VHF-UHF DIGEST The Official Publication of the Worldwide TV-FM DX Association MAY 2010 The Magazine for TV and FM DXers IN THIS ISSUE! 1000 MILE FM TROPO AND APRIL E SKIP! Visit Us At www.wtfda.org Cover by Paul Mitschler THE WORLDWIDE TV-FM DX ASSOCIATION Serving the UHF-VHF Enthusiast THE VHF-UHF DIGEST IS THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE WORLDWIDE TV-FM DX ASSOCIATION DEDICATED TO THE OBSERVATION AND STUDY OF THE PROPAGATION OF LONG DISTANCE TELEVISION AND FM BROADCASTING SIGNALS AT VHF AND UHF. WTFDA IS GOVERNED BY A BOARD OF DIRECTORS: DOUG SMITH, GREG CONIGLIO, BRUCE HALL, KEITH McGINNIS AND MIKE BUGAJ. Editor and publisher: Mike Bugaj Treasurer: Keith McGinnis wtfda.org Webmaster: Tim McVey wtfda.info Site Administrator: Chris Cervantez Editorial Staff: Jeff Kruszka, Keith McGinnis, Fred Nordquist, Nick Langan, Doug Smith, Peter Baskind, Bill Hale and John Zondlo, Our website: www.wtfda.org; Our forums: www.wtfda.info MAY 2010 _______________________________________________________________________________________ CONTENTS Page Two 2 Mailbox 3 Finally! For those of you online with an email TV News…Doug Smith 4 address, we now offer a quick, convenient and FM News…Bill Hale 10 secure way to join or renew your membership Photo News…Jeff Kruszka 14 in the WTFDA from our page at: Eastern TV DX…Nick Langan 15 http://www.wtfda.org/join.html Western TV DX…Nick Langan 16 You can now renew either paper VUD Southern FM DX…John Zondlo 18 membership or your online eVUD membership Northern FM DX…Keith McGinnis 25 at one convenient stop. Use the link above to FM Facilities 42 either join the WTFDA or renew your Convention Info 51 membership in North America’s only TV and DX organization. FIND US FAST! WTFDA BOARD OF DIRECTORS Mike Bugaj, use the WTFDA Mailing address listed below [email protected] Doug Smith, 1385 Old Clarksville Pike, Pleasant View, TN 37146-8098 [email protected] Greg Coniglio, 11825 Genesee St., Alden, NY 14004 [email protected] D.Bruce Hall, 5 Stirton Ave., Brantford, ON N3T1E2 Canada [email protected] Keith McGinnis, 18 Newbridge St., Hingham, MA 02043 [email protected] ******************************************************************************************************* THE MAILBOX and all general club correspondence: Mike Bugaj at WTFDA, PO Box 501, Somersville, CT 06072 [email protected] TV NEWS Doug Smith, 1389 Old Clarksville Pike, Pleasant View, TN 37146-8098 [email protected] FM NEWS Bill Hale, 6124 Roaring Springs Drive, N. Richland Hills, TX 76180 [email protected] PHOTO NEWS Jeff Kruszka, 1909 Lost Lake Pl., Pearland, TX 77581 [email protected] EASTERN AND WESTERN TV DX Nick Langan, 1040 Riverview Dr., Florence, NJ 08516 [email protected] SOUTHERN FM John Zondlo, 4009 Driftwood Cir., Yukon, OK 73099 [email protected] NORTHERN FM Keith McGinnis, 18 Newbridge St., Hingham, MA 02043 [email protected] TV and FM STATISTICS Fred Nordquist, 147 Travis Hill Road, Moncks Corner, SC [email protected] 6 METER/2 METER Peter Baskind, 3225 Forest Hill-Irene Rd, Germantown, TN 38138 [email protected] WEBSITE Tim McVey Webmaster http://www.wtfda.org [email protected] 2 P.O. Box 501, Somersville, CT USA 06072 MIKE BUGAJ [email protected] TROPO AND A BIT OF ES summer’s WTFDA/NRC convention in Rochester and make note of the dates. This April began with a bang with some long one is a week before Labor Day. distance Gulf tropo on the first of the month. Steven Wiseblood (TX) went over 900 miles THIS CANNOT BE RIGHT with his FM tropo catches to Tampa. And then on April 4th, Jeff Lehmann and Keith McGinnis, both in the Boston area, heard FM tropo from Florida! Jeff’s reception of WMNF 88.5 works out to about 1173 miles. On April 6th Steve heard Orlando by tropo at 998 miles. E skip made a lowband TV appearance from Florida to the northeast on the 7th. Chris Dunne in FL saw Es from Central America on the 21st. So, for some people, April was a pretty good month! MEMBERS AND MORE! This month we welcome Roger Windsor 2009-2010 (IN), Ray Dees (GA) and Adam Ebel (VA) to the WTFDA. Roger has been DXing for decades and we’re glad to see him here. Ray I see it but I don’t believe it. Dees has been active on the WTFDA discussion boards discussing RDS and IN THE MAIL TODAY hopefully a new RDS decoder that will show you call letters and a PI code at the same time. This in from Bill Draeb (WI) who writes: Adam has been interested in the WTFDA for a “With the DX season about to start, I have this few years now and finally took the plunge. comment. Instead of hanging on to DX loggings Welcome to all three of you! for months or even a year before they’re sent Renewals were received during the period in, I would like to see reports sent in monthly. from March 15 to April 14 from Chris Dunne It’s difficult to relate to reports that are a year (FL), Luis Franceschi (PR), Fred Newlin old. I have difficulty remembering what (NY), Jon Petricoin (PA), Tim Katlic (CA), happened last week, let alone a year ago. Joe Perge (OH), Ivan Silva (Brazil), David Something that old really isn’t news anymore. I Cox (AL), Pat Dyer (TX), Paul Crego (NY), hope DX is plentiful.” Don Voegele (WA), Jacob Norlund (MN), Dan Thank you for your comments, Bill. For me, Novotny (WI), Aaron Mitterling (IN), Jason usually by the time January rolls around, the Hustedt (NJ), Frank Merrill (IL), John previous summer is just a blur. I can’t even Cereghin (MD), Larry Weisberg (NH), Gary remember what dates were good for Es or Hickerson (OK), Roger Gravelle (ON), Saul tropo. If the reports were more timely, then I Chernos (ON), Gray Fulk (NC) and Fritze might be able to make a connection. Prentice (AR). And so far we have four Also I would encourage those of you who members who have sent in $10 to unlock their only post your loggings to the wtfda.info boards download of Emisoras de FM. If you live in an to also send a copy of them to your respective area where the eBook would be useful to you, VUD editor (John Z., Keith or Nick). Not download it and send in your ten bucks for the everyone reads the posts on the discussion password to open it. You won’t regret it. boards but everyone in the WTFDA gets a VUD Remember, for most of us, E skip season is every month and sees them. These days none right around the corner. of our top notch editors is very busy, especially John, so throw some loggings his way. Thanks! CONVENTION 2010 That’s all for May. Look out for Es and we will see you next month! –Mike Speaking of things around the corner, this is another biggie. Check out the info on this 3 Douglas E. Smith TV 1389 Old Clarksville Pike Pleasant View, TN 37146-8098 News [email protected] http://www.w9wi.com May 2010 Abbreviations: AF Applied For (a new station) NW New station on the air Aux Auxiliary (backup) transmitter PA Proposed Amendment CC Callsign change PC Power (and/or tower height) change on the air CL City-of-license change PG Power change granted DC Converted to DTV PR Power change requested DCC Digital Companion Channel RA Returns to the air NS DCC Granted flash-cut to DTV QC Channel (frequency) change on the air DE License/permit deleted QG Channel change granted DR Requests flash-cut to DTV QR Channel change requested FC Programming (format) change RE Reinstated (previously-dismissed app.) FTP Failure to Prosecute ROA Request of Applicant GA Granted amendment (to table of channel SI Off the air (silent) allotments) LC License to Cover STA Special Temporary Authority MX Mutually Exclusive XC Transmitter site changed NDA Non-directional antenna XG Transmitter site change granted NS Permit granted for new station XR Transmitter site change requested News: (full-power digital stations in bold face; LPTV and Toronto 9 CFTO-DT AF 10.8kw/ translators in regular type; full-power analog stations in 467m bold italics; low-power analog stations in regular italics) Quebec QUEB Riviére- 7 CKRT-DT AF 7kw/345m * indicates this DTV facility replaces an analog facility du-Loup on the same channel. USA Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan) Alabama Garapan 37 NEW-LP AF dismissed Birmingham 21 NEW AF 500kw/ 413m, 33-29-04/ 86-46-25 (WBIQ site), dismissed Birmingham 39 WBIQ QR from 10, 1000kw/366m Puerto Rico Demopolis 51 NEW AF 1000kw/ Guayama 23 WXWZ-LD NW 15kw, 18-09-30/ 325m, 32-21-45/ 66-05-03; DCC for 87-52-31 (WIIQ site), analog 22 dismissed Luquillo 43 WIPR-TV NS 10kw/ Dozier 16 NEW AF 700kw/ 250m, 18-19-54/ 225m, 31-33-16/ 65-41-11 (DTS) 86-23-32 (WDIQ site), San Juan 43 WIPR-TV NS 791kw/ dismissed 776m, 18-06-42/ Florence 17 NEW AF 500kw/ 66-03-05 (DTS) 208m, 34-34-41/ Utuado 43 WIPR-TV NS 5kw/504m (DTS) 87-47-02 (WFIQ site), dismissed Huntsville 31 NEW AF 500kw/ 338m, 34-44-13/ 86-31-45 (WHIQ site), dismissed Canada Huntsville 67 W67CO FC to Daystar British Columbia Louisville 25 NEW AF 500kw/ Vancouver 32 CIVT-DT AF 33kw/704m 262m, 31-43-04/ 85-26-03 (WGIQ site), Ontario 4 dismissed 38-59-22/ Mobile 35 NEW AF 150kw/ 122-46-04 572m, 30-36-45/ Ventura 6 KUHD-LP QC from ch.