WQ6X Floats a 24-hour Field Day w/K6QLF - Part 2

Part 1 of this BLOG series was actually a "place holder" entry to let the record show that I wrote something up about Field Day soon after it actually happened.  In that BLOG I shared a little bit
of my Field Day past.  While I was bummed-out about not being up to a trip to Mt. Abel with W6SW, because each FD is unique and different, operating with the K6QLF GanG brought some interesting challenges and enjoyment, considering that I was operating from WB6RUC's 42' Catalina moored at Alameda's Aeolian Yacht harbor.

There was a lot of setting up to do for this Field Day GiG; each setup is unique and loaded with its own difficulties. 

The weekend prior to FD, working the All Asia contest from the boat ([CLICK HERE] to read about that), RFI from an old laptop power supply all but wiped out some of the amateur bands; the ICOM 7000's DSP facilities were not enough.

With a new power supply in place, the receivers were MUCH quieter in exchange for a problem with the N1MM+ software that had it LOCKing up approximately ever 2.5 minutes, often right in the middle of a QSO - FRUSTRATING.  After FD was all over, looking over the N1MM+ settings I realized that I had the scoreboard reporting facility enabled, which presupposes one has access to the internet; not reachable from where the boat was docked.  A lot of brilliant minds
(see PIC) tried to help me with the problem.  Not being N1MM+ users, of course the internet factor was not something I could expect them to think of.

Lest we forget what Field Day is all about (I.e. Emergency Preparedness), ARCA has a working relationship with the Alameda Cert team as you can see here.  While I was chained to the sailboat and was not a part of the van it was well placed to attract visitors wondering about the emergency-assistance side of amateur radio.

K C 6 Z Z T  &  K 6 S I D

A GooD Field Day setup endeavors to run as many different bands and modes as possible.  Not only does doing so maximize our participation score, it demonstrates to the public that Cw is still a superior [binary] mode of communication and Digital (in use since the 1930's) is superior to their texting via cellphone - we can communicate worldwide w/o cellphone service providers.

Because the K6QLF operation was available for public viewing, we had a "Welcome table" peopled by KG6HM Al and his XYL.  As president of the Alameda ARCA club, Al is always in a good position to proselytize for amateur radio; club membership is up - he must be doing something right.

WQ6X (Op) & Zach (Logger)

Meanwhile back on the sailboat, WQ6X was the designated HF Ssb operator, altho being a Cw operator at heart 191 Cw QSOs (worth 2 pts. each) VS. 97 Ssb QSOs (worth 1 pt. apiece) made
it to the log for a total of 288 QSOs from the boat; far from my personal best, but certainly an accomplishment when you consider that the antenna was nothing more than a tuned sloper wire.

A number of visitors braved the trip below deck.  At one point I even coerced Zach into doing
some  of the logging duties allowing me to focus on the actual operation of the radio.  Assisting
with antenna raising and logging duties is often how newbies get their first exposure to amateur radio.  Do you remember YOUR first Field Day operation?

There is much more to say about my below-deck operations running through the night until the
FD end at 18:00z Sunday morning.  LooK for a detailed write up (with color stats and everything)
in Part 3 of this 2019 Field BLOG series.

Did you join up with a Field Day group and offer emergency preparedness assistance?

Is K6QLF in YOUR LoG?