Goler Wash/Barker Ranch/DV Spring 12 - Page 4

**macmcintire** · 12-29-2011, 04:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Christopher Thwaites

Anzac..you good meet the other vans as Mac may do coming up to the Geologists cabin on Warm Springs rd.

If I cannot meet up with folks on the west side of Goler road, I will be camping somewhere on Friday night on the east side of the mountain range. I might even just camp near the geologist's cabin that night. I welcome anyone who may wish to join me. In fact, I may even come a day earlier and get some sightseeing in before the official meet and greet and camp on Thursday also. Again, I would welcome anyone to join me.

**daveb** · 12-30-2011, 04:45 PM

Hey Mac, you might want to look over the other areas to camp at close by. It might be very hard to grab the G-cabin cause it's the best but you might want to look at Russel's or Stella's as well. There isn't cell service there so I don't know how you guys plan to hook up, maybe CB.

If the weather isn't too warm, I might show myself.

Christopher Thwaites · 12-30-2011, 04:57 PM

I have a CB and will be monitoring. I have yet master it's use but I just need a good CB person to tune mine up and show me few tricks.

charlie56 · 12-30-2011, 05:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Christopher Thwaites

I have a CB and will be monitoring. I have yet master it's use but I just need a good CB person to tune mine up and show me few tricks.

I'm a HAM not a CB'r but I do have an antenna analyzer that will work on the CB frequencies to adjust your SWR. PM me sometime for a meet. (If you force me I guess I can bring out my CB.)

If you are interested, our HAM club (Santa Rosa) puts on a weekend class at the Red Cross Building. You are 99.9 percent guaranteed to pass your Tech exam immediately after. Cost is $15 for a study guide and $15 for the test. The dates for 2012 will be set in the next week or two.

**macmcintire** · 12-30-2011, 07:22 PM

I, too, have a CB in my rig. Chris, you'll need to pick a channel for us to monitor when the time comes. I'd love to get a Ham license and put a better radio in my rig so I can talk to people at a greater distance. I was a volunteer MARS operator when I was in the military during the Vietnam war, but I can't remember any of that technical stuff now. Here's a picture of me back then:

Christopher Thwaites · 12-30-2011, 07:36 PM

I'm sorry Mac but that is creepy! Charlie56 you showed me how to upload images to the Forumso I guess it's only natural I would have you tune my CB antenna. Actually I tuned it using the builtin meter on my radio. I think I'll just find a truck stop and hangout.

**macmcintire** · 12-30-2011, 07:59 PM

You think the picture is creepy! In the same file in which I found the MARS picture, I also found the document I signed determining who would get my $10,000 death benefits if I died in the war. Now that's creepy!

Ford_6L_E350 · 12-31-2011, 10:28 AM

Nice picture Mac!

Same smile, same glasses, what happened to the hair?

Mike

**daveb** · 12-31-2011, 12:51 PM

So Mac what were you doing at 10:41 Zulu?

Tell us a story of a good or funny call.

**macmcintire** · 12-31-2011, 02:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by daveb

So Mac what were you doing at 10:41 Zulu?

Tell us a story of a good or funny call.

It was 7:41 a.m. where I was.

It was strange listening in as military guys and gals called their families back home over the radio saying, "I love you, over", "I love you too, over." The only funny story I can remember is a lady who wrecked her husband's car. She was crying over the radio as I tried to locate her husband. She told me she didn't know how to tell her husband, saying "He's going to kill me." When I got a hold of her husband I told him about his car being wrecked before he ever got on the radio with his wife. He was great when he finally got on. He consoled his wife and told her it was no big deal. She cried the entire three minutes of air time. I don't think she said anything other than "over".

Back then MARS (Military Affiliated Radio Stations) calls were the only free way servicemen could call home. The call was patched through over HAM from a station on the base to a state-side station. Usually we made our calls through a guy in Arizona (I wish I could remember his name) whose call sign was AFC6YPX. If you look closely in the picture you can see his call sign penciled on the board. He then called the serviceman's family on a land line. If I remember correctly, the long-distance phone charges were paid by Rockwell International. The state-side guy would listen in to the call on his end and I would listen to the call on my end, both of us flipping our switches to send or receive when we heard the person say "over".

I was separated from my wife for 13 months, and had it not been for the guy at AFC6YPX and Rockwell, I would have gone crazy not being able to talk to my wife. We had been married for barely one year when I was sent overseas. Surprisingly, after about three months I forgot what her voice sounded like. Since I had no voice memory, whenever I dreamed of her while asleep, I could not hear her talk. She would be talking in my dream, but I could not hear her. It was like a silent movie. That was very disheartening. Once I became a MARS operator I was able to talk to my wife every morning. Since I was the operator, I made my call to my wife first before making calls for others. Since I was a volunteer operator, that was the only perk. That and getting to listen in on people's phone calls. (And I got the sound back to my dreams)

Sorry, Chris, for the highjacking of this discussion stream. But it's been nice to reflect back to an important time in my past. It's why I cry every time I hear the National Anthem.