Procom FCC App

Procom, a radio-rental company in Prince George's County, has an FCC application pending.  The app calls for a single VHF repeater on 152.2775.

This frequency may be used for inaugural activities, as the repeater will operate within a 10 kilometer (approximately 6.2 mile) radius from Hyattsville.

Windsor at Arbors FCC App

Windsor at Arbors, an apartment complex in Alexandria, has an application pending before the FCC.  The app calls for five UHF simplex frequencies.

451.3625

451.5625

451.5875

451.6875

456.4625

Biz Freqs for Inauguration

Blanchard Communications, a major radio rental provider in the DC area, has an application pending before the FCC for forty-eight (!) UHF simplex frequencies.  The application calls for 500 four-watt portables.

Looking over the two PDF attachments attached to the application, it appears Blanchard is requesting this many frequencies to use for multiple clients who will be coordinating different inaugural events.  Blanchard wants the frequencies available from January 5 to January 31.

Because these frequencies are simplex, one would have to be fairly close to the event to monitor them (as opposed to public safety comms, which are usually repeaterized).

EagleBank Bowl

Here are frequencies/talkgroups found during last Saturday's EagleBank Bowl at RFK Stadium:

151.6250 [179.9] Unknown
166.4625 [NAC 167] Unknown
461.3875 [         ] RFK Stadium Audio/Visual (MOTOTRBO digital)
461.3875 [ d152] CSC Event Staff (on-field ops)
461.5125 [ d152] CSC Event Staff (primary)
461.8125 [ d311] RFK Stadium Guest Services
464.3750 [110.9] RFK Stadium Operations
464.5000 [136.5] Audio/Visual
464.7500 [ d156] EagleBank Bowl Staff (radio rentals from Bearcom)
469.5500 [ d612] Audio/Visual?

DC Trunked System Talkgroups:
2096 DCFD Special Events 1
16656 MPD Special Operations Division
35536 33872 DC EMA (talkgroups patched)

It would be interesting to know who was using 166.4625.  This freq is usually a common channel for several federal agencies.  Traffic was definitely related to the game.  461.3875 used as a MOTOTRBO channel was borrowed from the Washington Nationals--this simplex frequency sees heavy use at Nationals Park.  Only one freq (464.7500) was used by EagleBank Bowl staff.  I was somewhat surprised by this--figured they'd be using several channels.

Merry Christmas!

DC USA

Here's the latest list of frequencies for DC USA, a collection of big-box stores in Columbia Heights:

452.9250 [141.3] Security

461.1125 [  67.0] Bed, Bath & Beyond
467.9000 [ d743] Best Buy (primary)
467.9250 [ d506] Best Buy
467.7500 [ d115] Target (Channel 1)
467.7750 [ d072] Target (Channel 2)
467.9250 [ d155] Target (Channel 3)
467.9000 [ d205] Target (Channel 4)
467.8500 [ d306] Target

Bed, Bath & Beyond changed their frequency, and Best Buy is now using 467.9000 as their primary frequency.  Target's channel 3 was confirmed.  The frequency for security was found--unknown if it's a repeater or simplex.

Jones Lang LaSalle FCC App

Jones Lang LaSalle, which manages 1801 Pennsylvania Ave., has an application pending before the FCC.  The application calls for one UHF repeater and two simplex frequencies.

464.2375R

452.3375S

457.3375S

Annapolis Mall Frequencies Found

There's a lot to listen to at Westfield Annapolis (formerly Annapolis Mall).  A visit there last Saturday turned up many new frequencies.  Both the security and housekeeping channels have changed tones (although the frequencies remain the same).  Here's the latest list:

461.3500 [141.3] Housekeeping
463.3125 [  74.4] (brief conversation)
464.0125 [ d664] Security/Engineering/Concierge

151.7000 [  74.4] Pottery Barn Kids
151.8350 [  74.4] Banana Republic
154.5700 [ CSQ] Finish Line
154.5700 [  74.4] Gap
461.0375 [ d734] Bath & Body Works
461.0625 [  67.0] Apple
461.1125 [ d412] Sephora
461.5875 [  85.4] JC Penney (Loss Prevention)
461.9375 [ d732] JC Penney (Loss Prevention)
463.8375 [146.2] Nordstrom (Loss Prevention)
464.4875 [ d632] Williams-Sonoma
464.4875 [  67.0] Tilly's
464.5000 [ d612] Macy's Loss Prevention (obsolete?)
464.5000 [  67.0] Sony Style
464.5000 [  77.0] frequency counter hit near Fossil (grey checkered scarf--400155078259)
464.5000 [136.5] Express
464.5500 [  67.0] frequency counter hit outside American Eagle
464.5500 [  91.5] Garage
464.7500 [ d073] Loss Prevention--Macy's?
467.2250 [ d365] JC Penney Operations
467.7625 [  67.0] Pottery Barn
467.8125 [  67.0] New York & Company
467.8125 [  77.0] Bow Tie Cinemas
467.8500 [  67.0] Borders
467.8500 [  67.0] Unknown restaurant
467.8500 [118.8] Sears Loss Prevention
467.8500 [173.8] Charlotte Russe
467.8750 [ d712] Children's Place
467.8750 [ d723] Guess
467.8750 [  74.4] Champs
467.9000 [118.8] Sears Loss Prevention
467.9250 [ d743] Victoria's Secret
467.9250 [141.3] Macy's Operations?
468.8375 [ d155] H&M
469.4875 [ d546] Abercrombie & Fitch
469.5125 [ d565] Ruehl

EagleBank Bowl Tomorrow

The first-ever EagleBank Bowl is tomorrow at 11 AM at RFK Stadium.  Since this is the first bowl game of 2008, and features a local team (Navy), I'd expect it to be a fairly significant event.  (It will also be nationally televised by ESPN.)  Here are some frequencies/talkgroups that may be active (search 461-470 MHz for many others):

451.2750 [ d464] (Active 5/10/08 for women's national soccer team game)
451.3750 [ d464] (Active 5/10/08 for women's national soccer team game)
461.1375 [ d152] Contemporary Services Corporation (CSC) (private security)

461.3875 [ d152] Contemporary Services Corporation (CSC) (private security) On-field operations (Ch. 2)
461.4375 [ d152] Contemporary Services Corporation (CSC) (private security) (Ch. 4?)
461.5125 [ d152] Contemporary Services Corporation (CSC) (private security) (Primary Channel)

461.8125 [ d311] Guest Services

463.5250 [ d754] Aramark

463.5375 [ d311] Parking (still active 5/08)

464.3750 [110.9] Cleaning?/HVAC/Engineering

ESPN has previously used the typical "rental" frequencies (464.5000/464.5500/464.6000/464.6250/464.6500/464.7000/464.7250/464.7500/469.5000/469.5500).  The network is usually only heard before the start of events.

Look for MPD to use talkgroups 21232 or 16656, and DCFD to use 2096/2112/2128 or possibly one of their simplex frequencies (867.4875 [156.7] and 867.7625 [156.7]).

JBG Commerical Management FCC App

JBG Commerical Management has an application pending before the FCC.  It's apparently for managing a building at 4445 Willard Ave. in Chevy Chase.  They have requested one UHF repeater and five simplex frequencies.

461.8625R

451.2375S

451.3375S

451.3875S

451.6125S

452.4875S

Updates to the Sports Licenses Pages

I've been making lots of updates to the sports licenses pages on my website.  These pages list the FCC licenses for all the NFL, MLB, NBA, and NHL teams.

NFL

MLB

NBA

NHL

The NFL and NBA pages are essentially complete.  The MLB page needs many links added to it, but I'll do this after finishing the NHL page, since hockey is in season now.

Holiday Parades in Fred/Spotsy

This past Saturday, both Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania had their holiday parades.  Here's what I monitored for each one:

Jaycees Christmas Parade
155.9250 [131.8] Fredericksburg Police Tac (traffic control/operations)

Spotsylvania Holiday Parade

Spotsylvania Trunked System Talkgroups:

02-023 Sheriff Tac 2 (motorcycles in parade?)

02-041 Sheriff Patrol 2 (traffic control)

04-121 Parks & Recreation (event organizers)

Black Friday at Tysons Corner

I spent most of Black Friday at Tysons, doing lots of scanning.  Found a bunch of new frequencies in use, mostly from individual stores.  Here are the new/changed ones:

461.0625 [  79.7] Circuit City (store closing)

461.0625 [100.0] Unknown restaurant

462.6500 [ CSQ] Unknown department store?

464.5000 [ d503] La Sandia

464.5000 [100.0] Williams-Sonoma

464.5500 [  67.0] TGI Friday's
464.5500 [  91.5] Garage

466.1125 [ d606] Armani Exchange

466.2875 [ d155] H&M Staff
466.3125 [ d412] abercrombie?
467.1375 [173.8] Lord & Taylor Security

467.8125 [  67.0] New York & Company?

467.8500 [  74.4] Foot Locker?

467.9250 [ d743] Victoria's Secret (probably also used by Pink)

For the full list, see the Fairfax County page.  (Scroll down to the "Business" section, and then to "Tysons Corner Center.")

Black Friday/Fairfax County Police

A quick note about two talkgroups that the Fairfax County Police were using on Black Friday:

16976 (Franconia Ops 1): Used at Springfield Mall

17264 (McLean Ops 1): Used at Tysons Corner Center 

I'll have more (within a day or two) on what I found from my nine-and-a-half-hour trip to Tysons on Friday...

New Capitol Hill Monitor Newsletter

The Capitol Hill Monitors have released their latest newsletter, the first in nineteen (!) months.  There are articles about Prince George's County's new 700 MHz radio system, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Montgomery County Ride-On buses, and Summit Point Motorsports Park in Jefferson County, West Virginia.

Black Friday Scanning

See Tips on Scanning Malls for general information.  If you're looking for frequencies used by the individual stores at the malls (which are too numerous to list here), see the county pages at my website.  Here are the state pages that will get you to the county pages:

Virginia

Maryland

DC

Mall Frequencies for Black Friday (DC)

Here's a list of mall frequencies for DC.

DC USA
455.3250 [110.9] frequency counter hit; Security?

Gallery Place
461.3250 [ d411] Security
462.3250 [ d411] Housekeeping

Georgetown Park
463.9500 [ d612] Security/Maintenance

Mazza Gallerie
464.1125 [ d606] Housekeeping
468.5625 [ d606] Security

National Press Building/Shops at National Place
463.2000 [136.5] Security
463.9000 [         ]

Old Post Office Pavilion
461.3125 [ d023] Security

Shops at Union Station
464.5250 [ d311] Security Alternate
464.5750 [ d346] Security
464.7750 [ d365] Engineering
464.8250 [ d311] Housekeeping
464.8750 [ d311] Maintenance
464.9250 [ d311] (Channel 6) (Security Alternate)

Mall Frequencies for Black Friday (Maryland)

Here's a list of mall frequencies for Maryland.

Montgomery

Chevy Chase Pavilion
461.1500 [100.0] Housekeeping
461.2500 [100.0] Unknown
464.2750 [ d606] Security

City Place
464.0250 [103.5] Security/Housekeeping

Lake Forest Mall
464.7000 [ d423] Security
467.7625 [ d664] Housekeeping (obsolete?)

Westfield Shoppingtown Montgomery
463.7625 [203.5] Security
464.6750 [203.5] Customer Service/Housekeeping

Westfield Shoppingtown Wheaton
461.7250 [ d031] Housekeeping
464.6250 [ d023] Security

White Flint Mall
462.6625 [  67.0] Housekeeping
464.8250 [151.4] Security/Housekeeping

Prince George's

Boulevard at Capital Centre
461.9750 [ CSQ] Security (Metropolitan Protective Service) (S)

Bowie Town Center
152.9225 [ d074] Security

Mall at Prince George's
464.3750 [ d032] Security
469.5750 [ d032] Housekeeping (Channel 2)

Anne Arundel

Arundel Mills Mall
451.3625 [ d156] Security
451.7375 [ d466] Management?
452.1375 [ d516] Housekeeping

Marley Station Mall
464.7750 [ d132] Housekeeping
464.8750 [ d315] Security

Westfield Shoppingtown Annapolis
461.3500 [ d043] Housekeeping
464.0125 [ d043] Security

Howard

The Mall in Columbia
461.1125 [162.2] Security
464.8750 [162.2] Housekeeping

Charles

St. Charles Towne Center
936.6625 [ d023] Security
937.9125 [ d023] Maintenance/Housekeeping

Mall Frequencies for Black Friday (Virginia)

Here's a list of mall frequencies for Northern Virginia.

Arlington

Ballston Common Mall
461.8875 [203.5] Security
464.9250 [203.5] Administration/Maintenance

Fashion Centre at Pentagon City
464.4375 [ d074] Security
464.4625 [ d413] Housekeeping

Pentagon Center
464.9250 [ d612] Security

Alexandria
Landmark Mall
463.2000 [100.0] Housekeeping
464.9250 [100.0] Security

Fairfax

Fair Oaks Mall

464.1250 [186.2] Security

464.4750 [186.2] Housekeeping

Galleria at Tysons II
464.6250 [ d132] Housekeeping
464.8250 [  94.8] Security

Springfield Mall
464.3250 [  77.0] Security/Housekeeping

Tysons Corner Center
461.9875 [ d054] Security
464.3750 [ d047] Housekeeping (Channel 2)

Prince William

Manassas Mall
461.0125 [100.0] Security

Potomac Mills
461.3000 [ d043] Housekeeping
463.6000 [ d723] Security

Loudoun

Dulles Town Center
451.3000 [ d411] Housekeeping
451.5250 [ d411] Security/Engineering

Leesburg Corner Premium Outlets
462.4000 [110.9] Security

Spotsylvania

Spotsylvania Towne Centre
464.8250 [  71.9] Security
469.5500 [  71.9] Maintenance

Potomac Mills Recent Finds

A visit to Potomac Mills last Saturday netted lots of new finds.  Here's the most recent list:

461.3000 [ d043] Housekeeping
463.6000 [ d723] Security

151.8350 [  74.4] Banana Republic
151.9550 [  74.4] Old Navy
154.5150 [  74.4] Gap
461.0625 [ d632] Bath & Body Works
461.1125 [  67.0] AMC Theaters?
461.1875 [ d712] Factory Brand Shoes
461.4250 [ d072] Steve & Barry's
461.4625 [ d265] IKEA Operations
462.5625 [  67.0] IKEA Housekeeping
464.5000 [  67.0] Nordstrom Rack? ("men's department"; "women's department"; shoe department")
464.5500 [  67.0] Ann Taylor? ("wardrobe room")
464.6250 [146.2] Nordstrom Rack Loss Prevention 
466.0250 [ d371] Nike
466.1875 [ d506] Hollister
467.7625 [  67.0] American Eagle
467.8125 [  67.0] Costco
467.8500 [ d606] Polo Ralph Lauren? ("women's section")
467.8500 [ d712] Children's Place
467.8500 [  67.0] Espirit
467.8500 [173.8] Charlotte Russe
467.8750 [ d712] Disney
467.8750 [ d723] Guess
467.8750 [  67.0] AMC Theater--Ushers/Primary Operations
467.9000 [  67.0] Tommy Hilfiger
467.9000 [141.3] Starbucks
467.9250 [  67.0] AMC Theater--Projector Operators
468.8375 [ d155] H&M
Abercrombie & Fitch, Aeropostale, Burlington Coat Factory, Burlington Shoes, and Timberland use UHF portables.

Aloft Dulles North Hotel FCC App

The Aloft Dulles North Hotel, which is scheduled to open January 15, has an application pending before the FCC.  The hotel will use four UHF simplex frequencies.

462.3125

467.3125

462.3625

467.3625 

Help the Homeless Walkathon Freqs Found

Here's what was in use at the Help the Homeless Walkathon on Saturday:

464.6500 [ d565] Primary
464.7500 [ d546]
Metropolitan Police used talkgroup 21232.
DC Fire used talkgroup 2096.
Park Police used 166.7250 [127.3].

Rocket Bar

The Rocket Bar is an underground bar located across from the Verizon Center.  The bouncers/security use 462.7875 [ d411].

G20 Summit Finds

Here's what I found from the G20 Summit last Saturday:

DC Trunked System Talkgroups:
2096 DCFD Special Events 1
16656 MPD Special Operations Division
35536/33872 DC Emergency Management Agency (talkgroups patched)
36880 (previously used for hospital roll call)
40080 "send up 10 more"; "Paul Bagel in building"; "copy of social security card" (probably not related to event)

158.8500 [NAC 001] MPD Motorcade Detail (Encrypted)
167.0750 [127.3] Park Police (Ch. 3) (monitoring protesters)
407.8625 [NAC 0F0] State Department
408.6000 [NAC 0F0] State Department
409.7125 [NAC 0F0] State Department
464.5750 [ d565] Marriott Wardman Park Security
Capitol Police channels active (coordinating motorcades).  Andrews AFB talkgroup 11 active (coordinating dignitary transport/departure).  Metro Transit Tac 8 active (station reopening).

Help the Homeless Walkathon Saturday Morning

The Help the Homeless Walkathon is tomorrow morning on the National Mall.  Here's what I have from last year:

464.5500 [ d365] Primary Operations?
464.6000 [ d331]
464.7000 [ d311]
464.7000 [167.9] Media at finish line (not a Walkathon channel)
469.5500 [ d306] (Channel 2)
469.7000 [ d315]
Park Police used 166.7250 [127.3].
Metropolitan Police used talkgroup 16656.
DC Fire used talkgroup 2112.

Update to the November 13 Post

Here's an update to the November 13 post about miscellaneous finds:

• Talkgroup 37232 on the DC trunked system confirmed as UDC police/security.
• J. Crew at Fashion Center at Pentagon City confirmed using 467.9250 [88.5].  Aeropostale also using radios; unknown if VHF or UHF.

77 K St. NE FCC App

Brookfield Properties, which owns the office/condo building at 77 K St. NE, has an FCC application pending for UHF frequencies. These frequencies will be MOTOTRBO digital.

463.4250R

462.3000S

463.9875S

464.8875S

467.3000S

469.8875S

Miscellaneous Finds--Arlington/DC

Here are a few miscellaneous finds for Arlington and DC:

• Talkgroup 1904 on the Airports trunked system is Police Tac 4, and was heard being used by Reagan National officers.  Unknown if Reagan National and Dulles share the Tac channels.
• 460.8750 [131.8] may be used by American Eagle at Reagan National.
• J. Crew at Pentagon City may be using 467.9250 (no tone identified).
• Watson Place, a coop in NW Washington, appears to be using 462.5000 [ d606].
• River Park Mutual Homes, an apartment complex in SW Washington, is using 151.9250 [ d632].
• George Washington University may now be using 464.6500 [  91.5] for parking garages.
• Talkgroup 37232 on the DC trunked system may be a University of the District of Columbia security alternate channel.  More monitoring required.

National Harbor/Kooza Finds

Here are a few finds from monitoring yesterday at National Harbor.  (The Kooza frequencies are probably used under license WQEF456.)

Kooza

451.8000 [ d032] Security
464.5500 [ d432] 
469.5000 [ d116] 
467.9125 [ d054] (May not be Cirque du Soleil personnel, but in use for show)

National Harbor

464.5500 [  67.0] Hampton Inn & Suites

Events This Weekend

Here are a couple of notable events this weekend:

Kooza, a Cirque du Soleil show, is performing at National Harbor for several weeks. There are two performances each day on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Check for frequencies used by Cirque personnel in the 451 and 460 business bands. National Harbor uses 461.7875 and 462.0875, but the frequencies are MOTOTRBO digital, and unable to be monitored with current scanners. Here are a few frequencies used by the hotels at National Harbor:

451.3125 [ d516] Residence Inn by Marriott (S)
464.3250 [254.1] Westin - Engineering (S)
464.8250 [254.1] Westin - Housekeeping (S)
469.2625 [254.1] Westin - Service Express (S)

And here are the frequencies/talkgroups for Gaylord National Resort's LTR trunked system:

463.2875 (2), 463.5625 (6), 463.6875 (10), 464.6625 (14), 464.7875 (18)

0-10-001	Security
0-10-005	Engineering
0-10-010	Banquets--Setup
0-10-012	Electric Shop?
0-10-015	Banquets
0-10-020	Housekeeping
0-10-021	Housekeeping?
0-10-025	Housekeeping--Public Areas
0-10-030	Information Technology
0-10-035	Audio/Visual?
0-10-040	Marketing?/VIP Services?
0-10-055	Loading Dock/Logistics

Basketball and hockey have returned to Verizon Center. The Wizards play Friday, and the Capitals play Saturday. The arena's employees use MOTOTRBO, but there are a few other things to monitor. Try 461.5125 [d152] for CSC Event Staff, and 462.0125 [d043] and 463.5375 [d125] for suites.

Marine Corps Marathon Wrap-Up

Here's what I found at the Marine Corps Marathon on October 26:

Marine Corps Talkgroups (Site 403):
32380 Buses to Ft. Myer
63034 doing countdown; "need med team"
63036 Organizers?
63038 Course
63039 Water
63040 Race Tail Ops?
63041 Logistics (collecting tables, set-up, take-down, etc.)
63043 Unknown
63044 "supplies secure"; "bus"; Medical??
63049 Encrypted
63054 Security?
63056 Medical

Arlington Police used numerous talkgroups on their Project 25 trunked system. 1C (traffic posts), 1D (traffic posts, "Division 2"), 1F, 1G, 1H, 1I ("Division 3", Rosslyn), 1J, and 1K were all in use. Talkgroup 20 (unknown channel designation) had SWAT units on it. Talkgroup 21 (unknown channel designation) had K9 units on it.

Arlington Fire used talkgroups A1F (primary), A1G, and A1D (used later in race as medical calls increased).

Street cleaners in Arlington used talkgroup 82.

MPD used talkgroup 21232 (Citywide 2) for traffic control. DCFD used talkgroups A11 (Special Events 1) and A12 (Special Events 2) for medical calls.

Metro Transit Police used Tac 8 for crowd control. Buses were heard on talkgroup 1904.

Virginia State Police used 154.6650 [ CSQ] for traffic control. Park Police used 166.7250 [127.3] for traffic control. Helicopters coordinated air-to-air ops on 123.0250. Crystal City security used 451.7750 [ d205]. Amateur radio operators used 145.1900 [151.4] (R) and 449.9750 [107.2] (R). Unknown users were on 163.1000 [NAC 167] talking about the race.

Election Day Talkgroup

Prince William PD is using Special Events 1 (talkgroup 16432) for election day activities.

Obama Rally Last Night in Manassas

Senator Obama had a big rally last night at the Prince William County Fairgrounds. Some said it may have been the largest gathering of people Prince William has ever seen. Here are some talkgroups monitored:

16144 PWPD West 2 (Traffic Control)
16432 PWPD Special Events 1 (minimal use)
16464 PWPD Special Events 2 (minimal use)
16496 PWPD Special Events 3 (Traffic Control/Security)
32304 PWFD 5J (not as much use as 32336)
32336 PWFD 5K (Medical Calls)
48560 Unknown use for rally--talkgroup falls near known Sheriff talkgroups

Miscellaneous Frequency Finds

Here are a few random frequencies found/confirmed the past few days:

• 464.6250 [ d412] Residence Inn Pentagon City (R).  It seems possible that 469.5000 [ d412] may also be used by this hotel.
  
• 464.8750 [100.0] Regal Cinemas Gallery Place (Ch. 2).  First Regal I've seen with two channels.
• 464.7500 [ d047] Montgomery College--Takoma Park Campus (R)
• 160.0500 [186.2] Alexandria Yellow Cab

Horse Show Wrap-Up

The Washington International Horse Show concluded yesterday, but here's what I found:

464.5000 [ d114] Scheduling/Show Order? (S)
464.6000 [ d116] Scheduling/Show Order? (S)
464.6000 [206.5] Interior Operations (R)
464.6500 [218.1] (very little use) (R)
469.5000 [ d115] (S)
469.6250 [ d503] Results/Scheduling (S)
Radio rentals from BearCom.

151.8350 [ 94.8] Unknown specific competitor
151.9850 [141.3] Unknown specific competitor
464.5000 [ d627] Unknown specific competitor

Sarah Palin Campaign Rally Today in Fredericksburg

Sarah Palin will be campaigning today in Fredericksburg at noon. So far, the only relevant radio traffic I've monitored is Fredericksburg Police on their Tac channel (155.9250 [131.8]). They're coordinating street closures and traffic. Fredericksburg Fire may be using their Channel 2 (158.8350 [203.5]). I'll post updates to this entry as things develop...

EDIT: Fredericksburg Fire confirmed using Channel 2 (158.8350 [203.5]).

Marine Corps Marathon

The Marine Corps Marathon, which takes place this Sunday in Arlington and DC, is one of the Washington area's largest events of the year. Here are ideas for things to monitor:

• Marine Corps Trunked System This trunked system is used by the race organizers. Site 403 has seen use for the past several years. Talkgroups are in the 63xxx range. For the 2006 and 2007 race, almost all of the transmissions have been encrypted.
• Marine Corps Trunked System (Temporary/Mobile?) This trunked system was first noted in use at the Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon in Fredericksburg earlier this year. All transmissions were encrypted. It's unknown if this system will be used for the Marathon.
  
• Arlington County Project 25 Trunked System Police will probably use numerous talkgroups. Fire will probably use special events talkgroups (43, 44).
  
• Arlington County Motorola Trunked System The Virginia Hospital Center talkgroup will likely be active with patient reports. Several Police/Fire talkgroups are simulcast from the Project 25 system, but they will likely not see use for the race.
  
• Washington, DC Trunked System Metropolitan Police may use talkgroups 16656, 18288, and/or 21232 for traffic control. DC Fire will probably use their special event talkgroups (2096, 2112, 2128).
  
• Park Police (probably Channel 1--166.7250 [127.3])
• Capitol Police (probably Channel 3--170.1750 [156.7])
• Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Trunked System Metro Transit Police may use their Tac channels for crowd control at some of the busier Metro stations.
• Crystal City Security (451.7750 [ d205])

Golden Triangle BID New Frequency

The Golden Triangle Business Improvement District, which provides security and maintenance for Washington's central business district, has an FCC application for an additional repeater on 461.4375. (The current repeater operates on 463.4750.)

Washington Int'l Horse Show

The Washington International Horse Show is taking place at the Verizon Center through Sunday. For the past several years, the organizers have used several UHF business-band repeaters and simplex frequencies. BearCom Rentals has provided the radios. Here's what was used last year:

464.5000 [ d346]
464.6000 [206.5] (R)
464.6250 [210.7] Inside Operations (R)
464.6500 [218.1] Exterior Security (R)
469.5000 [ d351] Scoring?
469.6000 [ d343]

Verizon Center staff use MOTOTRBO radios, which cannot be monitored with any current scanner.

Mesa Airlines FCC App

Mesa Airlines (probably known as United Express at Dulles Airport) has an application before the FCC for a UHF repeater. The frequency is 452.2625, and there will be 25 mobile units.

Georgetown University FCC App

Georgetown University has an application pending before the FCC. The UHF repeater on 463.5625 will be used for "maintenance crews."

National Harbor Update

I've been to National Harbor a couple more times recently. Here's the latest scanner info I have:

451.3125 [ d516] Residence Inn by Marriott (S)
464.3250 [254.1] Westin - Engineering (S)
464.8250 [254.1] Westin - Housekeeping (S)
469.2625 [254.1] Westin - Service Express (S)

All four of the currently-open hotels are using radios. The Hampton Inn might be using Family Radio Service radios, or itinerant business band frequencies. The Westin frequencies are unlicensed. Here are the IDs for the Gaylord National Hotel:

LTR

463.2875 (2), 463.5625 (6), 463.6875 (10), 464.6625 (14), 464.7875 (18)

0-10-001	Security
0-10-005	Engineering
0-10-010	Banquets--Setup
0-10-012	Electric Shop?
0-10-015	Banquets
0-10-020	Housekeeping
0-10-021	Housekeeping?
0-10-025	Housekeeping--Public Areas
0-10-030	Information Technology
0-10-035	Audio/Visual?
0-10-040	Marketing?/VIP Services?
0-10-055	Loading Dock/Logistics

The radios used for National Harbor itself are MOTOTRBO, which cannot be monitored with a scanner. 461.7875 is a repeater, and 462.0875 is simplex. These radios are used by security, housekeeping, parking, and the marina/harbor people.

Greenspring Village FCC App

Greenspring Village, a retirement community in Springfield, has an application before the FCC. The app calls for three UHF repeaters, and four UHF simplex frequencies.

451.4500 R
451.7750 R
452.0750 R

451.9750 S
452.2750 S
452.8000 S
452.8500 S

Hilton Baltimore FCC App

(I know this hotel is up the road in Baltimore, but it just opened, and it's Baltimore's largest hotel, so I thought I'd mention it here.)

The Hilton Baltimore has an application before the FCC for a UHF repeater. The app states the frequency (464.4375) will be used for security and operations. This hotel seems somewhat large (757 rooms) to only use a single frequency. They may use other frequencies, possibly in simplex mode.

Falls Church City Schools FCC App

The Falls Church City Schools have an application before the FCC for a VHF repeater. The app says the frequency (152.2700) will be used for transportation, security, and maintenance.

International Place (Rosslyn, VA) FCC App

International Place, a mixed-use development in Rosslyn, has an application pending before the FCC. The app calls for five simplex frequencies:

451.3375
451.7375
452.0625
452.2875
452.5125

Plane Spotters Group Website

I happened upon an interesting website tonight that's useful for airport scanning. It's called the Washington Baltimore Spotters Group. (Plane spotters are people who photograph airplanes, and sometimes collect aircraft registration numbers.) The website has PDF files with tips on locations for plane spotting at Reagan National, Dulles, and BWI. Good information if one likes to scan and watch planes at the same time.

Another Weekend Trip--Philadelphia

I took another overnight trip last weekend, this time to Philadelphia. Snagged quite a few new frequencies for the Philly page. (I still have to post my finds from the Phillies game, but almost all the other stuff I found is up.)

Tennis Tournament in DC

The annual Legg Mason Tennis Tournament starts tomorrow and continues through August 17. It's at the Fitzgerald Tennis Center in Rock Creek Park. Here are some frequencies found in previous years (note that many of the frequencies remain the same every year):

Legg Mason Tennis Classic 2007
461.0500 [ d466] TV?
461.8125 [114.8]
463.5750 [ 88.5] CES Security (private security)
464.3250 [ d532] Food/Catering
464.5000 [114.8]
464.6875 [ d132] Volunteers
464.7875 [ 67.0] Scoring
469.1875 [ d023] Tournament Staff
469.2875 [ d032] General Operations
469.5875 [192.8] Security
469.8875 [ d606]

Legg Mason Tennis Classic 2006
166.8500 [127.3] US Park Police (Channel 4)
453.9125 [ d132] Parking
460.5375 [ d245] Parking
461.0250 [ d134] "doing National Anthem?"
461.0750 [ d116] "court clock"; "minutes off"
463.5750 [ 88.5] CES Security (private security)
464.3250 [ d532] Catering
464.5125 [ d223] "keep track of how long each player has been on court?"
464.5625 [ d116] "working on report"
464.5750 [ d532] Catering?
464.6875 [ d132] Volunteers
464.7875 [ 67.0] Scoring
464.8125 [ d132] Cleaning
469.1125 [ d712] "courts crew"; "chair umpire"
469.1875 [ d023]
469.2875 [ d032] General Operations
469.5625 [ d754] (Channel 16)
469.5875 [192.8] Security/Park Police
469.7125 [ d516] "women's lounge"
469.8875 [ d606]
469.9125 [ d732] "standby for music"; "feed our audio" (Channel 15)

Legg Mason Tennis Classic 2005
453.9125 [ d132] Parking (Channel 12)
464.5625 [ d116] "score from her match"; "PDAs" (Channel 10)
464.6875 [ d132] Volunteers (Channel 4)
464.7875 [ 67.0] Scorekeepers (Channel 6)
469.1125 [ d712] "trainer on duty"; "standby for intro"
469.1875 [ d023] "print another credential"; "dress code for tomorrow"
469.2875 [ d032] Event Operations/Contractors (Channel 2)
469.5625 [ d754] (Channel 16?)
469.5875 [192.8] Security/First Aid (Channel 3)
469.8875 [ d606] Drinks?
469.9125 [ d732] Electrical?; score updates; tournament officials on court (Channel 15)

166.8500 [127.3] Park Police (Channel 4)
463.5750 [ 88.5] CES Security
464.3250 [ d532] Food/Catering
464.5000 [ d223] "cart"; "pallet"; cleaning; Bearcom rented radio
464.5500 [ d023] "extra letters"

Channels printed on rented Valleywide Communications radio:
CH 1 Legg Mason Tennis Classic Staff
CH 2 Event Operations/Contractors
CH 3 Security/First Aid/NPS/Police
CH 4 Volunteers
CH 5 Ball Kids
CH 6 IDS/Scorekeepers
CH 7 GSI
CH 8 Design Cuisine
CH 9 T.V.
CH10 ATP
CH11 Media
CH12 Parking
CH13 USTA
CH14-CH16 Open

Atlantic City Trip

Took a trip to Atlantic City this past Saturday. As far as scanning, I focused mostly on the casinos, shopping, and amusement piers. Here's the page with all the new frequencies/talkgroups:

Atlantic County

I also picked up a few things in Camden and Burlington Counties in New Jersey:

Camden County
Burlington County

Residence Inn National Harbor FCC App

The Residence Inn by Marriott Hotel at National Harbor has an application with the FCC. (The hotel appears to be opening on Friday, August 29th.) Five UHF simplex frequencies will be used, with 25 units on each frequency. Here are the frequencies:

451.3125
451.3375
452.0375
452.1375
456.3125

Baltimore Visit

Spent the day Saturday in Baltimore. I was able to add/update a lot on my Baltimore web page. The entities that have been updated are listed in red at the top of the page.

Potomac Mills

I haven't posted much to the blog recently, so I thought I'd provide an update on a place I've been a couple of times recently: Potomac Mills. This mall really seems to have seen a surge in radio use by the stores. Here's the latest listing of frequencies I have:

461.3000 [ d043] Housekeeping
463.6000 [ d723] Security

151.8350 [ 74.4] Banana Republic
151.9550 [ 74.4] Old Navy
154.5150 [ 74.4] Gap
461.0625 [ d632] Bath & Body Works
461.4250 [ d072] Steve & Barry's
461.4625 [ d265] IKEA Operations
462.5625 [ 67.0] IKEA Housekeeping
464.6250 [146.2] Nordstrom Rack Loss Prevention
466.0250 [ d371] Nike
467.7625 [ 67.0] American Eagle
467.8125 [ 67.0] Costco
467.8500 [ d606] "women's section"; strong near Polo Ralph Lauren
467.8500 [ d712] Children's Place
467.8500 [173.8] Charlotte Russe
467.8750 [ d723] Guess
467.8750 [ 67.0] AMC Theater--Ushers/Primary Operations
467.9250 [ 67.0] AMC Theater--Projector Operators
468.8375 [ d155] H&M
Abercrombie & Fitch, Ann Taylor, Burlington Coat Factory, Burlington Shoes, Espirit, Factory Brand Shoes, Hollister, Polo Ralph Lauren, Timberland, and Tommy Hilfiger use UHF portables.

FCC App for Lerner (Property Management)

Lerner has an application with the FCC for property management for their building at 1800 M St. NW in DC. They will use a repeater on 464.7125 and mobiles on 452.1375 and 452.1625.

Golf Tournament Finds

I couldn't receive Montgomery County very well from my location on Friday, but here are a couple talkgroups from the County trunked system that were in use for the AT&T National:

1744 Special Events 1 (Fire/Rescue)
1776 Special Events 2 (unknown use)

The VHF frequencies for the Country Club were also active. I was not close enough to log any frequencies used by the tournament organizers.

Updates appreciated, if anyone has them.

AT&T National Golf Tournament

The AT&T National Golf Tournament at Congressional Country Club began today and continues through Sunday. Here's a list of frequencies for the Club (previously posted here):

152.4050 [ d115] Security (R)
151.8650 [ d115] Grounds (R)
151.5200 [ d115] Clubhouse/Food & Beverage (R)
151.5200 [ d311] Golf (R)
154.5150 [ d115] Athletics (S)
151.9550 [ d311] Spare 1 (S)
151.7750 [ d311] Spare 2 (S)
152.4050 [ d311] Management (R)

Montgomery County Police and Fire will provide their services. Look for them on talkgroups 1744, 1776, and 1808 (Special Events 1-3) of the county trunked system. They may also use 1616, 1648, and 1680 (Public Safety Coordination 1-3).

Finally, there will probably be a large number of rented radios used by tournament organizers. No specific frequencies are known, but a search of 451-453 and 461-470 MHz should yield good results.

Arlington and Calvert Schools Seek Frequencies

Arlington County Schools and Calvert County Schools both have pending applications before the FCC for radios for their schools.

In their app, Arlington proposes a single repeater, as well as six simplex frequencies. The emission designator indicates that the freqs will be used in both analog and digital modes. The digital mode will probably be Motorola's MOTOTRBO product.

Calvert's app proposes five simplex frequencies.

It appears both school systems will share the pool of frequencies proposed in their applications among most, if not all, the schools in their districts.

Caribbean Carnival/Parade

Here are some talkgroups from the DC trunked system that were active on Saturday for the Caribbean Carnival and Parade:

2112 DCFD Special Events 2
16656 MPD Special Operations Division
34448 Department of Health
35536 Emergency Management Agency 1 (analog simulcast on 59216)

Weekend Recap

Here's some updated information for the Folklife Festival:

461.0750 [ d152] "Program" Channel (R)
461.1250 [ d172] Audio/Visual? (R)
461.2500 [192.8] Brief transmission monitored about weather update
464.9250 [141.3] Administration? (R)

At the Nationals game on Saturday evening, DC Fire/EMS was using 867.4875 [156.7] (S) for operations inside the stadium. Previously, they had used their other simplex channel of 867.7625 [156.7]. It remains to be seen which one they'll settle on for use in the future.

Weekend Events

This weekend, the Smithsonian Folklife Festival continues on the Mall. This is one of Washington's largest events of the year, and many frequencies will be active. Last Saturday, I was able to snag a few frequencies already in use for set-up, etc.:

461.0750 [ d152] Set-up (R)
461.1250 [ d172] Possible frequency; unknown if used (R)
464.9250 [141.3] Set-up (R)

The Park Police will probably use 166.7250 [127.3] and/or 166.8500 [127.3].

The Nats continue their homestand against the Orioles on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Barbecue Battle Finds

Here's what I found on Saturday at the Barbecue Battle:

457.5125 [ d412]
459.4125 [ d743] Logistics?
460.6125 [ d223] Safeway Tent
461.21875 [ d371] Production (Channel 3)
462.3250 [141.3] Security/Medical
462.7125 [ 77.0] Stage Operations?
464.1625 [ d464]
465.8375 [167.9] Gate/Beverage Managers (Channel 2)
467.0125 [225.7]
468.0125 [ d664] Area Managers (Channel 10)

DC Trunked System Talkgroups:
2112 DC Fire Special Events 2
21232 MPD Citywide 2
34448 Department of Health
35536 Emergency Management Agency
35600 Traffic Management Center

Weekend Event

This weekend, the big event is the National Capital Barbecue Battle. It takes place Saturday and Sunday on Pennsylvania Avenue downtown. Here are some frequencies from 2005 (the most recent info I have on my website):

464.5000 [ d627] Administration?; "banner"
464.6250 [ d606] "drinks"; "extension cord"; "banner"
464.7250 [ d632] Stage Operations
464.7500 [ d546] "trash"
467.7750 [ d156] Golf cart runs
469.5000 [ d631] "garbage"; "food tickets"
469.6250 [ d503] Volunteers
469.6500 [ d516] Gates
469.7250 [ d662] "wine"; "ice"
469.7500 [ d371] Security/EMS (Channel 4)

It's likely that the event will use this same group of channels (possibly with different tones), since they are common radio rental frequencies.

Look for MPD on 16656 (SOD) or 21232 (Citywide 2), and DCFD on 2096, 2112, or 2128 (Special Events 1-3).

Another Post Article about Capitol Police Radios

This article, which will appear in tomorrow's Post, says that the Capitol Police and Congress are having some trouble getting in sync when it comes to building a new radio system.

Hyatt Regency Washington FCC Application

The Hyatt Regency Washington (the one on Capitol Hill) has an FCC application for several frequencies. They will use two repeaters, and four mobile frequencies. The two repeaters are 461.3750 and 461.7125. (The former frequency is already in use by the hotel.) The mobile frequencies are 456.7625, 467.4125, 456.6125, and 456.5625. The license calls for 75 mobile units.

Waterfront Festival Finds

Here are some frequencies/talkgroups found yesterday during the afternoon:

458.4250 [ d754]
463.2500 [ d315]
464.6250 [ d431] Beer?
464.7500 [ d631] Logistics?
469.6000 [ d023] Gates/General Ops?
469.7000 [ d212] Security

Alexandria Trunked System Talkgroups:
48 Alexandria Police (Channel 3)
400 Alexandria Fire/EMS (Channel 2G)
1072 Citywide 1 (shuttle buses/other miscellaneous users)

Alexandria Red Cross Waterfront Festival

This Saturday and Sunday, the Alexandria Red Cross Waterfront Festival will take place in Old Town. This is a fairly large event, with several bands and even fireworks Saturday night. Here are some finds from 2006 (I'll have to check my notes to see if I have info from last year):

453.5250 [ d054] Fireworks Coordination/Fireworks Barge
458.4250 [ d754] Electrical?
458.5250 [ d506] Administration?
462.5500 [ 94.8] Food Vendor
464.6250 [ d431] "kegs"
464.7500 [ d631] "water"; "orders"
469.6000 [ d023] Gates
469.7000 [ d212] Security

Alexandria Trunked System Talkgroups:
64 Police
384 Fire/EMS
448 Unknown if used
736 DASH Shuttle Buses

Airports Authority Trunked System Talkgroup:
1696 Operations (fireworks safety/coordination)

DC Trunked System Talkgroup:
2080 Fire Inspectors (fireworks safety/coordination)

Tishman Speyer FCC Application

Tishman Speyer, a property management company, has an FCC application for a frequency to be used at 1400 New York Ave. The frequency (463.9000) will be used as a repeater, with twelve mobile units.

Boston Property FCC Application

Boston Property, a property management company, has an FCC application for a repeater at its building at 401 9th St. NW. The repeater will use 463.7000 in analog mode, with 25 mobile units.

Washington Post Article on Capitol Police Radios

There's an interesting article in today's Washington Post about the outdated radios the Capitol Police use. Definitely worth reading if one is interested in how different agencies communicate (or sometimes can't).

Weekend Events

The holiday weekend is certainly full of events. Here are three highlights:

• Sunday evening: National Memorial Day Concert on West Lawn of the Capitol. The Capitol Police frequencies should be active. Also search both the 162-174 and 406-420 band for additional non-public safety frequencies used on the Capitol grounds. (Inputs to frequencies from 406-411 are 9 MHz higher.) There may also be some use of business-band frequencies by organizers coordinating seating, VIPs, etc. Search 461-470 MHz.
• Sunday evening: "Summer Blast-Off" Concert at Wolf Trap. I have a couple of frequencies for Wolf Trap. 417.9750 [CSQ] (input 411.7750) is used by the Park Rangers. I've been advised that this channel is now P25 digital, however. (Frequencies are supposedly the same.) If anyone can confirm and possibly snag a NAC, it would be appreciated. Wolf Trap has also used 461.4250 [d712] for staff. In addition to this simplex frequency, they are also licensed for 464.8000, 466.4250, and 469.8000 (all simplex).
• Monday at two: The National Memorial Day Parade on Constitution Avenue. In 2006, 151.5125 [173.8] was used for Parade Order/Scheduling, and 156.5150 [d114] was used for Golf Carts/Escorts. These frequencies were in rented radios from Blandchard's USA Radio Rentals. It's unknown if they'll be using the same frequencies, or even the same radio rental provider. Also note that USA Radio Rentals also rents UHF radios, so they might use that band. Check the DC Fire Special Events talkgroups for possible use, as well as MPD's SOD or Citywide 2 talkgroups. Finally, since this parade has many military ceremonial units, check the Ft. Myer trunked system for activity.
  

Arlington's New Project 25 System

After the Nats game on Wednesday night, I spent a little time listening to Arlington's P25 system. The audio quality was decent from near Capitol Hill, using the Radio Shack 800 MHz antenna on the BCD396T. There was some audio distortion and the like, but this is to be expected with a simulcast digital system. Overall, not too bad.

Since it was fairly late in the evening (10:30-11:15 or so) there wasn't a lot of traffic on the system. The Police and Fire talkgroups were correct as noted at RadioReference for some time. The Sheriff was active on talkgroups 62 and 66. 66 may be used for the jail. Police units made heavy use of I-calls, as they had on the analog system.

By the way, the analog system is still on the air, albeit in a diminished form. Arlington chose to keep an analog system active so that other jurisdictions can talk to them in mutual aid situations, etc. Smart (and necessary) move. As of that night, Falls Church Police are still on the analog system. It's unknown if they'll be migrating to the digital system.

Nat'l Museum of Crime and Punishment FCC App

The National Museum of Crime and Punishment, which opens on Friday near the Verizon Center, has an FCC application for two simplex frequencies (463.2500 and 463.2750).

Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon

Here what I found yesterday at the MC Historic Half in Fredericksburg:

Temporary Trunked System (System ID: 335 Site: 101 WACN: BEE0A):

386.0250, 386.1750, 386.3250, 386.4750, 386.6250, 386.7750, 388.5250*

5019 Organizers (encrypted)
5020 Organizers (encrypted)
5021 Organizers (encrypted)
5022 Organizers (encrypted)
5023 Organizers (encrypted)
5025 Organizers (encrypted)

146.4900 [ CSQ] Amateur Radio Support
155.9250 [131.8] Fredericksburg Police Tac (street closures)
158.8350 [203.5] Fredericksburg Fire Channel 2 (medical, bike teams, etc.)
451.3500 [ d143] Organizers (S)
463.7000 [ d152] Organizers (Channel 4) (S)

The temp P25 trunked system was a surprise, since the MC has a site right in the Fredericksburg area that I thought they'd be using. This trunked system has never been seen before. (The System ID is not listed in RadioReference.) The system was very low power. Maybe it's a new military system that will be transported around the region/country for special events...? Unfortunately, all transmissions were encrypted.

As noted in the list above, two UHF biz-band frequencies used by race organizers were also found. These may have been used by some kind of race-event production company that was assisting the Marines in running the Historic Half.

Andrews Airshow

Beautiful weather for the airshow today. See this page for what I found (scroll to the bottom).

Weekend Events

There's one big event this weekend--the Andrews Air Force Base Airshow (if you don't count the Preakness in Baltimore). For an event this big, there's almost too much to monitor. For aviation frequencies, see this page at RadioReference. (It already lists a few 2008 freqs, since the teams practice in advance.) The Andrews 380 MHz trunked system will be busy, as it was last year. It's not known how much use the old analog 406 MHz trunked system will get. Most operations appear to have transitioned to the 380 system. Prince George's County Police and Fire/EMS provide public safety support. Look for them to use one or more of their tactical channels, in both repeater and simplex modes. Finally, search FRS/GMRS/business band for miscellaneous users, such as vendors, concessions, flight teams, spectators, etc.

The annual Monitoring Times Airshow Guide (PDF) has frequencies for the Blue Angels, Golden Knights, and many other teams that will be performing this weekend.

On Sunday in Fredericksburg, the Marines will hold the inaugural Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon. The Marines may use site 405 of this trunked system to communicate. The talkgroups for Marine special events are usually in the 63xxx range. Note that for the Marine Corps Marathon, most of the transmissions have been encrypted. It's unknown whether they'll be using encryption for this event, but it wouldn't be surprising. Fredericksburg Police and Fire/EMS will be providing public safety support. Fredericksburg Police may use their Tac channel (155.9250 [131.8]) for street closures.

Arlington County Finally Moving to P25 System

By this time next week, Arlington County should be using their Project 25 system for all services. (Only public works-type users are on it now, not public safety.) Here's a message from Lisa Thompson, the radio system manager:

The Emergency Communications Center (ECC) will move to its new location on Tuesday, May 20th. In order to transition the Public Safety radio users off of the old analog system onto the new digital system (which you have been using since last summer), we are asking that ALL RADIO TRAFFIC BE KEPT TO AN ABSOLUTE MINIMUM ON 5/20/08 FROM 0600 – 0900 HOURS. We need this because we will be systematically turning off radio channels on the old system and turning them ON in the new system. After the field users (police, sheriff, fire/ems), make the transition to the new radio system, ECC will be required to perform a roll call of each unit. This will unnaturally overburden the new system. After 0900, unless something unfortunate occurs, all radio channels will be up and functional, and normal operations can commence. I appreciate that this request will make operations difficult, and I thank you in advance for your cooperation. We are similarly requesting that all public safety radio users only transmit in urgent circumstances while we reduce their channel availability prior to cutover, and that they remain as silent as possible after cutover so we can assure that everyone is on the
right system.

Thank you !
Lisa Thompson
Radio System Manager

Congressional Country Club Frequencies

Someone on Scan-DC posted a great list of frequencies for Congressional Country Club. These will be very useful for the AT&T National Golf Tournament in early July. Here are the frequencies:

152.4050 [ d115] Security
151.8650 [ d115] Grounds
151.5200 [ d115] Clubhouse/Food & Beverage
151.5200 [ d311] Golf
154.5150 [ d115] Athletics
151.9550 [ d311] Spare 1
151.7750 [ d311] Spare 2
152.4050 [ d311] Management

Southern Maryland Blue Crabs FCC App

The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs, a new minor league baseball team that plays in Charles County, submitted an FCC application for five simplex frequencies. The frequencies are:

451.3500
452.6250
452.8000
452.8375
452.8625

Weekend Recap

Here are some frequencies found from this past weekend:

DC101 Chili Cookoff 2008:
461.4250 [103.5] Organizers (radio rentals probably from USA Radio Rentals)
461.5125 [d152] CSC Event Staff (security/crowd control)
464.8125 [d155] Audio/Visual
DC Fire/EMS used talkgroup 2112.
Metropolitan Police used talkgroup 21232.

RFK Stadium (women's national soccer match):
451.2750 [d464] General communications among staff
451.3750 [d464] General communications among staff
461.5125 [d152] CSC Event Staff
464.5875 [d412] (probably a DC United frequency used for this game)
464.6250 [d152] (DC United frequency used for this game)
464.6500 [d412] (DC United frequency used for this game)

Other finds:

• H&M security officers at their downtown location use 469.7625 [d155].

• Shakespeare Theater Company's Harman Hall uses 452.7125 [d503] for guest services.

• The Donovan House Hotel uses 463.3625 [d343] for housekeeping. 463.4375 [d343] is confirmed in use (unknown which department uses). Both frequencies are simplex.

See the website for even more frequencies found.

Washington Court Hotel FCC Application

The Washington Court hotel has submitted an FCC application for an additional frequency. The hotel is applying to operate a repeater on 464.3250 with thirty 4-watt mobile units.

The hotel currently operates a repeater on 464.4250 [d162]. This frequency appears to have all the hotel departments on it, so maybe they want another frequency to ease radio congestion.

Article in Post about Security at Nat'l Harbor

There's an article in today's Washington Post about security at the National Harbor development. It includes a picture of the "command center."

The article mentions that if there is a security issue, the dispatchers know where the closest officer is through use of GPS. This might be accomplished through an integrated GPS unit in their MOTOTRBO radios.

Tornado in Stafford Co. Last Night

There was some serious weather last night (to say the least) and I was listening for several hours on the (handheld) scanner. Stafford County's channels were the busiest I've ever heard them. It almost seemed at one point that they could have used another repeated channel or two on the Fire side. I'm sure the simplex equivalents of all the repeated channels were in heavy use, but for the most part I couldn't hear those from my location in Spotsylvania.

Stafford requested aid from as far away as Fairfax and Henrico. I'm not sure if the Henrico units ever showed up, but the much-respected Technical Rescue Operations Team (TROT) from Fairfax came to help. This team has expertise in confined-space rescues and searching for people in collapsed structures. Other jurisdictions helping out were Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Quantico Marine Corps Base, Prince William, and Fauquier.

Here are some frequencies/talkgroups monitored last night and today:

• Stafford appears to be using 489.3125 [156.7] on the Sheriff side and 489.1125 [156.7] on the Fire side for command post operations as of today. The simplex equivalents of these channels are also being used heavily. When the storm was at its peak, all of Stafford's Fire channels were in use constantly.
• Spotsylvania Fire used talkgroup 00-103 (Channel 4) for storm-related operations when the storm was at its peak. A lot of the traffic was dealing with clearing trees and checking flooded roads.
• STARS talkgroup 2407 (VA Department of Emergency Management Ops 1) was active very briefly this morning with a unit saying that he was doing a storm survey in Spotsylvania. I searched for the 800 MHz control channel of the STARS mobile site (thinking that it may have been dispatched to Stafford), but did not find it.
• VDOT active on 47.4000 [114.8].
• Dominion Virginia Power active on 451.2750 [114.8].
• Rappahannock Electric Cooperative active on 153.7100 [156.7].
  
• 145.2700 [79.7] was active today with some traffic from hams manning an emergency operations center in conjunction with Stafford authorities and the Red Cross. Surprisingly, little to no traffic monitored last night during the storm.

Events This Weekend

Here are three notable events in DC this weekend:

• The Women's National Soccer Team plays an exhibition against Canada at RFK Stadium at 7 PM Saturday. This is the first time either U.S. National team has played at RFK since 2003. RFK uses 464.3750 [110.9] for ops. Here are some DC United freqs:

• 464.5000 [d412] DC United Ticketing/Box Office (Channel 6)
  464.5500 [d412] DC United "Corona party"
  464.6125 [d364] DC United "crowding Gate A"
  464.6250 [d152] DC United Engineering?; "check scripts"
  464.6500 [d412] DC United "play video"; "send ceremonial kickers"
  464.7250 [ ] DC United
  464.7500 [d152] DC United (Channel 5?)
  466.8250 [d412] DC United Media (Channel 3)
  469.5000 [d152] DC United Audio/Visual

• The Chili Cook Off, a fairly large musical event, is Saturday at 11th and G NW. The organizers will probably use rented radios. The most recent info (2006) for this event that I have on my website indicates the radios may have been from USA Radio Rentals. 154.6400 [d131] was used by Operations/EMS (frequency may have been 154.6350). CSC event security used 461.5125 [d152], and audio/visual people used 464.8125 [d155]. Also check DC Fire for a talkgroup on their trunked system or a simplex frequency.

• The Nationals are in town for a series against the Florida Marlins.
  

Last Weekend Recap

It's almost next weekend, but here's some stuff found from last Saturday:

• Nationals Park:

• 464.5625 [91.5] Mentioned a "dugout." This was active for Saturday's game versus the Pirates. Maybe it's used by Pirates staff, as I've never seen it pop up at RFK or Nationals Park.
• DC Fire was using 867.7625 [156.7] simplex for inside operations, and talkgroup 2096 for outside operations. I wonder if this is what they'll be doing from now on?
• I didn't find any frequencies specifically for the concession manager, Centerplate. I did see at least one Centerplate employee using a MOTOTRBO radio, so maybe the Nationals have simply allocated Centerplate channels on their system.

• Other DC finds:

• Bed, Bath & Beyond is using 463.8125 [d116] at their Gallery Place location (for anyone who cares!)
• Found a frequency for the new Harman Hall across from the Verizon Center: 464.5500 [d125]. I don't know if their previously-found UHF frequencies are obsolete. They are licensed for six UHF simplex frequencies--nothing found on those. More listening required.
• Found a few more items for the Holiday Inn Capitol (the one near Air & Space). 461.7750 [d734] in use; unknown user. And 464.1000 is a repeater, and probably used by security.
  

Fannie Mae Application

Fannie Mae, which is based in Washington, has an application for two UHF trunked systems. They will probably be LTR systems. One will be located at 7700 Wisconsin Ave. in Bethesda, and the other will be at 2115 Wisconsin Ave. in DC. The application indicates each system will have three frequencies.

Events This Weekend

Here are two events this weekend that will probably provide some monitoring:

• The National Cathedral holds their annual Cathedral Flower Mart Friday and Saturday. (It's apparently much more than just flowers--it's kind of a festival, with many activities.) Anyway, here are some frequencies for the Cathedral:
  

• 462.0250 [d445] Operations (Engineering?--may not be used by Cathedral)
  
• 463.2250 [107.2] Security
• 463.9500 [d131] (Housekeeping?--may not be used by Cathedral)
  
• 467.7125 [233.6] Tour Guides

• On Sunday, the U.S. Air Force Cycling Classic winds its way through Arlington. Arlington's analog (and maybe P25) trunked system should be quite active. Try analog talkgroup 33840, which is the Motors channel. Crystal City security uses 451.7750 [ d205].

The Nats finish up their current homestand this weekend against the Pirates. There are several big events outside the DC Metro area. In Spotsylvania, there is a Battle of Chancellorsville reenactment on Saturday and Sunday. In The Plains (VA) on Saturday, there is the Virginia Gold Cup. And in Richmond on Saturday, there is a NASCAR race.

Events This Weekend

I've found two events this weekend that may provide for some interesting monitoring:

• On Saturday, the University of Maryland-College Park holds an open house. Their trunked system should be busy. See this page for details: http://www.davidschoenberger.net/scanning/maryland/princegeorges.htm
• On Sunday, the Folger Shakespeare Library celebrates Shakespeare's 444th birthday. In one previous visit to the Folger, I only found one frequency: 461.0625 [127.3]. This frequency was used by both security and staff members. Any updates would be appreciated.

The Nationals will be in town this weekend for a series against the Cubs. See previous blog posts for Nationals Park frequencies. And the Wizards will be playing the Cavaliers at Verizon Center on Sunday. There's not much to monitor at the Verizon lately, since they've switched to MOTOTRBO, but 461.5125 [ d152] might be active. That's a frequency used by CSC Event Staff.

What I Listen to on I-95 from Fredericksburg to DC

Since I frequently make the hour trip on I-95 from Fredericksburg to DC, I thought I'd post what I'm listening to (and where) on the drive. I'm almost always listening with the BCD396T scanner with the Radio Shack 800 MHz antenna.

1. I begin in Fredericksburg scanning five different entities: Spotsylvania County, Fredericksburg, Stafford County, Virginia State Police, and the "Special" system. Spotsy is their EDACS trunked system, plus several conventional frequencies. Fredericksburg is several public safety and business frequencies. Same with Stafford. Virginia State Police is their four dispatch frequencies that they use around the state, plus their Tac and Surveillance channels. (I've also got a few other Virginia state agencies' frequencies in this system, like VDOT.) Finally, the "Special" system is a slew of conventional frequencies. It includes the low-power and itinerant business frequencies, the "local control" channels, common public safety channels that are in use nationwide, and others. There are too many frequencies to list, but maybe that's something for a future post. (The scanner actually takes about three seconds to go through all these frequencies!)
2. I listen to these five "systems" from mile 130 to about mile 140. At that point Spotsy tends to get fairly weak, so I turn it and Fredericksburg off. After passing Exit 143, I turn on two more systems: Prince William and Quantico Marine Corps Base. Prince William consists of the Motorola trunked system, plus frequencies for Potomac Mills Mall and Prince William Forest Park. Quantico includes their conventional fire frequency (149.3500) and their 380 MHz trunked system.
3. I keep these systems going until about Exit 160. (I usually turn Stafford off around Potomac Mills, Exit 156.) At Exit 160, if not earlier, I turn on Fairfax County and Fort Belvoir. (I can receive Fairfax well from about Exit 152 on.) Fairfax consists of their Motorola trunked system, and several conventional frequencies. I don't normally listen to the Fairfax Services trunked system on the road. Fort Belvoir is the 380 MHz system used at that base.
4. I turn Prince William and Quantico off shortly after crossing the Occoquan River. Fairfax and Belvoir stay on at least until I get on I-395. On approaching the Springfield Interchange (at about Exit 166) I turn on Arlington. Arlington consists of both the current Motorola trunked system, as well as the new P25 trunked system. It also includes a bunch of conventional frequencies.
5. Once through the Springfield Interchange, I might turn on DC, but many times I just leave the scanner on Arlington. DC consists of the 460 MHz Motorola trunked system used by the Metropolitan Police, and the 800 MHz Motorola trunked system used by DC Fire and City Services.

That's about it. I keep the Virginia State Police and the Special system on for the entire drive. So basically the scanner scans those two systems, plus whatever jurisdiction I happen to be passing through at the moment.

Centerplate Frequencies

Centerplate, the concession manager at Nationals Park that I mentioned in the previous post, does have some frequencies licensed in DC for use at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. While it's unlikely these frequencies would be used at Nationals Park, they might be worth a shot:

457.0875
457.2875
457.6375
462.1875
467.1875

All five of these frequencies are licensed for simplex use, at four watts output.

Nationals Park

At last night's game, I found a few interesting frequencies at Nationals Park:

461.8125 [ d612] Cleaning
464.5500 [ 67.0] Advertising Sign Maintenance
867.7625 [156.7] DCFD First Aid/Medical (S)

The sign maintenance frequency was used at RFK. The cleaning frequency is an odd choice, as it is sometimes clobbered by the Nationals' MOTOTRBO repeater on the same frequency. I was surprised to find DCFD on one of their analog simplex frequencies, as they have always used a talkgroup (2096) from their trunked system at RFK and Nationals Park before last night. MPD was on their usual talkgroup 21232 (Citywide 2). Most of the traffic was related to traffic control/street closures, but some brief traffic from interior units was also monitored.

I didn't find anything for the concession operator, Centerplate. They may be hanging out on 451/452 MHz frequencies, which I forgot to search.

Gravelly Point

Someone just asked me for directions to Gravelly Point from Fredericksburg. Since it's a great location for recreation (and scanning), I thought I'd repost the directions here:

Take I-95N to I-395N, and get off at exit 10B (the George Washington Parkway south). Merge onto the Parkway, and then take the exit for Reagan National Airport. (As you're going south on the Parkway, you actually pass Gravelly Point on the left before you get to the airport, but Gravelly Point is only accessible from the Parkway going northbound.) Once in the airport, follow the signs for the Parkway north. This will take you out of the airport, and you'll go about a mile before you get to Gravelly Point on the right. There is a decent-size parking area there, but it fills up on nice days, particularly on the weekend.

One other thing: be careful when getting on the Parkway from 395, and then again when getting on from the airport. There is really no merge area when coming down the ramps.

Gravelly Point is a great place for scanning, as it's just about in the center of everything. (How many other central places can you find that boast [unlimited] free parking?) There's an excellent view of many forms of transportation. One might see planes, helicopters, boats, and the Metro in the space of a few minutes.

Because of the numerous transmitters at the airport (which create intermod), one might have to use the attenuator on certain frequency bands. I've found this to be particularly true between about 461.0000 and 461.5000. I think the culprit is 461.1375, which is a frequency used by USAirways for ground operations. When that frequency is quiet, the intermod problem seems to be much better. Of course, other scanners might not have this problem, but they may have other intermod problems. I'm usually using a BCD396T when 461.1375 causes a problem.