We didn’t haul generators out to the airport this year, nor did we have to deal with a porta-potty, but we still had fun. Here’s how some ARROW members participated in Field Day.

Russ KB8U

KB8U combined his two hobbies on field day by operating bicycle mobile on 40, 20, 15, and 10 meter QRP CW, and 2m and 70cm with a hand-held FM transceiver.  Most contacts were made while in motion.  He made contacts and rode at a leisurely pace, logging 118 contacts and about 53 miles over the weekend.

John WA8TON

Got 195 CW QSO’s, including 8 on 6 meters! All using a Cushcraft R8 at 30 feet. Amazing how much brass pounding there was at around 50.095 MHz! Getting a lot easier to copy than last year! Next year, I’ll run ’em!

It sure was harder to stay awake all night than it was in 1966! Found myself nodding off at 2 AM.

Lots of fun, but it sure does not beat all the eyeball QSO’s. Hope we can do it all in person next time! (And there is Winter Field Day, too!)

Dave N8SBE

Dave, N8SBE, is all set to try out WSJT-X FT4 within the N1MM+ logger from his home station in the 2020 ARRL FD.  His laptop integrates seamlessly for both audio and CAT with his USB Codec-equipped Elecraft K3S/P3.  His antenna complement includes a homebrew 20M-6M six-band, two-element spider-boom quad up about 40 ft, and a ZS6BKW window-line fed dipole covering 80M-40M, up about 35 ft.  Just because he’s working FD from home (class 1D), doesn’t mean he can’t dress the part — note the official 2020 ARRL FD shirt, cap and pin (and mug, not pictured)!”

Jay WB8TKL

Operating 1E with 850 Amp/Hours of deep-cycle battery and nearly 500 watts of Solar power, we kept the rigs powered, the fan blowing cool air, and the lights on, for the duration of the event. We discovered a few technical items that will need further improvement, but this “Operating Event” went VERY well. Even the Hamgate.Washtenaw.AMPR.Org JNOS Packet node was running off Solar for others to post their NTS messages through.

Three is two, two is one, and one is none…so we had an OMNI-VI Plus on standby should a backup HF rig be needed. But the primary rig (TS-430S) performed flawlessly.

The special circumstances of Field Day this year taught all of us the PRIMARY meaning of the event – to practice the skills needed to set up and operate for an extended length of time. No one just showed up at the FD site, sat themselves down in front of a K3 inside an air-conditioned 5th Wheel. This year we were EACH required to manage antennas, rigs, power, fuel, extension cables, logging software (or paper logs), and ultimately the filing of our official Log to the ARRL. It was a learning experiance for many! We all now appreciate more the hard work done by our FD Captain, the various Stations Captains, and all the volunteer work and supplies provided by our fellow club members 🙂

Dan KB6NU

With his battery-powered KX3, Dan KB6NU, managed 225 CW contacts, mostly on 40-meter CW.

I operated from my front deck, using a solar-charged, battery-powered KX3. I managed 225 CW contacts, mostly on 40-meter CW. I did pretty well with bonus points, too. I copied the bulletin, sent our Section Manager some traffic, sent out a press release, and Tweeted throughout Field Day for the social media bonus. I even had a public-information table (see below).

At this fall’s TAPR Digital Communications Conference (DCC), held here in the Detroit area, our own Jay Nugent, WB8TKL, talked about packet radio. His talk was titled “The Homogenous AMPRnet Data Network.”

Jason, KC5HWB, of Ham Radio 2.0, has taken over the video taping of the TAPR DCCs. Click here to see all of the videos he recorded this year.