2015 ARRL Field Day

Basic 20 meter inverted Vee dipole at 25 feet.

This past weekend I took part in my amateur radio club's Field Day activities as usual.  This year the big factor was the weather.  I had planned on just using a pop up shelter to better enjoy the outdoors but after watching the weather forecast for a week before hand I decided to err on the side of caution and go ahead and break out the extreme weather tent.  

I am so glad I did too. It was pleasant and dry Friday night when we set up but soon after we arrived back at the site Saturday it started raining and it never did let up.  Along with gusty winds we ended up with 3.5" of precipitation before all was said and done.  Dealing with the weather is what Field Day is all about.  While it did add quite a challenge my old gear and some new pieces came through with flying colors

In the above picture at the far left is a small shelter I constructed to keep the elements off my new 1000 watt inverter generator. 

Inverter generators are a relatively recent technology that work great for powering sensitive electronic gear like amateur radios.  The generator works by first producing AC power output like a traditional generator but next converts the current to DC then back to AC.  This "inversion" creates a clean output with a true sine wave at the required voltage and frequency.  

The engine is a four stroke so no premix fuel is required and a feature I really like that this little gen-set has is called Auto-Idle.  Unlike a traditional generator that always runs at full throttle this unit idles down and then increases engine speed based on the load applied.  This does two things. First it saves fuel and second with a light load such as my ham station the generator barely came off idle.  With a 100 ft extension cord between the generator and the operating position the generator could not be heard.

We used maybe a gallon and half of gas for the 18 hours of time we spent on the air.

A couple months ago when the club's sign up sheet came around I signed up for the 20 meter (14.000MHz) band and CW (Continuous Wave Morse Code) of course.  In the past years I had to tear down my permanent station and transport it to the Field Day site.  I have several ancillary devices like computer interface, antenna tuner and electronic keyer connected to the rig in my home station and it was always a bit of a pain to disconnect all this stuff.  

I've been active in the amateur radio hobby now for seven years. I figure it's something that's here to stay so I decided to add another new piece of gear to the station.  Something to make the logistics of portable operations easier.  I took a trip down to Columbus Ohio to visit Universal Radio where I source most of my radio gear and picked up a Yaesu FT857D  amateur transceiver.  The 857 is a full power HF, VHF and UHF multimode radio that has most of the features found in a full sized rig but comes in a very small package aimed at mobile use.

  

The pink cell phone and glassed belong to my lovely assistant the RoadQueen, who handled the logging chores on a spreadsheet program she created herself with a dupe checker even so we wouldn't waste time and effort working a station we had already contacted.  In contesting these are called "Duplicates" and are to be avoided because duplicate contacts to same station cannot be counted for points.

 The only other thing I added to the Yaesu was a Collins 300Hz mechanical filter to help navigate the busy and crowded Field Day band conditions.  Most amateur transceivers come without filters which can then be added as needed depending on the type of activity the operator persues.  

In the upper right hand corner of the circuit board are two slots where filters can be installed.  One space for CW and the other for SSB (Single Side Band) voice mode.  The Yaesu is set up with simple push pin sockets so I didn't even have to warm up my soldering iron.

What the filter does is drastically narrow the receiver's passband.  When the band is crowded with lots of stations operating side by side close in frequency to one another the operator can engage the filter and as a result of the narrower passband only hear one or two station instead of several.  A radio's receiver without a filter in line normally samples a segment of spectrum that can contain four or five or more CW stations all transmitting at once. Each station is transmitting on a slightly different frequency which makes the tone of the signals a little different in pitch but it still ends up being a wild cacophony of senseless noise.  

In preparation for Field Day I limited all my operating to using CW only and the 857 to not only learn the new rig but to hone my CW skills for the event.  It all paid off and I set a new personal best logging 159 contacts with stations in 34 different states, three Canadian provinces, the island of Puerto Rico and Argentina way down south.

Unfortunately the weekend wasn't without incident as wind driven rain did invade some club member's tents and curtail operations while soaked ground loosened the guy wire stakes of the 6 meter antenna causing it to come crashing back to Earth sometime during the night.  But I can happily report no loss of life or limb and we all managed to have a good time and eat lots of great food as is one of our clubs main objectives.

Did I mention it was wet?

Putting More P in the Ti GP

The GP stands for General Purpose. The Ti GP bike's main purpose is a commuter. And it has been outstanding in fulfilling that role for a decade now.  Last winter I got serious and upgraded the creature comforts in particular the seat and handlebars.  These changes prompted me to spend even more time on the bike and while comfortable and happy soon my mind turned to other ways to fully integrate my bike into my daily life. 

For many years I got by just fine with a backpack for my daily commuting needs.  For a while I used the handlebar basket which worked great but once I removed it I found I liked the crisp handling of an unencumbered front end. 

 Back in the 1990's I had a Schwinn mountain bike with fenders and a rear rack that was my commuter rig.  Back then I was of limited means so I made due with an inexpensive rack trunk.  That arrangement worked good for carrying my lunch and wallet and keys but during the seasonal transition when I might have a heavy jacket and gloves in the morning I found myself stacking a bungee corded Tower of Pisa of gear onto the rack when the afternoon temperatures warmed.

My goal when setting up the Ti GP was to have a solid city bike built with quality components on a sturdy, corrosion resistant titanium frame; a blend of performance and utility.  For a long time I have resisted bolting on things that add weight. After a lot of thought and another season of hot humid weather just around the corner I've decided to do the right thing and ditch the backpack and get the cargo onto the bike where it belongs.

   

The conundrum I faced was how to incorporate cargo hauling capability into a performance oriented "racing" bicycle frame that unlike my old Schwinn has no braze on's for mounting a rack.  Luckily I'm not the first person to wonder about this and I discovered Old Man Mountain racks.  This company has been around a while and has created a good reputation of filling a unique niche in the bikepacking world.  

There is some cool history of how OMM came to be that's worth the read.  As a small business owner myself I love the opportunity to support another small American company.  I purchased OMM's latest model called the Pioneer.  It's the biggest rack they offer.  Probably overkill for me but it's always better to go big and have a little in reserve than go into a fight under gunned.  

OMM racks are well designed with a number of ways to bolt onto bike frames with no threaded eyelets.  I chose to bolt the upper supports to the rear brake bosses. Easy peasy.  The lower attachment is where this rack really shines.  The rack comes with a long skewer which bolts through the real axle.  Very sturdy and secure!

The panniers I just received today.  They are by Ortlieb made in Germany. What sold me on them is the excellent retention system.  The set comes with several inserts so the latches can be precisely fitted to the diameter of the rack tubing. 

The Pioneer's stout 1/2" diameter tubing and wide width provide lots of clearance between the wheel and the panniers. Another feature I thought made perfect sense was a was a second tube welded about two inches below the top of the rack specifically as a pannier mounting point to get the load even lower down for stability.

This is my first venture into the world of panniers and I decided to run front panniers instead of full sized rear bags.  They are the Front Roller Plus model so are extra large capacity versus the standard front panniers.  For my purposes they will provide plenty of room so I will use them and as time goes by I'll see how they work.  I have no doubt that grocery stops, beer runs and an occasional bike picnic is in the future.

Rush R40

I don't have a bucket list but if I did I would have crossed an item off it last night.  Back during the school year my son did a great job with his studies so to show my appreciation I picked up a couple tickets to a Rush show in Columbus, Ohio.  The R40 stands for 40th anniversary.  I've been a fan of Canada's greatest rock band since I first discovered  them on the FM tuner of my father's hi-fi system as a boy back in the early 80's.  Like any good parent when my son hit his preteen years and started to take notice of music I turned him onto my extensive CD library. I was not surprised when he took a liking to the trio from Ontario.  He was ecstatic to say the least when I showed him the tickets. As the months turned to weeks and then to days he had been talking about the upcoming show more and more.  I've not been to a show in a while and I have never seen seen Rush perform live so I was also looking forward to the experience.  A win-win situation to be sure.

For many years Rush has always gone big and booked stadiums to play their shows.  I found it fitting and a bit ironic that the venue was Nationwide Arena home of the Columbus Blue Jackets NHL hockey team.  Maple syrup, hockey and Rush; Canada's major exports.

We made the drive down to the capitol city early so we could relax and have a nice dinner before the show.  Once the doors opened we walked around the arena and noticed some players practicing on a side rink.

All the concerts I've attended have been in smaller auditoriums or outdoor amphitheaters.  This was the first show in a large scale arena for both my son and I.

After wandering around and checking things out from various angles we found our seats and watched the fans slowly trickle in and start filling the seats.  Eventually the lights went downs and the curtain came up and the spectacle began.

Please excuse the blurry photos.  The only camera I had was my cell phone and with the zoom cranked all the way up I did the best I could without a steady rest.  Besides some crummy photographs are better than no photographs.  One of my purposes with this blog is to record special events in my life so when I'm an old codger with dwindling memory power hopefully these stories and images will trigger the recall.

  

More than once I've been told as a Rush fan to go see them play if given the chance.  "Just go" they said and I'm so glad I did.  We were blown away!  The audio was very loud probably one of the loudest concerts I've ever heard.  Not just loud but perfectly executed.  The members of Rush are all perfectionists and besides they've been playing together for 40 years and it shows. 

The lighting was some of the best I've seen and a gigantic projection screen made it easy to see the guys onstage even from way out.

Thousands of loyal Rush fans packed the house.  Seeing all these people and feeling all their energy was almost as impressive as the band.  I feel very lucky we had the opportunity to witness a little bit of Rock and Roll history in the making. 

Earlier this year the band announced they were taking an extended hiatus from the road after wrapping up this current three month tour.  Of course many bands say this and end up back on the road eventually.  This may not be the last time Rush rocks a big stadium but if it is I can happily live out my days knowing what it was like.  Last but not least I had a blast sharing the experience with my son.  My parents didn't take me to any rock concerts so I can only imagine how cool that is to a 14 year old kid. 

   

Set list:

1.  The Anarchist

2.  Clockwork Angels

3.  Headlong Flight (with "Drumbastica" mini drum solo)

4.  Far Cry

5.  The Main Monkey Business

6.  One Little Victory

7.  Animate

8.  Roll the Bones

9.  Distant Early Warning

10.  Subdivisions

Set 2

11.  Tom Sawyer

12.  Red Barchetta

13.  The Spirit of Radio

14.  Jacob's Ladder

15.  Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres Part 1: Prelude

16.  Cygnus X-1 

(The Voyage Part 1 & 3 with drum solo)

17.  Closer to the Heart

18.  Xanadu

19.  2112 Part I:  Overture

20.  2112 Part II:  The Temple of Syrinx

21.  2112 Part IV:  Presentation

22.  2112 Part VII:  Grand Finale

Encore

23.  Lakeside Park

24.  Anthem

25.  What You're Doing

26.  Working Man

Heart of Ohio Trail

So how do you like my beard? I've been growing it all season and now is the time to get out and let her flow in the breeze!

Like most of North America we've been experiencing some wild swings of weather here in the Ohio valley.  After a string of hot summer like days and plenty of rain the temperature dropped like a rock Sunday night into Monday.  I planned on riding today because the forecast called for cloudy skies but it wasn't supposed to rain.  The temperature was a crisp 49 degrees F when I left the house this morning.

It's a little strange here it is June 1st and I have to gather up my winter tights, fleece jacket and wool hat with ear protection just to go for a bike ride.  With my gear packed I headed to Mt. Vernon, Ohio to catch the Heart of Ohio Trail which is a rail trail I discovered last fall and have only ridden once so far.

The roughly 15 mile run one way is the perfect sized trail for a mid day ride through the Scenic central Ohio countryside.  I discovered a few new interesting things on this ride I wanted to share on the blog.

   

No sooner had I got started down the trail I passed this giant smokestack I first photographed last year.  The big difference now is the curious spiral staircase under construction.  As I was standing there looking on an older gentleman pulled up on a recumbent trike so we struck up a conversation and I asked him about the project.  Being from the area he said he saw an artist's rendition of the finished construction which will twist its way about three-quarters of the way to the top and end in a 360 degree observation deck.  The project is scheduled for completion by the 4th of July.  

   

I will most certainly be making a return trip later this summer to check that out!

I decided to ride the Titanium General Purpose Bike on this ride.  I've been logging about 32 miles a week commuting on the Ti GP and loving it.  The recent improvements in the handlebar and seat department have breathed new life into the bike and I find myself reaching for it often.

The bike trail shares the river valley with a state route.  Along most of the passage the view of the highway is blocked by trees and vegetation.  Occasionally the trail and the roadway are close enough that properties adjacent the road become visible for a few short stretches.  From one of these openings I spotted this old tractor sitting at the front of a farm with for sale sign posted.

    

I love old fashioned stuff and history so of course I had to stop and check it out.  The Farmall Cub was the smallest tractor built by International Harvester between the years of 1947 and 1981.  During those years over 245,000 Cubs were made.  This one is unique in that it looks like it has the original mowing set-up complete with three-blade mower deck and turf tires. 

The Farmall's are my favorite of the antique tractors but I do love to look at them all.  I don't know much about the details and have no idea of this models age but it does look it came from the 1950's or 60's.  Oh yes one day I will have one of these of my own to tinker with.

Back on the trail I caught a glimpse of a structure through the woods off to my left away from the state route.  Right away I spotted text like old signage.  Suddenly like staring at a word search my mind connected the dots.  Although most of the elements are obscured by brush I realized I was looking at another old Mail Pouch Tobacco ad.  

In order to get a picture I had to park my bike and wade through wet chest high weeds to get close enough.  The structure is open on the other side and was probably used as a livestock shelter.  The building sits on the edge of a neglected pasture and now houses only some old tires and lumber.

To see my other photographs of Mail Pouch Barns click the label at the end of the post.

--

At the end of the trail I arrived in the small town of Centerburg, Ohio which got the name as it lies at the geographic center of Ohio.  In its earliest days Centerburg was a stagecoach stop and later a railroad town.  Once a rural passenger stop of the Cleveland, Akron and Columbus railroad during the peak of passenger rail in early America now visitors roll into town using the same right of way but today they're moved by pedal power and not steam.

Centerburg looks like many small sleepy towns that time seem to have left behind.

I like the old Frigidaire sign hanging proudly along main street.

This brick residential street is no trendy urban revitalization.  These pavers have probably been here for a hundred years.  It amazes me how long a brick paved avenue lasts with nothing more than slight cupping where the wheels pass.  Give a modern asphalt street about five years of freeze-thaw cycles and it'll be reduced to a pot-holed mine field.  I think we should have never got away from brick for residential and downtown city center streets.

  

A quaint Christian church built in 1911.

No, that handsome gent at the opening of this post is not me.  It's General Daniel Harris Reynolds, C.S.A.

"A decendent of Knox County's earliest pioneers, Confederate Brigadier General Daniel Harris Reynolds was born just three miles west of Centerburg in 1832.  He attended Ohio Wesleyan University in Deleware, where he became a close friend of Otho Strahl, another Ohio born Confederate general.  Reynolds taught school in Ohio before studying law in Iowa and then Tennessee.  Admitted to the bar in 1858, Reynolds established a law practice in Chicot County, Arkansas.  An advocate of secession, Reynolds chose to serve the Confederate States of America in his adopted state of Arkansas at  the start of the Civil War.  Well respected in his community, he raised a company of cavalry known as the "Chicot Rangers"  

As a Captain, Reynolds first saw action in August of 1861 at Wilson's Creek in Missouri where he was injured in a fall from his horse.  Despite his injury, he remained in the fight.  An able soldier and leader, Reynolds received steady promotions within the Confederate Army, attaining the rank of  brigadier general in 1864.  After distinguished service spanning the entire war, Reynolds suffered a wound requiring the amputation of his leg at Bentonville, North Carolina, the last major battle of the war.  Reynolds returned to Arkansas to reestablish his law practice.  He also served a term in the Arkansas legislature.  He died in 1902 and is buried in Lake Village, Arkansas."

I've said it before but it bears repeating, short of having an actual time machine I can think of nothing better than the bicycle and riding one off the beaten path to discover history right around the corner of the places we call home. 

Before stopping for a sandwich I rode a quick loop out into the country around Centerburg even finding a couple miles of gravel.  This was no problem for the Ti GP bike at all since its DNA is pure MTB even though I have it set up for smooth street riding.

Unfortunately the weather man was incorrect and it did begin to sprinkle on my way back to Mt. Vernon.  Luckily the rain was light and the trees shielded me from much of the drops.  Nearing Mt. Vernon I spotted the red coat of a whitetail deer in the trail up ahead.  I got stopped and took a photo but the doe and her fawn are pretty tiny.  

Not quite the epic beard of General Reynolds but a handsome lad nonetheless. 

Ride Data

Cool Bicycle Art

I spotted this sign along the bike path the other day.  The art is very well done. I like how the artist tied in the themes of country and city.

Well as far as bike to work goes for me and many other bike commuters every day is bike to work day.  So I'll just roll my eyes and keep my comments to myself.  But the bottom line is any advocacy to get people out of their cars and onto bikes even for a day is a good thing and I support it. 

Here's a great Time article that sums it up quite nicely.

The Dirt

It's been a while since I felt the pulse of Mother Earth through my knobby tires. I couldn't wait any longer so this morning I loaded up my mountain bike and hit the trail.  Every spring I like to ride the mountain bike trail at Mohican State Park. 

This place never fails to recharge my batteries.  While I stay in shape doing other things in the off season I'm from the flatland so busting out of the gate and flogging myself up and down these hills transports me to another place.

Speaking of transports in this picture is my new internal combustion powered four wheeled recumbent with 5-speed manual transmission (I like to decide when to jam the gears of whatever contraption I happen to be piloting.) and cargo box.  Toss the bike in the back and secure it with a bungee cord to keep it from bouncing around and I'm off. 

Of course I'm concerned for our planet and for that reason and my own good health I ride my commuter bike to my day job and other errands about town as much as possible.  As long as I am able to afford and operate a motor vehicle I will continue to use one for important things like getting to awesome bike trails.

  

I've been trail riding since the early nineties.  One thing I've noticed about climate change in my region is the spring-time is much drier. This makes for excellent mountain biking.  I'm sure I've been mentioning it before that the trails are dusty dry this early for several years in a row now.  I can remember waiting out the muddy season not only to prevent damage to the fragile ecosystems but to save the head ache of cleaning mud from my bike and accelerated wear of drive train parts from what is basically liquid sandpaper.

   

I rode the same route I usually do with the first half being 8 miles from the snowmobile parking area east to the campground on State Route 3.  All was going fine and before I knew it I was cruising on the camp ground road towards the connector trail to continue on back west up the other side of the gorge.  

Clear Fork of the Mohican River

The camp road is paved and flat following the river in the bottom of the valley so for the first time I could shift up to the big ring.  There was major work being done in the campground with heavy equipment of all shapes and sizes and workmen busy on improvements.  The road surface had been ground in preparation for repaving but rolling on my fat off road tires it felt fine.  Suddenly I noticed that the bike was feeling way to hard to pedal as if I was going uphill. I soon realized my back tire was almost flat. This was both irritating and odd as I had just replaced the tube the night before to fix a slow leak that I'd been dealing with since last year.

Luckily I was right near the camp commissary which had picnic tables and shade so that made a perfect place for a pit stop to eat my mid ride snack and fix the flat.  I was also well prepared with an extra tube and my trusty mini pump so shortly I was on my way again.  

 The path up from the campground starts with a steady two mile zig-zagging climb up to the top of the north ridge of the gorge.  The mountain bike trail "officially" starts at that point but I hate starting my ride first thing with that devil of a climb. I'd much rather face it in the middle of my journey when I'm at least warmed up.

After a few more miles I was feeling pretty beat down and was ambling along a relatively flat section of trail when I suddenly felt the urge almost subconsciously to look to the left.  I didn't think about it just instinctively jerked my head around and instantly locked eyes with a whitetail doe standing perfectly still watching me pass about 30 yards off the trail.

I came to a stop and pulled out my camera and attempted to get a shot off.  Unfortunately in my excitement I forgot that I had the two second timer set. Whether it was the beeper going off or she had simply had enough human interaction the doe turned tail and bugged out.  I did manage to keep the lens on her and after the timer delay I got a shot of her warning flag flying.

     

These last couple shots are of an area along the north ridge I really like. The hill slopes down steeply and is covered with Hemlocks. Some older trees tower high above but it is reassuring to see younger hemlocks doing well waiting their turn to one day take the place of their elders.

Eventually after 16 miles of single track I used the park road to cross back down and up the other side back to the parking area where I left the truck that morning.  Completely exhausted but with that well earned satisfaction that only a hard day on the trail can give.

I used my smart phone's gps to determine something I've always wondered about while running around in this park: Elevation gain.  I climbed a total of 2700 feet during my ride.

Ride Data