April 14, 2022…
Joe Fleagle and Mark Hall will be releasing 3 foxes again, sending the Hounds in a shotgun start on Saturday Morning, April 23rd at 9:00 a.m. in Queeny Park! Bring yourself, your hand held radio and suitable directional antenna. The first fox site will provide the frequency for the 2nd fox, which will provide the frequency for the final fox. The first three contestants to find all 3 foxes in sequence will be announced on the repeater and will win our ‘Olympic’ prizes of a Gold, Silver, or Bronze ‘medal’ and certificate. The winners will plan the next fox hunt (planning it is fun to do).
Please park in the upper parking lot at Queeny Park and gather near https://what3words.com/increased.mentioned.habitation (the southeast corner of the parking lot). There is a left turn shortly inside the park entrance off Weidman Rd (just north of Manchester Road west of 270) leading you to the upper parking lot. Arrive about 15 minutes early to get your radio set up with the starting frequency. We recommend a 2nd HT to monitor the 146.91 repeater for contest communication. Be not afraid of the long trails, we are limiting the distance to travel. Expect to walk up to 1-2 miles depending on your search technique.
For those that are new to fox hunting, the goal is to find the hidden transmitter. To do this, you will need a directional antenna like a Tape measure antenna. If possible, make it inefficient by folding the strips to one third the length to reduce the sensitivity. This will provide a stronger signal when the antenna is in the pickup pattern. By moving the antenna to face different directions, it will help you identify the direction with the strongest signal. Having a radio with an S meter is easier and strongly recommended. When you get closer, the signal strength gets too strong for this to work well. Having an attenuator helps immensely in this. Search the SLSRC YouTube channel for SLSRC Kit build March 18, 2021. The kit can be purchased from https://KC9on.com, but is currently out of stock. Once close, look carefully for the transmitter as it can be well hidden (foxes are sneaky). To communicate with others while searching, use a second radio. Do not transmit through the attenuator or inefficient antenna to avoid damage. A bottle of water as well as a pencil to make plots and notes on the index card provided is recommended.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Joe Fleagle (WØFY) and Mark Hall (AEØME