[amsat-bb] Cochise A.R.A. hamfest on 2 May 2015 - report

[Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK)]

Hi!

On Saturday, 2 May 2015, I had an AMSAT table at the Cochise Amateur Radio
Association's annual hamfest in Sierra Vista, Arizona. This hamfest is held
at the club's property on the edge of Sierra Vista, where there are a couple
of buildings, some towers, and an empty lot that was divided between parking
and space for sellers to display their equipment. In past years, the lot had
lots of empty space. This year, it was almost full. A good turnout for the
half-day event.

During the morning, I had satellite demonstrations on SO-50, AO-73, and the
packet/APRS digipeater on the ISS. There were good crowds for the passes I
worked - three on SO-50, two on AO-73, and one ISS pass. It is always nice to
have AO-73 available for daytime passes on the weekends, since that helped
to show the differences between working it and FM satellites - in particular,
equipment and operating techniques. Thanks to everyone who called and worked
WD9EWK during those passes. For the ISS, I was able to complete two quick
QSOs using APRS messages from my TH-D72A HT with KO6TZ in southern California
and N7NEV near Phoenix. I'm finding that there are some who actually are at
their keyboards/radios for ISS passes, beyond the automatic beacons that seem
to dominate the passes.

I wasn't the only satellite operator at the hamfest. Leo W7JPI had a table
set up to sell some old gear. John K8YSE was also at the hamfest, and he
worked WD9EWK from each of his stations (K8YSE in Ohio/EN91, K8YSE in
Arizona/DM43) using a laptop and a WiFi hotspot not far from my table. It was
fun - and funny - to point him out to the crowd ("Did you hear K8YSE/7 and
K8YSE on that pass? He's sitting over there, using each of his stations
remotely.").

Talking about the recent announcements for the transponders on all 5 Fox-1
satellites, plus the plans for a geosynchronous payload, made for great
conversation throughout the morning. With Fox-1A's launch approaching, the
Fox-1A flyer was a popular item at my table. My "job" is much easier with
all of these satellite projects to talk about. :-)

Thanks to Kurt Edelman KF7PDV and the Cochise Amateur Radio Association for
their hospitality. I have been making the trip to Sierra Vista and hosting an
AMSAT table at this hamfest since 2008, and it is nice to see the hams in
that part of Arizona every year. Thanks also to John K8YSE for using both of
his stations to work me during that SO-50 pass.

73!




Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK
http://www.wd9ewk.net/
Twitter: @WD9EWK