Welcome to the Lothians Radio Society

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All the GM3HAM/P participants in RSGB VHF NFD 2019 at our usual site near Gatehouse of Fleet in Dumfries & Galloway. The wx was great most of the time and everything worked. New block & tackle helped a lot raising 6m & 4m beams. We achieved good provisional scores on 6m, 4m, 2m & 23cm although a little down on last year.

6m: 70 QSO, 26,131 pts, IW5EIJ JN52ps 1751km

4m: 91 QSOs, 29,734 pts, GU6EFB IN89rk 617km

2m: 204 QSOs, 63,107 pts, F4VQX IN87lx 773km

23cm: 25 QSOs, 7756 pts, G5LK/P JO01qd 556km  

And of course we had our usual merry dinner on the Friday evening in the Masonic Arms in Gatehouse.

Click for Full Report with many photos. 

 

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Congratulations to the LRS GM3HAM/P Contest Group for again winning the Cockenzie Quaich as the leading GM station in the Restricted Section of VHF NFD 2019 with a total of 2998 normalised points..

Also 2nd place overall in the Restricted Section.

Band Results:

50MHz - Band Leader

70MHz - Band Leader (with perfect log!)

144MHz - 5th place.

23cm - 7th place.

Thanks to Brian GM4DIJ for supplying these results.

See VHF NFD report further down on this page.

The famous Cockenzie Quaich.

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And talking of Cockenzie, several LRS members attended the Cockenzie Mini-Rally on 9th August. Brian GM8BJF & Pete GM4BYF had two tables for Silent Key sale items of André Saunders GM3VLB-SK and sold most of them. 

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André after MoC lecture on 11th May 2019.

We were saddened to learn of the passing of LRS member, André Saunders GM3VLB of Kelso, on 23rd May 2019. Click for Southern Reporter obituary.     Click for RSGB website Silent Key.   Click for Full Silent Key on this website.

André organized SCOTIA - Scottish Islands Award and had operated from almost all of the islands himself.

André's funeral was held on Thurs 6th June at the Borders Crematorium near Melrose, with a reception afterwards at the Cross Keys Hotel, Kelso. Many amateurs from the LRS and the Borders were present.

2019-08-05 JYI QSL card found in effects of André Saunders GM3VLB-SK.

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We have also found a number of other items relating to André's QSOs with JYI and hope to produce an article about them for this website.

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The group at BBQ-2019 at "Bates Motel"

The LRS BBQ was again held at the QTH of Pete Bates GM4BYF & XYL Kay GM6KAY, on Wed 26th June.

(And the Wx forecast turned out to be correct - sunny)!

The usual lavish spread of food was provided and the event was FREE this year thanks to a surplus in our accounts with two successful Surplus Equipment Sales.

 

It was also host Pete's birthday for which XYL Kay had baked a cake.

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Click for Full Report with more photos.

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The Annual General Meeting of the Lothians Radio Society was held at the Braid Hills Hotel on Wednesday 12th June 2019.

The President, Brian Flynn GM8BJF presented his Annual Review, noting that it had been another successful year for the club and thanking the committee for their good work..

Hon. Treasurer Peter Dick GM4DTH presented the Financial Review, showing a surplus for the year of £349 due to an increase in donations and surplus equipment sale profits, in spite of a modest drop in membership. It was agreed the subscription would remain at £20, or £10 for full-time scholars.

The new committee was elected:

President:        Alan Masson GM3PSP

                         Also: Webmaster

Hon Secretary: Andy Sinclair MM0FMF

Hon Treasurer: Peter Dick GM4DTH

Committee:     

   James Gentles GM4WZP (Program Manager)

   Pete Bates GM4BYF (Charitable Status & Contests

                                             Manager)

   Colin Murray GM4EAU

The new President, Alan GM3PSP encouraged all members to provide input to the Program Manager on ideas for interesting talks for the coming year, the core of the club's activity. 

Click for Committee page for photos of the new committee.

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Photo courtesy WoSARS

Congratulations to LRS Past-President Andy Sinclair MM0FMF (L) for jointly winning the RSGB Jock Kyle Trophy with Jack Hood GM4COX (R) of the West of Scotland Amateur Radio Society. This trophy is awarded to the Scottish club, society or RSGB member thought to have done the most in Scotland in the field of VHF, in this case for 13cm operations. Andy adds: "and recognition for trying to keep people using the bands which are under threat is what matters".

See write-up on WoSARS website (click).

The trophy was presented on 6th April 2019 at the GMDX Convention at Bannockburn by GMDX Chairman Rob Ferguson GM3YTS (C).

 

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Some of the starters.

The annual LRS Direction-Finding Contest (D/F Hunt) took place on 22nd May 2019, starting from the Tardis on Braid Hills Road.

The fox station GM3HAM/P was operated by Peter GM4DTH from a location on Wester Craiglockhart Hill.

Results: 1st: Melvyn GM4HYR in 1h 2m (not again!); 2nd: Mike GM8KCS in 1h 43m; non-finishers: Pete GM4BYF, James GM4WZP, Brian GM8BJF. Also a number of helpers including French visitor Sebastien - bienvenu!

After the Hunt, the participants adjourned to "Wee Bennet's" Bar at Morningside Station for the traditional diet lemonades.

Pete GM4BYF taking his first bearing, supported by XYL Kay GM6KAY and David GM3YMX.

Click for Full Report with more photos.

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On 8th May, James Gentles GM4WZP hosted a meeting titled: “WHAT I BROUGHT TONIGHT”, an evening where members and visitors brought along "the smallest radio-related object they have, with the biggest story" and made a short presentation about it.  

 

We were very pleased to have a visiting amateur from the USA - Tom Novey W7TAN from Illinois - who was persuaded to act as the judge of the entries. The winner was Alan Masson GM3PSP who brought a plaque for NFD 1961 which was held at George Watson's College. The plaque was signed by all who participated, including himself.  

Click for Full Report with more photos.

  1. 27th March 2019 - Energy Storage - Prof. Win Rampen
  2. 5 May 2019 - UHF / Microwave Contest - Lauder Common
  3. 24 April 2019 - 'Writing in Iron' - Magnetic Sound Recording - Terry Martini-Yates
  4. 10th April 2019 - LRS Spring Surplus Equipment Sale - St Fillan's Church, Buckstone