Pack-a-lunch Hunt 10:00 am 5th Saturday hunt Jan 30th Talk-in 145.35- PL 100 Paul K6FRC will be the fox.  This will be an EASY hunt! (Note: since it uses the 145.35 repeater, the start point is probably at Altamont Pass. Don KC6IPO)

Fremont Hunt 5:00 pm Saturday Feb 6th. Talk-in WA6PWW 147.015+ PL 103.5
Rita KI6SSQ will be the fox.  This will be an EASY hunt!

Pleasanton Hunt  5:00 pm Saturday Feb 20th. Talk-in 147.12 + PL 100
Rich KN6FW will be the fox.

I will be teaching a Tech license class 4th Sat of March.
If you know anyone who wants to get a license have them contact Me.
Rich KN6FW 925-462-1467 For directions or more info please call Rich KN6FW at 925-462-1467

73 KN6FW

I was pleasantly surprised at the turnout for this hunt–seven teams. The transmitter was turned on at 4:50 PM.

Don KD6IRE found the T first and with the best mileage at 10.9 miles. That’s almost a straight line to the T.  Well done!

10.9 miles, KD6IRE, (Don) arrived 5:55 PM
11.1 miles, AB6BR, (Tony) arrived 5:56, tied for first (10% rule)
11.6 miles, KJ6AMG, (Gary) arrived 6:37, tied for first (10% rule)
14.2 miles, N6YIF, (Pete) arrived 6:25
16.2 miles, KN6FW, (Rich) arrived 6:00

Two teams didn’t finish the hunt:
W6EI & KJ6CPX
KI6YTA

The transmitter was located in North Fremont at the Quarry Lakes Park on the trailhead at the south end of the parking lot near Paseo Padre PKWY and Isherwood Way.  The transmitter was putting out 8.5 watts into a 5/8 wave mag mount (on a piece of sheet metal) at ground level along the east side of a north-south running chain link fence.

73, Gary WB6YRU (The fox)

Hi all,

Steve turned on the fox at 6pm, right on schedule although it was hard to tell at the start point. I stayed with Gary AJ6AMG at street level while everyone else went up the hill to try to hear it.

Steve was modulating a very weak signal with white noise so it was hard to recognize it from the usual noise level but I detected a slight increase in noise at the 146.565MHz fox frequency with my HT. Forehead fade seemed to indicate more or less 280 degrees, towards the south end of Coyote Hills.

Gary hooked up his newly built home made 4 element cubical quad beam to his hand held scanner and discovered why a scanner may not be the best choice for such work. Having a very wide front end it was being overloaded by out of band signals so he could not detect the fox. We then tried my HT (Alinco DJ596) and we had maybe an S4 signal from the direction of the Dumbarton bridge toll plaza. He also has a DJ596 he could have used but better still would have been his Radio Shack HTX202. I know because I also have one. The front end is very tight, 2m only, and has great sensitivity. If you can get one of these long out of production HTs, preferably with the AA battery pack, do so. Even if the TX is dead they are excellent for 2m transmitter hunting.

Eventually the rest came down from the mount including my partner Pete N6YIF and off we went.

Pete had the same bearing (280 degrees) as Gary so we set coarse for the toll plaza by the shortest route. We had no signal in the car, not on the doppler or the mag mount. As I recall we had no signal on the mag mount until we were north bound on Cherry crossing Stevenson. There was not enough signal for the doppler until after Mowry. We made a left turn on Central and seemed to get a false doppler bearing to the right as we crossed the tracks but we stayed on coarse towards the toll plaza.

The signal then went dead so we stopped at Willow and Enterprise (in Newark) to wait for the signal’s return. Pete got out his home made yagi to see if he could receive the signal. I was going to bring a camera. I sure do wish I had. He made the yagi with metal tape measure “tape” for the elements. An excellent Idea since it allows it to be folded for storage. There is one major problem with the design though. In high winds it folds up on it’s own. The wind was gusting over 40mph ;>. What a great picture that would have made.

After maybe 20 minutes Steve got the fox back on the air and the hunt resumed.

There is a problem with getting a weak start point bearing towards Coyote Hills. It is usually a reflection from a fox in north Fremont or Union City near the hills. Not last night though. It was in a parking lot at the west end of Thornton right where it turns north.

Pete and I were the first to arrive but more importantly, with the lowest mileage so we won, again. We spent most of the time waiting for the others in our cars because of the nasty chill factor.

Two hunters gave up. Gary (KJ6AMG) headed for home because he felt he was getting a re-lapse from a cold he hoped he was over, and Bernard who joined us for pizza at the Round Table in Centerville where we had the usual excellent pizza and conversation.

Don Safer  KC6IPO

Pleasanton Hunt 6:00 pm Sept 19th Talk-in 147.12 + PL 100
Rich KN6FW will be the fox.

Fremont Hunt 6:00 pm Oct 3rd Talk-in WA6PWW 147.015+ PL 103.5
Steve KA6S will be the fox.
“Challenge hunt for dopplers”

For directions or more info please call Rich KN6FW at 925-462-1467
73 KN6FW

The September Fremont Area transmitter hunt was yesterday(Saturday, September 5).

I hid the transmitter (fox box). There were several new people hunting so I made it an easy hunt. I hid it at Kato road just north of the bridge over Mission Blvd. Kato parallels 880 on the East side, just over the fence. I placed the fox box in a small bush next to the road, turned it on and waited. I only had waited 20 minutes when Steve and family showed up. Lowest mileage wins and they had only traveled 1.6 miles. They had taken the shortest route possible so the only question was would anyone tie for first place. No one did.

Actually finding me was a bit tricky for many. I was next to the brand new and very complex 880 / Mission Blvd interchange so most folks were confused by that, plus if you were on mission West of the last light before 880 (Warm Springs Blvd), you were forced on to 880, unlike the old interchange. You  would drive by the fox but would have to go north or south on 880 to the next interchange before you could turn around, adding perhaps another 4 miles.  ;>   Also if you came down Warren Avenue instead of Mission and missed the turn at Kato, you would wind up over 880 into the industrial park west of 880. I am not sure how you could get back as that part of the interchange may not be finished yet.

When it was over, all 7 teams totaling 13 people had found me. The highest milage was Gary (KJ6AMG) at 9 miles but, since this was only his second hunt, the first without me, and he was testing out his new doppler system, (and  because he is a good friend of mine ;> ) I awarded the “Opec” awarded for the highest milage to our most experienced hunter, Rich H. at 8.5 miles.

Then it was off to the near by Round table Pizza on mission Blvd for sustenance, libation and witty banter.

Steve will by the fox for next month’s Fremont Area hunt. See you there.

Don Safer  KC6IPO