Yesterday, I was still having trouble believing that I'd heard KFQD in
Anchorage on the barefooted T615, right over the top of 50 kW KXL-750
in nearby Portland, OR. Whilke I was at the local Library and firmly
hooked to the internet, I checked to see if the University of South
Carolina even HAD a hockey team (I'd heard them skating against
somebody on what I was certain was KFQD, hearing local Anchorage
commercials, etc.). According to the South Carolina web-site, they DO
have an ice hockey team, but their season does not start until 24
October. There was no indication of any earlier hockey games on their
schedule. I then checked the KFQD schedule on their website... an all
newstalk format and I looked at the U of Alaska, Anchorage for their
hockey season. KFQD showed the Beck show on at the time that I thought
I'd heard hockey from Anchorage and the University hockey team also
had not started their season. After mulling things over, I decided to
take the KFQD logging outta my list for both the Unlimited and the
Barefoot Classes... I had not recorded it and there was just NO
evidence.... I must have imagined it.
So, Thursday evening I made up a thorough hit list for Alaska and went
to work at 9:15PM local time. The Wellbrook Array, being able to swap
directions, made things fairly easy. I soon had evidence of a number
of Alaskans on frequencies shared with stations in the Pacific
Northwest. As I clicked through 750, THERE WAS A HOCKEY GAME, coming
in quite loudly. I tested it with the array.... Sure enough I could
hear KXL to my Southeast and the hockey seemed to be coming from the
Northwest! I listened a few minutes and darned if one of the teams
wasn't that crazy buncha Southerners, the South Carolina Gamecocks!!!
Later, there were plenty of local Anchorage commercials, a name of the
Anchorage municipal area where the Pre-Season Tournament was taking
place, etc. The boys from South Carolina were well ahead, too.
I'm counting that one for sure.... I got several other Alaskans on the
E100 and then hit the sack, looking forward to my last dawn for a
while at Grayland.
Since I'd been so fortunate the previous three mornings that I decided
not to approach this last morning with any kind of strategy other than
a target list for Unlimited Class and a list of my current Barefoot
loggings.
The early burst around 1200 netted me a new Mayak Unlimited logging on
549 (Okinawa was nowhere to be found) and an excellent 720 Russian JJ
Service logging, first on the E100 and then BAREFOOT on the t615....
KDWN in Las Vegas was just clobbered! After that, things slowed down,
so with 45 minutes before dawn enhancement, I had breakfast and packed
up all of my non-essentials. (I needed to leave as early as possible
to drive four hours and then catch an over-crowded ferry back to my
home QTH on weekend tourist-magnet, Orcas Island.
I was back in the hunt at 1345 (LSR around 1420). I soon noticed the
North Korean on 657... as noted by others, they musta worked on that
thing, 'cause its a LOT louder! Well, it was coming in so well that I
decided to try for a new Barefoot Country. Sure enough, the T615
snagged it easily... it was just booming in. So, I started going up
the dial with the WinRadio, looking for really loud ones and then
jumping up, changing headphones and running around the room with the
T615 trying to escape the computer QRM, the refrigerator buzz, etc,
and snag another Barefoot catch. I was really getting my exercise,
jumping up and down like a demented Jack in the Box!!!
Fairly soon, I just abandoned using a spotting receiver, things were
really coming in on the T615. I found the Sweat Spot in the room
(equi-distant between the computer and the refrigerator) and just DXed
dawn with the T615 by itself... I ended up with nine new Barefoot TP
loggings and a VERY wide smile.
I closed out the morning with a strange logging on 944.99, running
with the normal CNR1 on 945.00... REALLY weird music, etc... I'll have
more to say about that logging after I've analyzed the recording.
So.... here are my Unlimited and Barefoot Class Loggings for October 10.
UNLIMITED CLASS LOGGINGS OCTOBER 10: E100+ Wellbrook Phased Array
549 Radio Mayak //576 Synchros. Probably from Magadan RR Discussion
and some popular music 1215 UTC
640 KYUK Bethel, Alaska, NPR News at 1435
670 KDLG Dillingham, Alaska, NPR News at 1434
890 KBBI Homer, Alaska, NPR News at 1436
720 V of Russia JJ Service, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (heard also Barefoot)
1230 UTC
BAREFOOT CLASS LOGGINGS OCTOBER 10: T615 Barefoot
567 JOIK NHK1 Sapporo 1409
648 VoR, Ussuriysk, Russia in RR 1411
657 Pyongyang Bangsong, Kangnam, North Korea 1351
720 V of Russia JJ Service, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk 1230 UTC
738 Taiwan Fisheries, Penghu 1413
747 JOIB, NHK2 Sapporo1415
963 CRI Russian Service Loc. Unknown 1400 UTC
981 CNR1 Synchros 1417
1134 JOQR, Tokyo 1420
1260 JOIR, Sendai 1422
1287 JOHR Sapporo at 1425
Well, I'll try to publish a composite list tomorrow.... It is great to
see Walt and Guy with major new Conti Loops... and Guy with decently
DXable TP signals at home for the first time in many a moon..... This
stuff is just too much fun not tyo have everyone in on it.
Also really nice to see Mark C. discovering the joy of hearing DX on
these little marvels...
I swear that hearing almost a dozen TPs in one morning on a T615
Barefoot is the most fun I've ever had with my clothes on.... well,
except for Easter Island, anyway.... Hey, I could have been nude there
and only the horses would have known!!! Talk aboutr Barefoot Class......
Have a great`weekend everyone!
John B.
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