AUGUST PSK EXPEDITION

August is just 3 weeks away.  Are you ready for an adventure?  This a perfect time to get away from home and do some radio operations.  It doesn’t have to be an elaborate affair.  The requirements are simple and are found at: http://www.podxs070.com/ape-august-psk31-expedition/ape-requirements

IMPORTANT:  The applicant should announce intentions to operate an APE at least 2 weeks before the operation to the PODSX070 club membership.  And send your plans including the following information to ape@... :  August date(s), callsign, 070#, QTH of ops, Time UTC of ops, band(s), any explanatory notes, and if your intention is to do an official APE.

For example:   My (KB3RAN) plans are to head to western Maryland to Green River State Forest and do some dispersed camping at about 1000’ elevation from Aug 1 through 5.  I’ll be operating on 20 and 40 meters PSK31 in the afternoons and evenings EST (1200-2400 UTC approx.) from a location near Flintstone (Alleghany County) MD grid square FM09sp.  I’ll entertain skeds on other bands if notified before July 30.  I may not have internet nor phone at my location but will have solar power. I plan to submit my information as an official APE expedition.  FM09sp is the least worked grid in Maryland so I hope to give lots of contacts to those who need it.

An APE does not require a lot of planning.  Are you going to a family gathering that’s over 20 miles from home?  Or going on a business trip?  Take along some radio gear, a battery or hook up to the car battery, throw up a long wire and tune it up and get on the air for an afternoon or evening.  You might be surprised at how many contacts come rolling in.

It is rumored that KC9UR will be staging their 8th Annual APE on August 21 to 23. Standby for details.

And to make it more interesting Rick Butz  N7WE along with Steve W3HF have made an Excel spreadsheet of grid squares by state with the number of contacts made from them.  The information is available at  https://070club.groups.io/g/main/files/070%20Grid%20Chase/Handy%20Top%205%20Grids-2020.pdf

There are about 30 grid squares in the US with less than five contacts.  And 4 that have never been activated.  Here’s an opportunity to get out and work a pileup when you activate a really rare grid square.  Below are some examples of grids that just are begging to be worked.  You get credit for the grid if you operate from it and others get credit when they work you.  My quick research on DN25 and DN34 shows highway access and campgrounds in the grid squares.  And public access looks pretty easy.  I’ve put these grids on my list of things to do and places to visit.

There is still a lot of activity on SOTA https://www.sota.org.uk/ and POTA  https://parksontheair.com/  to get credit for working those entities also.  Choose your favorite state or national park or a summit that needs activating.  Or go to an island and get IOTA points.  Or light up a lighthouse for International Lighthouse/Lightship weekend on Aug 23-24^th.  See https://illw.net/ for details.

So, get those plans going and let me know how you plan to do your APE this year.  Please let me know soon what your plans are so I can share them with other PODSX070 members.  It would be nice to have a list posted of potential APE’s next week.  But get them in as soon as you can.  Send them to me at  ape@...  Thanks and I’ll see you on the waterfall.  I’ll be looking for you in August.

Dave

PODSX APE Event Manager

Jerry send me the spreadsheet with all the approvals since the cutoff date for the last mailing.

Will update the endorsement history page with it.

73

Jim K5SP

Please join me in welcoming new member(s):

2786  WA8UMT  Rick

hELLO Jim did I have a packet of stickers mailed yet? Thanks NU4N 1657 73 Dave

Thanks for my stickers  Arrived while I was out of town

Chris N9JCA
73

PODXS 797

Many of you have already received your envelopes with the stickers in them. 

We mailed out over 150 large envelopes with certificates all over the world.  Only one of them has returned, and that is because I blew W7OXB address.

We mailed close to 250 envelopes with stickers in them, and to date, three have been returned as bad addresses.  I need to confirm the correct mailing address with the following to ensure our records are correct.

N8FL - our data has your address as RT1 Box 130a1 in Glenwood WV.  It was returned to sender.

N3UYI - our data has your address as 247 Sweet Gum Drive, Chelsea AL

WB8YXF - We have you as 3311 Galberry Rd. Chesapeake VA, it was forwarded to 233 Jessamine Pl MCGayheysville VA and returned.

Please help us update our records to show the corrrect address.  In a couple of cases, QRZ does not even match.

Thanks in advance,

73

Jim K5SP

Jerry,

Stupid me, I had it in a frame, she got the dog too.  Had a cheap lawyer.  hi hi

I had just finished running phone patches for McMurdo AFB, Antartic, abt  3 AM local time when he called me, thought it was a pirate station because of no suffix  which he later said he was number one so he didn't need one.  Told him I was a Radio Shack mngr at the time and he told me he had one of everything they sold which I didn't believe until he told me what he did for a living.  Made the mistake of calling him Your Majesty and got the lecture that there are no titles or royalties in amateur radio, just first names and mine's Hussein.  It was a friendly chewing out.