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Re: Topband: VE1ZZ has passed on - Very Very Sad news! (Long)

To: topband@contesting.com, terry burge <ki7m@comcast.net>
Subject: Re: Topband: VE1ZZ has passed on - Very Very Sad news! (Long)
From: terry burge <ki7m@comcast.net>
Reply-to: terry burge <ki7m@comcast.net>
Date: Fri, 19 Oct 2018 17:32:39 -0700 (PDT)
List-post: <mailto:topband@contesting.com>
Sad to see he will no longer be there to give out Nova Scotia. I see I've 
worked him three times 2014, 2011 and 2009 for a multiplier during CQWW160. 
Never really got to know him but I have enjoyed the great stories. That is 
something about ham radio I love. You never know who you might be hearing at 
the other end of the either. Just hope a few will say one or two nice things 
about me when I join him. 

What do you suppose ham radio guys do for fun up there?


Terry
KI7M

> On October 19, 2018 at 1:35 PM Wolfgang Wessely <wessely@asamnet.de> wrote:
> 
> 
> very sad to hear this...
> 
> Jack was my first DX on 80m in the 80th, using an antenna myself, which 
> could not really work - only he made the contact possible!
> Later, I had many topband-contacts with him and no wonder: Jack was my 
> first VE on Six in 1992...
> 
> RIP
> Wolfgang - DJ3TF
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Am 19.10.2018 um 19:10 schrieb k1zm--- via Topband:
> > Hello Gang
> >
> >
> > I am truly saddened to have to pass along the contents of an email I just 
> > received from Carl Leahy who was one of Jack Leahy,  VE1ZZ's sons.
> >
> >
> > It is short and sweet - but I will add some personal comments after sharing 
> > his note to me.
> >
> >
> > +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++=
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >   Carl Leahy carl.leahy1@gmail.comHide
> >
> > To
> > k1zm k1zm@aol.com
> >
> >
> >
> > Jeff, our family wanted you to know that dad passed away last evening. If 
> > you could let the people in the ham world know we would really appreciate 
> > it. It was a very big part of his life . He had just been talking about you 
> > and the book you gave him a few years ago..
> >
> >
> > Carl Leahy
> > Signing off for VE1ZZ 😞
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> >
> >
> > A few comments from my memory now follow - as best I recall them:
> >
> >
> > VE1ZZ was not only a personal friend to many of us - he was probably one of 
> > the finest Topband Dx'ers ever to have lived.  He goes back to not long 
> > after W1BB came back on the band at the end of WW!! - and was one of the 
> > strongest signals I have ever witnessed on Topband.  His signal was almost 
> > LEGENDARY all over the world.  EU stations used to say  - "He is almost as 
> > loud when he calls in Asian pileups as the EU callers are over here"...and 
> > that says it all!
> >
> >
> > Jack Leahy was personally responsible for my migrating to VY2ZM and was 
> > here at my home twice - once is 2002 and once in 2012.  I last visited him 
> > and Opal (his XYL) in August of 2014 with Mike OE6MBG who wanted to meet 
> > Jack and see his QTH .
> >
> >
> > When I finally had the time after building my house here on PEI  to visit 
> > Jack which was probably in July of 2003 or 2004, at first blush his place 
> > did not make a huge impression on me because it had only a short triangular 
> > portion of land at the road in the Head of Jeddore NE of Halifax - and the 
> > land rose rapidly behind his home.  One initially wondered "How does he get 
> > out so well from here down at the road?"
> >
> >
> > The answer came shortly thereafter - Jack took me out behind the house - 
> > and we climbed that hill - up and up and up for something like a MILE - it 
> > was a pizza slice in shape and very wide at the top of the hill in the 
> > woods - with only about 100 feet (if that) at the road front side of the 
> > parcel.
> >
> >
> > Some distance up the hill was Jack's 160m 4sq array - which was made of 
> > ROHN 6 tower - that was sitting on 18 wheeler truck tires as base 
> > insulators.  The towers were not tall - perhaps 55 feet or so and the rest 
> > of each radiator was wire - so it was really a WIRE inverted L 4sq.  Jack 
> > was the "ultimate scavenger" and his radials were all 1-2" diameter pieces 
> > of HARDLINE!!!  Hundreds of them all over the hillside  I think he had a 
> > friend in CATV or at his local dump - but he got most of it for next to 
> > nothing he said.
> >
> >
> >  From that point of his land, he could reach around the HILLTOP on 160m to 
> > acquire  a clear shot to EU and the South was wide open and to the SW was 
> > also clear looking over the water.  Looking straight up the hill was 
> > probably blocked to some degree - but often this does not matter all that 
> > much on Topband.
> >
> >
> > The day I was there was shortly after Jack had managed to communicate 
> > across the pond on what I think was 600m - I may be wrong about the 
> > frequency - but the antenna he used to make the SLOW SLOW SPEED CW contact 
> > was something out of this world!
> >
> >
> > It started about 1/3 of the way up the hill - and ran all the way to the 
> > rear of the property to near the furthest reaches of his land - and this 
> > was a LONG LONG LONG walk to get there - through some land that I recall 
> > was swampy.  It had to have been at least 3000 feet long.
> >
> >
> > Part way up the hill, Jack had built a small shelter in which he placed the 
> > BIGGEST homebrew loading coil I have ever seen. It was about 4 feet tall 
> > and about 8 feet in diameter and wrapped around some kind of coil form he 
> > had created.
> >
> >
> > Jack explained that it took him awhile to resonate the system to his 
> > desired operating QRG - and this was done by taking a pair of alligator 
> > clips and through trial and error he tapped the coil he made - trying to 
> > use a DC ammeter to find the point of peak current into the system - which 
> > he explained seemed to indicate the system was reasonably matched.
> >
> >
> > His was among the first to work across the pond with that antenna - just 
> > one of his many achievements.
> >
> >
> > When I was in the US Navy stationed at Bremerhaven, Germany I used to 
> > listen to Jack and W1BB on 160m.  W1BB would sit around 1801, KV4FZ often 
> > was around 1803 and Jack was down at the low end as well - calling CQ 
> > listening QSX up at around 1825-1830 in what was then known as the "DX 
> > Window".
> >
> >
> > Jack had a huge signal even then - using equipment that was popular in that 
> > era.  I recall a Hammarlund HQ 160 Rx or something close to that model - 
> > there is a photo of that station from the late 1950's in my book "Dx'ing on 
> > the Edge."
> >
> >
> > Jack's More Recent Station  - Inside
> >
> >
> > When I first visited Jack in 2003/2004, it was in his old house - not the 
> > newer one he built further up the hill some years later.  The station was 
> > vintage (much like my own on Cape Cod) - and Jack used a TS830 driving a HB 
> > amp to something around a KW DC input.  Jack's operating table gave me a 
> > chuckle because there was only about 4 inches of space between the front 
> > panel of the radio and the edge of the table.  Jack was a "leftie" and 
> > placed his paddle parallel to the front of the TS830 and did his best to 
> > keep his forearm on the table while he sent.
> >
> >
> > Jack's keying system triggered a bunch of interconnected relays as he 
> > operated and he had quite a number of vintage antenna switches which 
> > selected his many Rx antennas.
> >
> >
> > After visiting his shack, Jack later showed me around other parts of the 
> > rest of the house - and I recall several rooms CHOCK FULL of stuff most of 
> > us would die for.  One room was full of EIMAC xmitting tubes - 4-400's, 
> > some 304TL's, some 4-1000A's etc
> >
> >
> > Another room had shelves loaded with vacuum relays and vacuum variables he 
> > had collected over the years.  Not one or two - but something like a 100 of 
> > them.  There were also rotary inductors for HB design and many other things 
> > that made me drool.
> >
> > I think I remember a third room full of vintage ham radio gear as well.  
> > Older stuff he had used previously over the years I guess.
> >
> >
> > +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> >
> >
> > I will relate one story about Jack when I was operating at 7O6T over in 
> > Yemen in 2012 I think it was.  I was calling CQ arond 1823kHz waiting for 
> > SS to occur in NA - and this bone crushing signal came at me that almost 
> > blew me out of my chair.  You can listen to this clip on my VY2ZM website - 
> > and you will see what I mean.
> >
> >
> > I told Jack that I was operating in the snippet - and later asked him to 
> > please tell me when OTHER NA stations were calling.  I said, please do NOT 
> > tell me the calls - just tell me that USA stations are now hearing me and 
> > calling me.  Jack did as I asked and about 15 mins later a very weak in the 
> > noise caller was Dave Patten, NN1N who was probably 3-4 S units down from 
> > Jack's signal.  Dave's station is first rate - but there is something truly 
> > magical about operating from the Maritimes along oceanfront property.  It 
> > is just how things work - Jack had what I call the "front door" to the NE 
> > path and it often shows up as it did that evening at 7O6T.
> >
> >
> > Here's how to listen to what I heard:
> >
> >
> > 1) Go to http://www,vy2zm.com
> > 2) Select the sound bites tab
> > 3) Click on Sound Bite #4 and play VE1ZZ - Booming.
> > 4) If you also wish to hear NN1N's piece look further down the list to hear 
> > the difference in signal levels.
> >
> >
> > JACK's last years
> >
> >
> > I last spoke with Jack in the summer of 2016.  He told me he then had COPD 
> > and that his amp needed repairs and that his antennas were largely broken.  
> > I had heard him sparingly in 2015 and probably not at all in 2016 - and 
> > that explained why.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > JACK's 160m DXCC Achievements:
> >
> >
> > For many years JACK  held the #2 position WORLD in the Topband DXCC 
> > rankings.  He finished his legendary Topband career at 334 countries 
> > confirmed at position #6 in the current rankings.  This is only a HANDFUL 
> > of entities below that necessary to have qualified for DXCC HONOR ROLL - 
> > single band 160M.  His mild, unassuming manner was also the measure of the 
> > man.  He would stop DX'ing and work ANYONE who called him - which says alot 
> > as well.  His was a special person and I have always admired him and what 
> > he managed to do in HAM RADIO.
> >
> >
> > Not only did he make DXCC on 160m - in the summers he got me hooked on 6M 
> > and he had a 6M DXCC as well - just to keep himself occupied during the 
> > summer doldrums on 160M.
> >
> >
> > I will close now and stop reminiscing about Jack - but I think it is 
> > altogether fitting that we stop and pause a moment to remember this fine 
> > 160M operator and gentleman and what he achieved on the band we all love to 
> > operate.  He will always occupy a special place in our memories of Topband!
> >
> >
> > 73 and thanks for the bandwidth.
> >
> >
> > JEFF  K1ZM/VY2ZM
> >
> >
> > Email:   K1ZM@aol.com
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Jeff Briggs
> > DXing on the Edge: The Thrill of 160 Meters
> > Available worldwide through BookBaby, Array Solutions, DX Engineering, 
> > Royal Society of Great Britain, & Amazon
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > _________________
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> 
> 
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