02/01/25 – ALASKA SKED RESULTS FRIDAY NIGHT/SATURDAY MORNING

Thanks to WL7PM, Dean from Homer, AK for taking the time to try and work those in need of an AK contact. We had a good showing last night, with the following Ops giving it a college try:

Chuck, N5WGA
Steve, KA4CZL
Frank, W3NU
Tom, N1TL
John, NM2R
and last but not least, Louis – N9LY who provided critical relays when neither Dean nor myself could hear some of the questions from Ops on the east coast. Louis also worked Dean, with a valid QSO.

CONGRATS to Chuck, N5WGA who made a successful QSO with Dean, and Chuck is now down to the FINAL state he needs to complete his basic, the ever elusive HI !!

For those who were unable to work Dean, or who missed the sked, we have another shot, this time with TWO AK stations, both Dean from Homer and Eric from Fairbanks will be on the net frequency at 0500Z Sunday evening. Good hunting to those in need of AK, and let’s hope for better condx. Sunday evening. Finger crossed for some good luck !!

WELCOME ABOARD !

We would like to welcome aboard, the following operators, who recently registered on our GERATOL Website:

AK1NH – Conrad
Conrad was first licensed in 1978, as a Novice. So like many of us, he has WAL! Worked All Licenses !
He is also a member of the QCWA, so for those who need a “Q” number from NH, Conrad is your man.

KB5ILY – Travis
Travis hails from the great state of Arkansas, and was first licensed in 1989, and again like so many of us, started his Ham journey as a Novice and worked all the way up to Extra. He too is a member of the QCWA, so again for those in need of a “Q” number from AR, Travis fits the bill. Also, he’s a great catch for working a 2×3 call sign from “5th” call area, for the Call Area Challenge certificate.

Welcome aboard guys, and thanks once again for taking the time to register on our GERATOL website, and we hope to work you on the net soon.

Silent Keys

With sadness, we would like to notify the GERATOL Net on the passing of Frank, AA9JJ this past November, who held GERATOL number 1712. Frank was an avid county hunter, along with his wife, Marilyn, N9QPQ who often worked the County Hunter Net together via their mobile installation.

Frank was an Air Force Vet, and had a long career as an Air Traffic Controller. Our condolences to his wife Marilyn and their entire family.

73 from your Website Administrator. Kevin – N1KL

Alaska Schedules for those in need of working AK

THIS FRIDAY (SATURDAY MORNING)

This Friday East Coast (Actually, Saturday morning) at 0600Z on 3.668 Mhz So, that is 1AM East Coast time on Saturday morning. We have Dean, from Homer AK who will be on frequency to work those in need of an AK QSO for their basic, or for any other endorsements.

I will be operating remote from the state of WA, to insure he can hear me, as we begin to try and make QSO’s. In addition, Louis – N9LY will be on frequency from WI, to insure those who may need to call from the East Coast are heard, and put on the list to make a call.

I listened to the Alaska SNIPER NET last night, on 3.920 from the WA remote station I use, and was able to hear Dean loud and clear in WA. 5/9++

THIS COMING SUNDAY EVENING

In addition, we have had another AK operator, Eric from Fairbanks, AK volunteer to try and work stations on the GERATOL NET frequency of 3.668 Mhz on Sunday evening, at midnight East Coast time, or 0500Z.

Once again, I will be operating remote from either WA or OR to insure Eric can hear us, and to get things rolling, for those who were unable to work Dean on our previous sked.

I have not yet asked Louis, N9LY but hope he can also be on hand for this schedule with Eric, to help insure those calling from the East Coast can be heard, as we try and make contact with Eric.

MY REQUEST TO ALL WORKING EITHER AK STATION

Both Eric and Dean are aware of the need to swap QSL cards, and I have told them both, those working either of them, would send an SASE with their QSL. So, no need to try and communicate how you wish to swap QSL cards, we have already informed both, and would like to keep it that way.

PLEASE, NO eQSL requests, since neither of them use eQSL.

So there you have it. TWO shots, with two different ops from AK on two different evenings, to try and get the elusive AK QSO in your log books.

If anyone has any questions, feel free to reply to this post, or email me at n1kl@arrl.net

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!

On behalf of the GERATOL Board of Directors, and all net officials and net controllers, we would like to extend a Happy New Year to one and all…..Please consider stopping by the net some evening, to say hi, and to wish your fellow GERATOLers a Happy and Healthy 2025.

WELCOME ABOARD !

We would like to welcome Winford, W8XC aboard the GERATOL website. Thanks for taking the time to register our website Winford, and we hope to work you again on the net soon.

Winford hails from the great state of Georgia, but has roots up in my turf, New England, specifically the state of Maine. For those who need to work an Air Force vet from GA, Winford fits the bill. He’s an Air Force retiree.

UPCOMING ALASKA SKED !

For those in need of Alaska for their basic award, I will be arranging a sked in the not too distant future, with KL7SB. So far, I have the following operators who wish to be notified on the timing of the sked:

N5WGA – Chuck
W3NU – Frank
N1TL – Tom
KA4CZL – Steve
AA3KC – Stephen

If I missed anyone, please let me know by commenting on this POST, or send an email to: n1kl@arrl.net
Simply click on that email address to send me a note.

All the best, and we look forward to getting back on the air, hopefully this week or next.
73, Kevin N1KL

Hi John, wanted to make sure you saw my reply on your question, under POST entitled Delaware On Tonight, so I put a separate post here to make sure.

Your “G” number is 2038.

We look forward to hearing you on the net soon.

73, Kevin N1KL

FYI, Hunter, W3CZ will be on once again this evening from the state of Delaware. In addition to having his own call, which is good for the basic (W3CZ) Hunter is located in DOVER, DE. So, he is also good for the Delaware cap, for those who are working on Endorsement #18 for working state capitals.

In addition, Hunter will be activating his club call, KC3ARC. So for those working on the CALL AREA CHALLENGE certificate, this will be a good one to work this evening.

Our thanks to Hunter for taking the time from his studies, to assist many of the GERATOL gang, on filling some long awaited QSO’s with the great state of Delaware.

73, Kevin N1KL

Conditions on the net are changing

As the days grow even shorter, and the temperatures continue to dip, the conditions on the net appear to be improving, almost daily.

If you have not checked in for a while, feel free to swing by to say hi, and renew some old friendships. The folks working toward their basic award, could use a couple of new states on the net, so feel free to stop by and lend a hand. For those of us with “G” numbers, we can remember what it was like to have a variety of states to put into our log books, and appreciated those old timers being there for us. So think about “paying forward” and stop by the net some evening at 0100Z on 3.668 Mhz.

Happy Thanksgiving to all !

To each and every GERATOLer, and their families, on behalf of the GERATOL Board of Directors and Net Officers, we would like to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving. Travel safely to your Thanksgiving destination of choice, and enjoy the day with Family and Friends !!

Former GERATOL Net Officer Suffers Medical Issues

For those who have been on the net for any amount of time, and for those familiar with the 3905 Century Club WAS Net, one of the most active, engaged and helpful members of both nets, Frank – AA0ZP our former Net Secretary, is in the process of recovering from a stroke he suffered a few weeks ago. Frank has been undergoing physical therapy, and we wish him good luck with his recovery.

For those who would like to send Frank a QSL with a get well message, his home address is:

Frank Taylor AA0ZP
1413 Saint Joachin Ct.
Bellevue, NE 68005

Our thanks to Chuck N5WGA for providing us with this update about Frank.

SHARING INFORMATION ON WEBSITE

For those who would like to share some information about their experiences on the GERATOL Net, and/or any Ham Radio experiences, or awards they’ve achieved, just send me a note with the information to: N1KL@ARRL.NET

I will make sure to place it one of our upcoming GERATOL Net News bulletins.

73, Kevin N1KL

He all, just a reminder to our GERATOL Net members, that our Net still starts at 0100Z, but now with Daylight Savings time in place, we launch the net at 8:00PM Eastern, vs the 9PM we had in October.

For those looking to check in, we are still at 3.668 Mhz and are there each evening. We have a few ops who are on the search for just a handful of states to wrap up their BASIC award requirements, so if you have not checked in for a while, please stop by to say hi, and perhaps fill a void for some of the ops looking for a few states and/or a few call sign formats, to finish up the CALL AREA CHALLENGE certificate. (See below)

SILENT KEYS:

With sadness, we have been notified of the following GERATOLers who are now Silent Keys:

Henry – W5VD – GERATOL # 316 Henry was a TX Ham Operator

Don – N8DE – GERATOL # 552

John – NA2R – GERATOL # 855 from NJ

Perry – K9NZ – GERATOL # 1355 from IN

Tony – N3TB – GERATOL # 2197 from PA

RIP to all, and condolences to their families.

Our thanks to Barry, K2MF for his research and updates on the status of our fellow GERATOL members.

DE on the net this Wednesday Evening 11/6

We hope to have a REMOTE station from DE on this coming Wednesday evening. Bob, AI4IL has recovered from Hurricane Helene, and will be our NCS once again that evening. Welcome back Bob!

So stop by to work DE if you need it, and to welcome Bob back on to the GERATOL Net as our regular Wednesday night NCS

73, Kevin N1KL Website Admin and Public Relations Officer

CALL AREA CHALLENGE UPDATE

As of this writing, no one has officially applied for the Call Area Challenge Certificate. Sounds like several of the regulars are getting closer, while the requirements are turning out to be challenging, they are clearly doable.

With conditions the way they stand lately, getting the necessary formatted call signs from 6 and 7 land, will certainly not be that easy, but we have had folks check in with 6 and 7 area call signs, who moved to a new state. So, stay diligent, and the QSO’s will come, and good luck to all those hunting to complete this one.

SK UPDATE….

With sadness, we have been notified that Bill, WD5EDR G#2406 has become a Silent Key

He was born in Williamstown, Pennsylvania on August 1, 1931. He joined and served in the Air Force during the Korean War. After the war, he returned to Pennsylvania and worked around Williamstown until he entered the Civil Service at Olmsted Air Force Base. He was transferred to Kelly Air Force Base in 1966 and remained working there until his retirement in 1988. Bill was a resident of Texas at his passing.

HURRICANE RECOVERY EFFORTS CONTINUE !

On behalf of the GERATOL Net, we wish the best to our fellow hams, and all citizens of the states impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. We extend a special good luck to our GERATOL Awards, Wednesday evening NCS and GERATOL Information Officer, Bob – AI4IL who has experienced an extended power outage, and damage to many trees on his property. All the best from your fellow GERATOLers Bob !

Any questions about the Net, the Website, the Call Area Challenge, etc. feel free to fire me off a note to: N1KL@ARRL.NET

N1KL Remote QSO’s and QSL cards

Hi all, I wanted to send off a note to anyone who may not have received a QSL card from any of my Remote Station operations last Jan/Feb/Mar. I believe I sent out all appropriate cards, but if you did not receive one, let me know and I will make sure to get you a card.

ALASKA SKED LATER THIS SEASON

For those who need AK to complete their basic, please send me a note via n1kl@arrl.net and let me know you need it, and I will add you to a list. I am working with a station in Fairbanks, AK to arrange a sked later this season when condx begin to improve. Make sure you include the email you wish me to use, so I can notify you when we plan to arrange the sked. It will be a few months before conditions are good enough, but I wanted to alert folks who may need it, so we can plan accordingly, and start up a list.

73, Kevin N1KL

We launched the end of our 51st year, and will begin our 52nd year as a Worked All States net in 2025.

Our chairman of the board, Frosty W0FP kicked off the new season as Net Control operator.

It was fun to renew old acquaintances, and actually meet a few new folks who stopped by to check into the net, including Perry, AA2BR from Point Pleasant Beach, NJ and Phil, K5ACR from the Sooner state of OK. In all, we had 15 check ins, with a total of 14 different states. Not bad for the first night of the season, let’s hope conditions continue to improve, but given the time of year, they were not bad for the first night of the net.

We would like to pass along our well wishes, and hopes for improved conditions to those GERATOL members, and all others impacted by the devastation created by hurricane Helene. In particular, we wish Bob, AI4IL all the best, as he continues the clean up efforts around his house, as a result of the surprisingly high winds sustained by Helene, that for inland. Best of luck Bob.

73 to all, and hope to hear you on the net Tuesday evening !!

Kevin N1KL Website Administrator