Activated on Veterans’ Day, 2024
If you read my last post, you might guess that activating on Veterans’ Day was not guaranteed. I had a strong desire to get out of the house, yes, but I was also mindful of my physical state. I obviously did go, but I was going to limit myself to operating from the car. This would keep my left arm usage to a minimum, I said. I won’t have to do as much, I said. I’ll take it easy, I said.
Squirrel!
When I got there, I realized I was not alone. Already operating, Gregg K6EGG, and what seemed to me as recently arrived, Neil N6VHF. I parked and went over to them to introduce myself. As I walked by Gregg’s blue Tesla, I saw a Starlink Mini on its roof.
Squirrel!
I chatted with Gregg and Neil for a while getting some 411 on the program with which he is using his Tesla Mini. Gregg was actually live streaming his activation through the thing. I was so impressed with that! As I told my friend, Scott W6SRF, I am so tempted to get what I don’t need. Don’t get me wrong, I can come up with a lot of reasons to get one. Imagine being in the field and being able to make phone calls and run your computer on the same Wi-Fi. I could, for example, run Winlink using Telnet from a Joshua Tree campsite, while calling back home to check in, and watching Tulsa King on the Surface Go, all at the same time. I ask you guys, please, do not give me any more reasons.
And then there were four. Brian K6ABR drove up for some POTA action before he had to go to work. And then there were four. This was totally unplanned. You see, Chino Hills State Park, especially Horse Camp, gets a lot of use from the local hams, Neil and Brian being two of them. So, of course, we continued to chat some more.
Brian eventually peels off to set up his rig, a KX2, with a Chellegance antenna. Meanwhile Neil started to set up his antenna, using an awesome telescoping mast stabilized by his drive on mount, a 4010 EFHW in an inverted “L” configuration. I know Gregg was using a vertical antenna, and that was it. I never paid too much attention to his radio or antenna because I was too damn close to that Starlink Mini!
Seeing all the guys start their setups, I beat feet to my bench and started setting up my antenna. Considering the others were all using a bench, I decided to set up my KX3 on the bench as well. I had good shade under the tree; however, it did accentuate the chill in the air and the occasional strong winds just made it cold. Every time that wind came up, I second guessed my decision to use the bench. Each one of us checked out all the stations there as we wended to each bench like bees looking for pollen. Neil and I took the opportunity to look over Gregg’s shoulders as he was live streaming. He had a hard time keeping a straight face. Yeah, he broke, not much, but he did.
While Gregg and Brian were getting Qs by the dozen, I was back to my usual low count. To be fair, 10 meters was hot and that was the band Greg was using for his live stream. I stayed on 20 and 15. However, although I was getting great signal reports, I had difficulties hearing stations. Signals were low, and I had the volume maxed out. I got seven contacts with difficulty and took a break. Neil suggested I check my RF Gain, and sure enough it was not wide open. However, after adjusting it, my situation did not improve. So, getting late, and getting cold, I hunted Neil and got a P2P. I previously did that with Brian, both on 2M and 70CM, for two P2Ps. I had ten, three P2Ps, and I was done.
Somewhere I stressed my shoulder as I felt it on the drive home. However, I had fun activating and somewhere in the back of my mind was the thought that I am enjoying this day because there are so many men and women manning a post somewhere around the world. I thank those who came before me, those who served with me, and those that will do so in the future. I salute you.
On the way home I kept thinking about that damn squirrel.
Activation Statistics
| Location | DM13dw51 – 33.92126, -117.70146 |
| Activation Attempt | 78 |
| Date | 11 November, 2024 |
| Park | US-1139 Chino Hills State Park |
| Park Activated? | Yes |
| Previous Attempts | 11 |
| Park to Park Contacts | 3 |
| Number of Contacts | 10 |
| DX Contacts | 1 – Alaska |
| Mode | CW, FM |
| Radio | Elecraft KX3, Yaesu FT3D |
| Antenna | MPAS 2.0 in the vertical configuration |
| Tuner | Internal |
| Power | 5W using a 3Ah Bioenno battery |
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