Broadcast - 11 May 2025
We begin this week by wishing all the mothers among our listeners and all our female members a Happy Mother’s Day. To all those mothers who hold an amateur licence, I hope you received something in the electronic field that you were really wanting.
The other major event this weekend was a very special Equine Endurance Ride and the coming together of many radio operators as volunteers to assist with this Tasmanian event. For a more detailed explanation I will pass it over to Roger VK7ARN, who is the event Safety Communications Co-Ordinator, take it away Roger:
“Tom Quilty is back in Tasmania.
Last seen in Scottsdale in 2018, the Tom Quilty Gold Cup ride is back in Tasmania, this time at Sassafras in the North West. The event is a 160 kilometre, or 100 miles, equine endurance ride which serves as the annual national championship, rotating around the states each year.
Amateur Radio has been involved in the event in Tasmania since 2012 when it was based in St Helens.
As this broadcast goes to air, the communications crew will be stirring after catching up on some of the sleep lost since the ride started at midnight on Friday night. The last of the successful horses and riders being required to complete the five legs of the ride within 24 hours. The front runners were expected home by early afternoon, with the tailenders completing in late evening.
There were five checkpoint locations, hosting 12 checkpoints. With around 140 entries, making almost one thousand seven hundred reports from checkpoint stations to base. Some of these, during the dark hours, were made by RFID and the collected data transmitted via UHF to the recording and reporting system at Base. Rider progress being made available to supporters via Wi-Fi at the Base camp. Checkpoint operators were kept busy manually identifying riders and their times to maintain back up written records. During daylight, the system changed mostly to manual as the field strung out meaning more checkpoints were active and the need of the RFID network became beyond its capacity. Voice reports were carried via VHF. Both UHF and VHF networks were supported via repeaters hosted temporarily by a friendly farmer.
The Communications team had 27 members, from NTARC - Northern Tasmanian Amateur Radio Club, REAST – Radio and Electronics Association of Southern Tasmania. The team also included supporters from the Ulverstone Radio Operators Club, and some family members.
There has been a long relationship between Amateur Radio and equine endurance riding in Tasmania; WICEN Tasmania (South) kicking things off in 2005 at an event near Bothwell.”
Thank you Roger, I for one did not know that the relationship between Amateur Radio and equine endurance riding goes back twenty years in Tasmania! That’s a lot of events and a lot of volunteer assistance given by the amateur fraternity.
As always pictures will be available as soon as possible on the NTARC Web site under “Blogs” for this broadcast. NTARC Blogs
UPCOMING EVENTS
TestNet and TechNet session - Every Wednesday, TestNet/CW course on 3.580 MHz from 7 pm, then a TechNet on 3.567 MHz from 7.30 pm till 8.30 pm. Your host for the evening is Nic VK7WW.
Club Room Technical night session - The next session will be on Wednesday the 14th May, at the usual time of 6.30 pm at the Club Room Archer Street, Rocherlea.
Coffee Morning - held every Friday in the NTARC Club rooms. Time is from 10 am to noon and we look forward to seeing you all there. So why not pop in check the QSL cards and join us for a cuppa, there is
endless tea and coffee along with biscuits available for a donation.
Finally - A reminder to all members that if you have any items of news you would like added to our weekly roundup, no matter how trivial, then please email them to the Secretary at the following address news@ntarc.net all items to be received no later than 5 pm on the Friday prior to the Broadcast.
That’s all folks,
73, Stefan VK7ZSB, Secretary NTARC Inc.
