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
Due to the Covid-19 outbreak we have cancelled club meetings until the restrictions on meetings ease. This will be reviewed as advice from the Government on lifting lockdown restrictions is received.
Remember we have a net on GB3GR each Weds at 8pm for 30 mins. All members and non-members are welcome to join in. For the period of Lockdown we also have a net on 3,720 kHz (+/-QRM) at 19:30 BST on the first and third Friday of each month.
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).
The current committee members (as voted at the AGM on 3 Jan 2020 and the EGM on 21 Feb 2020) are
Chair: Steve Marsh, M0NMA
Vice: Ivan Szabo, M6HET
Club Secretary: Brian Hiley, M0YBX
Club Treasurer: Steve Marsh, M0NMA
Event and Contest Coordinator: Andrew Kiddle, G4HVC
Member Representative: John Uttley, G6CQD
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
South Kesteven ARS had a fu
n-packed day at the recent JOTA event with around 50 Scouts, Cubs and Beavers from Grantham and District using the special event call sign GB1FS. Stewart Mason M0SDM, Andrew Kiddle G4HVC and Konrad Emery-Ford M0KVF logged 24 QSOs on 80m using the club FT-450D rig (last year’s prize from Waters & Stanton for winning the RSGB small club of the year ) and an OCFD.
Not a bad result, given many of them were long QSOs, not quick 59 contacts! The highlight had to be the contact with GB100GP who must have been very busy over the JOTA weekend. The team also demonstrated CW with an oscillator and helped to explain to the Scouts, Cubs and Beavers what the hobby was all about.