Correction! The first ever JARTS was in 1992 !!!
From: Don AA5AU <aa5au@bellsouth.net>
To: "rtty@contesting.com" <rtty@contesting.com>
Sent: Wednesday, October 12, 2016 4:22 PM
Subject: Re: [RTTY] g0azt Eddie
This is certainly terrible news about Eddie. Eddie was a big part of my RTTY
world when I first started RTTY in the 1980s. I don't remember how we hooked up
but we became the best of friends. I remember he was a columnist in the RTTY
Journal.
Eddie invited me to join him for a DXpedition to VP5 in the late 80s. It was my
first ever DX trip. We stayed at a private residence that had a ham shack to
rent (wasn't Jodie's place) and a tribander and other antennas. It was right on
the beach. It was beautiful. The owner had the cable TV business on the island
(Providenciales) and was a ham. He wasn't there but his caretaker brought us to
the rental house and set us up. Eddie did nearly all the RTTY work while I
worked CW (Eddie didn't know CW).
A year later Eddie and I went to Abacos in the Bahamas. Then a year after that
we went to V2 where we operated in the CQWW RTTY Contest and afterward we
operated from VP2M Montserrat. It was amusing that Eddie was a car mechanic but
he didn't like to drive. In VP2M they drive on the left side of the road and I
was certainly hoping he would drive the rental car (steering wheel on the
right) but he said no. So I had the experience of driving on the left side of
the road. It wasn't bad once I got used to it.
In 1992, Eddie, along with two others and I went to Aruba and operated MS as
P40RY. We made 2,222 valid contacts and set a new world record that held for
many years.
At the time, Eddie was staying with Jim and his wife in Richmond, CA. We had
the same American Airlines flight out of Aruba going to Dallas where I would
fly back to New Orleans and Eddie would continue on to CA. Unfortunately, US
Immigration in Aruba pulled Eddie out of line to interrogate him and he did not
make the flight. Apparently he had spent too much time in the USA without going
back to England and US Immigration would not allow him back in.
So Eddie was stuck in Aruba for about a month before he could get the funds to
purchase a ticket back to England. This was in 1972 and the irony behind this
is that it was the first year for JARTS. Since Eddie was stuck in Aruba, he
operated the contest and, of course, he won. Guess who came in second? Yep, it
was me. Him getting marooned in Aruba prevented me from winning the first ever
JARTS contest (it would take me 8 years to finally win it. HI). He did
eventually make it back to California.
Eddie flew to New Orleans in 1996 to operate the ANARTS RTTY Contest at my new
QTH. We placed 2nd in the World. I lost contact with him some time after that.
I remember he got mad about something in ham radio and just quit. I don't
remember what it was but it made me sad.
Eddie was quite a character and he did not drink alcohol. I remember in the
Bahamas, I was making daiquiris for myself. I didn't have a blender, so I put
the ice in my shirt and smash it against the cement porch outside the villa we
rented. I convinced him to drink a daiquiri with me and he got drunk on half a
drink. It was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. He was so drunk, he
couldn't operate the RTTY at all. I think he was using a Commodore 64 and a
black & white TV monitor. It there there that Eddie taught me the value of
ferrite toroids and rods. When we first transmitted on RTTY, the screen on the
B&W TV would go out. He wrapped all the cables around ferrite rods and the RFI
went completely away just like magic. After that, I called him the Magic Man.
One of his favorite sayings, and he would say this when someone would come back
to him with their name, QTH, radio information, etc., was "Don't make a meal
out of it mate!".
When not operating DXpeditions in Caribbean, Eddie and I formed the "Boffins
Net" which was an informal net where we would get on each evening and ragchew
on 20 meter RTTY and get others to join in. Stations all over the world would
check in too. It was great fun. Apparently a Boffin is English slang for a
scientist or engineer.
Besides operating from TY with Peter TY1PS and Ray WF1B, he also activated 8R
on RTTY because it was rare in those days. Eddie and I had a lot of fun
operating on these DX trips. I'll never forget it. RIP old friend.
73, Don AA5AU
From: Anthony W. DePrato <wa4jqs@mikrotec.com>
To: rtty@contesting.com
Cc: CDXC@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Wednesday, October 12, 2016 10:25 AM
Subject: [RTTY] g0azt Eddie
As some of you know i have been trying to run down some old qsls from
the late 90's on rtty. G0AZT/W6 was very active on the bands and a
good friend to many of us over the years. while trying to get TY on
rtty confirmed on a few bands I recalled that Eddie and Ray WF1B
were there at Peters for a contest in the late 90's i have found
Peters DL call and address but he lists that he will NOT qsl . but
thinking i would give it a shot anyway i had sent Peter Ray and Eddie
qsl requests. i got a letter back from Ray last week he is well but
does not have any radios anymore he said they ran out of qsls years
ago but did confirm the contacts on the back of mine for his and
Eddie's dxped to TY.
Ray said i have renewed his interest in Radio by contacting him
and that i was the only ham he had heard from in over 10 years. so
lets all hope Ray gets back on the air. his rtty contesting software
made contesting on rtty fun. I have not heard from Peter TY1TS but i
keep hoping.
I got a letter today for Jim McCombe.who Eddie stayed with in Calif.
and it is with a sad heart that i must pass along the bad news that
Eddie G0AZT became a SK on Dec 23rd 2015. from complications from
Pneumonia.Jim said eddie lost interest in radio in late 1999 and
sold all his gear. he spent his later years building computers.
Jim informed me he had no ideal what Eddie ever did with his logs but
would look and see if he could find them. He wanted me to pass along
to the rtty and UK gang that Eddie was a SK.
RIP OLD FRIEND
73 Tony WA4JQS
Anthony W.DePrato WA4JQS since 1962
CQ DX HALL OF FAME # 35
DXCC HONOR ROLL
DXPEDITION OF THE YEAR 1992 VP8SSI
DXPEDITION OF THE YEAR 1993/1994 3Y0PI
VP8SSI 3Y0PI VP8BZL V31SS
ZD8JQS WA4JQS/ZS1 WA4JQS/KC4
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