MORE HAMS IN INDIAN STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH
JIM/ANCHOR: Speaking of young amateurs on the air, a whole lot of new
young licensees are keying their mics in India. For that report, we turn
to John Williams, VK4JJW.
JOHN'S REPORT: There's nothing academic about the new amateur radio club
that's been established on the campus of the SRR and CVR Government Degree
College in Andhra Pradesh, India.
For one thing, there are 73 new licensed hams on campus, following a
recent exam that followed formal lessons given there. The new amateurs
include professors, students, lecturers, and others, according to a report
in The Hindu newspaper.
The 73 new hams are part of a growing community in the state of Andhra
Pradesh, according to Arza Ramesh Babu, VU2RDM, who also coordinates the
Ham Radio Training Centre. To help support that expanding community in the
state, he was also the leader of an amateur radio seminar held on the 12th
of July, and attended by about 150 hams, who were hoping to learn more
about advances in technology and its impact.
The increasing numbers in the state are seen as an encouraging sign.
Barely three years ago, a report in the Times of India quoted the National
Institute of Amateur Radio in Hyderabad as counting barely 1,000 licensees
in both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, with even fewer of them even
possessing radio equipment.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm John Williams, VK4JJW.
(THE HINDU, TIMES OF INDIA)
**
BICYCLING HAM GEARS UP FOR QSOS
JIM/ANCHOR: Imagine combining some daily Dxing with a leisurely bike ride.
Paul Braun, WD9GCO, caught up with one radio amateur, who doesn't have to
imagine that at all. Here's his story.
PAUL: Fresh air and exercise can be good for you. So can ham radio. What
about putting them all together??? John Webster, N6JW, did just that. He decided
to combine working HF with bicycling, and has been very successful
at it. He said it started by staring at a mountain bike that was in the
shed, and thinking:
JOHN: Let me see if it's possible, since I had an Elecraft KX-3, to have a "keep
it simple" setup, and do a little bit of HF bicycle mobile
operations. So what I ended up is the absolute minimum, initially using
the internal battery with the radio mounted on the handlebars - you know,
the trail-friendly style of the KX-3 makes it possible to put the whole
radio right on the handlebars - put a Hamstick on the back, and discovered
that in fact, the steel frame of the bike acted as an excellent
counterpoise for 20 meters, 17 and 15, I haven't really tried 10, and I do throw
out a wire if I'm stationary on 40 just because the size of things.
PAUL: Webster loves to work DX while biking, and he's done rather well.
In fact:
JOHN: My best DX has been a long-path contact with VK6LC, Mal, in Western
Australia, and I know it was long-path, because he turned his beam, and I
lost him on the short-path. And I turned the wick down to five watts -
and it's actually recorded on my QRZ.com page - and worked 15,500 miles
from a bicycle.
PAUL: If you'd like to learn more about how Webster's setup works, or are
interested in trying it yourself, he invites anyone to check out his N6JW
QRZ.com page:
JOHN: Yes, you can get a couple of pictures, they're welcome to use my
N6JW@arrl.org email and contact me. I'm happy to try and give some
assistance.
PAUL: Webster and his wife are avid bikers, and he's on the air from the
bike quite a bit. Keep an eye on the spotting sites, and you may end up
with a very interesting QSO.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Paul Braun, WD9GCO.
**
CANADA'S 'CONFEDERATION LIGHTHOUSE' SPEAKS TO THE WORLD
JIM/ANCHOR: As date for the International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend
gets closer, amateurs on Prince Edward Island are especially proud to be
participating from a location that's as old as Canada itself. Kevin
Trotman, N5PRE, has those details.
KEVIN'S REPORT: Canada's East Point Lighthouse on Prince Edward Island is
known as the Confederation Lighthouse, the sole survivor of the two built
in 1867, the year Canada itself was established. Like Canada, it is marking
its 150th year. Now, the lighthouse will be gaining another distinction. It will
be the location from which hams will operate on August 18th during the
International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend. It will be among as many as
500 lighthouses in 40 nations around the globe, giving their best effort to make
the most contacts possible over the course of 48 hours that weekend.
The lighthouse will operate with the call sign VY2PLH.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Kevin Trotman, N5PRE.
(GEORGE DEWAR VY2GF)
**
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