09/14/2017z

Add another town to QRP scooter adventures.  I took a day off from work to enjoy the great weather riding around the area.  I went to a friend’s house in the morning in Martinsville, IN.  We changed the oil and gear grease because I have hit 500 miles on the scooter.  Then we had lunch down town Martinsville.  That was a fun little ride.  Soon it was back home.  I filled the 1 gallon tank and then took off to a new location for me.  Danville, IN.  They have a very nice park.   

Mike W9ODX met me there.  

It was very crowded with football practice going on in the park and others had the same idea about spending time outdoors.  Mike knew of a nice little park in Cartersburg which is just south of  Danville a little ways.  We used Mike's MCHF radio and his hamstick with a elevated radial.  I didn’t have much hope with this low to the ground set up, but I answered WZ2J with Mike’s radio keyer speed set to 28wpm.  BINGO!  Vin WZ2J answered me and we had a very nice qso.  I din’t get a great signal report but it was enough with Vin’s IC-7600.  Vin is from Old Bridge, NJ.  He says he is a QRQ (high speed telegraphy).  We were moving right along and it was a joy to operate at a higher speed.  Many QSO’s I have hover around the 20wpm or slower.  QRP does not mean slow and operating at a speed that  makes me process more is a lot of fun.  Normally the faster the CW the weaker the signal sounds so Vin, thanks for really pulling me out at a quick speed.  Hats off to your skill and radio’s ability.  

I finally stopped torturing Vin and said Good evening to him.  Then Mike and I tuned low into the band.  There was a fantastic strong station at the bottom of 40 meters.  Mike’s MCHF radio is interesting because it has a built in live pan adaptor built in.  I could really get used to that feature.  You can see signals and noise while tuning around.  This signal at the bottom was super wide and strong!  We had to listen.  This operator was using all home brew equipment at a kilowatt.  He had a wonderful tone and very easy copy.  He was ragchewing to another stateside station with his beam pointing straight at the other station.  Hey, way more power than needed for the QSO but it sure is enjoyable to hear homebrew stations and we are all share the bands together.  It is fun to just tune around and listen to others enjoying time in conversation.

That was it.  It was getting dark and the park should be closed so we packed up and went south to a local McDonalds.  We enjoyed a drink and a little to eat and then it was time to ride home in the dark.  My first trip in the dark.  What a strange experience.