Thanks to all for their comments.
As suggested I've looked into similar events, like the Appalachian Trail
project, I have wondered how we can get enough people interested and more
importantly how they can be coordinated.
Thinking about the existing DStar organized nets it occurred to me that the
cleanest way to gather a group is to have a scheduled, regular event that
anyone could join when they wanted.
Thus was born my latest 'great idea' - the Dstar Second Sunday Simplex Society
- a sort of simplex net.
Here is what I propose:
1. Each second Sunday of a month all are invited to play in the Simplex Society
gathering.
2. The event will run from 0800 to 1000 local time, maybe a little earlier &
later for those near time zone boundaries. (we don't need no stinkin Zulu stuff)
3. Some station on the east coast will 'launch' a simple message to the group
at 0800, maybe something like "Boston likes baked beans and brown bread."
4. Everyone is invited to talk with their neighbors via simplex and to pass the
message of the day to anyone who hasn't received it yet.
5. Since lots of folks like to contest, maybe we could devise a scoring system
something like this:
A. One point for each contact
B. Five points for receiving the message of the day (once only)
C. Two points for passing the message to a station that hasn't heard it
yet.
Don't know how to collect data yet, but an email listing contacts in
something like cabrillo format (with message recv'd/sent codes added) would
work.
It seems that 145.670 mhz is pretty commonly used as the VHF simplex frequency,
but I think some areas may have a different plan. Also not sure where the UFH
simplex occurs but it can't be too hard to find it.
I hope this makes some sense as a place to start. People can participate in
their 'jamies at home, on the sand at the beach with a HT, or even mobile from
the church parking lot. Maybe the more adventurous will haul their yagis up
their favorite mountain or hilltop (Mt Wachusetts should reopen in the fall of
next year!). Once we start building a community of folks playing simplex maybe
we can organize some specific challenges, like Boston to San Deigo or maybe Ft
Kent Maine to Key West Florida. I've already got my topo map out looking for
the 'good places'.
I would like to propose we start in August on the 8th. Until we see how this
works out I would ask folks to send their contact logs to me at
[email protected]. If we generate any interest I'll look at better ways of
collecting and distributing results. Maybe some of the contesting folks can
offer guidance on the best methods.
If you participate in ant Dstar nets please pass on the schedule to anyone
interested. I hope to hear about lots of activity in August, maybe even getting
the message of the day to San Deigo!
Please let me know if this sounds like something that would interest you, how
it could be made better, or any other suggestions.
Thanks & 73,
Ted Wrobel
W1GRI
Newport, RI
