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 Organiser Roy G4JAC/P |
Sunday 28th April 2024
Multi-Tx DF Please refresh page  to see any updates.Location Martin's Farm
Country Park, St Osyth
NGR TM 120 174 Map with zoom Contact us direct or by using this email. |
 10 Txs and associated triffids provide the amusement. |
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  We have used this site
before, several years ago. It is an old refuse tip which has been
turned into a well managed public area with open spaces and new
trees. The latter have grown from saplings into small trees
since our last visit. On the day I went to check it out, it looked
perfect despite the unusal amount of rainfall we have had this
year. There were hard paths and no signs of puddles anywhere,
well drained by the slope down to the creek. The event was advertised
and nine people expressed an interest - great.
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 Unfortunately as the event
day approached the forecast did not look good, with rain for
both setup day (Saturday) and event day (Sunday). On the
Friday evening the forecast of heavy rain on Sunday had moved
forward to the morning with only the possibility of showers in the
afternoon. I decided to go ahead but not surprisingly 3
people opted for a Sunday afternoon spent somewhere with a roof.
Saturday morning - rain - fortunately clearing in the afternoon so that I could setup the Txs wearing wellies! The six remaining people expected were all Multi-addicts and so I decided I needed to plant the yellow, red and ghost Txs well into the trees. I waded into the first group of trees and was given a 'sharp' reminder that they deserved respect. Before entering other mini-woods, I selected my entry path with much more care! Notice that the Ghost has changed from a morse ID of "1" to a question mark after a code update during the winter. This represents its character better, time hopping around on 1915 kHz "When will it come on ?" and "Where is it ?" |
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Just
as I left the site it started to rain and it was still raining
when I returned for the 11am test transmissions on Sunday.
I was very relieved when at the start location all 10 Txs could be heard, with only G being a little weak, not bad with short aerials draped around wet trees. By 11:30 the rain had stopped and I used the time checking out the numerous DF sets I have for beginners. 12:00 - Russel from Colchester Radio Amateurs turned up, he couldn't stay for the afternoon but had come along to see if he could try out a set. |
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I had just set up the blocking Tx under a nearby bush and it wasn't long before Russell had got the hang of it, a shame he couldn't stay to join in the fun, although perhaps 'fun in the sun' on a later date may be a more pleasant introduction.  13:20 Magnificent 6 have arrived, prepared for what the heavens may throw at them, well, except for Colin M who announced he was suffering from zip failure. The new di di dah dah di di ghost was explained, and I warned that searching for a safe entrance to groups of trees may save blood - is this old-age softness creeping up on me? 
13:35 All dispersed heading for their different Jokers.
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 Chris had Joker L, I decided
to follow him as his colourful jacket would be easy to track at a
distance. But where was Colin M?
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 I found him at the car park looking for an extra layer. After checking he was ok, I headed off down the path in search of Chris. |
 Yes there had been rain! |
 By the time I got to L, Chris was long gone, just visible between the hedge and the wooden railings, looking for K. |
 14:00 Tim had found F
G H and was already looking for M.
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 Suddenly he disappeared following the 180 deg wrong direction - yelling "I can't get a sense" - what a shame, nice and thick in there! |
 When
it came to setting up
the last three Txs, F G H on Saturday, I still had plenty
of time before dark to find some good hide. Triffid F can be seen
in the picture helow. From there I surveyed the view above and chose
the area of taller trees at the bottom corner of the field for H with G
under small trees at the extreme right.
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 Triffid F |
 George looking in the
direction of G .......
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 .... searching for an easier way in, which there wasn't! |
 There were three potential ways into H, this one was not the way to go. |
 This looked as though some had tried and perhaps got through. |
 Following the path to the
right was by far the easiest way in.
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 Inside was Richard, lots of possible trees and only short transmissions. |
 On my way back to the car park I got a glimpse of Colin F near L. |
Results
So what happened to Richard ? Initially we suspected issues with the equipment but examination of his dibber log showed that his validation back at his Joker G was 1 minute and 2 seconds after time. The dreaded Multi-Spice strikes again!
Times in red show Txs which were found but not validated before the end of the event. Richard thought the event finished at 16:30 and was dismayed to hear the machine gun just as he was about to dib. However, a great effort after what he has been through - a very tough cookie. Hero point changes on this event - all can be seen here.
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Well done Hero Tim!
Gaining 50 points for the win, gave Tim 156 points, triggering another rescale by 130/156, bringing hero points, of all above their minimum, down. So in this great game of snakes and ladders it was snakes for most of us! We were warned my notices at the site but all but Tim's were a different breed. Thanks to those who turned out despite the weather, especially the two Colins coming all the way from Kent. Philip is organising the next event on Sunday June 9th watch the noticeboard for more information, let's hope the sun shines and we get a few more competitors. |
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Update - May 8th - Gary is back off holiday and it is MUCH warmer.
 The Great Hero Tug-O-War continues, this time it is Tim that is smiling BUT it looks as though Gary has the high ground for the next event ! |