Remember please, Anne is
always needs articles to publish in Ragchew! This is especially the
case during the lock-down. Thank you to those numerous contributors in
this edition!
You can advertise ham-related items - for
sale, swop or wanted-to-buy - in Ragchew, including colour photos,
details and prices. To do so, please contact the editor [here].
Download the December 2021 Newsletter as a PDF file [here];
Ragchew is also on our Newsletters Page
To all our CTARC members and to radio hams world-wide, we convey Seasons Greeting and a Happy Xmas for the 25th December and hope for a far better New Year in 2021! Stay safe, everyone!
It is with sadness we must announce that the key of Anthony P Baard ZS1APB went silent early this morning, 24 December 2020, at the Intensive Care Unit of a Cape Town hospital.
While not a current member of CTARC, Tony was well known to many of us
in the Cape Town radio amateur community. He took part in the 7P8DX DXpedition to Lesotho along with Shaun ZS1RA and Barry ZS1FJ. He attended several of our monthly CTARC meetings and was a regular call sign (ZS1 "All Points Bulletin") on our call-ins on two metres. He worked in a technical capacity at UCT.
Tony will be sadly missed. Our condolences go to his wife Rene, the rest of his family and his friends.
The December 2020 edition of the Cape Town Amateur Radio Centre's
bi-monthly newsletter "Ragchew" is now published. Grateful thanks to
the editor, Anne, for another fine edition.
Remember please, Anne is always on the look-out for articles to publish in Ragchew! This is especially the case during the lock-down. Please submit them to the editor in MS-Word format.
You can advertise ham-related items - for sale, swop or wanted-to-buy -
in Ragchew, including colour photos, details and prices. To do so,
please contact the editor at zs1ct@ctarc.org.za
Download the December 2020 Newsletter as a PDF file [here];
Ragchew is also on our Newsletters Page
Candidates must please be at the venue at 09h30 for 10h00 on the Saturday morning.
Chris ZS1CDG will be in attendance to oversee the exam.
For those candidates who have yet to do their necessary HF Assessment, they will get the chance to do so via the CTARC's facilities from 13h00 after the exam is finished.
The HF assessment will be done on the same day
as the examination (Saturday 5th December) so you only need to come into
Cape Town once. Please contact Anne, the CTARC club secretary for course
information zs1ct@ctarc.org.za
More general details about the Radio Amateurs Examination on the CTARC web site are [here].
Here are some photos from the Fox Hunt that took place at near the CTARC clubhouse on the Saturday afternoon of 7 December 2019.
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| [ Click on the photo to enlarge. The fox is located behind the palisade gate, discretely sitting on the ground, camouflaged with some leaves... ] |
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| Bernie Crockford / ZS1BW (Photo by kind courtesy of Dennis / ZS1AU) |
On Friday 22 December, the key of Bernie Crockford / ZS1BW or “Boere Wors”, as he will be affectionately remembered, went silent. He was 88 years old.
Bernie was born on the channel island of Guernsey.
He saw service in the Royal Navy, and came out to South Africa in 1947 on the HMS Vanguard, which was considered then to be the most advanced battleship in the naval fleet.
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| The special white-painted royal train, with the HMS Vanguard in the background |
Also on board that ship were members of the Royal Family, including then Princess Elizabeth, on their post-war tour of South Africa.
Bernie liked our country so much that he returned here. He married Sylvia, who survives him, and in time became the patriarch of a large family that includes children, grand children and even great grand children who will all, like us, remember him with fondness.
Bernie worked for Gallo South Africa as a recording engineer, in a studio in Oranjezicht. Ted Baker (then ZS1RA) was the managing director. Bernie also worked later on for CNA and was the manager of the Wynberg branch when he retired.
His QTH was in Ferness Rd in Ottery for a number of years, where he kept a significant radio station with a TH6 beam antenna. It was from this QTH that he broke the South African record for DX contacts in the two metre band when he worked a station on a ship up in Luanda harbour on 144 MHz, taking advantage of unusual coastal ducting conditions. As far as I have been able to ascertain, that record still stands unbroken.
Bernie was an honorary life member of both the SARL and of the CTARC. He served as CTARC Chairman and on the CTARC committee. He edited the CTARC newsletter, "Ragchew" for years and also diligently put together the "Acorn Times" newsletter of the Oakdale Klub-Amateur Radio. He also hosted the ZS1OAK Natter Net for some years. He also used to relay the transmission of these CTARC Sunday morning bulletins on the 80 metre band for a while.
Later, Bernie and Sylvia moved up to Langeberg Ridge, where he was not too far from Dave Perry / ZS1SG.
Bernie was one of the great characters of our hobby, broad in compassion, wise in his insights and not unafraid to puncture some over-inflated sacred cows where necessary. We shall certainly miss him.
Go well, old man.
Bernie was a great radio amateur, a GIANT amongst GIANTS and did so much for all in this ZS1 area.A private family memorial service for Bernie was held on 5th January 2018.
He held the SARL Jack Twine & Honorary Life Member Awards.
He served as Chairman and Committee Member of the Cape Town branch / CTARC & Oakdale Club and was the editor of Ragchew (for CTARC) and the Acorn Times (for Oakdale Club).
Bernie was one of a kind and his XYL Sylvia stood by him in all his ham activities.
He was a popular and likeable human being and we will miss him for his contribution to amateur radio and his friendship over many decades.
My deepest sympathy to Sylvia and his large family.
He was 3 months younger than me and his passing was still unexpected.
Bernie had many interesting ideas and was a very busy and hard-working person.
May he rest in peace.
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| Bernie was awarded the Len Wells Ham Spirit Award trophy in both 1981 and 1989 |
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| Bernie at the mike of ZS1OAK |
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| Bernie and Sylvia |
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| Dave / ZS1DFR and Bernie / ZS1BW share a joke at the CTARC fleamarket |
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| Left to right: Alfie / ZS1HX, Bernie / ZS1BW and Mike / ZS1FP |
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| Bernie receives his Honorary Life Membership of the CTARC from CTARC chairman Bud / ZS1BW in 2003 |
