[PVRCNC] PVRCNC-East September Report

[NX9T at aol.com]

PVRCNC-EAST Chapter Report

PVRCNC-EAST's regularly scheduled gathering took place on Thursday, September 
7th, 2006.  Those in attendance were: W4KAZ, Keith; NX9T, Jeff; W0UCE, Jack; 
KE4GY, Frank; K2AV, Guy; AD4L, Pete; N4TL, Tom; W4MY, Marty; N4YDU, Nate; 
N4PY, Carl; AL4T, Brad; NT4D, Jay; N4GU, Mike; K4CIA, Bill; and K1ZW, Larry.

Due to K4QPL's trip to Europe, NX9T and W0UCE quickly found out what it takes 
to maintain order of such a "ruly" bunch.  A couple members reported working 
Jim during a short burst of HF operating while in "G" land.  A few general 
announcements were made, specifically relating to the excitement of the new Hot 
Operator Award, and we quickly moved on to member reports:

KE4GY: Frank described how he has been using a code key device that 
translates his sent keyer sent code in to key strokes on the computer keyboard.  He 
uses this at work daily.  Frank is also currently using a Delta Loop at home and 
is working on a beverage.  

K2AV: Guy has been busy replacing his shack computer.  He advised that he is 
"finally" switching over to N1MM and has reconfigured some of the wiring in 
the shack.

W0UCE: Jack, now sporting the moniker "Rod" has been driving in massive 
numbers of ground rods in hopes of fending off future lightening strikes.  He 
offered sage advice about renting tools from larger home supply retailers...watch 
out!  He rented a hammer drill but after determining the rods were not driving 
in properly discovered that what they gave him for his rental was actually a 
standard drill.  Much wasted time and energy!

N4TL: Tom bagged a few new DXCC countries recently.  He also has just 
returned from a trip to New York where he attended an antique radio show.  Since 
returning home, Tom has reconfigured his VHF antenna feedlines.

W4KAZ: Keith traveled to Louisiana and operated a little during the NAQP.  He 
has also finished up a K9AY loop. 

N4YDU: Nate operated in the IOTA contest in July to the tune of 550 Q's and 
commented on how strong Asia was coming in on 20m.  He is a high school teacher 
and is starting a ham radio club!

N4PY: Carl has recently moved to the mountains of North Carolina (big gain 
for N4YDU as he took over Dad's former QTH and well equipped antenna farm).  He 
has antennas up and a new observatory in operation now.

AL4T: Brad has been very busy with projects.  In addition to "filtering up" 
his MP, he has been working on an 80m vertical with 32 elevated radials and a 
K9AY loop.

NT4D: Jay was active in the NAQP (both modes) as well as WAECW.  He mused 
about how he totally enjoyed the WAECW outing.  Jay is working on numerous 
projects and station repairs.


N4GU: Mike made his first official meeting with the NC-East gang.  He's a 10 
year veteran of PVRC and has taken up residence in eastern Wake County.  
Welcome Mike!  We're glad to have you with us.

AD4L: Pete advised that he has a complete Rohn 45 tower system for sale (80 
feet).  Although he has missed the recent contests, he remains hopeful for the 
future.  He is quite busy these days pursuing a Phd. in mathematics.   Pete is 
heading up a special PVRCNC 10 year anniversary program for October.

W4MY: Marty has been off the air lately but has grown his tower now to 73'.  
He has an XM-240 and C3 ready to go on top soon. Marty is also in the process 
of installing a new HF mobile set up.

NX9T: Jeff operated during the NAQP (SSB) and enjoyed being back on the air 
after a period of radio silence for most of the summer.  He is preparing to 
finish up his new 160m Inverted L.

K4CIA: Bill's big news involved his WIN in the ARRL DX SSB contest in the QRP 
category.  Great job Bill! 

K1ZW: Larry has a second tower up now which is sporting 13 element 2m and 23 
element 432 yagis.  He recently replaced his main rotor.

This month's Paper Contest involved solving an antenna installation problem.  
NT4D came up with the highest scoring solution and took home the prize, a 
3-wire circuit analyzer.  

W0UCE led the group in reading over a list of suggestions and techniques to 
"Combat Fatigue."  Many useful ideas surfaced from the handout and ensuing 
discussion.

The October meeting will be a SPECIAL EVENT!  We will be celebrating the 10th 
anniversary for PVRCNC.  Please try to attend this unique evening on October 
5th, 2006.  

 A plea: In preparation for next month's meeting, please forward any fond 
memories, experiences, or observations involving N4AF to Jack, W0UCE.  Contact 
Jack directly for more information.


73, 
Jeff NX9T