619 Well, I'll give you a good short example. The 00:54:01.619 --> 00:54:06.719 Europeans, and also Pista, H -A -5 -A -O, H -A 00:54:06.719 --> 00:54:11.780 -5 -A -O in Hungary, he is the webmaster of VP6D, 00:54:11.860 --> 00:54:15.940 has been helping me out tremendously. The Europeans 00:54:15.940 --> 00:54:19.340 are basically cataloging what the best times 00:54:19.340 --> 00:54:25.099 are for the bands, particularly on 12, 15 and 00:54:25.099 --> 00:54:28.940 17 meters. And so after several days of seeing 00:54:28.940 --> 00:54:32.989 what the de -expedition is capable of, what the 00:54:32.989 --> 00:54:35.130 propagation is doing, they're narrowing down 00:54:35.130 --> 00:54:37.369 their times of saying, this is when you need 00:54:37.369 --> 00:54:39.889 to hit us. And that's what we're able to do as 00:54:39.889 --> 00:54:43.769 pilots is funnel that information to the team 00:54:43.769 --> 00:54:46.050 so that they can make adjustments in the coming 00:54:46.050 --> 00:54:49.190 hours or the coming days. And so it's not that 00:54:49.190 --> 00:54:51.690 we dictate what they do, but we can offer them 00:54:51.690 --> 00:54:56.720 suggestions from the DX community about. how 00:54:56.720 --> 00:55:00.380 can other regions or specific areas get into 00:55:00.380 --> 00:55:02.619 the log a little bit quicker, a little bit easier. 00:55:03.099 --> 00:55:05.539 And so by forwarding those kind of propagation 00:55:05.539 --> 00:55:09.619 reports firsthand to the team within an eight 00:55:09.619 --> 00:55:14.280 or a 12 hour basis of receiving them, it makes 00:55:14.280 --> 00:55:17.300 it just. creates efficiency. And so I would encourage 00:55:17.300 --> 00:55:21.519 anybody, not only in the US, but anywhere else, 00:55:21.579 --> 00:55:24.780 to contact your regional pilot and provide them 00:55:24.780 --> 00:55:27.559 what you think are things that could help aid 00:55:27.559 --> 00:55:29.940 your geographical area of getting into this log 00:55:29.940 --> 00:55:34.320 a little bit quicker. All right. All great information, 00:55:34.579 --> 00:55:38.380 Glenn. And thanks so much for making the arrangements 00:55:38.380 --> 00:55:44.360 to get all this going and all your work. spending 00:55:44.360 --> 00:55:47.320 some time with us tonight on ham talk live and 00:55:47.320 --> 00:55:50.880 it's just amazing it's gone really well I've 00:55:50.880 --> 00:55:55.059 heard nothing but but great comments on how well 00:55:55.059 --> 00:55:58.260 the operators are doing and and how well things 00:55:58.260 --> 00:56:03.119 have progressed and of course conditions don't 00:56:03.119 --> 00:56:07.139 always cooperate but you know you just keep fighting 00:56:07.139 --> 00:56:10.260 through it and and I think I think everybody's 00:56:10.260 --> 00:56:14.760 gonna be able to get a shot at this patience 00:56:14.760 --> 00:56:19.780 and persistence that's the game yeah sure is 00:56:19.780 --> 00:56:23.900 all right well I think we're gonna wrap things 00:56:23.900 --> 00:56:27.199 up here tonight but thanks for coming on and 00:56:27.800 --> 00:56:31.619 I appreciate all you've done and some good stats 00:56:31.619 --> 00:56:37.000 there too. And again, visit vp6d .com and you 00:56:37.000 --> 00:56:40.739 can see a lot of those statistics and where they 00:56:40.739 --> 00:56:44.679 are. So great resource, great website as well. 00:56:46.799 --> 00:56:49.820 Thank you very much. This has really been fun. 00:56:50.219 --> 00:56:53.000 I appreciate it. I've done some things over the 00:56:53.000 --> 00:56:56.159 internet on doing presentations on some of the 00:56:56.159 --> 00:56:58.599 de -expeditions I've been on, but this was really 00:56:58.599 --> 00:57:00.400 fun, and I'm glad you invited me to come on tonight. 00:57:01.619 --> 00:57:04.519 All right. Thank you very much. We appreciate 00:57:04.519 --> 00:57:09.820 you being here. That's Glenn Petrie, KE4KY, and 00:57:09.820 --> 00:57:12.900 Gene Spinelli, K5GS. Thanks to both of them for 00:57:12.900 --> 00:57:15.400 being on the show tonight, and everybody out 00:57:15.400 --> 00:57:19.260 there in cyberspace for calling in and tweeting 00:57:19.260 --> 00:57:22.159 in and commenting. And we invite you all back 00:57:22.159 --> 00:57:26.159 next Thursday night at 9 p .m. Eastern Time when 00:57:26.159 --> 00:57:29.559 HamTalk Live is back. And for a list of all of 00:57:29.559 --> 00:57:33.730 our upcoming guests, visit HamTalkLive .com. 00:57:33.849 --> 00:57:36.530 And if you like HamTalk Live, please consider 00:57:36.530 --> 00:57:38.769 leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you 00:57:38.769 --> 00:57:42.230 listen. It helps others find us faster. So this 00:57:42.230 --> 00:57:47.050 is Neil Rapp, WB9VPG, saying 7 -3, 7 -5. Good 00:57:47.050 --> 00:57:49.869 luck on CQ Worldwide this weekend. And hey, we 00:57:49.869 --> 00:57:54.309 get VP6D in CQ Worldwide, too. Now that's some 00:57:54.309 --> 00:57:58.929 news. And of course, may the good DX be yours. 00:57:59.440 --> 00:58:14.960 Thanks for watching.