Grid Chasing on 6-M - It's an Addiction!
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Clark L. Stewart
Jun 29, 2026, 1:39:09 PM (3 days ago) Jun 29
to wv...@googlegroups.com
The "Magic Band" has been VERY good to me with 49 New Grids over the last 3 weeks,
including SIX New Grids for the
FFMA Award. That is
the "Fred Fish Memorial Award" that you can get for working all 488
Grids in the Continental USA. I have essentially been working Grids
toward that goal since January 1, 1983 (43 years!)
Here are the Grids that Logger32 says I have Worked and Confirmed overall (including the whole world):
As of this morning, I have worked 468 of the 488 Grids needed. Only 20 left to go! I keep track of what I have worked and confirmed by a spreadsheet on my computer. Below is what the map from that program shows. White Grids have NOT been worked, Blue are confirmed by paper QSL's, Green are confirmed on LoTW, and Gold are worked but not confirmed yet. NOTE: those 3 are all from K8JH. More on him later.
For awhile there has been an online spreadsheet for tracking your progress toward the FFMA. Of course I have been using that.
That online spreadsheet shows my standing as No. 99 but it has not been updated yet to include my 4 most recent Grids worked (plus 1 confirmed.) Some of you might recognize Steven Rutledge, N4JQQ. He used to live in Charleston. As you can see, this spreadsheet shows I still need to work 25 so it is not current.
But just this week I set up on another online website to do this. It is called "Gridzilla." Here is the URL: https://gridzilla.us/
One of the very coolest things about this site is that it will push a Direct Message to your cell phone when one of the Grids you need has been spotted! AMAZING! Incoming notifications from Gridzilla (via Slack) look like this on my phone:
This (in my opinion) is a HUGE benefit for chasing Grids. Previously I was depending on Telnet Spots and JTAlert to notify me when MY station "heard" a Grid or Country I need. With these "Push Notifications" for ONLY Grids that I need, I know to be on the radio and watching for an opening. Last night I tried working K8JH in DN64 with no luck. I had one decode on FT8 and tried for 45 minutes to hear him on Q65 but no luck. I thought he was heading home after that. He had posted "this is my last grid of this year's expedition. 30 days, 3300 miles, 8 grids." WOOF! All that effort to pass out Grids to the Needing!
At 11:34 p.m. last night he posted on the Slack VHF-Chat "3-rover-raregrid" channel: "im calling it a night, be back tomorrow all." So when I read that this morning, I knew I had to be alert for another chance to work him in DN64. About the same time I got push notifications from Gridzilla telling me K8JH in DN64 was being worked.
I heard him 2 separate times at -24dB "142530 -24 0.1 601 ~ CQ K8JH DN64", then 20 minutes later at -17dB "144530 -17 0.1 572 ~ CQ K8JH DN64", then heard him work KB9DAK at 1447 GMT.
Then I sat at the radio for 40 MINUTES and did not decode him at all. Finally, the 6-M Propagation Gods smiled on me and I was able to manage a QSO with him for my 468th FFMA Grid. When you get down to just a few Grids and they are ALL Very Rare, you do what you can to work the New Ones.
The new online Gridzilla site also has maps, including a User Map like below, that show your FFMA standing and the Grids you need, have worked, and have confirmed. Green is confirmed, Yellow is worked, and Orange are Grids you need. Of those FFMA "Chasers" who are active on Gridzilla, I rank 94th in the pursuit of that Award.
I was beginning to doubt a month ago that I would ever get any of the 25 Grids I needed, let alone all of them. But, I am STOKED now and doing all I can to chase these elusive puppies!
73, Clark, W8TN
Here are the Grids that Logger32 says I have Worked and Confirmed overall (including the whole world):
As of this morning, I have worked 468 of the 488 Grids needed. Only 20 left to go! I keep track of what I have worked and confirmed by a spreadsheet on my computer. Below is what the map from that program shows. White Grids have NOT been worked, Blue are confirmed by paper QSL's, Green are confirmed on LoTW, and Gold are worked but not confirmed yet. NOTE: those 3 are all from K8JH. More on him later.
For awhile there has been an online spreadsheet for tracking your progress toward the FFMA. Of course I have been using that.
That online spreadsheet shows my standing as No. 99 but it has not been updated yet to include my 4 most recent Grids worked (plus 1 confirmed.) Some of you might recognize Steven Rutledge, N4JQQ. He used to live in Charleston. As you can see, this spreadsheet shows I still need to work 25 so it is not current.
But just this week I set up on another online website to do this. It is called "Gridzilla." Here is the URL: https://gridzilla.us/
One of the very coolest things about this site is that it will push a Direct Message to your cell phone when one of the Grids you need has been spotted! AMAZING! Incoming notifications from Gridzilla (via Slack) look like this on my phone:
This (in my opinion) is a HUGE benefit for chasing Grids. Previously I was depending on Telnet Spots and JTAlert to notify me when MY station "heard" a Grid or Country I need. With these "Push Notifications" for ONLY Grids that I need, I know to be on the radio and watching for an opening. Last night I tried working K8JH in DN64 with no luck. I had one decode on FT8 and tried for 45 minutes to hear him on Q65 but no luck. I thought he was heading home after that. He had posted "this is my last grid of this year's expedition. 30 days, 3300 miles, 8 grids." WOOF! All that effort to pass out Grids to the Needing!
At 11:34 p.m. last night he posted on the Slack VHF-Chat "3-rover-raregrid" channel: "im calling it a night, be back tomorrow all." So when I read that this morning, I knew I had to be alert for another chance to work him in DN64. About the same time I got push notifications from Gridzilla telling me K8JH in DN64 was being worked.
I heard him 2 separate times at -24dB "142530 -24 0.1 601 ~ CQ K8JH DN64", then 20 minutes later at -17dB "144530 -17 0.1 572 ~ CQ K8JH DN64", then heard him work KB9DAK at 1447 GMT.
Then I sat at the radio for 40 MINUTES and did not decode him at all. Finally, the 6-M Propagation Gods smiled on me and I was able to manage a QSO with him for my 468th FFMA Grid. When you get down to just a few Grids and they are ALL Very Rare, you do what you can to work the New Ones.
The new online Gridzilla site also has maps, including a User Map like below, that show your FFMA standing and the Grids you need, have worked, and have confirmed. Green is confirmed, Yellow is worked, and Orange are Grids you need. Of those FFMA "Chasers" who are active on Gridzilla, I rank 94th in the pursuit of that Award.
I was beginning to doubt a month ago that I would ever get any of the 25 Grids I needed, let alone all of them. But, I am STOKED now and doing all I can to chase these elusive puppies!
73, Clark, W8TN
Larry Fravel
Jun 29, 2026, 2:08:25 PM (3 days ago) Jun 29
to w8...@ntelos.net, wv...@googlegroups.com
Clark -
I have to admire your stick to it ness and all you are doing to track and work the grids. Hang in there. With all the tools you will hopefully get the award. I'm pulling for you.
Larry K8YYY
–Elvis Presley
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