WEBVTT 00:00:09.029 --> 00:00:11.830 Thanks for tuning in. Hamtalk Live will be on 00:00:11.830 --> 00:00:29.769 the air shortly. Please stand by. Thanks for 00:00:29.769 --> 00:00:32.509 tuning in. Hamtalk Live will be on the air shortly. 00:00:32.810 --> 00:00:50.960 Please stand by. Thanks for tuning in. HamTalk 00:00:50.960 --> 00:00:53.380 Live will be on the air shortly. Please stand 00:00:53.380 --> 00:00:58.020 by. This episode of HamTalk Live is brought to 00:00:58.020 --> 00:01:01.380 you by Tower Electronics. For cables, connectors, 00:01:01.479 --> 00:01:08.519 and more, call 920 -435 -2973 or visit pl -259 00:01:08.519 --> 00:01:12.620 .com and by the HamStation. Get your new radio 00:01:12.620 --> 00:01:18.620 or antenna by calling 800 -729 -4373 or go to 00:01:18.620 --> 00:01:53.390 hamstation .com. Good evening, everyone. This 00:01:53.390 --> 00:01:57.489 is HamTalk Live episode number 70. It's field 00:01:57.489 --> 00:02:04.010 day 2017 Q &A with Sean Kutsko, KX9X. Recorded 00:02:04.010 --> 00:02:08.810 live on Thursday, June 22nd, 2017. I'm your host, 00:02:09.050 --> 00:02:13.050 Neal Rapp, WB9VPG. Thanks for tuning into this 00:02:13.050 --> 00:02:17.969 episode of HamTalk Live. Tonight, Sean KX9X. 00:02:18.199 --> 00:02:22.099 from ARRL is here to talk all about field day. 00:02:22.240 --> 00:02:25.819 We're going to take your calls in just a few 00:02:25.819 --> 00:02:29.120 minutes. And last week on the show was Michael 00:02:29.120 --> 00:02:33.479 Coulter, WHCI, and he told us all about the pending 00:02:33.479 --> 00:02:37.860 improvements to next year's Dayton Hamvention. 00:02:38.000 --> 00:02:40.159 So if you missed that, make sure you listen at 00:02:40.159 --> 00:02:43.520 HamTalkLive .com. Or catch us on one of those 00:02:43.520 --> 00:02:46.360 podcast things like Apple podcast, Stitcher, 00:02:46.500 --> 00:02:49.479 iHeart, radio, Google play, tune in, SoundCloud. 00:02:49.919 --> 00:02:53.479 We're also on YouTube. So tonight what we want 00:02:53.479 --> 00:02:57.180 to do is get as many field day questions in as 00:02:57.180 --> 00:03:00.280 possible. So get your questions ready to go and 00:03:00.280 --> 00:03:02.800 the magic phone number for get those dialing 00:03:02.800 --> 00:03:06.639 fingers warmed up and ready. It's 812 -NET -HAM 00:03:06.639 --> 00:03:11.379 -1. 812 -638 -4261 will let you know when we're 00:03:11.379 --> 00:03:14.520 ready to take those calls. So hang on for a bit. 00:03:14.599 --> 00:03:17.699 We're going to do a little bit of talk here but 00:03:17.699 --> 00:03:20.740 there's not not really much changed since last 00:03:20.740 --> 00:03:24.840 year on the rules so we're hoping to to get right 00:03:24.840 --> 00:03:29.400 to the questions. So again that number is 812 00:03:29.400 --> 00:03:36.949 -638 -4261. and the folks at Skype fixed Skype 00:03:36.949 --> 00:03:41.530 on Friday. So we can take Skype calls and phone 00:03:41.530 --> 00:03:44.909 calls at the same time again. So you can Skype 00:03:44.909 --> 00:03:48.689 us and just look for HamTalk Live on there. You 00:03:48.689 --> 00:03:52.009 can also tweet us or Twitter and handle is at 00:03:52.009 --> 00:03:56.449 HamTalk Live. So I will be right back with Sean 00:03:56.449 --> 00:03:59.069 after this word from the ham station right here 00:03:59.069 --> 00:04:03.210 on HamTalk Live. This episode of HamTalk Live 00:04:03.210 --> 00:04:06.689 is brought to you by the HamStation. For over 00:04:06.689 --> 00:04:09.729 37 years, the HamStation has sold new and used 00:04:09.729 --> 00:04:12.629 radios, antennas, accessories, and equipment 00:04:12.629 --> 00:04:16.430 to hams everywhere. Give Dan or Jeff a call at 00:04:16.430 --> 00:04:22.930 800 -729 -4373 or order online at hamstation 00:04:22.930 --> 00:04:26.529 .com. HamStation carries all the major brands 00:04:26.529 --> 00:04:30.310 like Icom, Yezu, and Kenwood, and they have a 00:04:30.310 --> 00:04:34.170 wide selection of radio scanners, MFJ accessories, 00:04:34.490 --> 00:04:37.589 Heil sound products, amplifiers by Mirage and 00:04:37.589 --> 00:04:41.050 Ameritron, Cushcraft antennas, and more. Easy 00:04:41.050 --> 00:04:44.449 online ordering is at hamstation .com or call 00:04:44.449 --> 00:04:50.089 1 -800 -729 -4373 to place an order and talk 00:04:50.089 --> 00:04:53.129 it over with the experts. The Ham Station, proud 00:04:53.129 --> 00:04:57.269 to sponsor this episode of Ham Talk Live. You're 00:04:57.269 --> 00:05:00.660 listening to Ham Talk Live with Neil Rapp. Yesterday 00:05:00.660 --> 00:05:04.000 my xyl said she'd leave me if I didn't give up 00:05:04.000 --> 00:05:16.839 ham radio over Welcome back to ham talk live 00:05:16.839 --> 00:05:21.120 ham station. They've got you covered New used 00:05:21.120 --> 00:05:23.560 equipment you name it give dan or jeff a call 00:05:23.560 --> 00:05:26.319 eight hundred seven two nine forty three seventy 00:05:26.319 --> 00:05:32.759 three or go to the old hamstation .com tell them 00:05:32.759 --> 00:05:36.319 you heard it on ham talk live we're on the air 00:05:36.319 --> 00:05:39.240 every thursday night 9 p .m eastern time at ham 00:05:39.240 --> 00:05:44.759 talk live .com and also on demand after the show 00:05:45.290 --> 00:05:49.250 at the website and most popular podcasting sites. 00:05:49.910 --> 00:05:53.870 Tonight our guest is Sean Kutsko, KX9X, the former 00:05:53.870 --> 00:05:56.970 contest branch manager and currently the media 00:05:56.970 --> 00:06:02.029 and public relations manager at ARRL, the National 00:06:02.029 --> 00:06:05.870 Association for Amateur Radio. Sean enjoys portable 00:06:05.870 --> 00:06:09.610 operations, satellites, and QRP the most right 00:06:09.610 --> 00:06:13.060 now. He's an avid DXer and has had a chance to 00:06:13.060 --> 00:06:16.680 be the DX several times. Sean's been licensed 00:06:16.680 --> 00:06:20.500 since 1982 and is originally from Central Illinois 00:06:20.500 --> 00:06:24.579 and attended the nearby University of Illinois. 00:06:25.300 --> 00:06:29.279 And Sean's been on the ARRL staff since 2007. 00:06:29.779 --> 00:06:33.199 And he's also the drummer for the world famous 00:06:33.199 --> 00:06:36.779 Spurious Emissions band. So Sean, welcome once 00:06:36.779 --> 00:06:40.540 again to HamTalk Live. Hey Neil, what's going 00:06:40.540 --> 00:06:45.819 on? How are you? Oh, doing fine here and you're 00:06:45.819 --> 00:06:48.160 racking up the shows. Now you did the field day 00:06:48.160 --> 00:06:53.199 show last year and we talked about some national 00:06:53.199 --> 00:06:56.699 parks on the air and then with the band. An industry 00:06:56.699 --> 00:07:01.120 submissions show back in April, so yeah. Yeah, 00:07:01.120 --> 00:07:05.180 so we're glad you're back again. I'm getting 00:07:05.180 --> 00:07:07.660 to be a frequent flyer. Yeah, exactly. You're 00:07:07.660 --> 00:07:11.939 racking up the frequent flyer mall. As one of 00:07:11.939 --> 00:07:17.139 the radio shows has this fake caller that's on, 00:07:17.180 --> 00:07:20.079 you know, the long time caller, first time listener. 00:07:20.699 --> 00:07:23.600 So yeah, they kind of turned it around the other 00:07:23.600 --> 00:07:27.540 way there. But anyway, we're going to talk field 00:07:27.540 --> 00:07:29.379 day tonight. We're going to get everybody all 00:07:29.379 --> 00:07:32.579 pumped up for field day. Field day is just a 00:07:32.579 --> 00:07:36.240 couple of days away and we've been working on 00:07:36.240 --> 00:07:38.980 a new plan. I'm excited this year because I'm 00:07:38.980 --> 00:07:42.139 actually For the first time in, I don't know 00:07:42.139 --> 00:07:46.220 how long, I'm actually going to be able to operate. 00:07:46.860 --> 00:07:50.459 Cause I've been a go -to coach for so many years 00:07:50.459 --> 00:07:53.899 that it's like, I don't get to operate and I'm 00:07:53.899 --> 00:07:57.560 the contestor guy, you know? So I'm excited. 00:07:57.819 --> 00:08:00.420 We're going to try something a little different 00:08:00.420 --> 00:08:03.800 with another school. We're going to put our schools 00:08:03.800 --> 00:08:07.899 together and do kind of a school themed. field 00:08:07.899 --> 00:08:09.920 day and we're going to give it a try this year 00:08:09.920 --> 00:08:13.120 and see how it goes. So we're putting the high 00:08:13.120 --> 00:08:16.100 school club together with the university here 00:08:16.100 --> 00:08:20.480 and we're going to give it a try. I sense a whole 00:08:20.480 --> 00:08:22.680 lot of mentoring opportunities that could occur 00:08:22.680 --> 00:08:27.399 right there. Yeah, so we're excited about giving 00:08:27.399 --> 00:08:31.660 it a try. So we're going to have a couple of 00:08:31.660 --> 00:08:35.120 different field days here in the area and we're 00:08:35.120 --> 00:08:37.580 excited about giving it a shot and doing something 00:08:37.580 --> 00:08:40.720 a little different and going after some points. 00:08:40.980 --> 00:08:46.279 And already, before we even start, already the 00:08:46.279 --> 00:08:53.139 debate has started. Is field day a contest or 00:08:53.139 --> 00:08:57.840 is field day not a contest? And we've talked 00:08:57.840 --> 00:09:01.399 about that before. Yes, is it a floor is it a 00:09:01.399 --> 00:09:03.860 floor wax or a dessert topping the old Saturday 00:09:03.860 --> 00:09:08.019 Night Live question exactly Great. So so, you 00:09:08.019 --> 00:09:10.980 know field day is all of those things It is you 00:09:10.980 --> 00:09:12.740 know, it's a competitive event if you want to 00:09:12.740 --> 00:09:15.039 make it one. It is an emergency preparedness 00:09:15.039 --> 00:09:19.279 exercise It is a public relations It is actually, 00:09:19.299 --> 00:09:22.120 it's the largest public relations event in North 00:09:22.120 --> 00:09:27.279 America. Most of the rest of the world, the IARU 00:09:27.279 --> 00:09:32.559 regions one and three, their big PR event of 00:09:32.559 --> 00:09:35.740 the year is World Amateur Radio Day on April 00:09:35.740 --> 00:09:40.659 18th. But here in the United States, World Amateur 00:09:40.659 --> 00:09:43.179 Radio Day gets some activity, but not nearly 00:09:43.179 --> 00:09:45.960 as much as field day does. So for us here in 00:09:45.960 --> 00:09:49.059 the U .S., field day. is the big PR push that 00:09:49.059 --> 00:09:51.799 lets us showcase amateur radio to our communities 00:09:51.799 --> 00:09:54.840 and our served agencies and our elected folks. 00:09:55.799 --> 00:09:58.759 So field day is the big PR event. It can also 00:09:58.759 --> 00:10:02.960 be the simple club gathering. It can be the potluck 00:10:02.960 --> 00:10:06.940 dinner Saturday night. So there's no real wrong 00:10:06.940 --> 00:10:10.360 way to do field day. If you want to make it a 00:10:10.360 --> 00:10:13.139 contest, You try to get as many points as you 00:10:13.139 --> 00:10:15.919 possibly can. If you want to make it a big PR 00:10:15.919 --> 00:10:18.460 event and showcase Ham Radio to your community, 00:10:18.539 --> 00:10:21.519 you can do that too. Most people combine several 00:10:21.519 --> 00:10:25.019 different facets of it. If you get a good club 00:10:25.019 --> 00:10:28.580 involved or a good group of friends, you've got 00:10:28.580 --> 00:10:31.679 one or two people who are really into the emergency 00:10:31.679 --> 00:10:33.659 preparedness aspect of it. You've got a couple 00:10:33.659 --> 00:10:36.179 of good contest operators in there, somebody 00:10:36.179 --> 00:10:38.820 who really enjoys interacting and mingling with 00:10:38.820 --> 00:10:42.700 the public. There's no real one way to do field 00:10:42.700 --> 00:10:44.940 day and most clubs take on several different 00:10:44.940 --> 00:10:47.240 facets at the same time. So everybody gets to 00:10:47.240 --> 00:10:51.159 be happy during field day. All right, so get 00:10:51.159 --> 00:10:54.759 out there and give it a give it a shot what and 00:10:54.759 --> 00:10:58.120 you know, try to support your your local clubs 00:10:58.120 --> 00:11:01.799 that are Out there and if not, you can operate 00:11:01.799 --> 00:11:05.379 from home or you can go portable or there's all 00:11:05.379 --> 00:11:08.220 kinds of Options and we're going to talk about 00:11:08.220 --> 00:11:14.909 a couple of those specific options here momentarily 00:11:14.909 --> 00:11:19.450 But first and we were already getting calls so 00:11:19.450 --> 00:11:21.970 hang on for hang on folks. We're gonna get there. 00:11:21.970 --> 00:11:26.190 We're gonna get to the goal but You know, we 00:11:26.190 --> 00:11:30.730 want to first talk about the changes Well, there 00:11:30.730 --> 00:11:32.809 there really aren't any changes this year It's 00:11:32.809 --> 00:11:35.769 okay the same same as it ever was and then ever 00:11:35.769 --> 00:11:37.730 was and there you have it ladies and gentlemen 00:11:37.730 --> 00:11:40.269 That was Sean Cutsco, and we'll see you next 00:11:40.269 --> 00:11:45.419 week. I'm not no No. So yeah, the only change 00:11:45.419 --> 00:11:50.279 was just some updates on some information, right? 00:11:50.600 --> 00:11:54.259 That was pretty much it. Yeah, that's pretty 00:11:54.259 --> 00:11:56.320 much it there are no major rules changes from 00:11:56.320 --> 00:11:58.940 last year if you know and something that we can 00:11:58.940 --> 00:12:01.720 talk about in a little bit too if you want is 00:12:01.720 --> 00:12:04.720 For those who are interested in trying to operate 00:12:04.720 --> 00:12:07.100 satellites and get the satellite bonus points 00:12:07.100 --> 00:12:10.679 for making a satellite QSO There are a few new 00:12:10.679 --> 00:12:12.559 satellites this year that weren't up in the air 00:12:12.559 --> 00:12:15.240 in 2016 So you've got a few more choices that 00:12:15.240 --> 00:12:17.259 you can make but really there are no there are 00:12:17.259 --> 00:12:21.419 no major rules changes from 2016 so have at it 00:12:21.559 --> 00:12:26.000 Okay, so we'll get into that a little bit here 00:12:26.000 --> 00:12:28.980 later, too. But last year, right after the show, 00:12:28.980 --> 00:12:33.120 I checked my email and I had this question from 00:12:33.120 --> 00:12:37.840 this guy, Dan from Connecticut. And it took me 00:12:37.840 --> 00:12:41.059 a second and then I realized, oh, wait a minute, 00:12:41.519 --> 00:12:47.659 it's that Dan from Connecticut, N1ND, the former 00:12:47.659 --> 00:12:50.850 field day guru. And he was trying... Think he 00:12:50.850 --> 00:12:52.750 was trying to trick me up is what he was trying 00:12:52.750 --> 00:12:57.669 to do. Yes, and so he says I'll be one person 00:12:57.669 --> 00:13:03.549 operating on battery power Would I be class 1b? 00:13:05.149 --> 00:13:09.250 The answer is yes, he would be class 1b. There's 00:13:09.250 --> 00:13:14.169 a confusion that the B in the classes stands 00:13:14.169 --> 00:13:17.409 for battery and that's not what the B stands 00:13:17.409 --> 00:13:20.549 for. The B is just a sub -designator of how you 00:13:20.549 --> 00:13:23.409 can approach field day. Class A is a lot of people, 00:13:24.529 --> 00:13:26.830 club or a non -club. Class B simply means that 00:13:26.830 --> 00:13:30.149 it's a one or a two person operation and the 00:13:30.149 --> 00:13:34.269 power source does not come into consideration 00:13:34.269 --> 00:13:38.470 in determining what letter uh... you operate 00:13:38.470 --> 00:13:41.129 uh... under as your operating class clad in class 00:13:41.129 --> 00:13:43.470 be just means it's a one or two person operation 00:13:43.470 --> 00:13:49.350 real small so it would be something else well 00:13:49.350 --> 00:13:52.289 uh... there under the on air exchanges always 00:13:52.289 --> 00:13:54.509 going to be the number of transmitters followed 00:13:54.509 --> 00:13:58.870 by a letter followed by your a r l section and 00:13:58.870 --> 00:14:00.730 uh... one of the other questions that week that 00:14:00.730 --> 00:14:03.870 we commonly get is do i need to set am i am i 00:14:03.870 --> 00:14:06.669 if i'm operating with a battery do i am i a class 00:14:08.079 --> 00:14:12.679 1A battery or 3A battery, and you don't have 00:14:12.679 --> 00:14:15.080 to say the word battery on the air. What we do 00:14:15.080 --> 00:14:17.360 is we subdivide some of the power categories 00:14:17.360 --> 00:14:20.639 in the printed results. But what you say on the 00:14:20.639 --> 00:14:22.659 air as part of your field day exchange is simply 00:14:22.659 --> 00:14:25.700 the number of transmitters, the letter that designates 00:14:25.700 --> 00:14:28.899 your entry class, and your ARRL section. And 00:14:28.899 --> 00:14:31.860 that's all you have to say. But you could be 00:14:31.860 --> 00:14:36.700 1E. You could be if you're a home station operating 00:14:36.700 --> 00:14:39.480 with emergency power and you could use a battery 00:14:39.480 --> 00:14:43.899 as emergency power So yeah, so I think that was 00:14:43.899 --> 00:14:45.940 kind of what he was getting at was it wouldn't 00:14:45.940 --> 00:14:50.820 have to be 1b because it depends on Depends on 00:14:50.820 --> 00:14:53.919 your operating yeah, if you're operating from 00:14:53.919 --> 00:14:58.759 your home Or a or what we call a fixed a fixed 00:14:58.759 --> 00:15:01.700 station Then yeah, that would be a class 1e if 00:15:01.700 --> 00:15:03.759 you're operating away from a place where amateur 00:15:03.759 --> 00:15:06.620 radio normally takes place That would be a class 00:15:06.620 --> 00:15:09.919 B with one operator We got into that discussion 00:15:09.919 --> 00:15:15.039 earlier and and the the other Setup question 00:15:15.039 --> 00:15:18.700 here that we had. Okay, you've got a club That 00:15:18.700 --> 00:15:23.179 has one permanent station, but at that permanent 00:15:23.370 --> 00:15:28.929 station, they set up portable stations and run 00:15:28.929 --> 00:15:33.370 on battery power. So what class would you give 00:15:33.370 --> 00:15:38.210 them? Well, the kicker in that one is the fact 00:15:38.210 --> 00:15:40.509 that they're operating from a permanent station 00:15:40.509 --> 00:15:43.950 location. I found this out the hard way in 1997, 00:15:44.230 --> 00:15:46.909 long before I was working for the lead. When 00:15:46.909 --> 00:15:50.830 I was operating in Elkhart, Indiana and I set 00:15:50.830 --> 00:15:53.450 up in my garage and I borrowed a little Honda 00:15:53.450 --> 00:15:56.429 generator and I threw a dipole in the tree and 00:15:56.429 --> 00:15:59.149 I was all set to be a 1b station and I found 00:15:59.149 --> 00:16:02.389 out after the fact that Nope, that's not the 00:16:02.389 --> 00:16:05.730 case because I was operating from my own from 00:16:05.730 --> 00:16:09.649 my own house and that is a location where amateur 00:16:09.649 --> 00:16:13.230 radio normally takes place every other day of 00:16:13.230 --> 00:16:15.850 the year. So because I was on my own property, 00:16:16.250 --> 00:16:19.850 I had to get reclassified to a one -echo station 00:16:19.850 --> 00:16:22.049 because I was using an emergency power source, 00:16:22.309 --> 00:16:25.789 but I was operating field day from my permanent 00:16:25.789 --> 00:16:28.269 location, even though I was using an external 00:16:28.269 --> 00:16:30.529 power source and I was using a completely different 00:16:30.529 --> 00:16:34.909 antenna. So that's how a home station or a permanent 00:16:34.909 --> 00:16:40.110 station is determined. Okay, so we've got some 00:16:40.110 --> 00:16:44.450 of that class stuff out of the way. So if you 00:16:44.450 --> 00:16:48.210 have a question like that, why here in just a 00:16:48.210 --> 00:16:50.789 few minutes, you'll be able to give us a call 00:16:50.789 --> 00:16:54.330 at 812 net ham one or on Skype at ham talk live 00:16:54.330 --> 00:16:57.950 or tweet us and we're going to take just as many 00:16:57.950 --> 00:17:01.470 questions as we can tonight. And we've got some 00:17:01.919 --> 00:17:04.579 some other things here that we want to get into 00:17:04.579 --> 00:17:09.559 a little bit about the two newer rules, the social 00:17:09.559 --> 00:17:14.240 media bonus and the safety officer bonus. And 00:17:14.240 --> 00:17:16.640 we talked about those last year on the show. 00:17:16.680 --> 00:17:19.920 So if you need some of that information, you 00:17:19.920 --> 00:17:23.160 can punch up last year's show, but we will try 00:17:23.160 --> 00:17:27.220 to get to some of that depending on how many 00:17:27.220 --> 00:17:30.519 calls we have and that kind of thing. So I think 00:17:30.519 --> 00:17:33.759 what we'll do is go ahead and take a break here 00:17:33.759 --> 00:17:36.839 and get that out of the way and then we'll be 00:17:36.839 --> 00:17:42.019 back to take your calls live right here with 00:17:42.019 --> 00:17:48.140 Shawn and we'll get to that and take our final 00:17:48.140 --> 00:17:51.859 break. So I'll be back with Shawn KX9X right 00:17:51.859 --> 00:17:54.720 after this message from Tower Electronics here 00:17:54.720 --> 00:17:58.259 on HamTalk Live. This episode of HamTalk Live 00:17:58.259 --> 00:18:01.059 is brought to you in part by Tower Electronics. 00:18:01.230 --> 00:18:03.650 Tower Electronics has been the Ham's Dime Store 00:18:03.650 --> 00:18:07.049 since 1978. When you need connectors, mobile 00:18:07.049 --> 00:18:10.309 and handheld antennas, cables or adapters, visit 00:18:10.309 --> 00:18:13.910 Scott or Jill at a HamFest near you. Or you can 00:18:13.910 --> 00:18:20.089 order online at PL -259 .com or call 920 -435 00:18:20.089 --> 00:18:25.109 -2973. Stock up on those supplies like PL -259 00:18:25.109 --> 00:18:28.390 and end connectors, SMA adapters, audio cables, 00:18:28.670 --> 00:18:31.829 soldering supplies, mobile antennas, and hamsticks. 00:18:32.109 --> 00:18:34.230 Their silver -plated end connectors are even 00:18:34.230 --> 00:18:36.890 used on the International Space Station. Tower 00:18:36.890 --> 00:18:40.710 Electronics carries MFJ, Comet, Daiwa, OPEC, 00:18:40.950 --> 00:18:44.230 Workman, and HamPro products. And don't miss 00:18:44.230 --> 00:18:48.289 their 0 % off sale going on now. Tower Electronics 00:18:48.289 --> 00:18:52.549 online at PL -259 .com, proud to sponsor this 00:18:52.549 --> 00:18:59.759 episode of HamTalk Live. CQ Field Day. CQ Field 00:18:59.759 --> 00:19:25.980 Day. This is HamTalk Live with Neil Rapp. We'd 00:19:25.980 --> 00:19:28.220 like to thank Scott and Jill at Tower Electronics 00:19:28.220 --> 00:19:30.380 for sponsoring the show tonight to help bring 00:19:30.380 --> 00:19:33.440 you HamTalk Live. July the 8th, they'll be at 00:19:33.440 --> 00:19:36.160 Oak Creek, Wisconsin, and you can give them a 00:19:36.160 --> 00:19:38.799 call. If you're not in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, 00:19:38.799 --> 00:19:44.819 you can call them 920 -435 -2973 or visit their 00:19:44.819 --> 00:19:48.960 website at PL -259 .com and tell them you heard 00:19:48.960 --> 00:19:51.720 it. Right here on HamTalk Live. We're here every 00:19:51.720 --> 00:19:55.160 Thursday night at 9 p .m. and make sure And that's 00:19:55.160 --> 00:19:57.420 Eastern Time. And make sure you check out our 00:19:57.420 --> 00:20:00.099 Facebook page, Twitter feed, and Instagram. Just 00:20:00.099 --> 00:20:04.220 search HamTalk Live and you'll be able to find 00:20:04.220 --> 00:20:08.680 us. So we even had some interesting tweets today. 00:20:08.819 --> 00:20:10.720 They were pretty funny. We still haven't figured 00:20:10.720 --> 00:20:16.180 out what band that tent tunes up on. It depends 00:20:16.180 --> 00:20:18.339 on the physical size of the tent. I mean, it 00:20:18.339 --> 00:20:21.559 could easily load up on 80 or 160, depending 00:20:21.559 --> 00:20:25.220 on how large the tent is. But the whole issue 00:20:25.220 --> 00:20:29.259 of what kind of degree you need in order to get 00:20:29.259 --> 00:20:32.779 something made out of canvas and tubes like that 00:20:32.779 --> 00:20:35.839 to load up on 80 or 160, I'll leave that to the 00:20:35.839 --> 00:20:40.170 experts, unless you're using a tent tuner. Attent 00:20:40.170 --> 00:20:42.509 tuner. Yes. We'll leave that to Chip. Maybe Chip 00:20:42.509 --> 00:20:45.109 can figure that out. Well, it's time for your 00:20:45.109 --> 00:20:48.769 calls. Now if you have a question for Sean, call 00:20:48.769 --> 00:20:55.559 812 -NET -HAM -1. That's 812 -638 - 4261 or you 00:20:55.559 --> 00:20:59.859 can Skype your question at ham talk live or you 00:20:59.859 --> 00:21:05.180 can tweet us at ham talk live and So now is the 00:21:05.180 --> 00:21:08.299 time to call so give us a call and we already 00:21:08.299 --> 00:21:13.259 have one. So I see that Ryan is on here. Is that 00:21:13.259 --> 00:21:20.470 right? Yeah, my name is Ryan kc0 qmb Casey zero 00:21:20.470 --> 00:21:24.089 Q &B. Thank you for calling in and go ahead with 00:21:24.089 --> 00:21:31.009 your field day question well The field day I'm 00:21:31.009 --> 00:21:35.710 going to coming up is going to be in a city park 00:21:35.710 --> 00:21:39.069 The question is they'll have commercial power 00:21:39.069 --> 00:21:41.750 there. However, it's not a permanent location 00:21:41.750 --> 00:21:44.450 for any of the hams What classification would 00:21:44.450 --> 00:21:49.089 that be? If how many people are operating? I 00:21:49.089 --> 00:21:52.710 don't know yet, I'm guessing probably six. Okay, 00:21:53.750 --> 00:21:59.450 so the Class A entry category for a larger group, 00:22:00.210 --> 00:22:03.190 there is a sub category that we list the scores 00:22:03.190 --> 00:22:05.809 under that allows the use of commercial power 00:22:05.809 --> 00:22:08.950 for Class A stations. So you would simply say 00:22:08.950 --> 00:22:12.450 the number of transmitters and A class if you've 00:22:12.450 --> 00:22:16.279 got six people involved. uh... and uh... and 00:22:16.279 --> 00:22:18.339 uh... your uh... your a double r l section and 00:22:18.339 --> 00:22:20.180 that would be your exchange and when the final 00:22:20.180 --> 00:22:22.940 results come out uh... you would be uh... scored 00:22:22.940 --> 00:22:25.119 with the other uh... with the other folks in 00:22:25.119 --> 00:22:27.839 class a who are using commercial power so it's 00:22:27.839 --> 00:22:30.680 okay for class a stations to use commercial power 00:22:30.680 --> 00:22:33.019 you simply have to declare it and will put you 00:22:33.019 --> 00:22:34.819 uh... lumped in with the results along with all 00:22:34.819 --> 00:22:36.880 the other class a stations that are using commercial 00:22:36.880 --> 00:22:41.059 power okay thank you you're welcome ryan good 00:22:41.059 --> 00:22:44.380 luck have fun Thanks for calling, Ryan. Appreciate 00:22:44.380 --> 00:22:50.579 it. All right, 812. NetTam 1 is the phone number, 00:22:50.619 --> 00:22:57.160 812 -638 -4261. And yeah, Sean, go ahead and 00:22:57.160 --> 00:23:00.779 follow up on that. Oh, no. We get a fair number 00:23:00.779 --> 00:23:04.039 of questions about that, that there are folks 00:23:04.039 --> 00:23:07.480 that are not aware that you can use commercial 00:23:07.480 --> 00:23:10.230 power as a Class A station. A lot of folks think 00:23:10.230 --> 00:23:11.950 that if you're using commercial power, you have 00:23:11.950 --> 00:23:15.210 to be a class D, a home station with commercial 00:23:15.210 --> 00:23:18.700 power. But there are plenty of stations every 00:23:18.700 --> 00:23:21.059 year who are Class A that use a commercial power. 00:23:21.380 --> 00:23:24.500 You go to a campground or you rent a cabin or 00:23:24.500 --> 00:23:28.880 some sort of event location, like in a park like 00:23:28.880 --> 00:23:31.099 this gentleman just was talking about, and you 00:23:31.099 --> 00:23:33.259 have access to commercial power, you're perfectly 00:23:33.259 --> 00:23:36.059 able to use it. And we'll make sure that in the 00:23:36.059 --> 00:23:38.980 final results when we print it in QST that you'll 00:23:38.980 --> 00:23:40.720 be listed along with all the other stations that 00:23:40.720 --> 00:23:43.420 can use commercial power. or Class A stations 00:23:43.420 --> 00:23:47.259 that are using commercial power. So it's a perfectly 00:23:47.259 --> 00:23:51.039 valid way to enjoy field day. All right. Well, 00:23:51.099 --> 00:23:55.140 if you have a question, give us a call 812 -638 00:23:55.140 --> 00:23:59.980 -4261 or you can call us on Skype. We're HamTalk 00:23:59.980 --> 00:24:04.420 Live on Skype and you can also tweet us. At ham 00:24:04.420 --> 00:24:07.759 talk live with your field day questions with 00:24:07.759 --> 00:24:13.319 Sean cuts go KX 9x from a RRL While we're waiting 00:24:13.319 --> 00:24:16.859 on those calls to come in we kind of teased a 00:24:16.859 --> 00:24:20.220 little bit about a couple of the newer rules 00:24:20.220 --> 00:24:25.839 one of which is the safety officer and We did 00:24:25.839 --> 00:24:28.940 talk about that some last year on the show, but 00:24:28.940 --> 00:24:32.339 remind us a little bit about the role of the 00:24:32.339 --> 00:24:36.410 safety officer and I know the checklist has been 00:24:36.410 --> 00:24:39.640 cleaned up a little bit. Right, so the safety 00:24:39.640 --> 00:24:43.480 officer bonus was added recently and the whole 00:24:43.480 --> 00:24:47.920 purpose of the safety officer is to, it's available 00:24:47.920 --> 00:24:52.039 for class A stations and we provided a safety 00:24:52.039 --> 00:24:56.519 checklist in the 2017 field day packet and the 00:24:56.519 --> 00:24:58.819 safety officer is simply somebody that goes around 00:24:58.819 --> 00:25:00.920 the field day site and makes sure that those 00:25:00.920 --> 00:25:03.819 items on the safety checklist in the field day 00:25:03.819 --> 00:25:07.029 packet are met, and you have to sign a waiver 00:25:07.029 --> 00:25:10.309 stating that all those safety conditions were 00:25:10.309 --> 00:25:13.690 met, and you need to include that in your field 00:25:13.690 --> 00:25:17.069 day summary, and you get 100 bonus points for 00:25:17.069 --> 00:25:19.589 that. So if you're a Class A station and you're 00:25:19.589 --> 00:25:22.349 really concerned about safety, and you certainly 00:25:22.349 --> 00:25:26.069 should be, it's a nice way to pick up an extra 00:25:26.069 --> 00:25:29.710 100 points and make sure that your field day 00:25:29.710 --> 00:25:31.730 site is safe, not only for the operators, but 00:25:31.730 --> 00:25:35.880 for any public that comes to visit as well. And 00:25:35.880 --> 00:25:39.640 the other newer rule that went into effect last 00:25:39.640 --> 00:25:43.920 year is the social media bonus. And since you're 00:25:43.920 --> 00:25:49.200 the PR guy now, that's your thing. So tell us 00:25:49.200 --> 00:25:53.089 again about the social media bonus. Well, for 00:25:53.089 --> 00:25:56.549 a long, long time, there's been ways that you 00:25:56.549 --> 00:26:01.210 can earn bonus points for public relations, outreach, 00:26:01.630 --> 00:26:04.950 getting word about your field day effort in the 00:26:04.950 --> 00:26:07.769 local media, reaching out to your community and 00:26:07.769 --> 00:26:09.670 making sure that you can get some folks invited. 00:26:11.369 --> 00:26:15.329 So 2017, social media is a reality for a lot 00:26:15.329 --> 00:26:18.109 of... a lot of amateur radio operators and a 00:26:18.109 --> 00:26:21.930 lot of clubs. And it's been a long time coming 00:26:21.930 --> 00:26:24.809 that we had an extra bonus available for social 00:26:24.809 --> 00:26:28.730 media outreach. And you get 100 points by promoting 00:26:28.730 --> 00:26:31.849 your field day activation to the general public 00:26:31.849 --> 00:26:36.450 via an active social media platform. So we're 00:26:36.450 --> 00:26:39.170 talking Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, 00:26:40.210 --> 00:26:44.839 stuff like that. The idea of this is to give 00:26:44.839 --> 00:26:50.279 your club the ability to create a social media 00:26:50.279 --> 00:26:53.640 presence and use that social media presence to 00:26:53.640 --> 00:26:56.740 establish connections with your elected officials, 00:26:57.180 --> 00:26:59.599 members of the media in your community, and give 00:26:59.599 --> 00:27:02.720 you a way to start plugging into your local community. 00:27:02.960 --> 00:27:05.859 And by being able to promote your field day activity 00:27:05.859 --> 00:27:08.619 on social media, that gives you a real -time 00:27:08.619 --> 00:27:12.200 way to post videos and photos and status updates 00:27:12.200 --> 00:27:14.920 about what's going on at your site. If you are 00:27:14.920 --> 00:27:17.099 fortunate enough to get an elected official to 00:27:17.099 --> 00:27:19.259 show up at your site, you can post a photo of 00:27:19.259 --> 00:27:22.460 them visiting your site and have an immediate 00:27:22.460 --> 00:27:25.440 response within your local community, assuming 00:27:25.440 --> 00:27:30.000 that you've friended and started following some 00:27:30.000 --> 00:27:33.579 of your community leaders or your police fire, 00:27:33.640 --> 00:27:35.519 your served agencies, and stuff like that. It's 00:27:35.519 --> 00:27:38.279 a real simple way for you to pick up an extra 00:27:38.279 --> 00:27:40.769 100 bonus points for field day. But the long 00:27:40.769 --> 00:27:43.569 -term implication is that you start making you 00:27:43.569 --> 00:27:46.789 start connecting with other folks in your community 00:27:46.789 --> 00:27:49.769 and that raises your visibility Long -term, so 00:27:49.769 --> 00:27:52.430 that's the real goal of the social media bonus 00:27:52.430 --> 00:27:56.650 Okay, so get out there on social media Facebook 00:27:56.650 --> 00:28:02.450 Twitter Instagram snapchat Google you name it 00:28:02.450 --> 00:28:07.809 Google plus counts sure YouTube Sure, stuff like 00:28:07.809 --> 00:28:09.990 that, it all counts. Is there anybody on there? 00:28:10.990 --> 00:28:18.869 On Google Plus? Yes. There are some. I've been 00:28:18.869 --> 00:28:21.390 posting some stuff on Google Plus. I've been 00:28:21.390 --> 00:28:24.349 trying it out, but I don't know, I still can't 00:28:24.349 --> 00:28:29.910 get into it. I make sure that I try to do as 00:28:29.910 --> 00:28:33.630 much as I possibly can, but I'm finding that 00:28:34.819 --> 00:28:37.599 Even with help in the PR department now, I've 00:28:37.599 --> 00:28:40.079 got my hands full with Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, 00:28:40.440 --> 00:28:42.539 and we're starting to check out Snapchat just 00:28:42.539 --> 00:28:46.529 a little bit. So that's plenty. Yeah, I agree. 00:28:47.109 --> 00:28:52.029 812 -638 -4261 is the telephone number or Skype 00:28:52.029 --> 00:28:56.329 us at HamTalk Live or give us a tweet at HamTalk 00:28:56.329 --> 00:28:59.369 Live and we've got a couple more things we can 00:28:59.369 --> 00:29:01.950 talk about here but we would like to get your 00:29:01.950 --> 00:29:05.329 questions answered. So if you have a question 00:29:05.329 --> 00:29:09.430 for Sean, please give us a call or a tweet and 00:29:09.430 --> 00:29:12.170 let us know what your question is and we'll try 00:29:12.170 --> 00:29:15.859 to answer that. Now, you talked a little bit 00:29:15.859 --> 00:29:21.279 about the satellites here. So again, while we're 00:29:21.279 --> 00:29:26.140 waiting on people to chime in with their questions, 00:29:27.500 --> 00:29:31.799 I know you've been a very active satellite person, 00:29:31.819 --> 00:29:37.460 and I was reading on our Twitter account. Some 00:29:37.460 --> 00:29:41.839 people saying well, you know, it's field day 00:29:41.839 --> 00:29:43.799 and we get all these people on the satellite 00:29:43.799 --> 00:29:46.079 and then we never hear from them again until 00:29:46.079 --> 00:29:49.759 the following field day and so it gets a little 00:29:49.759 --> 00:29:52.940 overloaded. So talk a little bit about going 00:29:52.940 --> 00:29:58.029 out and finding a satellite. Well, satellite 00:29:58.029 --> 00:30:01.970 operation, as you just mentioned, that's pretty 00:30:01.970 --> 00:30:04.509 much been my main focus of how I'm enjoying amateur 00:30:04.509 --> 00:30:08.670 radio lately is getting on the satellites and 00:30:08.670 --> 00:30:12.089 operating portable and activating different grid 00:30:12.089 --> 00:30:15.509 squares when I'm traveling doing satellite stuff. 00:30:17.309 --> 00:30:21.069 It's a lot of fun to get involved with satellite 00:30:21.069 --> 00:30:25.480 operating, but as with So many other things, 00:30:25.480 --> 00:30:27.599 you know, if you wait until the last minute to 00:30:27.599 --> 00:30:32.039 try something out for the first time, and you 00:30:32.039 --> 00:30:34.680 try to get involved with an event as large as 00:30:34.680 --> 00:30:36.519 field day for the very first time, it can lead 00:30:36.519 --> 00:30:41.079 to some frustration. And one of the biggest concerns 00:30:41.079 --> 00:30:44.220 with satellites is there are two different main 00:30:44.220 --> 00:30:47.220 types of satellites. There are FM satellites, 00:30:47.400 --> 00:30:49.980 which basically function like an orbiting repeater. 00:30:50.440 --> 00:30:53.200 And then there are sideband and CW satellites, 00:30:53.440 --> 00:30:55.759 which have a transponder in them, which actually 00:30:55.759 --> 00:31:00.200 gives you real bandwidth. So it's kind of like 00:31:00.200 --> 00:31:03.039 tuning across 20 meters. You've got a fair amount 00:31:03.039 --> 00:31:06.400 of frequency spectrum that you can tune across. 00:31:07.839 --> 00:31:11.380 Sideband and CW satellites. uh... multiple q 00:31:11.380 --> 00:31:14.180 s those can occur on those satellites simultaneously 00:31:14.180 --> 00:31:16.579 but the f m satellites because they're like an 00:31:16.579 --> 00:31:19.700 orbiting repeater the capture effect takes uh... 00:31:19.700 --> 00:31:22.940 kicks in and so only one station can use the 00:31:22.940 --> 00:31:26.599 uh... f m satellite at a time and when you get 00:31:26.599 --> 00:31:30.140 uh... a lot of people uh... trying to access 00:31:30.140 --> 00:31:33.720 an f m satellite on field day weekend, you get 00:31:33.720 --> 00:31:36.059 a lot of people who are trying to talk at the 00:31:36.059 --> 00:31:39.059 same time and it can get very congested very 00:31:39.059 --> 00:31:43.700 quickly and not a lot of QSOs can be made that 00:31:43.700 --> 00:31:46.619 way. So there are some tricks to the trade of 00:31:46.619 --> 00:31:49.279 how you can have a successful field day QSO. 00:31:50.279 --> 00:31:55.160 during field day. FM satellites are by far the 00:31:55.160 --> 00:31:57.240 easiest to get involved with because all you 00:31:57.240 --> 00:32:00.420 need is a dual band HT and a directional antenna 00:32:00.420 --> 00:32:03.559 on 2 meters and 70 centimeters. There's two FM 00:32:03.559 --> 00:32:07.579 satellites right now. SO50 is the main one and 00:32:07.579 --> 00:32:11.059 then there's another one called AO85 and we've 00:32:11.059 --> 00:32:13.920 got in the field day packet we've got frequency 00:32:14.589 --> 00:32:17.029 up uplink and downlink frequencies for each one 00:32:17.029 --> 00:32:18.769 of those satellites available in the field day 00:32:18.769 --> 00:32:21.750 packet so you know where to tune uh... uh... 00:32:21.750 --> 00:32:26.369 during the past uh... but um... if if you're 00:32:26.369 --> 00:32:28.829 trying to just make one q s o on one of the f 00:32:28.829 --> 00:32:32.430 m satellites uh... there are some tricks to uh... 00:32:32.430 --> 00:32:35.349 to have uh... a little bit more success uh... 00:32:35.349 --> 00:32:39.130 one trick is uh... try operating uh... satellite 00:32:39.130 --> 00:32:41.539 pass in the middle of the night because there 00:32:41.539 --> 00:32:43.640 will be fewer people that are on for that for 00:32:43.640 --> 00:32:46.559 those particular passes uh... and so your your 00:32:46.559 --> 00:32:49.440 your chances of success will go up a little bit 00:32:49.440 --> 00:32:52.559 uh... another uh... strategy that you can consider 00:32:52.559 --> 00:32:56.039 is if you're uh... if you live near either the 00:32:56.039 --> 00:32:59.170 uh... the east coast of the west coast What you 00:32:59.170 --> 00:33:02.470 can do is you can pick a satellite pass where 00:33:02.470 --> 00:33:06.529 the satellite is tracking mainly over water and 00:33:06.529 --> 00:33:08.990 only a little bit of the satellite's footprint 00:33:08.990 --> 00:33:13.069 comes into contact with the land, whether it's 00:33:13.069 --> 00:33:15.390 the East Coast or the West Coast, either one, 00:33:15.529 --> 00:33:19.660 it doesn't matter. If you've got only a sliver 00:33:19.660 --> 00:33:21.559 of land that's available in the footprint, you 00:33:21.559 --> 00:33:23.579 will reduce the number of stations that have 00:33:23.579 --> 00:33:26.079 access to the satellite. And again, that will 00:33:26.079 --> 00:33:29.259 increase your chances for a successful QSO during 00:33:29.259 --> 00:33:32.380 a very busy weekend on the FM satellites. I personally 00:33:32.380 --> 00:33:34.339 would like to see everybody be able to make a 00:33:34.339 --> 00:33:36.700 satellite QSO. I personally think that it's one 00:33:36.700 --> 00:33:38.900 of the most exciting ways to enjoy amateur radio. 00:33:39.279 --> 00:33:42.039 But if you've got a finite resource like an FM 00:33:42.039 --> 00:33:44.849 satellite, only one person can talk at a time 00:33:44.849 --> 00:33:48.529 and a satellite passes a maximum of say 15 minutes 00:33:48.529 --> 00:33:51.250 or so, you know, that's a real short window of 00:33:51.250 --> 00:33:53.650 opportunity for folks to get into the FM satellite. 00:33:53.869 --> 00:33:57.470 If you have the ability to move up to the analog 00:33:57.470 --> 00:34:00.970 satellites using Sideband or CW, I would recommend 00:34:00.970 --> 00:34:03.849 that you give that a try because there's just 00:34:03.849 --> 00:34:08.650 more spectrum for you to have success. There's 00:34:08.650 --> 00:34:11.329 a little bit more, you know, there's a little 00:34:11.329 --> 00:34:14.860 bit more tuning involved, and it's a little bit 00:34:14.860 --> 00:34:19.219 trickier because you have to find your downlink 00:34:19.219 --> 00:34:24.260 audio in the spectrum and the transponder, so 00:34:24.260 --> 00:34:26.019 that takes a little getting used to to be able 00:34:26.019 --> 00:34:29.679 to find how your transmitted signal on the uplink 00:34:29.679 --> 00:34:31.679 corresponds to the downlink frequency, and you 00:34:31.679 --> 00:34:35.039 have to have two radios to do that. But if you 00:34:35.039 --> 00:34:39.039 can get past that hurdle, making QSOs on the 00:34:39.039 --> 00:34:42.699 sideband satellites like FO29 and some of the 00:34:42.699 --> 00:34:45.199 Chinese satellites that were launched recently, 00:34:45.340 --> 00:34:48.960 the XW series of satellites, it's much easier 00:34:48.960 --> 00:34:53.639 to actually complete a QSO on a sideband satellite 00:34:53.639 --> 00:34:57.500 during periods of heavy usage than it is on an 00:34:57.500 --> 00:35:01.909 FM satellite. So if all you have is FM, Go for 00:35:01.909 --> 00:35:03.550 it, try some of those tips that I just talked 00:35:03.550 --> 00:35:06.010 about. If you have the ability to do sideband, 00:35:06.349 --> 00:35:08.650 I think that you will have a higher rate of success. 00:35:09.570 --> 00:35:14.670 But you could even just do FM with a simple little 00:35:14.670 --> 00:35:19.829 dual band handheld. I often go out with a simple 00:35:19.829 --> 00:35:23.469 dual band handheld and I use a directional antenna 00:35:23.469 --> 00:35:26.349 called an arrow antenna. It's a handheld Yagi. 00:35:26.570 --> 00:35:29.030 It's three elements on two meters, seven elements 00:35:29.030 --> 00:35:33.869 on 70 centimeters. Just using a five watt HT 00:35:33.869 --> 00:35:36.590 and that antenna and I can make FMQSOs through 00:35:36.590 --> 00:35:40.090 the SO50 satellite on a regular basis. And you 00:35:40.090 --> 00:35:43.150 can even use one of those real cheap handheld 00:35:43.150 --> 00:35:46.409 radios, couldn't you? If you get one of those 00:35:46.409 --> 00:35:56.809 dual band Balfangs, I think you could do it Okay, 00:35:56.889 --> 00:36:03.090 I finally talking me to say if you don't know 00:36:03.090 --> 00:36:05.769 anytime somebody says the word Balfang we've 00:36:05.769 --> 00:36:08.690 got the the Balfang clip from the spree submissions 00:36:08.690 --> 00:36:12.539 band which Shawn's the drummer for and and so 00:36:12.539 --> 00:36:15.519 that doesn't enter the billboard top 10 ,000 00:36:15.519 --> 00:36:19.699 any day now any day now absolutely Have you got 00:36:19.699 --> 00:36:24.380 that royalty check yet from? From yeah, yeah 00:36:24.380 --> 00:36:26.659 three -tenths of a penny. I don't know where 00:36:26.659 --> 00:36:31.519 I'm gonna spend it Wow there you go so Yeah, 00:36:31.719 --> 00:36:35.980 anyway, that's the Balfang story. So Get out 00:36:35.980 --> 00:36:38.440 there. Give it a give it a shot We've got a few 00:36:38.440 --> 00:36:41.460 minutes left if you want to call in eight one 00:36:41.460 --> 00:36:44.719 two six three eight four two six one which spells 00:36:44.719 --> 00:36:49.400 eight one two net ham one or You can Skype us 00:36:49.400 --> 00:36:57.690 or tweet us at ham talk live So get your calls 00:36:57.690 --> 00:37:00.909 in we're running out of time here. We have about 00:37:00.909 --> 00:37:04.130 six minutes left. So Now it's time to call if 00:37:04.130 --> 00:37:08.150 you're gonna call Remind us a little bit about 00:37:08.150 --> 00:37:13.030 the field day locator of the field day locator 00:37:13.030 --> 00:37:17.670 is a Really great tool. You can you can post 00:37:17.670 --> 00:37:20.250 your feel your clubs field day sites on the field 00:37:20.250 --> 00:37:24.900 day locator so that people who are looking for 00:37:24.900 --> 00:37:28.260 a place to operate can search by state. They 00:37:28.260 --> 00:37:31.159 can look it up on the map. It's a Google Map 00:37:31.159 --> 00:37:34.320 interface. So it's a way for your club to promote 00:37:34.320 --> 00:37:37.449 your field day effort on Google Maps. It gives 00:37:37.449 --> 00:37:40.769 you an area to provide your address where you're 00:37:40.769 --> 00:37:43.489 going to be set up, your talk -in frequency, 00:37:44.030 --> 00:37:46.170 your website address or phone number if people 00:37:46.170 --> 00:37:49.030 need to, so people can contact you and get more 00:37:49.030 --> 00:37:52.409 information. And if you are an operator that 00:37:52.409 --> 00:37:56.329 is looking for a field day site to join, then 00:37:56.329 --> 00:37:58.869 all you got to do is look up on the field day 00:37:58.869 --> 00:38:01.630 locator site and type in your location and you 00:38:01.630 --> 00:38:04.809 can find any number of field day sites that are 00:38:04.809 --> 00:38:06.820 close to you. So it's a it's a wonderful tool 00:38:06.820 --> 00:38:09.739 and you can find that on the field You can find 00:38:09.739 --> 00:38:12.119 a link to that on the field day website, which 00:38:12.119 --> 00:38:19.579 is www .arrl .org slash field day all one word 00:38:19.579 --> 00:38:23.760 Okay, there we go. So you can find a location 00:38:23.760 --> 00:38:31.639 nearest you so 812 -638 -4261 is the phone number 00:38:31.639 --> 00:38:36.719 or Skype or tweet We've got time for one call 00:38:36.719 --> 00:38:43.300 if you can get that in or tweet. What are some 00:38:43.300 --> 00:38:48.900 of the most common scoring mistakes that people 00:38:48.900 --> 00:38:53.809 make that they should watch for? I would say 00:38:53.809 --> 00:38:58.730 one of the biggest scoring mistakes is simply 00:38:58.730 --> 00:39:02.630 computing the bonus points incorrectly. There 00:39:02.630 --> 00:39:04.690 are a lot of bonus points options out there. 00:39:04.730 --> 00:39:08.010 Everything from the social media and the safety 00:39:08.010 --> 00:39:10.769 officer that we just talked about. the number 00:39:10.769 --> 00:39:15.110 of youth operators that you can have. You get 00:39:15.110 --> 00:39:17.969 a bonus if you have a person on your team that 00:39:17.969 --> 00:39:21.849 is 18 years or younger. The go to station points 00:39:21.849 --> 00:39:24.730 can be a little confusing to some folks. So anytime 00:39:24.730 --> 00:39:27.849 you're dealing with issues of bonus points, make 00:39:27.849 --> 00:39:30.489 sure you read the rules and make sure that you're 00:39:30.489 --> 00:39:32.989 computing your bonus points correctly. And of 00:39:32.989 --> 00:39:35.110 course, if you ever have a question about that, 00:39:35.210 --> 00:39:37.789 if you're trying to fill out your score summary 00:39:37.789 --> 00:39:41.000 sheet so you can submit into us so we can print 00:39:41.000 --> 00:39:43.219 your results. If something's a little confusing 00:39:43.219 --> 00:39:45.460 to you, by all means, just give us a call. We 00:39:45.460 --> 00:39:50.860 have operators standing by for your call. And 00:39:50.860 --> 00:39:54.940 you can also drop us an email too, fieldday at 00:39:54.940 --> 00:39:57.199 a double rl dot org. We'd be happy to answer 00:39:57.199 --> 00:39:59.059 your question. We'd rather answer your question 00:39:59.059 --> 00:40:01.719 and clarify things for you before you submit 00:40:01.719 --> 00:40:04.820 your score to us rather than have to tell you 00:40:04.820 --> 00:40:10.230 that there's an error in your score. rather than 00:40:10.230 --> 00:40:11.849 tell you that there's an error in your score 00:40:11.849 --> 00:40:13.730 after you've already submitted it. So if you 00:40:13.730 --> 00:40:16.369 got a question, just let us know. There's another 00:40:16.369 --> 00:40:22.130 common one is the multiplier factor between low 00:40:22.130 --> 00:40:25.929 power and QRP power. It's a common misconception 00:40:25.929 --> 00:40:30.559 that... that if you're running QRP, you automatically 00:40:30.559 --> 00:40:33.820 get a multiplier score of five. And that's not 00:40:33.820 --> 00:40:36.800 true. In order to get the five times multiplier, 00:40:37.019 --> 00:40:39.139 you not only need to be running five watts or 00:40:39.139 --> 00:40:42.719 less, but your power source cannot be commercial 00:40:42.719 --> 00:40:46.519 mains and it cannot be a motor driven generator. 00:40:47.219 --> 00:40:50.139 So that means that you're usually talking batteries 00:40:50.139 --> 00:40:53.500 as your power source. or one of the alternative 00:40:53.500 --> 00:40:56.539 power sources, such as solar or wind power, something 00:40:56.539 --> 00:40:59.960 like that. So the five times multiplier is a 00:40:59.960 --> 00:41:03.019 very, very common issue that we see. Just because 00:41:03.019 --> 00:41:05.880 you're running QRP does not mean that you automatically 00:41:05.880 --> 00:41:10.219 qualify for the multiplier factor of five. All 00:41:10.219 --> 00:41:13.260 right, good stuff. And the other thing you mentioned 00:41:13.260 --> 00:41:16.900 that we might talk about is the VHF UHF station. 00:41:17.159 --> 00:41:21.010 Oh, yeah. That is a freebie for class A and F 00:41:21.010 --> 00:41:27.369 stations. The VHF station is a great way to get 00:41:27.369 --> 00:41:31.030 more exposure to the VHF portion of the band. 00:41:31.550 --> 00:41:35.630 Six meters, two meters, all the way up to 440 00:41:35.630 --> 00:41:40.010 if you're living in a population center. Six 00:41:40.010 --> 00:41:42.369 meters has been really, really good this year 00:41:42.369 --> 00:41:45.230 and if sporadic E propagation opens up on six 00:41:45.230 --> 00:41:48.929 meters, then that would be a great way to get 00:41:48.929 --> 00:41:51.630 a whole bunch of free points because the VHF 00:41:51.630 --> 00:41:54.690 transmitter doesn't count against your main transmitter 00:41:54.690 --> 00:41:58.349 category. So if you're, say, for example, 3 alpha, 00:41:58.989 --> 00:42:02.530 you can set up a dedicated VHF station on 6 meters 00:42:02.530 --> 00:42:05.829 and 2 meters and still stay in the 3 alpha category. 00:42:05.929 --> 00:42:07.869 It doesn't count against your transmitter class. 00:42:08.449 --> 00:42:11.289 So if Sporadiki opens up on 6 meters, that's 00:42:11.289 --> 00:42:14.699 a great way to earn a bunch of free points. All 00:42:14.699 --> 00:42:17.460 right. Well there we have it folks. It's Sean 00:42:17.460 --> 00:42:22.219 Kutsko KX9X from ARRL the public relations manager 00:42:22.219 --> 00:42:25.780 and formerly the contest branch manager and and 00:42:25.780 --> 00:42:28.739 so we'd like to thank you for coming on the show 00:42:28.739 --> 00:42:34.869 and talking to us and Letting us know about all 00:42:34.869 --> 00:42:37.829 those tricky scoring questions and everything 00:42:37.829 --> 00:42:42.090 and look forward to hearing you on this weekend 00:42:42.090 --> 00:42:46.289 and you will be operating as I will be a one 00:42:46.289 --> 00:42:49.909 Bravo station this year. Actually I'm I have 00:42:49.909 --> 00:42:52.670 a wedding party that I have to attend but I'm 00:42:52.670 --> 00:42:54.670 not involved in all of it So I'll be bringing 00:42:54.670 --> 00:42:57.670 some QRP gear and some satellite gear with me 00:42:57.920 --> 00:43:01.719 And I'll be setting up in a there's a nice little 00:43:01.719 --> 00:43:04.079 park right across from the hotel where though 00:43:04.079 --> 00:43:05.960 the wedding party I'm going to be at in. So listen 00:43:05.960 --> 00:43:10.809 for KX9X 1 Bravo Connecticut. Alright, very good, 00:43:10.809 --> 00:43:15.670 and I'll be operating with my high schoolers 00:43:15.670 --> 00:43:20.010 and we're joining up with the Indiana University 00:43:20.010 --> 00:43:24.630 group, so we'll be under K9IU. So if you hear 00:43:24.630 --> 00:43:29.070 K9IU, it may be me, we'll see. So Sean, thanks 00:43:29.070 --> 00:43:32.309 so much for coming on the show and thanks to 00:43:32.309 --> 00:43:34.949 everybody out there for listening and calling 00:43:34.949 --> 00:43:38.510 in and we invite you back next Thursday night 00:43:38.510 --> 00:43:42.440 at 9. PM Eastern Time when Jim Wilson K5ND will 00:43:42.440 --> 00:43:45.940 be here and he's going to talk about this year's 00:43:45.940 --> 00:43:50.019 Boy Scout Jamboree on the air and Jamboree on 00:43:50.019 --> 00:43:53.340 the internet and for a list of all of our upcoming 00:43:53.340 --> 00:43:56.699 guests you can find that over at HamTalkLive 00:43:56.699 --> 00:44:01.019 .com as well as a picture of Flat Hammy. Don't 00:44:01.019 --> 00:44:03.980 forget take pictures with Flat Hammy this summer 00:44:03.980 --> 00:44:09.289 from your field day or from a ham fest or vacation, 00:44:09.289 --> 00:44:13.130 wherever. We'd love to see your pictures with 00:44:13.130 --> 00:44:15.789 Flat Hammy, so you can get that on our social 00:44:15.789 --> 00:44:19.949 media sites or on the schedule page over at HamTalkLive 00:44:19.949 --> 00:44:23.949 .com. So for now, this is Neil Rapp, WB9VPG, 00:44:23.989 --> 00:44:31.300 saying 7375, and may the good DX be yours. Thanks 00:44:31.300 --> 00:44:46.159 for watching!