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Your feedback, Martin, Jota 2009 and the latest series, hint, tips and tricks.

In case you haven’t already heard, four of the operators of the C6APR station were tragically killed this week in a plane crash on their way to the station. Ward Silver, N0AX posted the following message to the CQ-CONTEST reflector, which I’m going to reprint here.

There have been several suggestions for on-the-air actions to remember the four ops lost on their way to C6APR yesterday. Perhaps a moment of radio silence – at the beginning of the contest or perhaps around the time of their flight. Or look back in your log to find the time of your most recent contact with them and take that moment out then. Maybe call C6APR at some appropriate time and wait for their signal. Putting a C6APR QSO in your log with a zone of 00 is another idea – I know that K7RA used show up in logs from the Pac NW for years after Homer’s untimely demise. Whatever seems appropriate to you, take some time out during the contest to not only remember the team, but to appreciate the other competitors. Let’s try to treat each other with a little extra respect this coming weekend as we’ve all just been reminded of how quickly a log can close.

73, Ward N0AX

For Handiham World, I’m…

Patrick Tice, [email protected]
Handiham Manager

Welcome to Handiham World!

Photo: Here I am pointing to the spot we had to excavate for repairs after putting a ground rod directly through an irrigation system pipe during Field Day one year.

A story you will be hearing about in the weekly amateur radio news is a tragic one. ARRL and commercial media are reporting the deaths of three family members by electrocution during an antenna project. Says ARRL, “At approximately 8:40 PM on Monday, October 12, a man, woman and their 15 year old son were killed while trying to erect a 50 foot vertical antenna at the home of the man’s mother, Barbara Tenn, KJ4KFF, in Palm Bay, Florida. The deceased were not licensed amateurs.”

You can read the rest of the story on the ARRL site, and you should, because one of the best ways to follow up on a serious accident like this one is to take a look at the facts and begin a serious discussion about what went wrong and how to prevent another accident in the future. I will let you read the ARRL story and watch the TV news report for the details, but this story did serve to remind me of the days long ago, when Don, W0DN, now a silent key, and I started the little antenna company in Butternut Township, Blue earth County, Minnesota. Don lived in an old, rural schoolhouse, and the property was actually pretty good for an antenna business because even back in the mid-1970’s it was served by underground power lines. There was no chance at all to inadvertently swing a piece of aluminum tubing up into a power line while you were busy thinking about running another SWR check and trying to be as quick about it as possible so as to get as many tests in as possible. Of course there were always other things to be careful about, but the “work area” was clear of overhead hazards, and it needed to be, because in the day in, day out routine of putting up antennas, complacency would inevitably set in and one would lift a vertical antenna up without looking skyward first.

Complacency. It’s a phenomenon that is well understood and respected by trainers in aviation, driving, firearms, law enforcement… The list is endless. The way it works is that you learn about procedures that ensure the highest level of safety in whatever endeavor in which you engage, and you follow these “best practices” faithfully many times until they become routine. Nothing bad has ever happened, so you become a bit complacent – maybe you don’t really need to go through that checklist each time. After all, you have never had an accident, and you know what you are doing.

Than, without warning, it happens. An “accident” that causes property damage, injury, or even death. In firearms training, it is the time even an experienced range instructor, a fellow who had given me instruction, leaves a loaded weapon within reach of a toddler – I will never forget the tragedy that his family had to live through when distracted, he left for only a moment, and one of his twins picked up a pistol and shot the other twin. In ham radio, it happens when someone works on powered up equipment or rushes to put up an antenna without looking for wires.

I doubt that it is even possible to buy a commercial antenna designed to be installed outdoors that does not carry a hazard warning about looking up and avoiding powerlines. We put them on our products way back then, but manufacturers cannot control the installation of their antennas. Amateur antennas are certainly safe enough to install and use, but they are likely to be put up in places that are full of compromises. Unlike commercial antenna installations, amateur antennas are usually not at a site designed for antennas. There might be a need to mount the antenna on a residential roof. There could be power lines running along one side of the property and a “drop” from the power pole to the house. Neighboring houses might be relatively close by. There may be vegetation or trees. All of these things are potential hazards that must be considered before you even decide what kind of antenna to install.

Starting with a plan is a good idea. If you cannot see the proposed installation yourself because you are blind or cannot access the site for some other reason, you need to get some help from your radio club. I like to take a look at a proposed site and sketch a rough drawing that includes the house, the dimensions of the property, the locations of overhead powerlines and underground utilities, and any trees, other buildings, or possible obstructions. Although there is usually a “one call” service that a homeowner can phone to get a free location assessment of underground powerlines, water pipes, and natural gas lines, you are still on your own when it comes to underground lawn sprinkler systems. Since those will not be located by the “one call” service, you will likely not have them on your sketch and will have to dig carefully.

• It is always a good idea to plan antenna work for a time when you will have at least one “spotter” to help you out. A spotter is a person who does not necessarily climb towers or pull coax, but who will be there for you if you have an accident and help needs to be summoned.

• Be sure you begin a big project early enough to assure that you will have daylight to complete it. If Murphy intervenes and you fall behind schedule, stop working before darkness falls and continue your project another day. In the tragic story that opened this piece, the antenna crew had run out of daylight and were working in the dark.

• Be aware of the limitations your work crew might have. The people helping with a project may be enthusiastic and well-intentioned, but they may not know the safety basics. In this case, the crew were family members who were not licensed amateurs.

There is a fine line between “Monday morning quarterbacking” and a thoughtful discussion of what went wrong in the Florida story. One thing I do have control over is what happens the next time I put up an antenna myself. I can take charge of the project and have a plan. While that won’t necessarily ward off every possible accident, it will certainly make the project safer – hopefully as safe as it can be.

For Handiham World, I’m…

Patrick Tice, [email protected]
Handiham Manager

Richard and I have been busy over the last couple of weeks. He spent a day at the Belton Hamfest near Waco, Texas on October 3rd. The weekend before that, I spent a few days in Columbus, Ohio at Ohio Linux Fest. This is our first episode back from those events. I have a few hours of audio I need to sift through, but I managed to get a couple of clips from my interviews and commentary from OLF included in the second segment of this episode of the podcast. Because I had a visit from my parents and my brother and sister-in-law from New Hampshire, I haven’t been able to get the podcast out in a timely manner. I suppose after 25 releases, I should probably stop apologizing for being late but I do like it when we release on time. Anyway, enjoy our interviews and Richard’s discourse on APRS and Xastir, and stay tuned for a lot of great audio from our live endeavors coming up in future episodes. Thanks for downloading, and have a great couple of weeks.