[Elecraft] ECN Report for 18 Dec 2006

[Tom Hammond]

Hi Folks:

Last night's propagation left a bit to be desired... actually, it 
left a WHOLE LOT to be desired...!  Here's the dreary report...

ECN 20M 12/18/2006

N0SS      TOM       MO        K2/100    0008
K6DGW     FRED      CA        K2/100    4298
AC7AC     RON       OR        K2        1289
NK6A      DON       CA        K2/100
WA7BOC    ROGER     WA        K2        0755
W3MC      MIKE      MD
N7NLU     KARL      OR        K2        1663
VE3XL     RIC       ON        K2        0968

Thanks to Fred, K6DGW for pulling Mike, W3MC, out of the background 
noise. When Mike first attempted to QNI, I had my beam on the west 
coast, but Mike was still 569. However, by the time I went back to 
Mike (after checking-in N7NLU) Mike's signal had gone into the 
dumpster... even when I'd turned the beam back east, I was hearing 
only a peep from Mike... Fortunately, Fred was dogged enough to catch 
Mike's call after several repeated attempts. By the time the net was 
over, Mike was back up to 579/599 status... go figger.

To those on the east coast, and ANYWHERE other than the west coast, 
we really DID try to find you... I called with the beam in all 
directions, and Fred called several times as well... just no 
discernible responses. on 20M.


ECN 40M 12/18/2006

N0SS      TOM       MO        K2/100    0008
KT5X      FRED      NM        K2        0700
KT5E      JAY       CO        K2        5037

40M was even worse!!!  I managed a nice pre-net QSO with Fred, KT5X, 
and then, had it not been for Fred and Jay (KT5E), I'd have been all 
by my lonesome... at least as far as I could hear. I called and 
called, but to what appeared to be a nearly dead band. And I had 
virtually NO BACKGROUND NOISE to speak of, so it wasn't because of 
interference... but to absorption...!

Oh well, there's always NEXT WEEK...!

THANKS to those of you who were able to check into the nets.

For those of you who might be concerned about Kevin and his 
well-being following the horrible winds the Pacific Northwest has 
experienced... here are a few comments from an e-mail recently 
received from Kevin...

   Date: Sun, 17 Dec 2006 22:13:04 -0800 (GMT-08:00)

   Just got phone service an hour ago. I am now running off
   battery power through an inverter. I have over a thousand
   messages to wade through via webmail. I am running a laptop
   which does not pull mail from the server.

   I am OK, rattled to the extreme, but OK. It took quite a while
   to stop shaking after the tree fell a few feet from where I was
   sitting. I was in the strongest part of the house and to
   windward. The tree limbs were flying over that part of the
   house but not at the windows. None were broken. Drywall and
   broken branches exploded through the new room and the rest of
   the house. Every few feet there was a hole through the roof. If
   I'd have been anywhere but where I was I most likely would have
   holes in me too!

   Power may be back on by Thursday. I have not found the other
   end of the broken G5RV or the tree which was supporting it. If
   the trees were not in straight lines I would say we had been
   hit by a tornado. Hundreds of trees are down on my twenty
   acres. The four Trojan T-105 (backup batteries) started at 12.7
   volts. They are down to 12.2 volts now after booting a desktop
   unit to tranfer files to the laptop and running the IC-706 for
   comms. I still have a J-pole up so I got my nephew to help me
   limb the hemlock and cover the roof with plastic. Luckily the
   wind and rain came to an end. It has snowed but that is not as
   bad.

   The water I had standing by in five gallon buckets froze but
   that simply made it easier to transfer into the bathroom. I
   used a pan to transfer the top few inches in the toilet tank
   and the poured to the fill line. I've run out of back up water
   so am going to a beaver pond tomorrow to steal some of their's.
   I don't think they will mind because their pond is spring fed.
   I'll get a few more days of flushing water. I have cut my way
   down the mountain and have gotten more supplies. I did heat
   some water on the wood stove for shaving and washing.

   I hope to be back on the air but if priorities push the antenna
   launch date off that is the way it goes. If I get power this
   week it will ease my burden. Sure is nice to have Internet
   contact again! I will stay in touch and keep you apprised of my
   progress.

   Any ideas on who to call to lift off the hemlock
   tree?

   Kevin.

73,

Tom   N0SS