AmateurRadio.com

I had a real good time during the 1st Annual Skeeter Hunt today, although the outlook appeared bleak from the very beginning.  Just as I was heading out the door to go to the park, our vacuum cleaner decided to give up the ghost.  It made a real funny noise and a burning smell.  I tried troubleshooting it quickly; but it turned out we needed a new one.  Of course, my XYL didn’t want to wait; so it was off to Target to buy a new one.

That chore taken care of, I headed to the park (dressed in my WGØAT “Old Goats Rule – QRP Adventures” T-shirt!) – nearly an hour and a bit into the contest.  Fortunately, everything after the vacuum cleaner incident went as smooth as butter!

The weather here in Central NJ was gorgeous!  A high of about 84F with sunny, blue skies and lots of white, puffy clouds.  The humidity was not bad, and the only Skeeters that I had to worry about were the ones on the airwaves.

The wrist rocket got a line up over a pretty high tree branch on my first attempt.  The PAR antenna went up without any trouble at all and and didn’t even cause the KX3’s autotuner to even so much as burp – 1:1 SWR on both 20 Meters and 40 Meters.  The little box to the right of the KX3 is the PAR matchbox.  I used my Whiterook single lever paddle today.  And of course, you can see Ol’ Blue, my battery, up there in the upper left hand corner of the camping table.

And the good SWR on 20 and 40 was a very good thing, because unlike the Flight of the Bumblebees, I was to find a lot of activity on 40 Meters.  In fact, a little after 20:00 UTC, 20 Meters became dominated by European stations and I was barely able to hear any Skeeters on that band after that point.

In all, I managed 28 QSOs – 13 were on 20 Meters and 15 were on 40 Meters.  Best DX was working Mike DJ5AV from Germany on 20 Meters at 18:55 UTC.  I only got a 529 from him; but there were a lot of strong signals on both bands and I received quite a few 579s to 599s in addition to the “normal” 559s.

Tear down was just as easy as set up.  After the contest ended, I was able to pack up things and be out of the park in less than 10 minutes.

I would like to thank all of you who took the time to participate in this first ever NJQRP Skeeter Hunt.  I think a good time was had by all; and this will definitely become an annual Summer QRP event.

Remember, logs are due by September 12th, after which I will post results.  Log summaries are fine – details of each QSO are not necessary – but if you want to send a log in that way, that’s OK, too!  And any pictures, especially those of you who home brewed keys for the event will be greatly appreciated!

I’ve gotten a few logs in already and I hope to get many, many more.  In fact, Jim W1PID, posted another of his great stories today – this one about the Skeeter Hunt:

http://www.w1pid.com/skeeter/skeeter.html

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

There’s still time to get a number for the Skeeter Hunt, if you are so inclined.  I will honor any request e-mailed to me by 0400 UTC Sunday (12:00 Midnight Saturday).

The weather here in Central NJ is supposed to be sunny with a high of around 87F.  Hope you all get a chance to participate – and even more so ….. hope you all have fun and enjoy the event!

Remember, if you’re going to claim credit for the homebrew key bonus, you have to send me a photo of your key along with your entry.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

Courtesy of my good friend George N2JNZ, who sent it along with his Skeeter number request e-mail:

As of tonight, we are up to 93 brave souls who have volunteered to be Skeeters for the inaugural NJQRP Skeeter Hunt this August 12th.

You don’t have to have a Skeeter number to participate – but it’s way more fun to have one!  Get yours by e-mailing yours truly at [email protected].

Two places to view the rules:

http://w2lj.blogspot.com/p/njqrp-skeeter-hunt.html

and

http://www.qsl.net/w2lj/

Still plenty of time to get a number, so don’t be shy!  Was there something that you did during FOBB that you would like to try and improve upon for next year?  New antenna?  Different location?  Different key?  Use the Skeeter Hunt as a “proving ground” – we certainly don’t mind!

The goal is to get up, get out and have some fun with that gear that you’ve built (although the use of commercial gear is certainly not discouraged). Come out and play!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

The official Web presence for the NJQRP Skeeter Hunt will be:

http://www.qsl.net/w2lj/

Pardon how it looks for now.  I’ll be working on it soon; but right now, helping my two harmonics with their science fair presentations is taking precedence.

It looks pretty crude as of right now; but hopefully I’ll be able to figure out how to make it more elegant looking by the end of the week.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

Questions about the NJQRP Skeeter Hunt have been filtering in. Here’s some answers:

Question – “I have a question that you or someone else may have the answer to. At one time, several years ago wasn’t there a transmitter project that was called a ‘MOSquito’? It possibly was a transceiver. If I recall it was in one of the magazines, CQ, 73, or Ham Radio.”

Answer – I think you’re thinking of the Miss Mosquita – The DL QRP Project still has that kit available:
http://www.qrpproject.de/UK/missmosquita.htm

Question – “Do I have to be a resident of NJ to get a NJQRP number?”

Answer – I’m assuming you mean a Skeeter number. Certainly not!  Anyone worldwide, who desires a Skeeter number can have one.  And as far as I know, NJQRP numbers are still given out when you join NJQRP – anyone can join that fine organization, also.  For the record, W2LJ’s NJQRP number is 47.

Question – “Any thought about multiop or multi multi stations? A couple of us are thinking of a cookout and contest afternoon.”

Answer – No, I hadn’t, but it sounds like a cool idea to me!  Want to get a group together and have a cookout and get some radio in?  Sure!  All I ask is when you submit your log, to list the operators who participated.   Of course, this will be considered a separate operating class – but no problem with that.  I will make note of it when I update the rules.

Question – “You’ll probably need to add some clarification on the “Kit” points. Some of the other “homebrew” contests are not counting modular kits like the K3 and KX3 as homebrew anymore, does this contest?”

Answer – This might rankle a few purists. But as far as I am concerned, for the Skeeter Hunt, here’s the definition of “kit built”. The operator’s hands were involved in more than 50% of the building of the kit. Solder need not necessarily be involved. If you built a K3 or KX3 with your own hands, it counts. If you finished a kit (half of it or more, I will let the entrant judge that for himself) that someone else started, it counts. If you’re using a PFR3A or a KX1 or whatever and you didn’t build it yourself? Consider it commercial equipment. The idea here is to have fun and not get too trapped in the details. The honor system will rule – there will be no checking.  If anyone homebrews a key or paddle for the Skeeter hunt, please send a photo with your entry!

Question – “I am assuming it is ok for skeeters to operate in the field for the event?”

Answer – That’s the whole idea!  Get out with your gear, get on the air and then share your tale of adventure with the rest of us!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

The NJQRP Club is announcing a new summertime operating event – “The Skeeter Hunt”.  The objective is to get QRPers out of their shacks for the day; and into the fresh air and sunshine, to spread their wings and fill the airwaves with “Skeeters”.  While commercial equipment can certainly utilized, bonus points will be awarded for those who personally home brewed their own or kit built their own equipment (equipment not built by the operator would not count as either home brewed or kit built – it would be considered commercial equipment).  The inaugural event is to be held on Sunday August 12th.  It will be a four hour sprint – from 17:00 UTC to 21:00 UTC (1:00 TO 5:00 PM EDT).

 The theme for this year is “My favorite outdoor place”.  You are encouraged to operate from your favorite outdoor place and tell us about it in your Soapbox comments.

Stations who wish to be designated as “Skeeters” can get a Skeeter number by requesting one by sending an e-mail to [email protected]  Skeeter numbers would be issued from May through the day before the event.

Station Classes and Multipliers
X1 Home stations – commercial equipment
X2 Home stations – home brewed or kit built equipment
X3 Portable station – commercial equipment
X4 Portable station – home brewed or kit built equipment

Portable stations cannot use permanent antennas, i.e you can’t work from your backyard, hook up to your dipole or tower and yagi and be considered a portable station. Also, portable stations cannot be connected to the local power grid – alternative energy sources must be used – solar, battery, wind, etc.

Suggested Call – Either CQ QRP or CQ Buzz

Exchange –
Skeeter Stations – RST, S/P/C, Skeeter number
Non-Skeeter Stations – RST, S/P/C, Output power

Mode – CW
Power – 5W max

Scoring –
Working a Skeeter Station – 2 points
Working a non-Skeeter Station – 1 point

Total score equals the number of QSO points times the number of S/P/Cs worked on all bands (stations can be worked on multiple bands for QSO points and S/P/C credit) times the multiplier for station class.

Bonus points – design and home brew a key or paddle specifically for the event and earn an extra 1000 points.

Suggested frequencies:
The QRP “Watering Holes
80 Meters ~ 3.560 MHz
40 Meters ~ 7.040 and 7.030 MHz – also consider using from 7.114 to 7.122 MHz for a “slower” speed CW area.  We want to have everyone involved!
20 Meters ~ 14.060 MHz
15 Meters ~ 21.060 MHz
10 Meters ~ 28.060 MHz

These are suggested starting points, of course. Feel free to spread out and give your “Skeeter” wings a chance to do their thing.

Logs, photos and soapbox comments can be sent to [email protected] no later than 30 days after the event.  Certificates will be issued to the top scorers of each category as well as others to be determined.

A table of call signs and issued “Skeeter” numbers will appear on a separate page on this site.

Hope to hear and work all of you during this new event. Special thanks to the NJQRP club for their sponsorship!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!