In this episode, we join Martin Butler M1MRB, Dan Romanchik KB6NU, Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT, Edmund Spicer M0MNG and Ed Durrant DD5LP to discuss the latest Amateur / Ham Radio news. Colin Butler (M6BOY) rounds up the news in brief and in the episode's feature is Radio Tips to Start 2023.

We would like to thank Kelvin Crocker (G1ZSE) and our monthly and annual subscription donors for keeping the podcast advert free. To donate, please visit - http://www.icqpodcast.com/donate

• 70MHz, 4 m band released in Switzerland
• German Hams - Temporary Band Access Extended
• An Award for Hams who Help Others Reach DXCC
• Bill to Replace Symbol Rate Limit with Bandwidth Limit
• Bill to Eliminate Private Land Use Restrictions on Amateur Radio
• Yaesu Discontinue Models
• Who says CW ops don’t have a sense of humour?→
• Malta Operation 2023
• Coronation of King Charles III
• UK Direct to Full Amateur Radio Exam Bookings Open
• ARRL Straight Key Night 2023

Ham College episode 96 is now available for download.

Extra Class Exam Questions – Part 34
E7D Power supplies and voltage regulators, Solar array charge controllers.

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YouTube

 Ready for another great year!

'The Communicator' digital periodical of Surrey Amateur Radio Communications is now available for viewing or download.

Read in over 145 countries now, with almost 10,000 downloads for the November-December issue, we bring you over 100 pages of Amateur Radio news from the South West corner of Canada and elsewhere. With less fluff and ads than other Amateur Radio publications, you will find Amateur Radio related articles, projects, profiles, news, tips and how-to's for all levels of the hobby.

You can view or download it as a .PDF file:  

Previous Communicator issues are at:

https://ve7sar.blogspot.com/search/label/The%20Communicator

and a full index is HERE.  

As always, thank you to our contributors, and your feedback is always welcome. 

The deadline for the next edition is February 15th.

If you have news or events from your club or photos, stories, projects or other items of interest from BC or elsewhere, please contact us at [email protected]

73,

John VE7TI

'The Communicator' Editor

A great way to close out 2022

 I can't say this year just flew by it was more like a consistent movement in the right direction. Once again for another year, we managed to avoid getting COVID. We are all up to date with our COVID booster shots, flu shot and our first dose of 2 of the Shingles shots. Very thankful for no major health issues in our family.

Let's move on to ham radio....my major hope at the start of 2022 was to move in a CW direction. I had worked very hard learning the code as it was a requirement when I went for my licence. I very much enjoy contesting and toward the end of 2021 I started to run in CW contests. I am pleased to say that I ran in the majority of the CW contests in 2022.  

The best way to learn is to do I always say so I did a nose dive into CW! Being confident in your CW speed is important when you want to run in major CW contests, I started small and fast! The CWops group has in my time zone 2 mini 1-hour contests a week held on Wednesdays. The minimum CW speed is 25wpm and up and I mean in some cases way up! For increasing your speed and more importantly your accuracy live CW work is the best. I do use computer programs like G4FON contest trainer but there is nothing like live training. 

My first CWops mini-test earned me 14 contacts and a score of 196. I was thrilled I copied that many calls and exchanges. In 2022 I took part in 61 mini CWops 1-hour contests and my best score was 54 contacts and a score of 2754. I am now consistently in the mid-50s to high-40s in contacts. In this contest I am still doing search and pounce and who knows what 2023 will bring maybe running in the CWop mini-tests?

A new 1-hour contest was launched on May 2 2022 called the MST or medium speed CW contest. The maximum speed is 25 wpm. This contest is run by ICWC and is held in my time zone on Mondays. This is a great contest for me to run in as it gets me real-time practice. I can run at a low relaxed speed (under 25 wpm) and I have taken part in 17 of these mini 1-hour contests. 

Finally, on Fridays and Sunday evenings the K1USN CW club runs a SST or slow speed test. The max speed here is set to 18 wpm and it is a 1-hour contest. This is a great contest for me as I can slow down and give back to upcoming CW contesters. 

In short, some of the 2022 VE9KK's ham highlights are:

- At the end of June, I finally migrated my blog from ve3wdmblogspot to ve9kkblogspot. 

- In the spring I purchased and installed a Hustler 4BTV vertical antenna. 

-I was asked to join the CWops group which requires 25wpm, being nominated by a member and sponsored by 3 other members. I was asked earlier in the year but I declined as at the time my contest speed met their speed but not my QSO speed and I wanted to make sure I had both before accepting a nomination. I did just that later in the year and received club member number 3265. 

- I entered 18 large CW contests and ran in all of them. My contest score improved over 2022 from 227 contacts and a score of 44,721 to my final large CW contest of 1,134 contacts and a score of 454,030. 

- It would seem I have all my RFI issues under control in the shack (famous last words). 

- One of my highlights is at the top of the post my CW count for 2022. My plan was to only operate CW for the year and that was done. I also had the most ever CW contacts in a year. 

So what are the plans for 2023 you ask well that is going to be another post as I have gone on way too long in this one?

Better than ever! 

Amateur Radio direction finding (ARDF), also known as Fox Hunting has become easier and more exciting using 80m. More and more kids are participating in our annual event and learning about radio. No transmitter, so no license required. 

See the 'How-to' video at https://youtu.be/YK3gETNc2jU

This is a project by Surrey Amateur Radio Communications in support of the hobby