Itchen Valley Amateur Radio Club has a long history of supporting Jamboree On The Air for local Scout groups, and this year was no different – except that we set up and operated stations for not one but two different Scout Groups!

On Friday 18th October, Ken G4DKH, Chris G7LWV, Martyn 2E0OGR and George M7FYO operated HF and VHF stations from the HQ of 12th Winchester Scout Group.  After a short introductory talk about amateur radio, the over 40 Cubs and Scouts visited the stations and spent some time listening to the contacts.  During the evening we contacted stations in all of the home countries (including the Channel Islands), as well as stations in Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Slovenia, Norway and Denmark. We also contacted 4 other JOTA stations.  The Cubs and Scouts were each given an opportunity to pass a short message and practice their use of the phonetic alphabet over the air.  All in all, a very successful evening, and many thanks to all involved in organising, setting up and operating the station.  Judging from the interest and questions asked by the Scouts, there may well be a few more Foundation licencees in Winchester in the next few years!

Colin G4GBP also organised a very successful event over the whole weekend, running special event station GB1ESG for the 1st Eynsham Scout Group, near Oxford (see Colin’s separate report in the “Club” section on the forum).  Not only did Colin set up and operate the JOTA station, he also organised a series of communications related activities over the weekend, including laptops for JOTI (Jamboree Over The Internet), morse buzzer practice, a telephone switchboard with extension phones (one of which was an old-style rotary dial phone!), secret cypher coding and decoding, secret writing with invisible ink, cup-and-string phones, and designing QSL cards.  Over 70 youngsters (and their Leaders) thoroughly enjoyed the event, which was a great success.

There can’t be too many radio clubs in the country running separate JOTA activities for two different Scout Groups!  I’m sure that there will be plenty of interest next year, so keep the third weekend in October 2025 free and join in the fun!

IVARC's annual "QRP day" event was held at Roke Manor, near Romsey on 21st September 2024.  Initially there were some concerns due to the weather, with thunderstorms the previous night, however the day turned out to be fine with only a few spots of rain around midday.

The Roke site again proved to be an ideal venue for this event, set in a rural environment with plenty of space for multiple stations and different antenna configurations.

​Previous years have seen a variety of stations using different modes and bands, and this year was no exception.

Will 2E0HAI and Christian M0UOS were busy receiving WEFAX satellite images, including some amazing shots from NOAA-18

​Andy G4JNT took advantage of the Roke location to receive downlink signals from the geostationary QO-100 satellite - no doubt preparing for his imminent talk to the club on QO-100 this Friday!

Simon M0KFQ also used an end fed half wave antenna with his IC705 on HF SSB, whilst Ken G4DKH used a 44 foot doublet and FT817, mainly on 28MHz SSB (which was wide open on the day with strong signals heard from Australia, Indonesia, Africa and USA).

Unfortunately Alan G8IPQ, a keen participant at previous club QRP days, was unable to attend this year - however he did manage to join the event remotely via 28MHz SSB.  Hopefully Alan will be able to join us at next year's event!

National Field Day has been a highlight of the IVARC calendar for many years and 2024 was no exception. Using the Club's G6IVR/P callsign, 2024 turned out to be a bumper year, the club smashing it's previous record of 806 contacts in 24 hours with a new all time high of 897. Contacts were to 45 different countries mostly in ITU Region 1 but also included Japan, The Falklands, Zambia and Australia.
National Field Day is an annual radio contest held over the first weekend in June and coordinated across the national radio societies in International Telecoms Union Region 1. This includes all countries in Europe, the Middle East as far as Iraq, Russia and Mongolia. Teams set up portable stations in fields (no existing infrastructure is allowed to be used – stations must be completely self contained) with the objective of contacting as many other stations as possible in a specified 24 hour period. All contacts are made using Morse Code.
IVARC's field was kindly loaned by John G8FMQ. Situated on the edge of the New Forest at Canada Common near West Wellow in Hampshire it proved ideal: electrically quiet and most importantly big enough to accommodate the long dipole antenna required for topband.
The team operated in pairs, taking shifts and covering the full 24 hours; thanks to Chris G7LWV, Graham G3XSD, Ken G4DKH, Peter G4JHC, Richard G3OTK and Steve G8XEV. All the gear performed flawlessly, the weather was dry and sunny, there was an endless supply of bacon butties and tea and a great time was had by all!

​Ken G4DKH (L) and Graham G3XSD (R) at the operating table, Richard G3OTK in the background

Date for your diary - IVARC are planning a visit to Bletchley Park on Saturday 19th October 2024. 

Bletchley Park was the principal centre of Allied code-breaking during the Second World War, in particular the German Enigma and Lorenz ciphers.

The separate National Museum of Computing, which includes a working replica Bombe machine and a rebuilt Colossus computer, is also located on the site, as is the RSGB National Radio Centre.

Don’t forget that RSGB members can gain free admission to Bletchley Park by downloading a voucher from the RSGB website. The voucher also includes admission to the RSGB National Radio Centre.

To ensure we make the most of our visit, Steve G8XEV has very kindly volunteered to revisit his presentation “Enigma: The code and its cryptanalysis, a broad overview of the Allied effort to decipher ENIGMA traffic before and during WWII” for the club meeting before the Bletchley Park visit (11 October 2024)

Nearer the time we’ll be organising car-sharing for those wishing to attend the visit to Bletchley Park.

As part of SOS Radio Week, special event station GBØCLB was successfully activated by IVARC club members on 19 May 2024 from Calshot Lifeboat Station, on Calshot Spit overlooking Southampton Water.

SOS Radio Week is an annual event supporting the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), National Coastwatch Institution (NCI), Independent Lifeboat Stations and Coastal Rescue Teams through amateur radio, helping to raise awareness of the invaluable lifesaving work of the volunteer crews. This year, the event was named “SOS Radio Week 200”, as 2024 marks the 200th anniversary of the founding of the RNLI.

Our special event station was set up just outside RNLI Calshot lifeboat station, using the club’s TS570S transceiver and a doublet antenna at around 8m. Operation was SSB on HF bands 40-10m.

Many thanks to club members Martyn 2E0OGR, Chris G7LWV, Steve G8XEV, Peter G4JHC, Edgar M7FEW and Ken G4DKH for their assistance setting up, manning the station. Our first contact was at 09:20, and we continued until about 15:00. The Calshot lifeboat crew had been called out to an incident at 05:30 in the morning, and as a result were stood down earlier than usual at about midday – at that point we moved on to battery power.

Although radio conditions weren't great due to the recent solar activity, this was more than compensated by the fine weather for most of the day.  In the end we managed 34 contacts, across 12 DXCC's, including the home nations and Italy, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Finland, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Bulgaria and Austria. Most of these were on 40m & 20m, with occasional forays on to 17m & 10m. Best DX heard was Indonesia (YB0IBM) on 10m, but unfortunately we just couldn't break through the mega pile-up. Appropriately our very last contact of the day was with OI1AY/MM, on a Finnish Navy ship in the North Atlantic off the coast of Portugal.

Despite only making 34 contacts, our QRZ.com page has had over 165 lookups so far! ​

Overall a very enjoyable special event, raising awareness of, and supporting the work of, the RNLI. Many thanks again to everyone from the club who participated.

On Sunday 19th May 2024, In support of SOS Radio Week 2024, Itchen Valley Amateur Radio Club will operate GB0CLB (Calshot Life Boat) from Calshot Lifeboat Station.  Operation will be mainly SSB on the HF bands (40m / 20m / 15m / 10m).  
 
We are participating in SOS Radio Week 200 in May to help promote & raise awareness of the work of the RNLI through amateur radio.  If you haven’t heard of SOS Radio Week 200, find out more at  www.sosradioweek.org.uk/
 
Calshot is our ‘local’ lifeboat station, and is located on Calshot Spit, operating at the end of Southampton Water and into the Solent. 
 
Established in 1970, it currently houses two inshore lifeboats, an Atlantic 85 and a D class.  Find out more about Calshot Lifeboat Station at www.rnli.org/calshot
 
The station will run from approx 9am, with setup from 8am, and we will be looking for operators for the HF station, plus help to set up the station.  If you are able to help out please contact Ken G4DKH directly or via the club forum.

​Brickworks is a scheme run by local amateur radio clubs such as ourselves that have committed to helping all licenced amateur radio operators discover what the hobby has to offer.  Brickworks is an exciting and fun way to build on what you have learned on your Foundation Course. It enables you to learn more about your new hobby, build your confidence, gain a greater understanding of how to get the best out of your equipment and enjoy new experiences.
 
Brickworks Accredited Clubs are welcoming and friendly places that will support both those new to the hobby, and those who are already licensed, who want to explore the hobby more fully. We will give you advice, guidance, and help. 
 
When you enrol on the scheme we will arrange presentations and support sessions aimed directly at your level. These sessions will be backed up by practical activities that are designed to help you put into practice what you have discovered. You’ll never be alone as you complete the activities as more experienced club members will always be on-hand to help and support you – often they’ll complete the activities with you to give you added encouragement!

Brickworks Activities:
 
Brickworks is based on 23 varied activities, centred around 5 main themes:

Having a Go
Log 50 VHF/UHF contacts (any mode)
Log contacts with stations in 3 of the ‘home’ countries (any mode)
Log 50 HF contacts using CW or phone modes
Log 50 contacts using data modes (any band)
Log 10 contacts using image modes (eg SSTV, FSTV)
Log 10 contacts using digital voice modes (eg DMR, D-Star, Fusion)
Log a contact through a satellite, or with the International Space Station

Getting Involved
Activate a Summits on the Air (SOTA) summit
Log 20 contacts in different Worked All Britain (WAB) squares
Log 10 successful contacts during a contest
Help your club set up a special event station
Operate and/or log at a special event station

Taking Part
Attend 6 club meetings
Take part in 6 club nets
Help out at your club regularly (anything from making the tea to joining the committee)
Make a presentation to the club on any amateur radio related subject
Take part in a RAYNET event
Help to organise a club activity

Making
Build a piece of amateur radio related equipment
Write an amateur radio related software app/website

Promoting Amateur Radio
Introduce someone who goes on to start a Foundation course
Attend a rally or exhibition to promote your club
Help run a training course at your club

​How will I be rewarded for my achievements?
 
As you progress through the scheme your club will reward you
with certificates of completion - Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum
& Diamond - so that you can see and be proud of your progress.

​Need more information or want to join?
 
For more information, the RSGB Brickworks site goes into much more detail: https://rsgb.org/main/beyond-exams-building-experience/brickworks/brickworks-activities/
 
If you’d like to join, please get in touch! Send us a message on our contact form :
Contact (ivarc.org.uk) or come along to a club meeting.

​September 23rd 2023 saw club members participating in a successful “QRP day” held at Roke Manor, near Romsey.  The event was originally due to be held in July but had to be re-scheduled due to wet & windy weather.  Fortunately the weather this time was much better!

The playing field at Roke was an ideal venue for the event, and allowed plenty of space for multiple operating stations to be set up and different antenna configurations tested.  A wide range of modes and bands were in use, ranging from HF (Chris G7LWV, Ken G4DKH, Martyn 2E0OGR, Alan G8IPQ, Paul M1CNK) through VHF (Martyn 2E0OGR) right up to 10GHz (Andy G4JNT).   

Paul M1CNK took advantage of the location to compare the performance of a ½ wave end fed antenna vs a ¼ wave vertical using WSPR on 20m, and Glyn M0XGT and Will 2E0HAI were busy experimenting with Will’s new SDR radio and various pcb patch antennas

Martyn 2E0OGR was active on HF, where he worked several Lighthouses on the Air stations and also on 2m & 70cm, working through many of the repeaters along the south coast.

Overall, a very successful day, and one which the club will definitely repeat next year.  Many thanks to all those club members who supported the event, and especially to Paul M1CNK for organising.  

In May/June 2023, Ken G4DKH embarked on a 6 week road trip across Scandinavia in his campervan.  At a club meeting before the trip, he was challenged by several IVARC members to take along some radio equipment, so…..

With radio very much a secondary aspect of the holiday, and restricted space available in the campervan, equipment had to be minimal, finally settling on the FT817, with a 7m vertical antenna with 4 short radials, and an Elecraft T1 autotuner.

Over the course of the trip, 4 separate locations in Norway were activated - Bleik (in the Vesterålen Islands), and Alesund, Geiranger Fjord, & Vangsnes in the western fjords.   Propagation conditions were about average, and 4 operating sessions (approximately 2-3 hours each, with CW & SSB on 80, 40, 30 & 20m) resulted in a total of 23 QSOs in 15 DXCC entities.  Best DX was IK6BGJ (1866 miles) on 14 MHz SSB, and the best RBN spot was from VE2WU (3361 miles) on 14 MHz CW.

Not spectacular results by any standard, however it was a very enjoyable add-on to the holiday, and a lot of lessons were learned for next time!

Other memorable highlights of the holiday included crossing the Arctic Circle, watching the midnight sun and visiting the Sorvagen Telecoms Museum in the Lofoten Islands, hiking up to the Briksdal Glacier, and visiting the Kon Tiki museum in Oslo.