Convention 2011 Results
Special thanks go to the following people for their financial
support through the donation of money or goods:
Our anonymous
home brew benefactor
Thanks too go to the support of our commercial traders and second hand dealers/ amateur sellers as without them there would be no incentive to hang around for a protracted time at the convention centre and we buyers would miss out on all those goodies.
President Charles thanked all club members for their terrific support in all apects of the convention and hoped that the hounds enjoyed themselves as much as the foxes did in hiding the TXs. Total registrations were 85 plus partners and harmonics.
The Australian Fox Hunting Championships run in Mount Gambier of the June long weekend by SERG were very successful. Numbers were, once again, a little up on last year which is good to see. There were some old face returned after some time away from our competition and for some that couldn't make it, others popped up. We hope they can all come back next year and bring some friends.
This year due to the change in the Buy Swap and Sell part of our convention an additional event was included on the Saturday.
The Events
Event 1. The traditional first event on the Saturday of the sniffer hunt was well attended with 24 competitors having a go. Some teams were off repairing equipment and didn't compete in this event so these numbers were extremely good. Weather started out cool and a littel overcast but actually improved to blue skies.
Group Photo of the competitors for event 1 (Photo courtesy Charles VK5HD)
Event 2. There were 10 teams starting the second event which was an improvement on last year and it was great to see the variety of teams competing. One team, VK3YQN, failed to make the finish due to water level in which they were trapped. Suzanne made the call for help, ankle deep in water. GPS coordinates were given out and our President Charles VK5HD set off from Mount Gambier to rescue them. VK5ZSN had just completed the Event and offered to go and help. Suzanne relayed the coordinates again through the front side of the microphone with the instructions "Do not come in from the North it's too wet". VK5ZSN plotted their position and headed off to the rescue. Andrew VK5KET followed them after packing up Event 2.
 |  |
| Suzanne VK3FSZI and Dianne VK3FVXN in the VK3YQN vehicle going nowhere fast. It should be noted that this was on the way out and they had already successfully negotiated it once. (Photos courtesy of Bruce VK3TJN) | |
VK5ZSN were close and could just see YQN in the distance when Charles HD called that he had reached them and was able to extract them. It was about then that VK5ZSN discovered how deep the puddle was that they were attempting to cross and were firmly wedged on the bank up to their differentials in it. Andrew KET reversed up and with rope and a snatch strap attached, pulled VK5ZSN backwards off the bank only to have the rope break on the other bank. A little digging and another hook up and they were extracted out of the hole.
 |  |
| Adrian VK5ZSN & Chris VK5CP prior to the second recovery attempt. | |
At this point, normally the story should end, but Murphy (AKA Chris) played his hand. Adrian VK5ZSN got the car turned around to drive out the way they had come in. Chris suggested that Adrian get some speed up and be able to go right through the middle. Adrian did as directed and the result was bogged to both axels again in another bog. At this point the local farmer who's fence line runs along side the track came over to see what was going on. He stayed to watch the performance and even helped by getting some wood off the wood pile to put in the rutts.
Andrew KET, backed up again, recovery gear still connected, and after some jacking, digging, piling wood in the rutts another attempt was made to get free. Progress was made but still not recovered. At this point the next event had been delayed and VK5ZSN made the call to start without them. Chivalry is not dead, but it does cost !
Some more digging and more wood and a third attempt was made and they were pulled clear. After being more selective of the chosen route both vehicles made it back to Mount Gambier without further incident, well almost.
Enroute to Mount Gambier from the second event a call went out from VK5ZBR saying they had a blown engine on one of the legs of event 3. VK5ZSN located in the car wash decided they would rescue their AREG brothers. GPS coordinates exchanged and the team was rescued. VK5ZBR was pusing the limits, unfortunately now they're pushing their car.
Event 3. This was a new event for this year. Three legs, 70cm, 2m & 70cm. Pretty normal frequencies, giving everyone an opportunity to compete, except for the VK5ZSN knights in shining (but mud covered) armour, who couldn't make the start. This event is where Bevin VK5TV discovered that his 4WD wasn't actually 4WD. He got a little bogged but fortunately a fellow competitor picked him up and extracted him.
 Norbert Hiding from the Hunters, any camouflage is good |  Quick Hunters keen to get on to the next leg. (Photos courtesy Norbert VK5MQ) |
 The "Shopping Trolley" hidden in the scrub |  The all important tube in plain sight. (Photos courtesy of Colin VK5HCF) |
Event 4 was the infamous night hunt, which now has the title of "The Wayne Kilpatrick Memorial Night Hunt" in memory of Wayne. SERG President Charles VK5HD gave a brief speech about Wayne and the reason for naming the event after him with which all the competitors heart heartedly agreed with. The Night Hunt was relatively trouble free with a couple of drop outs due to time and equipment issues but nobody requiring rescue. The only incident of note occurred when a team accidentally jammed their transmitter on the repeater when they stuffed the microphone in the console along with some other equipment. For the entire 3 minutes their conversation was broadcast until the repeater timed out. Problem was that they were still transmitting so the repeater wouldn't reset. Some creative communications and frequency choices were made which kept the event running until Charles VK5HD could find the offending vehicle and arrange for the transmitter to be shutdown. It should be noted here that Charles didn't have any direction finding gear in his car but with some creative antenna switching was able to locate the offender and get it shutdown in around 20minutes. Who needs the techno antennas on the vehicle when you use your brain ! We had nine starters but only 6 finished the event, more importantly there were no rescues required. Positions were varied, however the top four teams finished in under 2 hours. The rest of the field completed in 4 hours.
 | Steve VK5GL hiding at his spot on the night hunt. Some of us go to a fair bit of effort to make it hard to find us in the dark. Nothing has matched the camouflage yet though. |  |
 | The Wayne Kilpatric Memorial Night Hunt Trophy awarded to the team that finished first in the Night Hunt. |  |
Event 5. This was the Sunday morning sniffer hunt. Traditionally it's been a shorter event in a smaller area and this year was no different. The initial challenge was to find the start point. GPS waypoint was given, however, not everyone had the most latest maps and new housing developments don't show up well on maps. Almost everyone was there, VK5ZBR made it in their temporary car, although it took two trips to get the team there. 22 Starters for this morning's event. Many competitors were back well before the allotted time so it looks like this course was a little too easy. It was a fresh morning without a cloud in the sky. We were blessed with the weather we got over the entire weekend.
Group photo of competitors (Photo couresy Charles VK5HD)
Event 6. This was a 2m-70cm-2m event and nine competitors started out. Start was a bit slow (we really need to train that dude who started the event) but everyone got off nicely. This event has the hidden transmitter as the final leg. This photo shows the hidden transmitter location. Note you can just see the tube for the tokens in the bush. The transmitter is buried somewhere behind it.
Event 7 on the program is the Home Brew competition, see the details below
Event 8. This event is a 2m-80m-6m event. Those lower frequencies make things a little more challenging. It doesn't help when some teams challenge themselves. VK3BQZ team commented that the transmitter was a little of their beam heading. It was then they realised that the chain connection the handle to the antenna had jumped a few teeth and they weren't pointing the same direction. The event ran a little long to give a team the opportunity to locate the 6m fox.
Event 9. This is the 23cm 1296MHZ event. Due to the late finish and request for delay the event started 30min late but it didn't seem to affect the finish time much. 1296MHz used to be held in the lakes area but after complaints that it was too easy the last couple of years it has been in very different locations. VK3TXO arrived quickly from an unexpected direction. A comment was made about one of the foxes assistants wearing a light blue coat being easy to spot. The response was "Next year we're going to get them!" I can reliably inform you that planning has already started. Due to VK5ZBR's vehicular problem earlier in the weekend, they competed in this event using a rental car. Consequently another team popped up just for this event. Team Porche. What a magnificent sight and use of german engineering to carry fox hunting equipment. No they didn't place first, we don't give points for style.
Team Porche ready to start (Photo courtesy Charles VK5HD)
Overall the weekend competition was enjoyed by everyone, foxes and hunters alike. On departure after the presentation there were many "See you next year" comments. There was also alot of "next year we should do this" talk going on so hopefully many will return next year. The organisers of the event would like to thank all the competitors for their attendance and are extremely pleased that the enthusiasm and competitiveness was only exceeded by the sportsmanship. We would like to congratulate you all once a great competition this year. Special mention to Bevin & Barbara VK5TV 41 years they've been coming looking forward to seeing you next year.
The organizers would also like to express their great appreciation for the volunteer foxes who go to a GPS point and improvise a transmitter as close to the designated point as practical. Sometimes it doesn't seem like fun at the time, but when those competitors turn up everything changes. Thanks again guys.
 VK3BLN Winners of the Australian Fox Hunting Championships (Photo by Linley VK5FRED) |
Results 2011
Event 1 Results - Sniffer Hunt Individual Scores.
1. Gary P. VK3TXO awarded 4th due to returning earlier 2. Missing tickets have been accounted for and placings adjusted accordingly |
Evemt 1 Team Results - Sniffer hunt
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Event 2
|
Event 3
|
Event 4 Wayne Kilpatrick Memorial Night Hunt
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Event 5 Sniffer Hunt
1. Marta. VK3FTZL awarded 5th due to returning earlier 2. Missing tickets have been accounted for and placings adjusted accordingly |
Event 5 Team Results - Sniffer hunt
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Event 6
|
Event 8
|
Event 9
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Overall Championship Points
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Homebrew Competition SERG Convention 12 June 2011
This event is sponsored by an anonymous VK3 amateur. We thank this person
for his/her generous support for home brew constructors.
The intent of the
generous support is to encourage home brewing.
An excellent number of projects were submitted for the judges scrutiny this year. Leading the entries was a set of high power valve amplifiers by Bob VK3ZL.
The first was a 2M unit using the GS31 Russian built triode running in Grounded Grid Class B. With 60W in it will generate 1KW to be used with a high power permit for EME.
Bob's second amplifier was a 50MHz amp using similar construction but this time with 2 of GI-7BT Planar triodes in Grounded Grid Class B. Fifty watts in gives 800 watts out or a comfortable 300W continuous for WSJT meteor scatter.
The third amplifier was for 432MHz using a single GS-31B Planar Triode again in Grounded Grid Class B. This uses the YU1AW design. Sixty watts in gives a comfortable 400+ watts out for WSJT EME and meteor scatter. Bob was awarded first prize in the competition being a 2M/70cm handheld transceiver.
Second prize of another 2M/70cm handheld radio was awarded to Col VK5DK for his 5.7GHz transverter. His unit used Graham VK3XDK's boards, a W5LUA pre-amp and a Qualcomm PLL oscillator unit. Col presented a well laid out unit with attention to good SHF practice. It has proven itself in field work in recent months. Col also presented his portable GPS lockable 1296MHz transverter. Using Mark VK5EME's transverter kit it outputs 20W and has been successfully used in field days.
 |  |
| Photos courtesy Colin VK5DK | |
Third prize went to the HORUS Project. This is a team effort to lift payloads on helium filled balloons. Payloads have included still and video cameras, various sensors for temperature and pressure, a parrot repeater and of course a GPS based tracking system enabling the group to find the package when it lands. Heights approaching 40,000m have been achieved and yet the group have been able to wait on the ground and watch the package descend thanks to the tracking system. The members presented a video taken during the flights and showed their carefully manufactured payloads. The third prize was a folding trolley.
Fourth prize went to Tony VK5ZAI for his comms unit for ARISS. People will be aware that Tony coordinates the contacts with the space station and although these contacts are sometimes done by setting up a ground station they are usually made through a telephone connection to an amateur station located in a suitable position for the time of the contact. Tony manufactured this telephone comms unit to look as much like a radio as possible. It has a 12 watt amplifier to feed speakers in the classrooms/halls. There is also provision for recording and the use of a handheld microphone. This unit travels Australia to be setup by local helpers. Tony was presented with a printer.
Fifth prize of a printer went to John VK5JA for his replica telegraph sounder originally used in post offices 100+ years ago. John has made a superb job of re-creating this device complete with a 'sound amplifying' enclosure. He ran a demonstration 'recording' of Arthur Birks (one of the original telegraphists) operating skill on the keyer.
Sixth prize went to Norbert VK5MQ for his 'recycle, re-use, replace desklight'. After the lamp and socket became unusable in a desklamp, Norbert set out to repair it using new LED technology. The blown lamp was replaced with two LEDs from truck marker lights and a power supply, again recycled, was installed in the base. Power consumption is down 80% for similar light output. Norbert received a printer.
Seventh prize of an electronic caliper went to Bryan VK3YNG for his combined 6M and 10M sniffer loop. Brian is one of the strongest contributors to the homebrew contest each year and again he didn't disappoint. The project has automatic tuning and memorisation of settings. A 900MHz interface is used for control of frequency and outputs a fixed IF of 21.4MHz. We know it works as it is one of the tools he uses in his successful foxhunting.
Eighth prize went to Ron's construction of a 50 ohm dummy load following the formula of the well documented Moorabin kit. A well constructed HF 100W dummy load designed to minimise stray inductance and capacitance. Ron also received an electronic caliper.
Ninth prize went to Mark VK5AVQ's big wheel experimental antenna. This is a prototype of the unit to be used on the 70cm beacon in Adelaide. Mark is unhappy with the current performance of this beacon and he plans to use two of these big wheels to improve signals. He is keen to get feedback from anyone who has successfully built one.
The judges VK5MC and VK5DJ also presented projects but were not awarded prizes (conflict of interest).
Chris submitted the second South Australian built SSB transmitter for 2304MHz. Acknowledging that Reg Galley was probably the first, Chris used varactor multipliers from 360MHz to multiply by two and then three to get injection for a high powered mixer with 144MHz to give 2W out on 2304MHz. This vintage project gave an idea of the techniques used in the 'olden days'!
John presented two experiments, one was a PIC RTTY generator but due to forgetfulness on his part when setting up the display he put 12V on the PIC instead of 5V to make a puff of smoke and a flash of light - it didn't work after that! Bad luck about the demo John. His second project was a modified VOX kit purchased from Jaycar to take flash photos of short events such as balloons bursting and objects splashing. Two photos were on display showing how well this worked.
The competition showed the wide range of projects people work on. SERG thanks the contributors but especially our anonymous donor who provides money for the prizes.
Photos from over the Queens Birthday Long Weekend
 Bevin VK5BTV back again for the 41st year. Could not miss him in that jumper ! |
 Team KAOS (VK5ZSN) wandering back from the sniffer hunt Saturday morning. | |
 Competitors at the start waiting to be released |  Bruce VK3TJN out hunting Saturday morning |  Darian VK3FAST on the hunt Sunday Morning. |
 Dianne searching for the Fox-Or |  VK5CP Fashion Statement or secret weapon? |  Team KAOS (VK5ZSN) Yep, got that one ! |
 Rod VK5UDX taking aim at a fox-or. |  Marta VK3FTZL having fun on Saturday's sniffer hunt |  Luke from the VK5ZBR team trying his hand at finding a hidden transmitter. |