THE FIRST CLASS C.W.

OPERATORS CLUB

NEWS SHEET 607

(http://members.aol.com/focuk)

Editor: G4BUE

May 2000

A man should keep his friendship in constant repair - Samuel Johnson (1755)
(3525, 7025, 10120-10125, 14025, 18080-18085, 21025, 24905-24910 and 28025kHz)

BANDS OF THE MONTH FOR MAY ARE 80 & 20 METRES

TOPICAL ISSUES by G3SXW

We thank Bob, W9KNI, for this months contribution. He has clearly given careful thought to a topic which he suggests is core to the future of the club: I have become very concerned with recent developments in sponsoring and new members, and the apparent course of the club. It seems to me that the club is becoming reactionary and trying to retreat to a golden age that, unfortunately or otherwise, is irretrievably past. I am particularly pointing to the situation where apparently objections to potential members are made simply because they are contesters are being upheld. I propose to you that this attitude can only damage the long-term health of the club. I think it is fairly well known that a significant part of my income comes from the making and selling of equipment to HF amateur radio operators. This being the case I try to pay careful attention to developments in amateur radio. I can report to you without a shadow of a doubt that there are only two active groups in HF amateur radio today - contesting and QRP . It is apparent to me that FOC officially is hostile to one and indifferent to the other. This is a sure recipe for decline. A major and oft stated purpose of FOC is to encourage friendships over the air. This has been the glory of the Club over the years. In the immediate post-war years, international travel was out of the reach of the ordinary citizen, and amateur radio HF DX ragchewing indeed formed and cemented many overseas friendships. But times have changed. With international air travel fast and inexpensive, today most FOC members with overseas friends have met many of them in person, often with some frequency. Friendships are frequently maintained by communication other than HF ragchewing. Is this bad? I travel to many amateur radio conventions. I see that much of the social activities are those of the contest and QRP communities - and even

though they often will not have a single on-theair contact for years, contesters and QRPers maintain friendships as vital and as warm as any of FOC members who avoid contests and spend their operating time rag-chewing. I would point out as well that already a significant percentage of FOC members, including many resident in the UK, restrict their operating activity to contests. Pressure of business and family in an ever more complex world often do not allow many members the luxury of regular operating; thus contests become their special pleasure. I submit our own Marathon is a classic example. Anyone who spends any time tuning the bands will find very little CW ragchewing, by FOC members or otherwise. Indeed, I believe most active CW ragchewers either are already in FOC or for whatever reason have declined to join. We have few openings for new members and even fewer good candidates who meet the criteria we presently are promoting. This can not continue. In closing, permit me to point out one thing - I generally do not operate contests. Other than FOC activity, my HF interest is in DXing, not contesting. But I love amateur radio and I love FOC. If FOC is to continue to prosper and enjoy its well-earned respect and prestige in the HF amateur radio community, the Club is going to have to welcome members who do not fit the classic mould. We can adapt with the times or we can wither away. Recent developments suggest we are doing a very poor job of adapting. The second part of GW3HCLs story How it all Began will be published next month. June and I thoroughly enjoyed the West Coast Dinner and her brother Jim was most impressed with the welcome he received from all the members we met. We also made visits to the QTH's of K2VCO, K6DC, K6ZSR and W6CYX. Our big thanks to them and their wives, especially to Lise and Vic for organising the Dinner. See the next FOCUS for a report and photographs.

EDITORIAL by G4BUE

All members (except G3PDL, ill) and G3HZL, President, attended a 4 hour meeting at G3MXJs QTH on 29 April. G3MCK was in the process of auditing the 1999 accounts and had recommended a change of accounting system to one recommended by the Charity Commission for small non-profit making organisations and clubs like FOC. This was agreed and Maud, GW3KGV and GW3KDB will liaise with G3MCK to prepare the accounts in this format and have them audited for the next meeting. Non-payment of 2000 subscriptions by two members was considered and in view of their subsequent non-reply to correspondence and lack of any information about them in reply to enquires made, their membership was deleted. On behalf of FOC, G3SED had offered to accept future subscriptions from overseas members by credit card through his business. It was agreed FOCUS will continue with the colour cover in the format of issue 43. Arrangements, publicity and alternative hotel accommodation for the Annual Lords Dinner were discussed and a program for the Friday agreed. The venue and format for future annual dinners was discussed. After considering all the alternative options submitted only one (at Windsor) appeared to be a viable alternative to Lords. A more detailed business case to be prepared for consideration at next meeting with a view to 2001. Results of the Marathon were considered and plaques and certificates organised for presentation at the coming social events. A proposal from GW3YDX to add a 36 hour section to the Marathon was considered but no changes will be made to the rules at this time. An incident of alleged bad operating by a member was considered. The complaint will be the subject of a letter to the member with an invitation to comment for consideration at the next meeting. There are currently 483 members and 12 Associate members (9 permanent and 3 temporary). Lack of apparent on-air activity by some members following an analysis of the 1999 Windle and 2000 Marathon was considered and three letters under Rule 8 will be written. Progress is being made on a new address for the FOC Web Site and it was decided to form a FOC Discussion Group on the Internet on similar lines to the existing FOC News Group. Complaints from several members about using the e-mail address list maintained by OZ1LQH, for sending messages to all members on the list, was considered and advice will be published in the News Sheet that the list should only be used as a reference for finding a members address and the FOC News and Discussion Groups (depending on the nature of the message) should be used for sending messages to all members. A suggestion from W1RM to allow e-mail sub-

COMMITTEE REPORT by G4BUE

MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION by G3MXJ

Starred List
2. G4UZN: G4YNU, LA1IE, SV1AOW, W1FZY, W8EGB. 1. G5LP : DK4LX, G3VMW, G4XRV, K4EWG, VK2BJ (+G3HEJ, G3JUL) 1. G3LCS : G3IZD, G3LPN, VE7NH, VK2AYD, W4CXH (ZL1MH). 1. F5NZY : G3VMW, G4CEO, I7ALE, K4AO, N3JT (+G3RCU, SV1AOW, G3LIK). 6. K1SM: K1AJ. 6. W6EU: N6RA, N6NT. 6. KT3Y: DL8TWA, GW3SYL. 5. N7XM: K1JD, W8XM, KT5X. 5. VA3UZ (ex-UT4UZ): N6NT, KT5X, GW3SYL, K2VCO. 5. K3IPK: G3HZL. 4. ZS1WA: F2MA, ZS6AL, ZS6QU. 4. K8JPM: K5DQ. 2. W3MC: N9RD, G3LPN, N3JT, N2UU, W8XM, N6NT. 2. K1VR: K2VUI. 2. N6FB: K4EF. 2. K1KY: K4AO. 2. G8FF: EA6ZY. 2. KY7M: KC7V, G3ZEM, NP3G. 2. G4BWP: KC7V, G3HEJ. 2. KP2F (WCG): K4LT. 2. N1TO (VQ9VK): W4QM. 2. VK4EMM : VK2BJ, VK6VZ. 2. KT4P: KT5X, N2UU, W1OT, W4ZYT JA1NUT, NP3G, W4MJ. 1. DF5JT: K4EWG. 1. EI5DS : G4CEO.

Additional Nominations

An invitation has been sent to W4MQC

New Member

1733 S57NW (Jelka) J. H. Samec, Na sancah 114, 2390 Ravne na Koroskem, Slovenia; tel - 2 8215 237; e-mail - <jelka.samec@siol.net>

Amendments

G3AAE (41): amend tel - 0208 508 3669. GW3AHN (1530): amend tel - 0292 025 2610. G3JJZ (449): amend tel - 0208 464 5707. G3JVC (1535): amend tel - 0208 398 0939 G3JZV (1223): new address - 10 Harold Rd, Hayling Island, Hampshire, PO11 9LT. G3KTZ (1265): amend tel - 0208 443 0231. G3LIK (1192): amend tel - 0239 225 5880. GW3NJW (930): amend tel - 0292 061 8040. G3NOH (1603): amend tel - 0208 723 4905. G3RWL (1188): amend tel - 0208 366 4297. G3SED (1678): delete telephone. G3WUX (1189): amend tel - 0208 863 8636. G4PKD (1658): new fax - 01282 773355. GADE (823): amend tel - 0208 203 3114. GBQV (1677): amend tel - 0208 330 6790. GVLW (1505): delete - permanent W1NV . EA6ZY (1386): amend tel - 34 971 339 997. LA5HE (494): new address - Flaabygd, N3825 Lunde I Telemark; tel - 3594 7860. ZP6CW (1246): Correct xyls call ZP6CU. K1HZ (1454): delete - subscription not received and no reply to correspondence. N2AA (1059): restore to active list effective

1 May 2000. W2QM (1255): amend tel - 321 278 8118, amend fax - 321 278 6100. K2VUI (1561): tel - 781 899 0499; delete fax.
W4/VA3CH (1291): amend tel - 941 743 3650.

K4FW (498): new address - 21859 Howell Drive, Cassopolis, MI 49031; tel - 616 445 2856. N4JT (1674): amend tel - 321 454 7306; fax 321 454 7308. KC4YDP (1723): amend tel - 321 459 2073. W4MJ (1139): amend tel - 321 632 2580. K5CA (1720): correct xyls call - K5DQ. W6GTI (1412): resigned. W9FD (1169): delete - subscription not received and no reply to correspondence.
mission of all FOC awards will be considered at the next meeting when more information will be to hand. An offer from two members (unrelated) to make substantial donations to the Club and comments from NP3F about the on-air conduct of some members chasing the Windle and Millennium Awards were considered and deferred to the next meeting. The next meeting will be on 15 July at GW3KGVs QTH. We are now up to 69 attendees. The Vaeshartelt Hotel is fully booked and some members haver booked at other hotels near the Vaeshartelt Castle. PA6FOC will be QRV between 22/28 May. Members attending additional to the list published in the march News Sheet are G3LIK, DK4LX, SMCCE and non member DJ2TI. Those members who decide to come at the last minute, please contact VVV Maastricht for a place to stay. Their telephone number is (+31) 43 343 2171 and more information is on the Internet at <http://people.zeelandnet.nl/ pa0abm/condin/>.

CONDIN UPDATE by PAABM

Members are reminded that nominations for this years trophy should be submitted to me by 1 July. Nominations must include a full biography of the nominee together with full details of the specific activities for which it is considered an award is appropriate. The criteria for the award is described on page 7 of the Call Book and you are reminded that recipients need not be members of FOC. Previous recipients of the Award are: 1998 Lou van de Nadort, PALOU 1997 Peter Watson, ZL3GQ 1996 Northern California DX Foundation 1995 Fred Laun, K3ZO 1994 Chiltern DX Club 1993 Bill Maxson, N4AR

AL SLATER, G3FXB MEMORIAL TROPHY by G3MXJ

9V1YC: James and N1DG will be QRV 1/12 May as part of an international DXpedition to Bhutan (A5). AA5DX: Ron will probably be QRT from Texas soon as he is moving to a new QTH (7200 feet ASL) in New Mexico - thanks N4AF. DJ6SI: Baldur was QRV as V31OM at the end of April. G2CIW: Ex-member Jack and his xyl Betty have moved permanently to Spain after spending the winters there in recent years - thanks G8VG. G2FDF: Bill will be QRV as EA4/G2FDF from Madrid in December (correct April News Sheet) and will visit his daughter in Fresno, California in September. G3IZD: Ivan will be at Dayton and then QRV 26/28 May as AE4WK from Marco Island, Florida. G3JZV: Mort will be moving QTH soon and says The garden is minute, the house is small, so the radio is going to be, to say the least, not what it was. At least I wont hear the S9+ third harmonic of the pop-music station at Farlington on 3510kHz, but then, I wont be working 80 metre DX any more. G3LHJ: Derrick slipped while pruning his auntys roses in March and fractured his ankle. He has been home in plaster for over four weeks no gardening but lots of DX!. G3SXW: Roger and Nigel, G3TXF, will be QRV 11/23 May as FW/G3TXF and FW/G3SXW from Wallis Island (OC-054), CW only 80-10 metres, transmitting on frequencies ending in 3 and listening 1-3kHz up. QSL via home calls, direct or bureau, or e-mail request for bureau reply. G3YXX: Liz and David have bought the old coastguard commanders house (built in 1865 and 150 yards from the sea) at Hythe, Kent. Weekends will be spent carrying out some modernisation and installing a simple antenna system and my old Drake TR7. The ultimate intention is Davids retirement but not yet!. GW3SYL: Roy says, Would you please give my apologies to the gang for my low level of activity of late. It is possible that I will be QRT for a while as I have a problem with my keying hand. I have something growing inside my wrist, at the base of my right thumb which is extremely painful if I use my thumb at all, and I am finding that after just a few minutes of iambic keying I lose the feel of my thumb altogether. I have been trying to learn to key left handed but find that very tough indeed with no real progress at all. I recall my Dad saying you will know when you are getting old when you wake up every morning with a different ache or pain or something! . K1ZZ: Congratulations to Dave on being appointed Chief Referee for WRTC2000 in Slovenia in July. Included in the group of referees are JE1JKL, N2AA, K6NA, OH2KI,

MEMBERS NEWS by G4BUE

VK2AYD and W1FJ and S5A is Chairman of the organising committee. K2ZR: Dick went QRT from Key West, Florida on 30 April and is now looking forward to Dayton and the Washington DC Dinner. K4FW: Al and Anne have returned to their QTH on Diamond Lake, Michigan after a month in an assisted living retirement complex. While away, the beam rotator had stopped working which means he will be restricted to a vertical until it is fixed. K4LT: Doug was QRV as KP2/K4LT from WCGs KP2F QTH at the end of March. K4LTA: Ruby, Ginger and Bill will be attending Lords this year and then going on a two week bus tour of Europe. K5AX: Tom says he is QRV more mobile than from home recently due to work requirements. He has a 400 watts mobile amplifier (four MRF421s in two modules). K5DQ: Peggy and Don hope to get their new crank-up tower up this summer. Peggy says, A hospitality room has been booked for Saturday 13 January 2001 in Galveston, Texas for our second get-together, so please put that weekend on your calendars. Activities are being planned and we are hoping for a big turn-out next year. More information will be coming as time goes on. K6NA: Glen will be QRV again 1/3 May as ZD8A. LA3FL: Per will end his current cruise on 4 May in Southampton and then fly home. LZ1AF: Dimiter is planning to attend the Washington DC Dinner. Other overseas visitors additional to the list in the April News Sheet are G3WGV, LA5HE and GM4DZX. N1DG: Don will be QRV 14/16 May from A6 on his way home from A5. N3BB: Jim reports that he still is alive and kicking, despite his low Windle score and commits to more operating in spite of his job pressures. N3RS: Mary Ann and Sig arrive in the UK on 24 June on board the QE II from New York (Ann and Dennis, G3MXJ, are making the same trip), and after a couple of days will leave for a European tour taking them through ON, DL, OZ, SM, OK, I, HB9, F and back to London at the end of July. Sig would like to meet FOC members in

(callsign in brackets indicate G4FOC operator)

FOC CALENDAR

Until 14 May ZF2NT by N6NT (601) Until 20 June DL8TWA by K3TW (604) May - 80m & 20m (G3LIK) BV/DJ3KR (604) 1/12 A5 by 9V1YC & N1DG (607) 8/3 June TA/LA8XM (606) 11/23 FW by G3SXW & G3TXF (607) 12/14 DC FOC 2000 14/16 A6 by N1DG (607) 20 Deadline FOCUS 43 21 Dayton Breakfast (606) 22/28 PA6FOC for ConDin (607) 26/27 Con-Din (603) 26/28 AE4WK by G3IZD (607) 29 Deadline June N/Sheet June - 10m & VHF (G3WGV) 17 Harrogate Get-Together 22/24 Hamradio, Friedrichshafen 28 Deadline July N/Sheet those countries. N4AF: Howie writes, We are recovering from a lightning strike. I was working on a rotator and had it plugged in and got a healthy shock, until the circuit breaker went out. Luckily, I was standing on a rubber mat. The strike took out the four-square and rotator control boxes, so am busy replacing fuses, diodes, and LEDs. OK1CZ: Peter was QRV from 3A for a week at the end of March. VK8AV: Alan is hoping to be at Lords this year. W3NZ: Fritz is back home in PA and about our inactive members says, It is high time we hold the sponsors of these members accountable for the selections they have made. It should be the duty of a sponsor to impress upon a future member that CW activity is one of the requirements to become a member. W4CK: Mark hopes to be QRV 12/19 July as HR1/W4CK while charity working in Honduras. W9IV: Mac writes, My health has been fragile for the past year but I seem to be feeling better now, so I hope to be much more active in 2000. ZP6CW: Doug worked GU on 6 metres on 25 April.

Score updates can be passed to G4BUE or any committee member. An asterisk against the call indicates the score has been updated this month. Scores received by 1130z 1 May 2000.
W8XM* 341 EA8CN 313 W4QM* 330 W6CYX 312 LZ1AF 285 GW3KDB*284 SV1AOW* 264 GW3KGV*263 W5ZR* 261 G4BUE* 252 G3HZL* 250 G3LIK 248 W3NZ* 237 G3KTZ* 242 DL6TQ* 240 G2FFO* 234 K9QVB* 222 G3ZEM 220 PADIN* 219 G4BJM* 204 OY3QN* 201 W4CK* 201 ZP6CW* 201 N4AF* 197 GW3HCL*196 F2MA 194 NP3G W6TZD* DJ5ZN* K1JD* K7UOT* ZL1MH* W6OV* G4HZV* G4PKD* G2FDF* LY3BA* G4OEC* GORH 192 190 186 183 180 176 170 165 165 163 162 158 155 NP3F F3AT PABW W4ZYT* G8VG K2VCO* YO4PX GKDZ* K1GUP* ZS6AL* F5VEX* K4EF W1FZY* 154 152 145 140 136 135 135 134 134 130 126 123 120 SM5COP* 119 GM3JKS* 118 N1DG 114 G3MXJ* 113 K5DQ* 110 G3LHJ 109 G3SXW 106 KT5X 105 G3LWI 102 VK8AV* 101 K4II 91 AC5K* 90 VA3LK 90 W4DGJ W3ABC* G3MCK W4FOA* G2HKU* W4YE* W2DX SM6AOU* LA8XM W1HT* W5GEL* GW3SB* 88 87 85 84 82 82 80 78 77 76 74 67 GW3SYL* G4XRV* K5CA* OZ4FF* OH2FOC K2ZR* G3KKQ N4UB N3BB* GCHV GEBW 4X1FC* 67 66 65 63 61 60 56 55 54 53 51 50 G3NKS DK4LX* K6OU* W9NN* ZM2AGY W9VNE W2MEL VK4XA K6DC W6THN DJ9SB* 45 44 44 44 43 34 32 29 20 12 3

THE 2000 WINDLE AWARD