FLASH: It Feels Good - Thanks To Everyone !!!

Sadie's Race Communications Support

(Purcellville, Virginia, June 2, 2012)   The race and kid's events were held in memory of Sadie Ablard to raise money for Smile Train. This event was a kids run and walk, followed by the 5K run. I have been told that this will be an annual event.

We arrived on site at 0630 on Saturday, May 12, 2012, with registration being at 0700 and the event starting at 0800. The three of us were finished and on our way home by 0945. The three spots we covered were Shadow the Race Director, Registration and the one rest area. When the registration desk closed we then moved to the Kids play area and petting zoo. There were no instances that involved our expertise.

Loudoun Amateur Radio Group supplied radio support for this event.  Read More

This is KS1G Bicycle Mobile

(Purcellville, Virginia, April 23, 2012)   Steve Greene - KS1G made a wonderful presentation on his decade-long experience with developing a practical and effective bicycle mobile station to the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group on Saturday, April 21, 2012.

Steve traced his station's evolution from a simple VHF-UHF bicycle mobile operation starting around 2003 to a fully capable VHF-UHF-HF bicycle mobile station

How about 122 QSOs in the 2012 Virginia QSO Party!

Read More

The 2012 LARG - K4LRG Field Day Committee
                                 The Chairman's Report

(Purcellville, Virginia, April 10, 2012)   The first meeting for the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group's 19th K4LRG Field Day Committee was held at the Purcellville Library Wednesday, April 4, 2012, starting at 7 PM. Thirteen members were present.

Gary started the meeting with a short presentation that he put together for the members to contemplate our past performance and what the goals are for the 2012 LARG Field Day.

The first order of business was to determine where we would have our Field Day exercise for 2012. Gary brought up the idea that several members had suggested that we go to Morven Park this year. A motion was made to not go to Morven Park and a good discussion followed with the pros and cons of going to Morven Park this year for Field Day. The motion was carried 11 yea to 2 no. Gary Quinn then indicated that he would set up a meeting with Judy to survey Morven Park as a possible site next year. He would ask Jay Ives and Chris Painter to go with him on the survey.

There was then a discussions and vote on whether to stay in the category of 5A for this Field Day. The vote was 12 yea to 1 no to stay in the 5A category.

The meeting was then spent gong over the Organization Table for this year's Field Day effort. A number of members at the meeting volunteered to fill empty positions. Please refer to the 2012 Organization Chart at:

http://www.k4lrg.org/Field_Day/2012/2012_FD_Organization.html

Please contact me if you would like to fill one of the empty slots.

Discussions around the GOTA station and how to improve this years effort ensued during the organization table discussion. One item was the getting youth to come to our Field Day site and there was mention that Bob Rodrigues may be a good contact for the Blue Ridge Middle school (Apparently there is a radio club at Blue Ridge) and the boy scouts. Concern was expressed that Rick Miller would not be here to merge all of the logs after Field Day is over. I let the members at the meeting know that John Westerman and Rick were to get together and Rick was going to let him know the procedure of how to merge the logs. Discussion also concerning signing up members for two hour operating blocks this year ended with John Unger volunteering to do the log sign up process. There was also discussion regarding relief operators and how well that worked last year and if we could we would do it again this year.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:54 PM for the closing of the Library.

I am in the process of setting up the next meeting which will be at John Westerman's home so that we can discuss logistics and station equipment and antennas. The group requested a Saturday morning meeting.

If you read the organization chart above there are individuals who were not at the meeting who were volunteered for positions. Please let me know if you cannot fill that slot. Especially Randy, W4XJ, Chris, W3CUM, Dennis, kF4TJI, and Merc, N4TGA.

73 NC4S, Gary
Chairman, 2012 K4LRG Field Day Committee

READ MORE

The Battle of Ball's Bluff - 2011 Reenactment

(Purcellville, Virginia, February 25, 2012)   Introduction By Luther Guise - K5NOB, 2011 President, Loudoun Amateur Radio Group  On the 21st day of October 1861 the Battle of Ball's Bluff took place in Loudoun County, Virginia, between the town of Leesburg and the Potomac River.

It was notable for being a battle in which the only U.S. Senator in American history was killed in combat.

One hundred and fifty years ago the hams weren't there but they were for the sesquicentennial. Responding to a request by the Morven Park Event Coordinator, the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority and the Loudoun County Fire, Rescue, and Emergency Management Special Events Coordinator to provide communications support for the event, the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group (LARG) went in to action.

Besides a battle reenactment at Ball's Bluff Regional Park, the approximately 1,000 Civil War re-enactors were required to complete a mile long trek across US Route 15, along hilly unpaved farm roads and cleared woods from their bivouac area at Morven Park to the battle site at Ball's Bluff.  READ MORE ABOUT IT including a special collection of photographs by Gene Carnicom - KD7IAV and a special video by Bryan Stephens - KG4UPR.

2012 Technician License Training Class Report

On Friday evening January 13 and Saturday January 14, 2012, a Technician Class amateur radio operator class sponsored by the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group (LARG) was held at the Winmill Carriage Museum on the historic grounds of Morven Park in Leesburg VA. The purpose of the class was to:

1) Assist local Boy Scouts in earning the Radio Merit Badge, and

2) Familiarize all attendees with the material which could be covered in the Technician Class amateur radio license exam.



The VEC exam session will be held on Saturday January 21, 2012 in Morven Park's Hofmann Building at the Equestrian Center.

Five Boy Scouts and 10 adult trainees participated. The class was taught by instructors Henry Weidman (K2BFY), Jay Greeley (KI4UTB) and Bob Rodriguez (KJ4NXG).

ARRL produced Power Point and film clip presentations were used as the backbone training materials for the class. The Power Point material "teaches to the test" by familiarizing class attendees with the ~400 questions in the item (test question) pool, from which 35 are used in various versions of the Technician Class License exams.

LARG member (and trainee) Judy Wodynski provided the Morven Park training site and served as the training class hostess. Additional LARG members Norm Styer, Paul Dluehosh, Jay Ives, Sean Sheedy and others supported class logistics.

Serving as the BSA Radio Merit Badge Counselor, trainer and LARG member Bob Rodriguez will continue to assist those scouts who desire to complete their merit badge requirements, which include a mock QSO and a visit to a (ham) radio station.

 






Respectfully submitted, Bob Rodriguez - KJ4NXG

Radio Merit Badge and Amateur Radio Exam Training
Winter 2012 Tech Training Class

Click For PDF Version
Click For Printable MS Document Version

To "Be Prepared" means being able to communicate with family and friends during an emergency. One way is to have an amateur "ham" radio, and a license to operate it. Earning your BSA Radio Merit Badge takes you well on your way to becoming licensed as a "ham" radio operator.

A free Loudoun Amateur Radio Group (LARG) sponsored class is being held this Friday evening (January 13th) and Saturday (January 14th). The class is designed for anyone desiring to take the required FCC exam to operate on amateur radio. There is no fee for the class, and all responsible youth and adults are invited. Scouts who attend can all but complete the requirements for the Radio Merit Badge by bringing the Radio Merit Badge worksheets and a signed Blue Card with them. Download the Radio MB worksheet at: http://meritbadge.org/wiki/images/1/10/Radio.pdf A BSA Radio MB Counselor and other LARG members will help scouts with their worksheets and with requirement #7.

Class Details:
"Technician Class" license exam preparation training is being held this Friday and Saturday at Morven Park's Winmil Carriage Museum off of Old Waterford Rd. on Southern Planter Lane in Leesburg. The Morven Park Mansion and Winmil Carriage Museum address is: 17263 Southern Planter Ln., Leesburg, VA 20176. Go here for directions: http://www.morvenpark.org/directions.php
The training class runs from 6:30 PM until 9 PM on Friday, and 8:30 am until 4 PM on Saturday. The Friday session will be repeated at 1 PM on Sunday.

There is no fee for the class, but attendees should either bring a lunch or $5-$8 for carry out which will be ordered during Saturday's class. Please note: There will not be time for leaving and returning to Morven Park during the lunch break. LARG will supply bottled water.

Attendees can be dropped off at the Winmil Carriage Museum, however there is no parking at the museum itself. Park in lot #3. Signs to the "LARG Class" will be posted and a ride to the Museum (about 2-3 blocks walk) from the parking lot will be provided before class (please be prompt).

The 35 question "Technician Class" amateur radio license exam will be given at Morven Park on the following Saturday (January 21st). A donation of $15 is requested for taking the exam. All exam questions can be previewed on-line, and practice exams can be taken on the Internet without cost. Learning Morse Code is NOT a requirement. (A 7 year old girl recently earned her license!)

Please refer to LARG's website under "Ham Training" for the latest info at http://www.k4lrg.org/Training/index.html or have them email bob.rodriguez85@gmail.com .

14th Annual LARG Holiday Party

(Purcellville, VA. December 20, 2011)  The Loudoun Amateur Radio Group held its fourteenth Annual Holiday Dinner on Saturday, December 10, 2011 at the Harmony Hall in Hamilton, Virginia. There was great fellowship and lots of fine food. It was so nice to see so many old friends.

Nancy Dluehosh - N1NCY of Leesburg arranged the invitations and dinner selections, John Unger secured the Harmony Hall, and Marcy Brown encouraged Nancy.

Bob Rodriguez - KJ4NXG of Round Hill and fellow members of the Chorus of the Old Dominion entertained us with great inspiring holiday songs.

We recognized John Unger - W4AU for his outstanding performance in the 2011 Virginia QSO Party with a new All Time Commonwealth-Wide High Score as Virginia Single Operator CW. See below. We held our Outstanding Member of the Year Ceremony. This year the Outstanding Members Committee selected Luther Guise - K5NOB of Leesburg. Luther, thanks for all you do. See below. Paul Dluehosh did an outstanding job on selecting gifts and running the door prize program. There were five special radio winners - congratulations. And, the Fifty-Fifty Drawing was valued at $72.00. All forty plus of us will remember this outstanding evening of fine entertainment, fine food, fine gifts, and fine fellowship. Thanks to all who helped pull this one off !!!    READ MORE

Luther P. Guise - K5NOB
     Selected Outstanding Member for 2011

(Purcellville, VA. December 10, 2011)  The Loudoun Amateur Radio Group hereby recognizes the outstanding contributions of Luther P. Guise - K5NOB of Leesburg, Virginia, for his outstanding support, attention to detail, invaluable dedication and excellent stewardship of the LARG as 2011 President, and the 2010 Vice-President, selfless Captain Duty for K4LRG Field Day, and outstanding coordination and management of Balls Bluff Battlefield Re-enactment Support.

The Group thanks Luther for his steadfast net manager performance for the every growing LARG Sunday Night 2-Meter FM Net. He is also recognized for his valuable support to the Leesburg Air Show Communications Support, the many Reston Century rest station and SAG support operations, and Leesburg First Night Public Service operations, and his participation in the LARG Berryville Hamfest Campaigns.    READ MORE

Spi-Ro T-40 Traps in a Multiband Dipole
                                   By Paul Bock - K4MSG

 


(Purcellville, VA. December 7, 2011)  Following a recent experience with a multiband trap dipole that failed due to a mechanical problem in one of the traps, I decided to create a new antenna using a different type of trap. The antenna that failed used Unadilla KW-40 traps, the mechanical design of which lends itself to failure if the plastic housing on which it is built fails by cracking apart, as happened with mine.

My initial thought was to design and build a new trap but I happened upon Spi-Ro Manufacturing, a company that sells antennas, antenna accessories, parts, etc. Among their products are antenna traps intended for multiband dipoles and one of them, the T-40, is for use in an 80/40 meter dipole that can also operate on 20, 15 and 10 meters with "somewhat higher VSWR."

Although more expensive than Unadilla traps ($76/pair versus $52/pair), the mechanical design seemed more robust so a pair was ordered.

Photo 1 illustrates the T-40 trap. The electrical components are housed inside a 7.25-inch length of 1.25-inch OD PVC pipe with PVC end caps glued on. Connections are made to threaded brass fittings on each end which carry 10-24 brass screws. A close-up of the wire connection to the brass fitting is shown in Photo 2. The trap has a design frequency of 7 MHz and is rated at 600 watts. 

READ MORE OF PAUL BOCK'S ARTICLE

Loudoun ARG To Support Reston Century
2011 Op Plan & Maps Available - Click Here

Reston Bicycle Club Communications Support Operation. August 21, 2011.
 (Purcellville, VA. July 31, 2011.) The Reston Bicycle Club's 29th Annual Reston Century on Sunday, August 21th will featured as many as 1100 bicycle riders visiting Loudoun County. The Loudoun Amateur Radio Group will provide public service assistance and emergency communications support to this annual operation with primary support to the riders.

This is a real operation. Folks find themselves in all kinds of situations out on the roads and trails. Emergency support from the Loudoun Emergency Services are often called upon. Over the years more than one rider was evac'd and at least one rider lost  his life. Our support is important.

This operation will begin before dawn and will have our capabilities spread throughout Loudoun County. All available LARG members are asked to support this operation. There will be a FM Voice Fixed and Mobile Net, an FM VHF-UHF Crossband Repeater, an FM APRS Digi-Repeaters System, APRS Mobile Stations, SAG Shotgun Communications Riders, Bicycle Mobile Route Riders, and a Central Net Control Station to coordinate our support. This year the support system has been expanded with an additional Rest Stop in Lovettsville and an additional, 5th, SAG Vehicle. There is more than enough for everyone. See Gary Quinn's initial announcement and request for support and track planning at QST de K4LRG.

To volunteer and support this operation please contact Gary Quinn - NC4S - Assistant Emergency Coordinator - Loudoun County - ARES at nc4s@loudounwireless.com. Our operation will be much like the 2010 operation. This will be our 12th Reston Century Support Operation; prior operations are reported at  K4LRG.ORG - Public Service .

Loudoun Amateur Radio Group   
     Operators Focused On 2011 Virginia QSO Party

LARG Makes Manassas - 2011

OPERATION: GEM CITY
or another adventure to the Hamvention in Dayton, OH by Luther Guise - K5NOB

K4LRG/B Flight 2009A Video
Receives Honorable Mention

(Purcellville, VA. April 4, 2011)   In February 2011, the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group submitted their video of the launch of K4LRG/B Flight 2009A to the first ever ARRL Video Contest.

This was an amateur video contest with dollar awards for the first four winner.

The ARRL received 30 submissions and announced their selection on April 4, 2011:

Announcing the Winners of the ARRL Video Contest

Here are the winners -- and two Honorable Mentions -- of the 2011 QST Video Contest

Appearing in the K4LRG/B Flight video at the Launch Site:
Tom Dawson - WB3AKD, Round Hill, VA.
Suzanna Grobbel - XYL of WB3AKD, Round Hill, VA.
Jim Stowers - K4FW, Sterling, VA.
Chris Elmer - KD8MEZ, Shepherdstown, WV., from Shepherd University.
Gene May - WB8WKU, Ashburn, VA.
Two students from Shepherd University's Near-Space Group.
Thanks to everyone who helped pull this one off.  A full report on K4LRG/B Flight 2009A is available HERE.

Service Report on W4DLS Repeater

(Purcellville, VA. February 26, 2011)   Executive Summary:   We found and replaced a missing bolt in the mounting sleeve of the antenna on the 145.31 repeater and it vastly improved the receiver behavior. Please start using it and report your observations to me at ai1v arrl.net. This was a team effort of Frank, KØBRA, Craig, N4FSC, and myself and was a very satisfying troubleshooting experience. Those interested in the details can read on...
       Details: This afternoon, Frank (KØBRA) and I went up to the 145.31 site. We had done some experiments in the past week and also consulted with Craig (N4FSC) to formulate some theories on why the receiver seemed so poor and plan our troubleshooting approach. The theory we thought most likely was that something mechanical on the roof in the vicinity of the antenna was turning the transmit energy coming out on 145.31 into energy in the receiver pass-band at 144.71, and interfering with the real received signal. Read More Of The Service Report - It Includes Several Videos. The fix was short lived and Frank Gentges - KØBRA returned on March 1, 2011, and applied another fix to the antenna mounting unit. His report is integrated into the above report.

LARG Balloon Flight Operations

At the February 19, 2011, Loudoun Amateur Radio Group's Monthly Meeting, Rick Miller - AI1V of Reston presented a program on the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group's Balloon Operations.

This is an outstanding presentation and was quite informative to all. Many more members are now getting ready for our next Flight or Fox Hunt.

This presentation was originally made to the Escondido Amateur Radio Society of California by Rick in early February, 2011. Rick says this club is also gearing up to "FLY."

This presentation is available here. For an Adobe PDF File Format - Click Here.

The video at Slide 22 is large - 70 MB. Start the download in WMV Player then come back to it when it starts playing.  A standalone copy of the video of the launch of Flight 2009A is available here.

ARRL 2010 Bill Leonard, W2SKE, Professional Media Award
Awarded To Washington Post Reporter
For 2010 K4LRG Field Day Coverage

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., January 31, 2011)   Allen Pitts - W1AGP, Public Relations Director for the ARRL, has advised us that our nominee, Phillip Lucas of the Washington Post won this year's Bill Leonard Award! The ARRL Board of Directors' selection reported in part: "While a staff writer for The Washington Post, Phillip Lucas covered the 2010 ARRL Field Day with the Loudoun (Virginia) Amateur Radio Club in his article "Loudoun Radio Fans Dash to Test Their Skills." Members of the ARRL's Public Relations Committee felt that Lucas captured the essence of Field Day by showing operators trying to make contacts across a variety of modes and conditions. The article was picked up by wire services, appearing across the globe. Lucas now works at The News Journal in Wilmington, Delaware."

The following link has more details on the ARRL award:

The 2010 Bill Leonard, W2SKE, Professional Media Award - Print/Text

Mr. Phillip's article is available here.  A full report on the 2010 LARG K4LRG Field Day is available here.

Congratulations to Randy - W4XJ for his great work as Field Day PR Captain.

Best Regards, Doug - KJ4BRN
LARG - K4LRG 2010 Field Day Chairman

First Night Leesburg - December 31, 2010

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., January 10, 2011)   The Loudoun Amateur Radio Group and Loudoun Amateur Radio Emergency Service volunteered twenty-three members and friends to Leesburg before sunset on New Year's Eve, December 31, 2010, for the annual public service communications support operation for First Night Leesburg. Jay - KI4TXP had published an Operation Plan that provided instructions, procedures, and guidance; further, an On-The-Air 2-Meter Coordinating Net was conducted two nights before deployment. Eighteen operational sites throughout downtown Leesburg were supported by our super communicators. The central control was established on the second floor of 1 East Market Street. Communications were conducted on a 442-MHz simplex radio frequency and the WA4TXE Leesburg Repeater was monitored as a secondary circuit. Site support communicators used hand-held transceivers equipped with headsets and separate microphones.

         The main duty was to conduct a site head count and forward it to net control at quarter past the hour. The peak total counts occurred at 8 and 9 PM when they was well over 2000 and some sites reported turning hundreds of folks away. The weather was nice and it was a quiet night with mostly site head counts being the only traffic. Though our support personnel were available to assist in other ways. The communication operation closed by 11:30 PM and many were home to see the New Year's Ball drop in Times Square on television.

         First Night Leesburg is a wonderful family event for the young and the old. Some estimate that over sixty percent were mom and dad with their kids. We all thank the families, churches, and shopkeepers of Leesburg for hosting this remarkable event. First Night Leesburg is coordinated by Bluemont Concert Series, the Cultural Spirit of Our Communities. First Night ® is a registered trademark of First Night Inc., P.O. Box 208, Leesburg, Virginia 20178.   READ MORE.

LARG Supports 28th Reston Century Across Loudoun

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., January 12, 2011  -  Finally A Report On K4LRG.ORG) This was the 28th Annual Reston Bicycle Club's Century Ride on the trails and roads of Loudoun County. Again, this was a big event with as many as eleven-hundred riders traveling across Loudoun County. See RBC Stat Report. Riders chose between a 34, 62 or 100 mile route with the longer ones going deep into the heart of Western Loudoun County.

Again this year, the Loudoun County Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) and the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group (LARG) provided on-site and on-route communications support for this operation. This was our eleventh year supporting the Century Ride.

Gary Quinn - NC4S, Assistant Emergency Coordinator for Loudoun ARES coordinated with the Reston Bicycle Club and led this communications support and directed the communications operations from his home station near Waterford, Virginia. On August 17, 2010, Gary - NC4S issued the Operations Plan that was published on K4LRG.ORG and at 1900 hours, August 19, 2010, there was an on-the-air coordination net to finalize planning. We met on-the-air on WA4TXE - 146.700 MHz Repeater.    READ MORE

2010 Leesburg Air Show - Public Service Communications

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., November 14, 2010) The annual Leesburg Executive Airport Air Show was held on Saturday, October 23, 2010.

It featured experimental aircraft and other static aircraft on display in addition to local and national aerial artists. The evening ended with the Annual 1940's Hangar Dance sponsored by the Commemorative Air Force (CAF).

For the first time, the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group provided on-site supplemental back up communications support for the show with emphasis on parking and crowd control, and of course, back up support communications for air field and flight safety.

As many as 15,000 visitors were expected. Amateur radio communications among the several sites was provided by 440-MHz handheld radios. Thirteen members supported this operation.

This report along with his initial operations plan is provided by Jay Ives - KI4TXP of Lucketts, Virginia. Photographs are by Luther Guise - K5NOB of Leesburg, Virginia. 

   READ MORE

Riley Hollingsworth - K4ZDH on the Amateur Radio Service

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., October 20, 2010)  A Living Legend spoke to the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group in October 2010.


Mr. Hollingsworth's address is all inspiring and is a great tribute to the American Way, our Amateur Radio Community and to Mr. Hollingsworth's outstanding service to the Nation.


He has allowed us to share his remarks.


We encourage everyone to take some time off and listen to this very remarkable spokesman for Amateur Radio.

His remarks are Here, or, via our Public and Community Service Section.

The YLRL & YL's of the LARG

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., September 28, 2010)  There are over a dozen Young Ladies in the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group. They participate in every aspect and every activity of our Group.

On August 21, 2010, Nancy Dluehosh - N1NCY and Carol Boehler - KF4TJJ presented a truly outstanding program about the Young Ladies Radio League, founded in 1939, at our monthly meeting. Both Nancy and Carol have attended YLRL's National Conventions and their presentations on their League and it's activities was an eye opener for all the OM's.

To encourage more radio activities by and to assist the Young Ladies of the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group, Nancy - N1NCY announced and has begun conducting a LARG Young Ladies' Communications Net. The weekly net currently meets on Monday nights at 7 PM local time on the WA4TXE/R Repeater on 146.700 MHz.  This net time and day may change as the YL settle in on an operating schedule. Check the latest net schedule here. All Young Ladies are invited and encouraged to participate.

The Loudoun Amateur Radio Group is very proud of all their Young Ladies. We all know we couldn't do half the stuff we get involved in without their outstanding support. They are QRV - "33" 

READ MORE ABOUT THE YLRL

The 2010 Berryville Campaign

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., September 11, 2010)    At 0515 hours it is still O-Dark-Thirty. We had a nice 8-unit convoy out of the old IGA parking lot in eastern Purcellville at 0520 hours local. Tom - WB3AKD was unit 8 who joined as we moved by Round Hill. Gary Quinn - NC4S was point and Tom - WB9RXJ was trail. 

We were some of the first units there and they were upon us as we parked under the tall trees in the eastern end of the Clarke County Fair Grounds. It didn't take long to part with the good stuff. Gary - NC4S and Tom - NA4MA cleared everything by 1030 hours. If you need a nice radio then this is the place to shop around.

           There were many - like at least twenty-six - Loudoun Amateur Radio Group current and past members who stopped by to say hello. Read More About Berryville 2010

LARG Makes Manassas - 2010

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., July 18, 2010)    It was a busy Spring 2010 but some were planning for this campaign. It's O-Dark-Thirty at F & L Plumbing south of Leesburg. By 0520 hours we had 6 units moving south with Dave - KE4S at Point and Rick - AI1V as Trail. We stayed on 147.48 MHz in case other wanted to join us. By 0555 hours we closed on the gate but they weren't ready to well after 0600. One or two set up in the tailgate area while K3CN and AI2C located their reserve table to display the gear from N4SSN.

     It appeared that there were more tailgaters than customers. But by noon, most of the N4SSN stuff was gone. And, there were some really nice old stuff but not all of it was amateur radio related. Many of us ate a lot. They have a big breakfast capability. At 1000 hours, we all took in the 2010 Virginia QSO Party presentation by Gordon - Miller - NQ4K. For Norm - AI2C, it was nice receiving his fifth high single operator award since 1998. This was his best effort with 1500 QSOs. We closed down the N4SSN table by 1330 hours and were home by 1500 hours. It was nice riding with you all. Best Regards, Norm - AI2C
 Read More About Manassas 2010

The Pilgrimage: Dayton 2010

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., July 18, 2010)    The Pilgrimage: The anticipation is high and it's a long ~450-mile drive through West Virginia and across Ohio; finally, there are signs.

     Several Loudoun Amateur Radio Group members made the annual pilgrimage to Dayton this year. Some drove and then went on to other cities and events. A member was reported visiting on Saturday after flying out in his POA - Personally Owned Aircraft. Those attending could not remember who. Anyway, John - W4AU drove with Gary - NC4S and Norm - AI2C as Shotguns. Nancy - N1NCY and Paul - N4PD, Sally - K4NOB and Luther - K5NOB, and Marcia - KJ4GYH and Dodson - AJ4EY were there. Maybe there were others. Oh, yes, our very good friend with the Propagation Xtal Ball, Lee Wical - KH6BZF attended. It was great to have another Eye-Ball QSO with Lee. Some stocked up on antenna and other small parts while others ordered up some big ticket items like a new Alpha. Of course, most made it to the Contest Dinner and the DX Dinner. Gary - NC4S and John - W4AU even won a few door prizes. This year, the DX Dinner's prize list topped $50,000. Everyone get lucky.
 Read More About Dayton 2010

The Great Little Fox Hunt of 2010
as reported by Denny Boehler - KF4TJI

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., June 1,, 2010)    Following the smallest LARG meeting I can remember on Saturday, May 15, 2010, LARG's smallest fox hunt commenced. There were only two hunters, Denny, KF4TJI and Doug, KJ4BRN. We decided to ride together. Doug moved his equipment to my truck. I set my radio to the fox's frequency, 145.560, and we were off.

We headed west on Rt.7 listening as we went. When we got to Rt. 601, I went south a ways. Doug was curious about the location of the Bluemont repeater, so I drove past it. Then I headed north on 601. No hint of a fox anywhere. Since I did not want to end up in West Virginia, I called Tom, WB3AKD, to check with him. This was supposed to be the easy fox. While talking to Tom, I realized the fox frequency was 145.650, not 145.560! Tom suggested we head back toward Leesburg.

Just east of the Hamilton exit, Rt. 704, we got a strong signal from the fox, but had to go to Rt. 9 to exit. If I had put the right frequency in, we would have found the fox much sooner! We drove back on old Rt. 7 and stopped to get bearings just north of Hamilton. The bearings pointed about 30 degrees. Within three blocks the signal disappeared. We drove a loop north and west of Hamilton without hearing the fox. Then we decided to try the road which parallels Rt. 7 just north of it. There we got a strong signal. We drove back to Rt. 704 and parked near the W&OD. We had no signal from that location. Doug headed west and I headed east on the W&OD. After walking over a quarter mile, I got a faint signal. When it improved a bit, I called Doug on the balloon frequency to tell him I had a signal. He had already started heading my way.     Read More of Denny's Report Here

Successful K4LRG/B Flight 2009A

(Purcellville, VA., December 17, 2009)  The Balloon Committee of the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group conducted a very successful launch, tracking and recovery operation of its K4LRG/B Flight 2009A on Sunday, October 25, 2009, in northern Virginia and Maryland. Preparations began in earnest in early August.

We flew two payloads 1) the Tom - WB3AKD K4LRG/B 145.650 MHz CW Beacon and 2) the Mike - KJ4KGB APRS Rocket Altimeter. Mike flew his package in preparation for a high altitude rocket flight scheduled for the southwest United States in 2010 or 2011.

We launch from Harrisonburg, Virginia and recovered the payloads east of Poolesville, Maryland. Launch was at 0932 hours eastern with a 1500 gram balloon. Burst was at 1050 hours at about 95,334 feet. Lost Of Signal (LOS) was at about 1135 hours and recovery teams were on site around 1200 hours. At least twenty-three individuals from several organizations participated in this flight.

Tom Dawson conducted several sessions with the Near Space and Beyond Alliance - A Working Group for Space Explorers - at Shepherd University in West Virginia including assembly of the altimeter payload and the flight train. Several Shepherd University students participated in the launch and they also traveled to the recovery site. Chris - KD8MEZ's Shepherd University's People and Websites is here. Chris Elmer describes preparation for and the Flight LARG-SUNSBA-1 here. He has photographs of the launch and recovery. Several have been incorporated into this report.

News about near space activities in local universities is available here.

Mike - KJ4KGB is associated with the Maryland Delaware Rocketry Association Inc. (MDRA) . Mike - N2GEG is associated with high altitude rocket projects.  Information about Mike is available here.

READ MORE ABOUT  K4LRG/B  FLIGHT 2009A

June 2009 - Loudoun County Amateur Radio Month

County of Loudoun, Virginia
Board of Supervisors

Proclamation
Loudoun County Amateur Radio Month
June 2009

WHEREAS, Amateur radio operators have a long standing tradition of supporting their communities, responding to emergencies, and training the next generation of knowledgeable and experienced communications volunteers; and

WHEREAS, Loudoun County amateur radio operators have offered countless volunteer hours assisting with numerous local emergencies and supporting the Loudoun County Emergency Operations Center (EOC), the American Red Cross, including emergency efforts for hurricanes and on September 11th, 2001, the Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority, and the National Weather Service; and

WHEREAS, Loudoun County amateur radio operators routinely support local community events such as the Reston Bike Club- Red Cross Charity Bike Ride, the Bluemont Concert Series' First Night Leesburg, Lovettsville Oktoberfest, the March of Dimes Walk, the Loudoun County Mental Health Walkathon, Potomac Safety Day, Purcellville Safety Day, Sterling Crime Prevention Evening, and other events as requested by the County or individual groups; and

WHEREAS, The amateur radio community is made up of a diverse group of residents of all levels of experience and the community provides training and mentoring to amateurs on new technologies and lost arts, camaraderie and encourages community volunteer support; and

WHEREAS, Amateur Radio Month will acknowledge the contributions the Loudoun County Amateur Radio Group and other ham radio groups make to the County and local communities and will also promote the continued support of these organizations and their activities in the County; and

LET IT THEREFORE BE RESOLVED that the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors hereby recognizes June 2009 as Amateur Radio Month.

                                /S/ Scott K. York, Chairman                          /S/ Stevens R. Miller, Dulles District

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The Pilgrimage - Dayton 2009

(Purcellville, VA., May 18, 2009 - Reported and photographed by Paul Dluehosh - N4PD)   A few Loudoun Amateur Radio Group members made the annual pilgrimage to Dayton this year. Nancy - N1NCY and Paul - N4PD met a few from Loudoun County and some old friends and share these photographs.

Nancy picked up a new smaller VHF handheld transceiver. We don't know what Paul got yet. It maybe coming in by freight.

Luther - K5NOB and his newly licensed XYL, Sally - KJ4LWO, had a great time. And, of course, Dick - W2YE was there as usual. Maybe Buddy - K4CJB was also. At left: Sally Guise - KJ4LWO, Luther Guise - K5NOB, Don - W0DM - who sat with us while we all had some of that great Hamvention Pizza, Nancy - N1NCY, and myself. We hope more can make the Pilgrimage next year.  READ MORE

Sterling Park Crime Prevention Evening - 2009

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., January 16, 2009)  On Thursday, January 15, the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group participated in a special Crime Prevention Evening in Sterling Park with Loudoun County Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio. Representatives were present from DEA, US Postal Inspectors Service, State Police and Loudoun Sheriff's Office. Congressman Frank Wolf and some Loudoun County Officials were also present.

The subject was keeping the citizens of Sterling Park safe and covered gang-related issues, postal fraud, identity theft, etc.

Supervisor Delgaudio made a special point to tell the audience of over 100 people of the important role Amateur Radio plays in the safety of the community and commended our work to them.

We had a display in the foyer. Several people indicated an interest in ham radio and we even connected with a few that were lapsed hams.

A great big thank you to Frank - K0BRA and Meg - AI4UX for staffing this event with me.

Best Regards, Randy - W4XJ    (  Larger Photograph )

Successful K4LRG/B Balloon Flight 2008A

     (Purcellville, VA. July 20, 2008)  The Balloon Committee of the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group conducted a very successful launch, tracking and recovery operation of its K4LRG/B Flight 2008A Balloon Flight on Saturday, July 19, 2008, in northern Virginia. Preparations began in earnest in early July. Tom   - WB3AKD designed and built the flight package and launch hardware. Sean - AI4ID took over mission control duties and with a lot of help from all our members, they pulled off a nice flight tracking and recovery operation. Our preparations are recorded here. Throughout the week before launch, Tom monitored winds aloft and ran Balloon Track each day to determine the best launch site. Our target was west on the Blue Ridge in Clarke County and if necessary, Loudoun County east of the Blue Ridge. The Launch Team settled on a public park near Summit Point, in Jefferson County, WV.

        We deployed five tracking teams at sites which would look into the predicted flight path area. Norm Styer - AI2C was at Harpers Ferry, WV., Jay - KI4UTB was at Snickers Gap on the Clarke - Loudoun County line, Chuck - KE4IEO was in the south near Routes 17 and I-66. Denny - KF4TJI was on North Mountain west of Winchester and the launch team at Summit Point with Dave - KE4S also provided tracking data. We also had Charlie - K4LJH in Hamilton monitoring and recording the telemetry and assisting with bearings once the payload was down. Gary - NC4S assisted from his station north of Waterford and was the first to reach the LZ. Rick - AI1V provided reports of significant changes in the flight and 'punched in' all the CW telemetry data - now that's cool. Finally, many others throughout Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia and Pennsylvania monitored and sometimes provided observations. We appreciated them all. Mission control operations on the WA4TSC/R repeater on 147.300 MHz was very smooth, mostly well disciplined and got better as the flight continued. Jay - KI4TXP was the voice of mission control and ran a tight net. The MP3 3 minute plus MP3 audio clip was recorded, produced and provided by Dan - NE3Z from his home in Arlington, VA. This is cool and we hope you all enjoy Dan's work. You may replay with the control above.

The flight are nominal - almost perfect. Launch was at 9 AM and the tracking teams had no trouble copying the 600 milliwatts old Radio Shack transmitter signal on 145.650 MHz. It was so nice to hear perfect 20-WPM Charlie Whiskey. We flew with a very old 1993 600-gram balloon but it did make it to 70,000 plus feet before fatigue set in - it gets very cold up there and the material get very brittle. By 10:30 AM morning winds have picked up and after burst they carried it well into Loudoun County.

Recovery was a breeze. It's always nice not to completely lose the signal and in this case many continued to monitor the payload at 5-plus miles. It was in good health battery power wise. So, we quickly drove to within a mile or two and then with great luck spotted it in a tree in a backyard just off Taylorstown road in northeastern Loudoun County.

After the proverbial cut-down ceremony, we all adjourned to the Talk of the Town in Lovettsville for lunch. It was a nice flight. You may read more about this operation   -   Click Here .

Amateur Radio Emergency Service Members
Visit Loudoun County Emergency Operations Center

Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, VA., February 11,, 2008)  Members of the Loudoun County Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) visited the new Loudoun County Government Emergency Operations Center (EOC) at 801 Sycolin Road, S.E. Suite 100, Leesburg, VA 20175 on Wednesday, February 6, 2008. We signed in and gathered in the main Conference Room of an introductory briefing by Tom - WB3AKD, the Emergency Coordinator of Loudoun County ARES. Tom presented Kurt - KI4FWB of Lovettsville with a special achievement award.

       The recently opened facility is a spacious, modern communications and coordination room equipped with as many two dozen dual screen communications terminals. There are three wall-mounted multi-screen video displays. Every element of the county government has representation. All positions operate on the WEB-EOC system and have access to all in the EOC, the regional and the state-wide emergency communications networks.

       The central operating room is semi-harden with concrete block walls and staff, meeting rooms and support facilities surround the central operating room. Standalone uninterrupted electrical power for the entire facility is further backed up with on-site electrical generators. Additional information is available on the Loudoun County Government Internet Site.     READ MORE .

The Dual Foxes Of 2007

LARG Contesting 101

The Washington Dulles International Airport Emergency Exercise 2007

Communications Support Operations By Amateur Radio Emergency Service of Loudoun County and Other Northern Virginia ARES Entries

Amateur Radio Emergency Service Of Loudoun County, Virginia

Participate In Virginia Emergency Response Team Exercise 2007

W3ZI Multi-Multi Operation in the 2006 Pennsylvania QSO Party

Another eXtreme Adventure By The Guys and Gals Of The Loudoun Amateur Radio Group of Northern Virginia

(Loudoun ARG, Purcellville, Virginia - December 11, 2006.)    This year, with the encouragement and leadership of Bill - K8SYH, a group of eleven members of the Loudoun Amateur Radio Group of Northern Virginia organized and executed a Field Day style operation in the October 2006 Pennsylvania QSO Party. For many years, Bill - K8SYH had operated as a portable station in the PAQP from a campground in the rare Somerset County; John - W4AU had operated out-of-state from Virginia for many years; and Norm Styer -  AI2C, operated /3 from his family farm in Berks County in 2004 part time.

Originally, we thought it would be fun to mount a mini-M/M or M/2 operation from that same location in Somerset, but as interest was generated and it looked like we may have as many as a dozen operators, Norm - AI2C, generously offered to let us use his family farm in Berks for our 2006 PAQP operation. However, we were not going to have the luxury of just showing up and operating at a "real" M/M station. The only permanent antennas at Norm's farm are 40 and 80 meter dipoles.

The planning evolved over a couple of months, and we finally zeroed in on a M/M station with 5 HF rigs. Mark - W3ZI decided to accompany us and let us use his fine business callsign; that made things easier.

          Our team shown to the left were (front left - right) Norm Styer - AI2C, Chester - WA9LAZ, Tom - NA4MA, Mark - W3ZI, Gary - NC4S, (rear Left - right) Denny - KF4TJI, John - W4AU, Carol - KF4TJJ, BA - QM and Chief Cook, Bill - K8SYH, and Larry - K3HE. READ MORE