Hampden County (MA) RA FoxBox Deployed, September 4, 2021

Ken Dion, KD1KU, writes on the HCRA mailing list:

A challenge has been issued to all hunters to find both Foxboxes! Who will be the first to find either FB1 or FB2?

As of 1700hrs, September 4th, HCRA Foxbox-1 has gone into hiding over the Labor Day Weekend and into next week!

It’s about time we get both HCRA Fox Boxes back into hiding so hunters from the HCRA are out trying to locate that diabolical fox!

HINT, I was able to wake it from its slumber with 50 watts in my mobile from a few areas along Memorial Drive (Rte.33) in Chicopee, MA.

FB1 is running one watt into an 18-inch antenna. To activate FB1 go to the 2-meter simplex frequency of 147.550 MHz (PL 100.0Hz), key your transmitter, identify yourself with your call sign then press the DTMF “1”. If the Fox can hear you (and you can hear it) you will hear its very distinctive sound. It will transmit for 30 seconds, ID, and then repeat 2 more times before going back to sleep. You can make it transmit as often as necessary to locate it.

This is a good opportunity for base stations to get in on the fun. If you can hear the fox please give its signal strength and direction if possible. Please do not reveal its location, just a location where you can hear it from, this then becomes a starting point for the other fox hunters to use. It’s just as important for the hunters to know where it CANNOT be heard as well as where it CAN be heard!

When you locate the Fox Box you do not have to touch it to claim finding it. Eyeball contact is sufficient with a photo for good measure. The photo should not reveal its location as there might be other hunters out there still trying to find it. It is located less than 500 feet from a safe parking location. Announce it and post a photo on the https://groups.io/g/WMAFoxHunters and the HCRA Facebook Group that you found it along with any comments other than its location. We want to know who has found it and who hasn’t.

I can tell you it’s in a publicly accessible location with nearby safe parking. Getting to FB-1 may require a short walk on mostly flat ground.

Please do not post the frequency or PL on social media, websites, or email lists.

Note: Larry, W1AST will be hiding FB-2 first thing Sunday morning, so watch for his announcement.

ALL Fox Hunters are welcomed to participate!

Happy Hunting!

Ken, KD1KU