Mobiles—this one's for you! For those new to the idea, every year at our Eyeball gatherings, we hold an event called the "Mobile Antenna Shootout." The purpose is to give each entrant a relative measure of the effectiveness of his or her mobile installation. An effective mobile setup requires more than just slapping an antenna on your bumper and connecting it to a radio. So who are the big guns on our nets? Better still, who is the "Top Gun?" We all have our opinions, but the Shootout will measure each mobile's signal strength and when the smoke clears, one will stand at the top of the heap and wear the "Top Gun" hat.
Our 2023 overall winner was Bob Hall, KI7PM. Big Top Gun congratulations to Bob!
Our thanks and gratitude to Tom Bates, AA1NZ, Shootout Master Extraordinaire.Tom is the creator of this event that so many have enjoyed, and he was the driving force behind it for Eyeballs 2002 - 2009. Lon Martin, K0WJ,who assisted Tom in prior shootouts, took over as Shootout Master for Eyeballs held in 2010-2015. The Board of Directors recognized the significant accomplishments of these two pioneers, Tom and Lon, giving them permanent VIP status in the 3905 Century Club as Shootout Masters Emeritus in 2019.
Lon's departureafter the 2015 Eyeball left a gap that required someone to step up. Bill Dobson, N3WD, Marty Blaise, AG5T, and Roger Callewaert, W9ROG, have been involved in organizing or running the shootout in 2016-2018. We are grateful for their contribution of time and effort to keep the tradition alive.
Ben Goldfarb, AE4NT, and Dwight Greenberg, WF4H, took over the Shootout in 2019, but due to logistical issues concerning the venue, we were unable to run the Shootout at that year's Eyeball. In 2020, the Eyeball was cancelled due to COVID-19. The duo finally ran its first successful Shooutout in 2021. Alas, due to illness, the Shootout was cancelled in 2022, but in 2023, at the Triangle, Virginia Eyeball, all went well. Ben and Dwight hope to run this event again next year.
Each mobile operator drives his or her vehicle to the designated test range where, after the operator is satisfied that the antenna is properly tuned, officials will insert a calibrated in-line wattmeter between the transmitter and the antenna to ensure that all contestants are outputting the prescribed power level. Each contestant’s signal strength is recorded at the measurement site, located in the far field, several wavelengths away, as space allows. When all participants’ signals have been measured, the results will be calculated, with the winners announced and prizes given out at our Annual Eyeball Awards presentation ceremony on Saturday evening
At Eyeballs 2011 thru 2015, Lon Martin, K0WJ, conducted Mobile Antenna Clinics aimed at helping members improve the efficiency of their mobile antenna installations. His presentation is available in both PDF and PowerPoint formats. For those wanting full-page slides, look at Mobile Installation Clinic Slides (PDF file, size 4.9MB). This same material is available with half-page slides plus added notes at Mobile Installation Clinic Notes (PDF File, size 2.5MB).
Potential Shootout entrants may also wish to look over the Mobile Operators' website. Alan Applegate, K0BG, is renowned for his insight and knowledge of mobile installations. If you follow the suggestions made by K0WJ and K0BG you'll have a much better chance of competing.
See the Eyeball section of the web site for current schedule, rules, and entry forms.
