[ADXA] The Dangers of DX'ing

[w5zn at w5zn.org]

Since I was gone most of the summer I wasn't able to spend my usual time 
keeping things clean out in the field around the radial plates on my 160 
and 80 meter TX arrays. That was my project late yesterday afternoon. 
Underneath and around one side of the plate on the SE parasitic element 
of the 160 array was a big clump of dirt that had built up. So I just 
started dragging it out with my left hand to learn it was a big fire ant 
mound. It wasn't a normal ant hill, just dirt built up so I had no 
concern about it. Of course, if you've ever had any experience with fire 
ants you know they are faster and more vicious than a water moccasin 
when you're draining the pond. So my left hand was covered with those 
little bastards before I knew it and couldn't get them off fast enough 
before I had a number of stings. As a result I wound up with a swollen 
hand last night and still this morning.

So be VERY CAREFUL and observant during antenna work, even if you're on 
the ground!

Oh....what happened to the ants?? I keep a nice supply of BIFEN mixed in 
a one gallon spray rig. The ants are all SK now and the radial plate 
area is clean!!!!!

73 Joel W5ZN
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