[SOC] Fox Hunt, by Invitation Only this Summer! Read this...

[Lloyd Lachow]

   The dreary days are almost gone, even here in the
Northeast, where gloom has been reigning for weeks.
The reigns are stopping, the glory of late Spring
turning into Summer begins, and to celebrate, we lucky
few have the 20 Meter Summer Fox Hunt. By Invitation
Only. All QRP ops are invited, and that means y-o-u.

   The website for this contest is here:

         http://www.cqc.org/fox/index.htm

   The Hunts will be on Sundays, from 2200-2329Z. It's
a new (and shorter!) time slot, and will result in,
hopefully, better conditions for all.

   This Sunday, Jim, N0UR, and yours truly will be the
Foxii.  One of us will be below 14.060, one above.
Usually we'll be 2-3 kHz above/below, allowing for
QRM.  We'll be working split, that is, we'll be
listening to Hounds from 1-3 kHz above our frequencies
(sometimes below). Hounds should take note of this,
and try to avoid transmitting much closer to the Fox
than 1 kHz.

   The Foxii will call "CQ FOX," or "QRZ FOX," or some
such. Hounds should then send their call, listen, and
resend in a few seconds if the Fox doesn't start
working someone. The Fox will usually send the Hound's
call at the beginning and end of his transmission, as:
"W1AW TU 559 MD LLOYD 5W W1AW BK,"  after which the
Hound will reply sort of like this, "W1AW 559 CT HIRAM
5W BK." The Fox will then acknowledge, or ask for
fills. An acknowledgement may be something like, "TU,"
or "TU E E," etc. Then, the Hounds may once again
begin baying out their calls. If the Fox does need to
ask for any fills, no other Hound should transmit
until the Fox acknowledges he's got it all.

   Please send all your info only once; the Fox will
ask for fills if necessary.

   Besides being just a huge amount of fun, the Hunts
allow us to learn and perfect our operating skills. As
in all ham radio, and especially in QRP ops, the
chiefest skill is listening. If you listen, you'll
know when it's time to send your call, and when it's
not. If you're not sure what's going on, or what the
Fox is doing, don't send your call in hopes you'll get
lucky...you wouldn't know if you did, anyway! 

   I'll be using my K1 into a 200' longwire up about
20'. There may well be a Truffle, handed out by a
Flying Pig, for the 15 minutes prior to the start of
each Hunt, which gives a chance to warm up your keys
and ears. The rules for hunting Truffles are similar,
except tthe Truffle will be sending his Flying Pig
number, rather than his power. See details at:

      http://www.fpqrp.com/pighunt2.html

   Good luck, happy hunting, and...have fun!!!
     

=====
73, 72 es oo, Lloyd, K3ESE  -  Reisterstown, Maryland
   multiPIG+ #14 - K1 # 00379 - 20/40M Rock-Mites      
   Hunk o' Wahr - Begali Magnetic Classic Paddles
   ARRL - ARS #1301 - QRParci #11147 - FISTS #8774
         FPQRP #476 - QRP-L #2415 - SOC #530 
                 Fun = Skill / Power !

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