What amateur radio operating strategy combines a little bit of being mobile, a little bit of fixed and - if you so choose - a little bit of maritime? It’s spelled R a D A R, which is the acronym for Rapid Deployment Amateur Radio. Get ready, RaDAR Rally day is just weeks away.

Eddie Leighton, ZS6BNE pioneered the operating concept more than a decade ago in South Africa with an event known as the RaDAR Challenge which was embraced worldwide by portable operators. This year the RaDAR Rally, which takes place on April 5th, keeps the spirit and the strategy of the original challenge. The four-hour rally is particularly appealing to hams who are accustomed to working portable outdoors and this is an activity that can be combined with Summits On The Air and Parks On The Air. Operators spend four hours setting up a station as quickly as possible, making five contacts, then dismantling the station and moving to another location to do the same thing again. According to the rules, the required distances vary depending on whether the radio operator is walking, cycling, driving or even canoeing. All bands and modes are acceptable but use of terrestrial repeaters is not.

More Information - http://www.radarrally.info