[Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Announcement

[Kevin Rock]

Good Evening,
    First some old business: last week I checked in AB4Z but the real call  
is AD4Z (JULIO - AD4Z, HI3A, VP5VER).  Band conditions were not the best.   
I also listed a 7D.  That was KS7D, Michael.  I copied my call perfectly  
each time he sent it.  Please folks, send your call first because QSB may  
drag you down by the time you get to DE XX7X as it did for him.  I could  
just barely copy the 7D but never got the prefix.  Another partial on my  
list was GW.  I got the GW hail but once again QSB dragged K4DGW down into  
oblivion.  Since I have more than one GW I cannot determine who I am  
hearing.  If you want to use my call please use it when you are signing  
off; I already know it and send it quite often during the net.  I am  
trying to hear you and get as much information as I can before the  
propagation shuts down.
    This week has been chilly.  Enough so that I've had a fire in the stove  
three days thus far; I may light it again tomorrow unless we get a little  
sun.  Some nights the temperature has dropped into the low 40s while the  
highs have been in the low 60s to mid 50s.  There has been a little rain  
but that has been true every week so far this year.  Our normal dry season  
never happened.  I talked to the folks in the valley today and they were  
surprised with my weather reports until they remembered I am in a very  
different weather system than them.  Two thousand feet in elevation plus  
forty miles closer to the coast and within shot of the Columbia River  
valley weather system.  No wonder the trees grow like weeds!
    The Coast Range is much wetter than the next mountain range inland, the  
Cascades.  Stumps rot more quickly and the freeze line rarely gets below  
six inches deep.  I had never seen 'ice flowers' before I moved out here.   
Our Wisconsin winters had the ground freezing solid quickly and then  
thoroughly to six feet or more in depth.  Our roses had problems with the  
January thaws though.  You had to keep them covered so they would stay  
frozen or the roots would get sliced up by the ice crystals growing back  
after the thaw had passed.  Often it would turn from 40 or 50 degrees  
above to 40 degrees below zero within a few days.  Made life interesting  
indeed.  Folks out here have no concept of below zero weather.  This was  
brought home to me when the principal K2 designer explained the  
temperature settings for the amp's fan.  Having a cold ham shack is not an  
option in Aptos :)  I guess the Bay area weather does not have 0 degree  
Centigrade temperatures.  I have had my shack that cold a couple of  
times.  Having a lit candle to warm my fingers before sending was quite  
handy!

Please join us tomorrow evening to test the propagation.

  Tomorrow:

1) Hail signs  (first letter or two of the suffix of your call)
2) NCS help (as well as QSP/QNP <relay> help)

    Please join us:

Sunday 2300z (Sunday 4 PM PDT) 14050 kHz
Monday 0200z (Sunday 7 PM PDT)  7045 kHz

    73,
       Kevin.  KD5ONS

ecn.visionseer.com