Colin GM4HWO was the controller for Viral Net #41 on 13th January 2021 with participants: Melvyn GM4HYR, Mike GM8KCS, Pete GM4BYF, Alan GM3PSP, Brian GM4DIJ, and Peter GM4DTH.
Colin had a quiet birthday the previous week with his younger son, Callum. He continues to sell old valves for amazing prices, e.g. a total of 3 for £550 to China. He had had a visit from Brian GM8BJF from Peebles. Melvyn was still busy fitting out his daughter’s new house. Mike mentioned a nasty cycle crash he had seen on the closed section of Braid Road in icy conditions. He had links to 3 videos of amusing car servicing jobs which he would share via the LRS e-mail reflector. He mentioned an upcoming AM rally on HF. Pete had made 24 QSOs on the 70cm contest including M0SAT in Watford on aircraft scatter. Best Dx was G4ZTR in Colchester at 515km. He also continued to sell valves from GM3HOQ-SK and GM3VLB-SK. With the snowy Wx he was busy changing his car to snow tyres. He suggested we should be using the club callsign GM3HAM whenever possible. He noted that the currently-advertised anti-radiation mobile phone stickers were useless! Alan had posted an article on the demise of Ferranti on the website but then removed it as the content was all business with nothing technical! He had posted two SKs on the website: John Hein GM1YME and Eric Lamb of L.N.C.. Otherwise he was trying to tidy his pig-stie of a radio shack. Brian congratulated Colin on his 60th, noting that he had passed his already, equal to that of Jack GM6XI-SK when he first knew him! With the current Wx he was not doing much running but had managed 8km on Monday. He had made 12 QSOs in the 70cm contest including GI6ATZ near Belfast but any aircraft scatter bursts were too short to be useful. He had got a spectacular view of the recent aurora overhead by going to Currie. Peter had listened to the 70cm contest with his new headphones. E&OE.