See the complete results at New England QSO Party 2012 Results

The CTRI Contest Group tried something new for the 2012 NEQP, 1×1 callsigns. Logs were received from more than a dozen of their close to 20 1×1 callsigns active in the contest. The club group from Northeastern University Radio Club – W1KBN gave the NEQP a try for the first time and walked away with the school club plaque, narrowly besting the W1AF team from Harvard Wireless Group.

2012 Eyeball QSO and Spring Fling at K0EJ

Pictured at the K0EJ April 21, 2012 2nd Annual Spring Fling TCG Eyeball QSO Party from left to right:

KD4HIK, W4EEH, N8UM, N4MIK, K0EJ, K4OWR, KS4X, K1GU, W4NZ, KD4UZ, W4UT, AK4QU, WF7T, NA4K, N2WN, W4PV, WD4K, N4DRV

(photo courtesy of Steve NA4K)

Seated L to R: Jay NX2C,Ken KS4X,Ken’s XYL Ellen KD4UZ,Ned K1GU,Jeff
K4BP,Reed W4HRC

Standing L to R: Dave WA3SCM,Bill K4OWR,Ted W4NZ,Jerry NE4L,Tom N1MM,Steve
NA4K,Darris K4RST

Thank you to all for your vote of support for Mark K0EJ and me to stand at the helm.  My only agenda is to continue to facilitate the fun in our operations, and to help us continue the advancement of the art and technology.  My personal goals are to introduce contesting to new and seasoned hams alike.  Maybe I can bring a few new ones on board!

The hand-off of responsibilities, logins, locks and funds will be completed this week.  I intend to give a quick stand-up report at our meeting at Mark’s Soddy Daisy Contesting Station. I will follow with a post here and the Google group with the particulars.

In mention of Mark’s shindig this Saturday, please see this link for more info:  http://k4tcg.org/2012/04/01/2012-tcg-eyeball-qso-party/.  I hope to see you all there!  Check this site and the Google Groups for the latest info!

Brad WF7T
http://www.k4tcg.org
http://groups.google.com/group/tcg1

KY5R (L) and N4ZZ (R)

(Huntsville, Alabama) – TCG charter member Don Binkley, N4ZZ has been awarded the Southeastern Contester Of The Year. The award was presented Friday night at the Sunny Southern Hospitality Suite hosted by the Alabama Contest Group at the 2011 Huntsville hamfest. Many thanks to the ACG for sponsoring this award.

This Southeastern Contester Of The Year award has now been presented three times, with past recipients being John Laney, K4BAI in 2009, and Paul Newberry, N4PN in 2010. The award is normally given Saturday at the informal Huntsville contest dinner. The presentation was moved this year to Friday night, so that Don could return to his station in order to operate the CW Ops CW Open contest at 1200z Saturday morning!

Congratulations to N4ZZ on this prestigious and much deserved honor!

It is with great sadness that I inform the contesting community of the passing of Gerard J. Scarano (AKA Jerry W1ZM). He passed away this morning in his sleep after a brief illness. He was 96.

A contesting powerhouse in the 60′s as W3MVB, Jerry was a member and past president of PVRC. He moved back home to CT in the very early 1970′s after retiring from federal service (DoD) and started his own engineering consulting firm. He built an incredible station on a hill overlooking the Thames River in Gales Ferry. He was given the call of W1ZM and altho a host of several multi-multi’s, the station piloted by Jeff/K1ZM as single-op ruled the contest standings until the mid-1980′s. YCCC got more than a few club points courtesy of Jerry.

I first met Jerry in 1979 as a navy ensign attending basic submarine school. Jerry was the trustee of the sub-base club, K1SSN, and after speaking to him about joining the club, he invited me to his place. I still remember driving to see him on a Saturday morning. As I drove up, I saw a tower with a 4L 20M yagi (what’s the big deal??) but when I pulled into the driveway, I saw the other 4 towers. Wow!! The shack had a big bank of homebrew 4-1000 amps – one affectionately called “The Blue Goose” and a pair of 6C21′s (the Rock Crusher)running class-C on 40M. Most of the gear was Collins with a few Kenwoods, Drakes, and EF Johnson. You changed bands by changing seats – quite a sight.We became quite close, and stayed in contact ever since.

He was like my adopted father, as my dad died when I was in college. Jeff and I did the final removal of the towers a few years ago when Jerry and his bride Ellie decided to live full-time at their winter home in New Port Richey, FL. He remained active on the air almost daily running a KW to a rooftop 20M vertical and a few dipoles. That vertical really worked! Ellie passed away a few years ago after a lingering illness. He travelled a good bit after she died and one of his recent highlights was finally travelling to VY2ZM and giving his stamp of approval to Jeff’s modest station on PEI.

I would normally schedule my FL visits to coincide with some sort of contest. I remember several phone SS tests, a PVRC reunion-on-the-air, and last years FQP. Always a few folks who had played at his CT QTH would stop to say Hi – he was normally in his chair watching me operate – but he heard you!!

Lots more stories could be told – if you have any special memories, please pass them along – his daughters will enjoy hearing them. Arrangements are not final but I will be heading down there in a day or 2. Post them to the reflector or e-mail to me (K0EJ at juno.com)

Sadly, vy 73,

Mark K0EJ