Such an expedition with children in the snow can bring inspiration to a radio amateur. do not believe? If you take the road from Ilava to Prievidza, so you will cross a mountain pass Homôlka, a well-known center of winter and summer tourism, lying between the Strážovské vrchy and the White Carpathians, near the picturesque village of Valaská Belá. It also has an impressive view of the surroundings, which gave preconditions, that it could be a suitable VKV dimension.
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How to choose a location for VHF portable?
When selecting a location on OM VHF LOW POWER Contest I considered Považský Inovec JN98as and Portáš, JN99ch. I tried Považský Inovec in 2018 and it is a good quote, where, however, there are not ideal spaces for laptops because it is a very frequented area. Portáš uses OM3W, where they have a permanent workplace. And when vyskopis.cz showed, that of Homôlky JN98dv it could really go in substantial directions, so this time I went for a new dimension. The homolick is used by the OM3KOM game, radio club Dubnica nad Váhom. This is recognizable upon arrival at the top of the slopes.
Preparation of transmitting
After reconnaissance of the antennas (one spotlight broken) I'm unpacking my more modest setup. This is a big plus at races like the OM VHF LOW POWER Contest. All equipment can be taken on your own to most hills. He makes mine:
- 6he. YU7EF yagi antenna
- Kenwood TR-751E transceiver
- telescopic mast 4.5 m
- netbook with N1MM+ diary
- Pb batteries 12V 7Ah + 12Ah
- step-up converter for netbook 12V / 19In
It was a novelty YU7EF antenna. It appears, that the good rumors about this antenna are true. The antenna actually has a very clear radiation pattern. It is not necessary to log in to the computer on the portfolio, but still it has its advantages. Because the integrated battery does not last the whole race, so the step-up converter takes care of recharging.
I do not know why, but build a setup takes much longer than packing. But it was quite easy. Ready to broadcast 10 minutes before the start of the race, so even with a margin! After turning on the transceiver, a sputtering and crackling sound began to be heard from the speaker. Ufff! It took a while to find the author. To OM4CW at the bottom of the SSB segment he gave calls. The signal on the ear meter did not appear to be awakened, but he produced intermodulation products properly. Yuck!
At the same time good, that I'm on Portáš he did not measure the way. Right between the first connections I also do OM5ZW from JN98as. So good, that I didn't even go to Považský Inovec.
What connections are possible with QRP on VHF?
Connections increased continuously, the vast majority by searching. It didn't go well for the challenge. Two stations from Germany got into the log. The first one, DR1H was eventually ODX with distance 521 km. Besides, I've heard so far DM5TI and IQ3LX.
GridSquare 144 So many batteries
JN59 1 1 1
JN69 3 3 4
JN76 4 4 8
JN77 2 2 10
JN79 1 1 11
JN84 1 1 12
JN85 2 2 14
JN86 3 3 17
JN88 3 3 20
JN89 3 3 23
JN95 1 1 24
JN97 1 1 25
JN98 7 7 32
JN99 8 8 40
JO50 1 1 41
JO60 2 2 43
JO70 1 1 44
JO80 3 3 47
JO90 2 2 49
JO91 1 1 50
KN08 1 1 51
Total 51 51 51
You can really say, that Homôlka is a pretty good elevation. The technique worked, the power lasted. TNX and heard friends again!
