Nov 9

An annual tradition in the Canyon Lake area, is for all the area merchants and non-profit organizations to set up booths / tables along FM2673 that runs thru the main stretch of Sattler, Texas (just east of Canyon Lake, west of New Braunfels, TX).  This stretch has grown over the years from the north side of town down past River Road, to where it now reaches a total of about 2.5 miles in length.   Comal County Sheriff deputies in their patrol cars, supplimented by by local Constables, provide some safety issues at designated crossing points to allow participants to cross the busy road, especially after dark.

The event is sponsored by the Canyon Lake Chamber of Commerce.  Hill Country REACT has been participating in this annual event for at least 15 year, first as Comal County REACT and now as Hill Country REACT.    The Chamber in recent years, has been providing REACT with the candy to distribute, and this year we passed out nearly 80 pounds in about 2 hours.

Here is a short 8 minute video montage taken during this 2 hour event…  Watch it in full screen mode for best viewing, especially when video gets a bit darker toward the end…

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Nov 9
 
450_Ladderline_coilAs explained in the November issue of “QST” (page 66) the ARRL examined the use of ladder-line and did some rudimentary testing of this cable in dry vs wet conditions.
 
They had test gear to measure the SWR and other concerns. At the end of the testing they reported that beyond a simple re-adjustment of the tuner they used not much in the form of variations occurred.
 
Unfortunately, their tests were not complete.
 
This weekend, the Bexar Operators Group will do some “real life” testing of ladder-line and the implications of getting the dry line saturated to prove that the ARRL’s final assumptions are “all wet”! Having done some experimentation 20 years ago using ladder-line as a feed cable, W2IK came up with some very different findings.
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