THE LOUDOUN AMATEUR RADIO GROUP

Regular Meetings held the Third Saturday of each month, 8:30 AM at the El Rancho Plus Family Restaurant, located at 101C S. Maple Avenue in Purcellville VA. Talk-in on 147.480 simplex.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MARCH MEETING:

As a follow-on to the presentation on Vibroplex bugs that he gave at the February meeting, Paul, K4MSG, brought in a few more bugs for us to look at and also brought along a code practice oscillator so we could try our hands at using this type of key. Your President, for one, was humbled as I tried to use my normal keyer technique with the bug. It was a lot of fun, though. Charlie, K4LJH, showed us his copy of the video "Big Antennas and Tall Tails", which interviewed three of the originators of the Southern California DX Association. They talked about how DX is.... in the good ole' days; it was an interesting look back into the past. Details of the balloon launch project were discussed and an May launch date for the very first LARG amateur balloon is planned - stay tuned for further details!! Plans for LARG's 1996 Field Day efforts are beginning to firm up. We have obtained permission to use the Ida Lee Park site in Leesburg again this year.

HIGHLIGHTS FOR OUR UPCOMING APRIL MEETING:

John, W3GOI, has purchased a copy of the video, "VP8SSI, the South Sandwich Saga" from the ARRL. This excellent video details the 1992 DXpedition to the South Sandwich islands. It is a high quality video and is very well produced; you will see some of the wildest country and weather on the earth! The tape lasts about 25 minutes. We will also continue our plans for Field Day and would like to pin down how many transceivers we will be setting up this year. Reports from the FD antenna committee and the balloon committee will also be on the agenda.

NOTICE: You'll notice two additional pieces of paper attached to this newsletter. The first is what your club officers think is an up-to-date listing of the active club membership, including who has paid dues for 1996. The second is a set of tables created by Frank Donovan, W3LPL, and posted on the internet. I think that club members will find these data interesting and useful for choosing what kind of lead-in coax to use with their antennas.

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Calendar of Events: