President’s Letter for July 2025

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    Hello Again Everyone,   Once again, our busy season is winding down, and it’s been a whirlwind for some time now. On June 28th & 29th, the OVH took part in ARRL Field Day 2025. Under the guidance of returning Field Day Chairwoman Cat, KM4PBD, we had another good Field Day weekend. I look forward to reading our official stats. Despite the humidity and light rain, preparation started the day before, on Friday. Antenna lines were shot into the trees Friday afternoon. We also had our second weather balloon launch (or second and third if you are going to be a stickler for such things) on Saturday. Please see the July 9th article on our OVH webpage for an in depth look as well as great graphics (a … Read more >>

OVH supports 4th of July Firecracker 5K race

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Theresa KG4TVM, John KG4NXT, Jerry KR4EZZ, Al KB4BHB. Greg KM4CCG taking picture

Early on July 4th, the OVH did communication and overwatch at the George Mason University Freedom Center, at Manassas, VA. We watched for safety problems on University Blvd. Helping were Greg, KM4CCG; Theresa, KG4TVM;  Al, KB4BHB; John, KG4NXT and Jerry, KR4EZZ.   Jerry had just received his license grant on July 2nd and showed up with an HT to support the race.  We were released about 10:15 AM.  The sponsors provided race T-Shirts to all OVH members. Those shirts will be distributed at the July OVH meeting. Click the picture for more pictures.

Sunshine Corner

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SUNSHINE CORNER – JULY 2025 Happy Birthday wishes to the following club members:  Jack, KN4HHQ; Steve, KM4WVP; Philip, KI4WCG; Jeff, KM4FTK; Bruce, KN4TS; George, K4GVT; Jim, KB0HSA; Sandy, KM4JUS; Rosalie, KN4ZLY; Jeff, K9VEG; Richard, KJ4ZIH; Luther, WA3FMO; Stephen, KO4GQR and William, WB4KLC!   Field Day – Wow, we did sweat out there, but it was a successful, fun weekend! Tons of equipment, pounds of food, great fellowship and a successful balloon launch. Thanks to everyone that pulled this event together and participated. Parks on the air (POTA) – Are you interested in POTA?  Not sure where to start?  Looking for some tips and hints?   Well, on Friday, July 18th starting at 9 AM and going to 11 AM, maybe 12 depending on participation, several of us will be set up … Read more >>

Field day balloon launches with radio packages

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Bruce KN4GDX ties APRS radio package to Mylar balloon with Byron AK4XR helping

Amateur High |Altitude Balloon (HAB) Launches – W4OVH Field Day 2025  One Field Day bonus is an educational project. At one of the planning meetings, we decided to do a balloon launch with a radio package as our educational project.  We has done one before, but with disappointing telemetry. Bruce, KN4GDX, took the project on again for 2025.  Payloads Planning and Testing Two amateur payloads were planned and prepared for the Field Day 2025 launch.  Launch was planned for ~1500 on June 28 at the field day W4OVH site; and actually occurred at about 1530.  The following description covers the planning, launch activities and tracking of the two payloads. The first payload, from Zachtek, was similar to the 2024 HAB payload launch, which worked while testing, but unfortunately did not … Read more >>

Sunshine Corner

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SUNSHINE CORNER – JUNE 2025 Happy Birthday wishes to the following club members:  Jan, KE4TMW; Ed, KQ4DPP; Jim, KM4SXM; Robert, W4PHX; Seth, WA0FZY; Wayne, AG4ZZ; Gene, N4HFW; Bob, K4HJF; Daniela, KQ4IKQ; David, KQ4BDS; Dana, KM4TTP; Ron, K3FR and William, KO4QDL – best wishes for a great year ahead! We have quite a few of our club members on the injured reserve list for one reason or the other – surgery, sickness, family member health issues – so let’s send healing thoughts to everyone for complete & quick recoveries. The 2025 Tail Gate Event is now in the books. Mother Nature had other ideas that weekend, but we did muscle our way thru. Special thanks to John, KG4NXT, who was the Chairman for this event. Also thanks to the club members … Read more >>

President’s Letter for June 2025

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Hello Everyone, I’d like to start with another apology for the short President’s Letter. My wife’s and my medical issues persist, but I am told by the doctors that there is indeed a light at the end of the tunnel. We are close to the end of our adventures. Our 2025 Tailgate Party (in lieu of Hamfest) was back on June 7th  : this year we had a confluence of poor weather. It was humid and we had a persistent light rain and wind, the combination of which kept attendance down significantly. As such, the club’s take was down compared to recent years, however we still managed to turn a profit. Our 2 club photographers, George, K4GVT and Rosalie, KN4ZLY, have once again provided us with many memories. OVH Tailgate … Read more >>

Sunshine Corner

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SUNSHINE CORNER – May 2025 Happy Birthday wishes to the following club members: John, KM4VCJ; David, KG4GIY; Bill, WA4FIC; Carl, KK4ZYX; Robert, KQ4PSE; Craig, WA3UFY; Roberto, KM4RIE; Susan, K3SSP; Bruce, KN4GDX; Don, WA2SWX; Jim, WI4EE; John, KG4NXT; Kenneth, KI4EOH and Lynn, KX4HR.  Hope you have a great year ahead! Sending get-well wishes to Art, W1CRO: he had to spend some time in the hospital.  Hope he is back on his feet soon! Ken, KN4DD, is recovering from his second knee replacement. We hope to see him moving around better, soon. Happy Mother’s Day to all our moms, hope you had a special day to celebrate. Final planning meeting for Tailgate and Field Day will be a combination meeting for both events on Tuesday, May 27th.  The meeting will be at … Read more >>

Gil, KM4OVH, wins VAQP Rover Plaque despite deer attack

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Bent Antenna Mast and grill damage

Gil, KM4OVH, is a national competitor in the ARRL VHF contest and a past statewide Plaque winner in the Virginia QSO Party (VAQP). The VAQP starts at 10 AM on Saturday and runs until midnight and then runs 8 AM to 8 PM on Sunday. Gil always plans his route in detail ahead of time to maximize his multipliers. Byron, AK4XR, has been understudying Gil and following in a separate vehicle. For Gil and Byron, things went as planned on Saturday. The plan was to grab some sleep at Gil’s family farm and to continue the planned route on Sunday at 8 AM. As they drove at 1 AM on Sunday with Gil in the lead, A DEER APPEARED in the left part of the road. Gil applied the brakes … Read more >>