Processing all 75FREE QSLs

It took a while for the fourteen thousand 75FREE QSL cards to be printed but at the beginning of August the boxes arrived. As you can imagine they form a considerable weight together.

The printer we worked with was able to print the QSO details based on our log data - very convenient. This saves us the time we spent after previous operations when we used printed stickers. Applying a dozen stickers is not an issue but when you have to process thousands of cards it take a lot of time.

We have dropped off all the bureau cards at the Dutch QSL bureau and sent off most of the direct cards. The last few will be sent this week.

We hope you appreciate the card and look forward to working you from our next activity.

PA45FREEDOM - a weekend at Winssen

The weekend of May 16 & 17 we planned to gather most of the P*45FREE operators in Winssen on a camping place we already used before during the PACC contest this year. 

The idea was to activate a special group call PA45FREEDOM on several bands simultaneously during the weekend.

YNOMY was present with PD7YY (PD45FREE), PG8M (PG45FREE) and PH0NO (PH45FREE). We were joined by PA1WBU (PA45FREE), PA3BAS (PB45FREE) and PA3FYG (PC45FREE).

Temporary shacks of  Hans PC45FREE and Bas PB45FREE (to the left of the picture)

Bas PA3BAS had not been able to work a lot of stations using his own special callsign (PB45FREE), so he used that call from Winssen. The others operated PA45FREEDOM.

Main shack with two running stations 40m-6m

We used up to five different radios in parallel. Hans PA3FYG and Bas PA3BAS operated from two different corners of the field, the others were operating in or (weather permitting) around the mobile home we rented for the weekend. We used wire antennas, a 6m beam, a 2m beam and a hexbeam.

Even with band filters we did have to fight some interference between the stations but during this weekend PA45FREEDOM managed to log 1331 calls from 1237 different operators in 69 different DXCC.

Although the weather was not as we hoped for (cloudy with some rain) - we did enjoy the field-day-mandatory-BBQ. 

PG8M providing the necessary food

Celebrating 70 years of freedom with Special Event Stations

Within the YNOMY DX Group an idea was born at the beginning of this year to place special attention on this year's WW2 liberation celebrations as we have been living in peace here now for 70 years. 

70 years ago the allied forces liberated The Netherlands from Nazi rule, ending the second world war five years after it started. The southern part of The Netherlands was liberated in the autumn of 1944, while the northern part was only liberated in the spring of 1945.

On May 4, 1945 the German forces formally capitulated to the British Field Marshall Montgomery. The capitulation was effective the next day.

We therefore celebrate the end of WW2 for the whole of the country on May 5 every year ("bevrijdingsdag").

We were thinking of activating a range of special calls during the month of May with a group of operators. The range P*45FREE (PA-PH) was chosen after some debate. We also planned a group activity in the middle of the month with a special group call PA45FREEDOM.

We asked around and were able to organise a team of 9 operators that were supportive of the idea and willing to play a role in it by applying for and activating one of the special calls. The team consists of PA1WBU, PA3BAS, PA3FYG, PB7Z, PD7YY, PE1BVQ, PE4BAS, PG8M and PH0NO.  

So we are moving from an idea to a whole range of special event stations that will be active during the month of May 2015.

In the mean time we have designed a special QSL card and are in the process of designing an award. This electronic award can be obtained free of charge when an OM or SWL has collected 45 points. Each P*45FREE counts for 9 points and the PA45FREEDOM call counts for 18 points towards the award.

Hope you will have a chance to work several of our stations.