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E-skip today

Discussion pertaining to Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Muskegon, Battle Creek, Big Rapids, and Michiana
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RockerTim
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E-skip today

Post by RockerTim » Sat Jul 24, 2021 8:19 pm

I was out in my garage working on my car this afternoon between 3 and 5pm here in the city limits of Fremont, MI. I have a 35 year old boom box on the shelf to listen to the radio. I was listening to WGRD, but it wasn't coming in so great, so I tried tuning it in a little better - no dice. I rolled slightly up the dial and came across a station ID announcement 98.1 - Austin's Original Country. I am used to getting in some Wisconsin stations, but I wasn't familiar with any Austin in WI. I rolled a little more up the dial and picked up a Weezer song, which seemed odd in the mid 99's. It was coming in well enough to listen to, so I left it there. They were playing some good songs. Eventually I caught a station ID - 99.5 KISS Rocks from San Antonio, TX! I listened for over an hour before I was done working. Seems like a good station, wish it were in our area....
I don't know lots about radio waves and transmission, but a quick Google search about FM radio skips led me to "E-skip". Given the storms going on south of Fremont at that time, is that what allowed this skip to happen? Having run CB radio in my truck back in the 90's, I am familiar with the skips we would get on the CB.
Googling 98.1 Austin's Original Country brought me to Austin, TX.
Did anyone else catch this today? It's easy to understand being along the lakeshore and getting WI stations, but something from TX is just amazing to me and I suppose is a pretty neat example of science/nature at work.



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MWmetalhead
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Re: E-skip today

Post by MWmetalhead » Sun Jul 25, 2021 7:52 am

I've caught Texas stations on two prior occasions in West Michigan in the late 90s and early 00s.

Those are outstanding catches, and I'm a bit familiar with both stations you heard. Both are highly successful and have been around for decades under their current formats. KISS and KVET are held in high regard by industry professionals.

The morning show on KISS is among the best found on any station in the country, in my opinion.



Mega Hertz
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Re: E-skip today

Post by Mega Hertz » Sun Jul 25, 2021 8:28 am

https://youtu.be/_1rwPLb-tOU

I've posted this video in other threads, but I think it calls for it here.

In July of 2010, I was getting ready to jump in the shower when 89x started playing classical music. I went in my room to find 88.7 getting KUHF from Houston, Texas. At the time, I was living in Sterling Heights, MI, not too terribly far from the 100,000 watt stick for 88.7. The more amazing thing is that I was getting the HD signal for KUHF.

This is a great video either way as 88.7 is no longer alternative rock. It is now a cunt-tree station.


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RockerTim
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Re: E-skip today

Post by RockerTim » Sun Jul 25, 2021 10:38 am

I should have dug out an old cassette to throw in the boom box and record the broadcast!



Mega Hertz
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Re: E-skip today

Post by Mega Hertz » Sun Jul 25, 2021 10:53 am

I'm getting a lot from the west in Brighton this morning. Thunder 107.3 and WRKR at 107.7 are coming in like locals on my 1979 Kenwood tuner. Even drowning out 107.1 Ann Arbor and 107.5 Detroit (that station sucks anyway so no loss). I would still like to find out what country station was beating 106.7 WLLZ out of Detroit and who 98.7 was fighting with this morning!


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Robert Faygo
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Re: E-skip today

Post by Robert Faygo » Sun Jul 25, 2021 11:00 am

The 106.7 might have been WFGA

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WFGA


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weathernut
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Re: E-skip today

Post by weathernut » Sun Jul 25, 2021 11:08 am

I had similar experience back in 2015 when I lived in Texas. I lived in Midland/Odessa and I was on my way to San Antonio. Between Sonora and Junction on I-10, where you can only pick up two stations on FM, I started “flipping the dial”. I came across 101.9 out of Detroit, and 97.3 out of Rhinelander. Called up the Wisconsin station and he actually put me on air, he was impressed too.



Mega Hertz
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Re: E-skip today

Post by Mega Hertz » Sun Jul 25, 2021 11:27 am

Robert Faygo wrote:
Sun Jul 25, 2021 11:00 am
The 106.7 might have been WFGA

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WFGA
Thank you. I had tuned to them when I briefly moved to Indiana in 2013. I will have to check that out (no RDS came up).


"Internet is no more like radio than intravenous feeding is like fine dining."
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MWmetalhead
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Re: E-skip today

Post by MWmetalhead » Sun Jul 25, 2021 4:29 pm

98.7 was likely battling WFGR out of Grand Rapids, a far better station than our crappy WDZH!!!



ChrisWL1980
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Re: E-skip today

Post by ChrisWL1980 » Sun Jul 25, 2021 5:29 pm

When I lived in Saline, I picked up 102.3 KSPK out of Walsenburg, CO, and Emailed them to confirm that's what I heard. They not only confirmed it but sent me a bumper sticker and water bottle. Both are sadly long gone.

I missed the E-skip event yesterday but tropo was going wild last night. Some highlights (Whitmore Lake):
88.1 WVPE Elkhart with BBC World Service
89.1 WBOI Fort Wayne IN with early Sunday morning gospel show, completely taking out WEMU
89.9 WRRO Edon OH (Redeemer Radio) over CBE
91.3 WCKZ Orland IN (Star 88.3) over WGTE
92.1 WCSR Hillsdale local strength
92.3 WFWI Fort Wayne (Big 92.3) cutting into WMXD
92.9 WNDV South Bend (U93) with DJ Sticky Boots mix show
93.3 WBTU Kendallville/Ft Wayne (US 93.3)
93.7 WRCL Frankenmuth at near local strength
94.3 WZOC Plymouth IN fighting with CKSY
95.1 WAJI Fort Wayne locked in HD (first time ever for me)
95.7 WRDI Nappanee IN and simulcast partner 106.3 WRDF Columbia City
100.1 WFRI Winamac IN //104.7 WFRN (NEW CATCH)
100.5 CBBL CBC Music London with perfect RDS
100.7 WBYT Elkhart flashing in HD, fighting with WITL
101.5 WNSN South Bend with '80s weekend
102.3 WGBJ Auburn/Ft Wayne (Alt 102.3) fighting with WGRT Port Huron
102.7 WAOR Ligonier IN (Froggy 102.7) with perfect RDS taking out WDKL, right next to local W4
103.5 WAWC Syracuse IN (Willie 103.5) interfering with WMUZ (NEW CATCH)
103.7 WHZR Royal Center (Logansport) IN with RDS RT displaying (NEW CATCH)
104.7 WFRN Elkhart, no sign of WIOT
105.5 WTHD Lagrange IN local strength
106.7 WFGA taking out WLLZ
107.3 WRSW Warsaw IN with Nina Blackwood's Absolutely '80s, counting down the top hits from this week in 1986



radioandtventhusiast
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Re: E-skip today

Post by radioandtventhusiast » Sun Jul 25, 2021 7:45 pm

weathernut wrote:
Sun Jul 25, 2021 11:08 am
I had similar experience back in 2015 when I lived in Texas. I lived in Midland/Odessa and I was on my way to San Antonio. Between Sonora and Junction on I-10, where you can only pick up two stations on FM, I started “flipping the dial”. I came across 101.9 out of Detroit, and 97.3 out of Rhinelander. Called up the Wisconsin station and he actually put me on air, he was impressed too.
Were you able to stay on or did the station eventually fade out?



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RockerTim
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Re: E-skip today

Post by RockerTim » Sun Jul 25, 2021 9:11 pm

I have always had a thing for scrolling through the dial to see if there is anything new out there. Goes back to being a young teen and getting that boom box. Didn't have the internet to find out about new radio stations or new music. Had to try and find it yourself. I will still roll through the dial just to see what is out there. I annoy my wife sometimes because if I find that song you just have not heard in ages, I will leave it on a station that is barely coming in, but that song isn't done yet....
I saw a really neat interview with Keith Urban and his love of radio, and how he would do the same thing.
I have XM in my truck, but I still check all the local FM stations first. Old habits never die.



Mega Hertz
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Re: E-skip today

Post by Mega Hertz » Sun Jul 25, 2021 9:33 pm

Naw, man. It's cool. All us radio dorks do that. You have to admit, it's cool getting an FM station from across the country when they usually go 30-75 miles or so.

I have to believe WFGA is what I heard on 106.7 this morning. Given that frequency's history and the bi-yearly format changes there, when I heard country my heart sank lol


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cckadlec
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Re: E-skip today

Post by cckadlec » Mon Jul 26, 2021 9:44 am

Generally got about 60 stations out of the Es event. And this is about the 15th Es event that has wandered through Michigan this season. Last Friday and Saturday were big Es openings for the UP. I was up there on both days and Friday afternoon hit pretty hard and then Saturday afternoon to southern New England for a few hours and then later on in the late evening until around 10:30pm with DC/DE/VA area moving south into the Carolinas before finally fading out. MUF approaching 200 on all of them, much like this week's opening with MUF topping out at 209+, pretty much the whole San Antonio market here to the top of the band. Es season only has another 2 weeks, so get it while you can and pay attention to the maps to know when the MUF rises enough.


[ Radio and weather geeks, beware! Coastal tropo studies, the 3-hr. Seoul AM Radio Listening Guide, 6-hr. 500 Top-of-Hour IDs, and Chinese FM at www.chriskadlec.comTuner: Grundig G8 • Location: Fremont, Mich. ]

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