Jan 12
21
Caithness ARS update from Wick Lifeboat Station
The Caithness Amateur Radio Society is operating from Wick Lifeboat Station during SOS Radio Week 2012 – here’s their unedited report from the end of day one…
Vertical antenna has become damaged overnight possibly due to wind and weather.
We took it down, found damage to coax entering the antenna connector box, repaired but wind too high to attempt reinstalling.
Cherry picker broke down leaving two men stuck up in the sky in the weather. Eventually “rescued” by another crane. Cherry picker has not been repaired so impossible to install the Windom antenna.
We had to resort to a 40-20 trapped dipole but could not get it at the required height, again mainly due to weather.
The dipole is too low for 40 but later we worked 32 contacts on 20 and 10.
Hope to get better height on the dipole tomorrow and also try to reinstall the multi band vertical. Weather permitting.
Fund raising decent at £420 pledged so far.
Roll call
Les, soaking wet but got on with it. David, Jim (Dur), Ryan, school boy very good operator, Donnie, self. Mark Cormack, John Robertson.
Several other non amateur radio persons assisted, these were members of the lifeboat crew.
Bob, Brian Les and Simon may be able to attend tomorrow
Paired up would be good, operator and logger.
Mark, the person in charge of the lifeboat station tells me that the entire lifeboat crew are so delighted that we are doing this to raise cash for the LOCAL lifeboat fund.
