Monthly Image: Bootleg Bell Ringers

MHVLUG meetings end around 8 pm and, depending on this-and-that, the bell atop Old Main on the Vassar College campus will be tolling the hour as we emerge. Here’s a scene-setting photo from Wikimedia, taken from about where I parked the car:

Although the bell didn’t have its usual steady rhythm after the most recent meeting, I didn’t expect this:

The tree grows in the near foreground, not over Old Main.

Two of them realized the risk of permanent hearing damage, but do you see the real hazard?

Take a closer look:

No, it’s not the guy leaning against the historic-but-flimsy railing. That folded-dipole antenna over on the right side most likely connects to Vassar’s 45 W UHF EMS repeater; at that range, RF can burn deeply.

Obviously, the student body needs more amateur radio operators…

Taken with the Canon SX230HS braced on the side of the Forester and zoomed all the way.