Spring Antenna Maintenance Delayed By Chicks

Time to get the tree cutting equipment out again. That enormous conifer on the neighbour's garden continues to eat my Körner 9.2 antenna's front director. The front director surely cannot withstand another straightening. Time to deploy the tree cutting equipment again.

The conifer has to go, but not yet.  :O(

This time I intended to cut down two of the main branches, close to the base of the conifer. Well, that was the plan, but I had to down tools when I heard lots of tweeting. No, nothing to do with the social media site, but a nest of birds, deep within the tree. Mother was at the top of the tree, waiting for me to disappear so she could feed them.

 Chicks waiting for food

In the meantime, I daren't move my 9.2 further clockwise than 180 degrees. Hopefully, the birds will have flown their nest soon. :O)

Skegness Log: 2016-04-02 (MW)

1340 0359 CUB Radio Ciudad del Mar, Palmira (cf) OM and YL. ID. National Anthem. As
              1340 Good  7438 km **
1350 0359 CUB Radio Ciudad del Mar, Aguada de Pasajeros (cf) OM and YL. ID. National
              Anthem. As 1340 Fair  7456 km **
1540 0400 USA KXEL Waterloo IA. ID - Newstalk 15-40 KXEL Waterloo Cedar Falls Weak  6547 km
1560 0400 USA KGOW Bellaire TX. Equal WFME. ID ... sports radio 15-60 KGOW Bellaire
              Houston, a Gow Media ... (Could only hear this in LSB) Fair  7808 km
1120 0404 USA KMOX Saint Louis MO. KMOX Newstime 1104, 46 degrees Fair  6690 km
1270 0445 USA WRLZ Eatonville FL. ID - Doce setenta AM La Estacion Del Pueblo
              Weak  6975 km
1320 0446 USA WLQY Hollywood FL. Presumed with accented English, French and UNID
              language (Creole?) programming and references to liking us on Facebook,
              etc. Fair  7111 km **
1250 0447 CAN CJYE Oakville ON. CJYE IDs Fair  5703 km
1310 0455 CAN CIWW Ottawa ON. Join the conversation ... this is 13-10 News .....
              where Ottawa comes to talk Fair  5332 km
1380 0456 CAN CKPC Brantford ON. 13-80 CKPC ID heard. Thanks Torolf Johnson for
              help. V weak  5767 km
1550 0457 CUB Radio Rebelde, Multi-tx YL talk, as 1180 Good
1610 0458 CAN CHHA Toronto ON. Radio Voces Latina ID Weak  5664 km **
1600 0459 USA WAAM Ann Arbor MI. WAAM ID heard under WUNR, ten seconds before the
              hour Fair  6036 km
 830 0500 USA WCRN Worcester MA. WCRN ID heard in splatter. CBS News jingle Weak  5302 km
 930 0500 CUB Radio Reloj, Three sites listed. Clock ticking, RR morse, etc. Weak
1020 0500 CUB Radio Trinchera Antimperialista, Baracoa (gu) Sombre music, as 1070
              but faded for the ID a minute later. Weak  7208 km **
1100 0500 USA WTAM Cleveland OH. WTAM call heard Weak  5979 km
1670 0500 USA WPLA Dry Branch GA. ID - Fox Sports WPLA in Dry Branch Fair  6768 km
1070 0501 CUB Radio Trinchera Antimperialista, Guantánamo/CTOM1 (gu) ID Desde
              Guantanamo... (OM) followed by YL ...Radio Trinchera
              Antimperialista.... Thanks to Fredrik Dourén and Alessandro Groppazzi for
              help. V weak  7276 km **
1360 0501 USA WMOB Mobile AL. 13-60 and Mobile heard in 1359 splatter. Good signal.
              Must be on day power. Good  7222 km
1020 0502 CUB Radio Reloj, Victoria de las Tunas/CTOM2 (lt) Beep on the minute, followed
              by RR in morse code, just getting through the pile-up. Weak  7319 km **
1590 0505 USA WAUB Auburn NY. WAUB ID heard weak under WARV mentioning Finger
              Lakes Weak  5548 km **

Personal 'First'

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) 1m ASL
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.com
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/g1vvp
Vimeo Channel: https://vimeo.com/skegnessdx

Receiver: Perseus SDR Receiver
Antenna:  Movable 10ft x 25ft flag

Skegness Log: 2016-04-01 (MW)

1540 0100 USA WDCD Albany NY. Fifteen Forty AM WDCD Albany ID Fair  5389 km
 730 0300 CAN CKAC Montréal QC. Good signal! CKAC Radio Circulation ID Good  5203 km
 760 0300 USA WJR Detroit MI. WJR ID heard. Decent carrier but v weak audio Fair  6009 km
1140 0300 USA WQBA Miami FL. OM WQBA Miami heard in noise - v weak Vweak  7147 km
1320 0300 CAN CJMR Oakville ON. Presumed with Indian music over the hour. Fair  5703 km
1180 0302 USA WHAM Rochester NY. Presumed with .... and weather ... i-heart Radio Fair
              5605 km
 740 0400 CAN CHCM Marystown NL. 5-90 VOCM ID Fair  3915 km
 830 0400 USA WCRN Worcester MA. WCRN ID and mention of Boston, difficult in splatter
              Weak  5302 km
1430 0400 CAN CHKT Toronto ON. CHKT and Fairchild Radio IDs Weak  5669 km
1590 0400 USA WARV Warwick RI. WARV Warwick-Providence ID. Weak  5308 km
 690 0430 CAN CKGM Montréal QC. Sports talk, .ca web address and TSN ID. Fair but badly
              splattered by 5-Live 693.  Fair  5203 km **
1560 0459 USA KGOW Bellaire TX. Yahoo Sports Radio Fifteen Sixty ID almost equal WFME
              Fair  7808 km **

** Personal First

Peak reception time was around 0430 with some good TA signals. Nice to hear a CKGM 690 push its way through the 5-Live splatter on 693 at 0430.

I occasionally hear oldies on 980 when conditions are good to North America. This morning had this mystery station coming in well around 0430, but the peak coincided with the middle of a song. I suspect this is CHRF Montreal but I can never find an ID.

Plenty of other frequencies were alive with North American signals just before local sunrise. Sadly, many of them faded perfectly for the top of the hour, as is all too frequently the case.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) 1m ASL
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.com
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/g1vvp
Vimeo Channel: https://vimeo.com/skegnessdx

Receiver: Perseus SDR Receiver
Antenna:  Movable 10ft x 25ft flag

Skegness Log: 2016-03-31 (MW)

1200 0000 USA WXKS Newton (MA) Bloomberg IDs Weak  5251 km
1540 0100 USA WDCD Albany (NY) WDCD Albany ID heard in 1548 splatter Weak  5389 km
 640 0300 CAN CBN Saint John s (NL) CBC News Fair  3731 km
 760 0500 USA WJR Detroit (MI) WJR call letters heard. Very weak but clear Vweak  6009 km
1270 0501 USA WXYT Detroit (MI) Late ESPN Radio IDs at almost 0502 Weak  6028 km

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) 1m ASL
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.com
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/g1vvp
Vimeo Channel: https://vimeo.com/skegnessdx

Receiver: Perseus SDR Receiver
Antenna:  Movable 10ft x 25ft flag

Skegness Log: 2016-03-30 (MW)

 770 0100 USA WABC New York NY. Immensely splattered but WABC call clearly heard Weak
              5536 km
 540 0200 CAN CBT Grand Falls NL. CBC Radio ID and news jingle Weak  3838 km
 710 0200 USA WOR New York NY. ID WOR, The Voice of New York Fair  5543 km
1640 0400 USA WTNI Biloxi (Gulfport) MS. ID - ESPN Radio and online at 1640thechamp.com
              V weak  7294 km
 760 0500 USA WJR Detroit MI. Barely audible but could make out WJR call letters V weak
              6009 km
 880 0500 USA WCBS New York NY. WCBS Newstime ID and CBS News Fair  5519 km
1190 0500 USA WLIB New York NY. "This is your home for gospel, inspiration and information"
              Fair  5544 km
1320 0500 USA WATR Waterbury CT. WATR Waterbury ID lifted out of the noise.  V weak  5422 km **
1410 0500 USA WPOP Hartford CT. Presumed. ID - Newsradio Fourteen Ten .... (obscured) an 
              i-Heart Radio Station. Mucho splatter Weak     5394 km

** Personal First

An improvement over yesterday morning, but still not great. Very pleased with WATR on 1320, as personal first and quite a rare one in the UK.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) 1m ASL
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.com
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/g1vvp
Vimeo Channel: https://vimeo.com/skegnessdx

Receiver: Perseus SDR Receiver
Antenna:  Movable 10ft x 25ft flag

Skegness Log: 2016-03-29 (MW)

 660 0500 USA WFAN New York/High Island (NY) "Six Sixty WFAN
              The Fan" ID Weak  5519 km
 680 0500 CAN CFTR 680 News, Toronto/Grimsby (ON) "CFTR six eighty News and online at
              680news.com" ID Weak  5712 km

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) 1m ASL
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.com
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/g1vvp
Vimeo Channel: https://vimeo.com/skegnessdx

Receiver: Perseus SDR Receiver
Antenna:  Movable 10ft x 25ft flag

Skegness Log: 2016-03-28 (MW)

1400 0100 USA WOND Pleasantville (NJ) Newstalk Fourteen Hundred WOND heard under CBG Weak
              5673 km
 680 0200 PTR WAPA San Juan (PR) Weather, full on-hour ID mentioning all calls on
              the network.  Weak  6806 km **
 650 0300 CAN CKGA Gander (NL) 590 VOCM relay. Mixing Spanish station. Weak  3775 km

** Personal First

A new one overnight for me was WAPA 680, which I heard on the Isle of Skye last December.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) 1m ASL
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.com
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/g1vvp
Vimeo Channel: https://vimeo.com/skegnessdx

Receiver: Perseus SDR Receiver
Antenna:  Movable 10ft x 25ft flag

'Closed' DX Clubs & Societies: Is There A Place For Them Today?

I have been wondering whether to make this post as I know it will probably come across in the wrong way, but here are a couple of things I have been pondering lately.

I was browsing through a well-known DX club's printed bulletin a few months ago, reading through the various articles and browsing their DX loggings section, and it got me wondering to myself if the traditional paid subscription type of hobby radio club still has a place in our society.

This is probably going to read like a rant, but I hope not. I am not criticizing DX club/s in general, but two thoughts keep coming back to me:

1. Is there still a place in today's society for the traditional "paid subscription" type of DX radio club.
2. Sharing loggings in realtime so everybody benefits: Do you mind other people getting DX tips from you?

Back to the DX bulletin I was reading: The first thing which crossed my mind was how 'elitist' the bulletin seemed. Some of today's DX clubs and societies began 20 or more years ago. We didn't have the internet back then and online magazines and DX forums wouldn't have been considered as an option by most of them.

In the late 90s, a few groups were forward-thinking enough to look at possibilities of going 'electronic' and ultimately ditching their printed publication in favour of something free and more accessible to everybody. The British FM & TV Circle was one such group, now simply known as "Skywaves".

The British FM & TV Circle did start out by having a paid subscription system, which worked perfectly well. Once the internet started becoming popular, we soon introduced a free pdf version of our DX magazine so people could download it free of charge. Those who still preferred to have a 'hard copy', delivered by post, could still do this, but the printing costs which had to be met. No profits were made.

A year or two after Skywaves became electronic, most of the original paying members were taking advantage of the free pdf version. As expected, the number of those paying to receive the posted version decline. At the time, I remember a certain co-ordinator of a well known medium wave DX club, publically stating in their DX bulletin, that the move from 'printed' to 'electronic' had caused the downfall of the British FM & TV Circle! This is totally incorrect and I have no idea whay they reached this conclusion and also stated such. Or have I? Going digital and becoming free had the exact opposite effect! The group became known simply as "Skywaves" and its publication became fully 'public', thus developing into a much larger and global community as a result. 'Membership' was open to everybody, free of charge, and everybody could help each other in 'realtime' as a result! What could be better?

I don't have a problem with paid membership groups, personally. I'm a bit of a traditionalist myself when it comes to having a printed bulletin you can touch and feel. I was actually slightly sceptical myself when it came to migrating the Skywaves bulletin from 'printed' to 'electronic' as it was an unknown, but it has worked very well indeed so far, far better for everybody and in many ways! Well, apart from one individual - the very last person who was in regular receipt of the printed bulletin. We continued this until the end of the year, but then decided to pull the plug  on it completely.

The comments made by that medium wave DX club were rather cruel and not called for. I still cannot imagine why on earth they continue to insist that members paying for the printed version of their bulletin if they only wish to receive the pdf version. Surely that should be free? Why would there even need to be a charge for a free digital publication if propit were not in mind? Well, that's their prerogative I suppose, but I think it's completely wrong. Just my opinion.

When I post my loggings in the FM List or MW List, my loggings are then shared, so other DXers can see what I have heard and when I have heard it. If they so wish, they can then check the bands at the same time as me to see if they have heard the same thing. This is mutually beneficial to us all. I usually always give credit to the original logger if I receive something thanks to another DXer's logging.

I have to ask myself "Do I understand why DXers want to keep loggings to themselves?" I think I 'get it', in a way. Coming from an amateur radio perspective, there are DX contests where people collect totals in order to come top of a league table or to win a certificate, etc. They call it Radio Sport and I see the fun in this. I have entered such DX contests myself for the fun of it, though I haven't come close to topping any table. I do understand that side of the hobby, but to keep loggings to yourself? Well, people clearly do and I suppose I shouldn't knock that too heavily. Each to their own, but there's so much benefit for us all when everything is shared. DXing is a great hobby and it's such a shame that a few do not wish to share. Would you mind other DXers receiving a rare catch you had one day?

Some years ago, I received a Brazilian station on 1470. I'm fairly sure it was a 'European First' and I only received this thanks to another DXer having received it himself. I still had a recording of that particular overnight session and checked the frequency on hearing the good news. I too had the same station at the same time! I thus concluded that this was now a joint European First. The originating DXer was not amused! He was furious that I did this and still managed to claim the European First solely for himself. Other DXers also agreed that what I did was completely wrong. I was chastised for this in no uncertain terms.

Looking back at this, I believe the originating DXer should definitely be able to claim the European First as it was he who spotted it. It's all about giving credit where the credit is due. Had it not been for him, I probably wouldn't have heard this station. He was King. But am I right to take the view that there is some form of snobbery involved here? I suppose it all boils down to giving him that original 'credit'. Had it not been for him. etc. I was thankful that he told me. Oh well, each to their own.

So, just what are the pros and cons of having a closed group system in a DX club? I've stuck my oar in and given my opinion here, but I don't expect everybody to agree with the above. What are your opinions? Especially if you disagree? Please tell me why. We all have different views and it's good to talk and get a balance.

Skegness Log: 2016-03-27 (MW)

1560 0400 USA WFME New York (NY) familyradio.org. This is Resurrection Sunday. Good
              signal! Good  5538 km
1320 0426 USA WDER Derry (NH) Sounds like WDER ID by YL at 04:26:43. religious
              programming. Tip from MW List/Worldwide Visual Logbook and Christoph Ratzer,
              Austria. Presume WDER are on daytime power. V weak  5217 km **
 950 0450 CAN CKNB Campbellton (NB) Id as Ninety Five CKNB, then pops. Fair  4583 km
1270 0459 USA WTSN Dover (NH) YL This is WTSN AM 12-70 V weak  5168 km
1200 0500 CAN CFGO Ottawa (ON) This is TSN Twelve Hundred, CFGO AM Ottawa, a Bell Media 
              radio service. Fair  5334 km
1330 0500 USA WRCA Waltham (MA) Late ID and views and opinions disclaimer.
              Well-splattered. Fair  5251 km
1380 0500 USA WABH Bath (NY) WEHH FM call heard in pile-up Weak  5634 km
1390 0500 USA WEGP Presque Isle (ME) Crucifiction update. Call letters over
              programming, including WEGP's. Fair  4760 km
1380 0509 CAN CKPC Brantford (ON) YL ID in pile-up, then country music Weak  5767 km
1580 0511 CAN CKDO Oshawa (ON) Classic Hits CKDO Fair  5613 km
1570 0513 USA WMVX Nossa Radio, Beverly (MA) Spoken "Nossa Radio" jingle ID with YL slogan,
              suddenly peaked above CJLV. Must be using day power.  Fair  5210 km **
1020 0530 USA KDKA Pittsburgh/Allison Park (KDKA Drive) (PA) Award winning KDKA Radio ID
              Fair  5930 km

** Personal First

Much improved conditions with lots of co-channel North American station around 0500+

Nossa Radio is a personal first. Recording: 1570 WMVX Beverly MA 0513 27-03-16 https://app.box.com/s/c9kofnostpt46ivi7o4o5cacdc16wexe The ID leaps out 14 seconds into the recording.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) 1m ASL
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.com
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/g1vvp
Vimeo Channel: https://vimeo.com/skegnessdx

Receiver: Perseus SDR Receiver
Antenna:  Movable 10ft x 25ft flag

Skegness Log: 2016-03-26 (MW)

1430 0201 DOM HIC54 Radio Emanuel, Santiago de los Caballeros (sto). Vocal IDs around the 
              top of the hour in OM anns. V weak  7032 km **
1440 0300 USA WHKZ Warren OH. AM 1220 The Word ID V weak  5940 km

** Personal First

Glad I recorded early tonight, otherwise I would have missed hearing the Dominican Republic on 1430. It was very weak but peaked at 0201 to give a clear ID (26 seconds into the recording). https://app.box.com/s/223xtt5xmg2k0u8fcki68mk9u5k5zuii This is a personal first here.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) 1m ASL
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.com
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/g1vvp
Vimeo Channel: https://vimeo.com/skegnessdx

Receiver: Perseus SDR Receiver
Antenna:  Movable 10ft x 25ft flag