President’s Letter for June 2022

Well, despite a couple of really hot days in the beginning, June temperatures so far, are about average. We certainly couldn’t have asked for better weather for our Manassas Hamfest.  It was beautiful and with low humidity, too. It was our first full blown Hamfest since the beginning of the pandemic. You might remember that last year we did a Tailgate Party, in lieu of a Hamfest. We did it that way due to the Covid restrictions in place at that time. Outdoor space was all we could rent. So with the pandemic winding down & $5/gallon gasoline prices, we held our first post Covid Hamfest, and I call it a success. Our team was headed up once again by Don, WA2SWX. We were once again back in the Manassas … Read more >>

2022 Hamfest Recap

June 4th, – Manassas Hamfest. A beautiful sunrise. No humidity. The temperature just right for a spring day. OVH volunteers started arriving around 5 AM. Our doors opened at 6 AM for the vendors & general admission was 30 minutes later. After a 2 year hiatus, we were ready. Boy, were we ready. OVH members came out in droves to support us. What a tremendous amount of support. And this didn’t happen by accident. As usual, Theresa, KG4TVM, was the Head Talent Wrangler, the Chief Cajoler in Charge. After weeks of prompting, all of her efforts were paid back in spades. A veritable army of volunteers. Dr. Bob Heil was to be our featured speaker. However, due to the load on the Manassas Park Community Center’s wi-fi infrastucture by the … Read more >>

President’s Letter for May 2022

It’s hot. It’s cold. It’s wet. It’s dry. Repeat. Often. Last winter’s schizophrenic weather just seems to go on and on. On the plus side, we certainly aren’t experiencing the drought the folks out west are experiencing. I am proud to report that The Ole Virginia Hams has selected 2 STEM students for the 2022 Steve Frick Scholarship. Additionally, I am very pleased to announce that for the first time ever, we have two young women as our STEM student scholarship winners. These young people will be present @ the beginning of our May 17th meeting for the award presentation. On May 8th, OVH supported our second Run, Bike, and Swim Mini Tri of 2022. Officially called “The Tri It Now – Ladies Choice”, there were also a number of … Read more >>

The OVH Supports “The Tri It Now – Ladies Choice”

On May 8th, The Ole Virginia Hams supported the “The Tri It Now – Ladies Choice”, our second Run, Bike, and Swim Mini Tri of the 2022 season. Ladies Choice participants ran the gamut from tweens on up. The Tri It Now events are relatively easy and short events on a Sunday at The Freedom Aquatic & Fitness Center, Manassas. The course consists of: Run 1.5 miles – Bike 4 miles – Swim 250 yards. It’s a great way for our Technician Class members to get involved as the only things needed are a Handy Talkie (HT) and a desire to serve for a couple of hours on a Sunday morning. Weather wise, it was not a good weekend, with the official rain tally at 2.02 inches in total @ … Read more >>

Local (OVH) Boy Makes Good

Michael, KO4HBU, Unity High School - Member Spotlight

VP OVH OK, so Michael, KO4HBU, is not a boy. He is in fact, a Prince William County Public Schools science teacher. He is also a new ham and a new Ole Virginia Hams member. He was licensed at OVH’s VE Session @ the Nokesville Park on 8/15/20. All of us with children and grandchildren know that raising them and teaching them is difficult. But when you add-in teaching them during the age of COVID, and all of those inherent problems, this becomes much more formidable. We are talking about Michael, not just because he teaches physics, chemistry, biology, and earth sciences at Unity Reed High. We are also talking about what may very well be his greatest accomplishment in 2021. Michael was able to win a $5,000 grant from … Read more >>

2021 Turkey Trot

Ken's (KE2N) Award

VP – OVH November 25th, Thanksgiving morning was another beautiful day for a race. A 5k race to be specific. While a cloudy day, it was an above average 60° with low humidity. Perfect.   First off, and most importantly: Congratulations to our own Ken (KE2N) who not only participated in the race, he placed 2nd in his category. As he told me later, “ …. a post retirement personal best.”       Way to go, Ken! Ken’s (KE2N) Award Next up, what a difference race management makes. Our own Wayne (N7QLK) took the lead here, but he was frequently thwarted by the race’s management. Wayne organized his team of spotters – Wayne, N7QLK; Al, KB4BHB; Ken, KN4DD; Theresa, KG4TVM & John, KG4NXT only then to have the race’s … Read more >>

June VHF Contests – 2 OVH Winners – Compare & Contrast

VHF Contest logo

VP – OVH This last June 12th thru 14th saw the ARRL June VHF Contests. The contest began 1800 UTC Saturday and ended 0259 UTC Monday. The Ole Virginia Hams fielded two of the winners, Gil, KM4OZH and Ron, K3FR. Both are Amateur Extras and “of a certain age”. Both started contesting almost immediately after licensing. While similar in their passions for both amateur radio and contesting, their approach is significantly different. Ron is well seasoned, having acquired his novice license in 1959. For this contest he used mostly FT8. By comparison then, Gil is a relative newcomer, getting licensed just 6 years ago. Gil used SSB/phone. Gil, KM4OZH : Gil, KM4OZH, was first licensed in 2015. And as previously stated, gravitated to contesting shortly thereafter. He really enjoys roving … Read more >>