Kenneth E. Harker
2005 Texas ARDF Championships

The first ever Texas ARDF Championships were held on a beautiful and sunny fall day in Bastrop State Park. Eight competitors participated - seven from Texas, and one from Ohio. Everything worked well except the PicCon timing. All five transmitters were in perfect sequence at 6:20 AM when they were turned on, but by the time the event started, several had drifted into a significant overlap. MOE and MOI overlapped, and MOH and MO5 overlapped. During the three and a half hours or so that competitors were on course, the drifting of the transmit controllers variously improved or degraded the situation.

These photos are copyright © 2005 Kenneth E. Harker. All rights reserved.

	Transmitter MOS was located on top of a hill, north of the start. The transmitters were in surplus 30 caliber ammunition cases. Each case included a 7Ah gel cell battery, power cabling with an ATC blade-type fuse inline, a Realistic HTX-202 HT set to low power transmit (one watt output,) and a Byonics PicCon transmit controller. The box is locked with a padlock and was chained to a tree. The antennas were WB6DRV crossed-dipole turnstile designs using aluminum arrow shafts trimmed to length for the radiating elements. Each site had the standard orienteering control flag and a paper punch. The transmitter case and the control flag both have labels with the transmitter ID.
	Mike Urich KA5CVH ran his first ever ARDF meet at the Texas ARDF Championships. He used a WB2HOL design tape measure yagi, a step attenuator, and an HT. Mike was the first runner to arrive at the finish.
	Mike's antenna and step attenuator.
	Bob Frey WA6EZV traveled to the event from the Cincinnati, Ohio area. Bob has been a member of Team USA and has been to three ARDF World Championships.
	Darrin Lutz KE5CQL of Georgetown, Texas, was new to both the sport of ARDF and orienteering. He ran an orienteering course the day before the ARDF event.
	Jen Harker W5JEN was the only woman who entered the event, and was the only competitor who found all the transmitters she was required to find and finished on time.
	Keith Stolle KE5FYG was entering his first ever ARDF event using equipment built during the week before the event.
	Ten year old Michael Bayern W2CVZ was the youngest competitor in the event. Michael built the tape measure yagi he used on course, and borrowed a VK3YNG receiver from Bob Frey WA6EZV, which was attached to the yagi with cable ties. His father, Mark Bayern AD5SS, followed him on course out in the woods.
	The last to arrive, George Fremin III K5TR found all four transmitters he was supposed to find, but finished just nine minutes and 14 seconds overtime. George has previous foxhunting experience, but had never before competed in an ARDF event.