In spite of a blustery rainy start on Saturday, members of the Middle Peninsula Amateur Radio Club were blessed with excellent ionospheric propagation for this year’s annual ARRL Field Day event at Abingdon Park in Hayes. A total of 454 on-the-air contacts were made with many states including Hawaii, 13 Canadian Provinces and even Czechoslovakia. All amateur bands from 160-10 meters were utilized with 157 CW code contacts, 291 phone and six digital contacts resulting in a very good QSO score of 617. Several public officials attended the event and were shown the benefit of amateur radio for emergency communication including Mathews County Emergency Services Coordinator Willie Love, Gloucester County ARES Coordinator Roger West, and Dr. David L. Justis, Peninsula EMS representative. Here, club president Kenny Skirvink, West and Will Hrachovina put up the antenna.
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