Jim sadly passed away in December after a short spell in hospital during which he suffered a major stroke.
Jim was an active member of SKARS and will be remembered for often appearing with something to sell at the start of club meetings. He was the Raynet coordinator for Lincolnshire as well acting as a fishing bailiff in Grantham.
Jim, you will be missed. RIP
The simple aim of this challenge is to see how many callsigns you can contact between 00:01 on 14 November 2020 until Lockdown ends at 23:59 on 2 December 2020.
As many of the contacts will be by ground wave there should be plenty of on-air activity even when the bands are apparently dead – and participants are encouraged to try modes that they might otherwise not normally use.
Participants – Members of SKARS are automatically registered for the challenge but anyone else (ideally near to Grantham) is welcome to ask to be added to the list.
Entries from anyone without a licence (SWL) are also welcome – see Recording for details
Eligible Bands – all amateur bands from 160m through to 23cm
Eligible modes – CW, Voice and Digital.
CW – any speed
Voice – SSB, AM, FM or digital voice (only one per member per band)
Digital – Any digital mode supporting 2-way contact (e.g. FT8, RTTY, SSTV, Olivia, PSK etc)
Scoring – you score 1 point per member for each mode in each band, so each member is worth up to 41 points (14 bands with 3 modes (2 for 30m)). Double points will be scored for the club callsign, MX0SKR.
Recording – You can use paper logs but may find it easier to use the spreadsheet below to keep track – just put the date of the contact in the cell. If you have no licence, just enter the other callsign that you heard in the cell of the spreadsheet (i.e. you need both callsigns to score)
Assistance – You are encouraged to schedule calls with other participants or to announce the frequency, mode and times you will be operating (on air, by email or any other method) – basically there are no restrictions on soliciting calls!
Have fun!
Steve M0NMA
SKARS is pleased to announce that Andrew Kiddle G4HVC has been accepted by the RSGB as a Morse Competency Assessor. He will be able to award certificates of competency at 5, 10 and 12 words per minute.
SKARS carry our regular morse practice sessions at the first meeting each month for anyone wanting to start or improve their CW skills.
The club visit to RAF Coningsby has now been approved by the BBMF = See the event calendar for more details.
The latest RSGB Newsletter has now been uploaded to the members area. If anyone needs access, please contact the chairman.
The February RSGB club update has now been uploaded to the members’ area. As an affiliated club, all members of SKARS are able to receive the update. If you need access to the members area, please ask the chairman to grant you access (or reset your password).
We are always trying to keep our activities fresh and attractive to our members and potential new ones. Our new Social night at The Royal Queen in Belton Lane, Grantham, is on Tuesday 12 November at 7:30 – No need to bring your radios as it is just a social gathering, so it is also spouse-friendly (should they wish to attend!). If you want to know more about the club, just come along and say hello!
Under 18s are welcome – the pub just asks that they remain with an adult after 9pm.
Location map: https://maps.google.com/?cid=5781847479981282853
Richard Powley (M0IGM) passed away on November the 3rd at the Grantham Hospital Hospice. Richard had been unwell for some time.
Richard first came to SKARS after he answered a call for volunteers to help at one of our JOTA stations and became an active member, a regular on the club net and participated in other club activities and meetings, always keen to offer his advice and assistance to new operators.
In May this year Richard spent an entertaining couple of hours talking and accepting messages over the radio from the members of a local scout group after we went to give a talk and demonstration, going out of his way to assist.
Richard spent much of his life in Germany and after coming back to the hobby operated for a while operated as M/DJ0MDW.
The committee and members of SKARS send their condolences to his wife Joy and his family and friends.
South Kesteven ARS have once again proved they are an award winning society
RSGB Region 13 winners for three years running
National Finalists for three years running, 3rd in 2015, 2nd in 2016 and now finally grabbing the first place for their hard work and efforts in 2017
Collecting the award on behalf of SKARS was Stewart Mason (Event coordinator) and his son Noah at the National Hamfest on 29th September 2018. The club received a voucher for £500 and is looking to buy a transceiver from Waters & Stanton the sponsors of the competition.
Congratulations and thanks to all SKARS members and the committee for their hard work.
Abdel Mesbah M0NPT came along to SKARS on the 6th July 2018 to give a talk and demonstration on operating through Amateur radio satellites.
As well as a powerpoint presentation Abdel was able to demonstrate the operating of an SSB linear transponder on FO-29 during two passes that evening. Using a Yaesu FT-847 and a handheld homebrew antenna made a number of successful QSOs. (Video and photos by Stewart Mason M0SDM)
