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ARRL Club News
Published by the American Radio Relay League ********************************************
December 21, 2021
Editor: Michael Walters, W8ZY <
clubs@arrl.org>
IN THIS ISSUE
- Welcome
- Stuart Airshow Special Event Station N4A Huge Success
- W1OP Visits W1AW for 100th Celebration
- Portage County Amateur Radio Makes Largest-Ever Donation to Local
Food Program
- Radio Club Enjoys Rebirth Thanks in Part to POTA
- Fox Hunting at the University of Michigan Amateur Radio Club, W8UM
- Submitting Info for this Newsletter
- How to Plan and Apply for an ARRL Hamfest or Convention
- Important Links
WELCOME
The Club News is expanding as we go into the December edition and
preparing for a new year. I hope that you will tell all of your friends
about the newsletter and encourage them to sign into their personal
account on the ARRL website. In their profile they will find "Email Subscriptions" and they can select the Club News. That way each month
they will get the newsletter in their email. Our publication timetable
is the third Tuesday of the month.
More interesting programs are coming for clubs and I hope that you will
stay tuned. Clubs are encouraged to send in their write-ups of events
and activities. Send it to the
clubs@arrl.org email address and we will
look at all of them.
Merry Christmas from myself and everyone here ar Club News. I hope that
the holiday season brings you joy and prosperity for the new year.
Mike Walters, W8ZY
STUART AIRSHOW SPECIAL EVENT STATION N4A HUGE SUCCESS
After two years of event cancelations this November 12, 13, and 14th
the Stuart Airshow in Stewart Florida, turned out to be a huge success
for Special Event station N4A sponsored by the Martin County Amateur
Radio Association (MCARA) and Martin County ARES (MC ARES). With
beautiful bright sunny days and temperatures in the 70's to 80's over a thousand spectators attended the show each day. Many visited the club
station on display which was actively manned by members as they made
hundreds of contacts during the three-day event.
The Stuart Airshow is unique in that it not only features modern and
vintage aircraft, as well as aerobatic flying, but a variety of
military reenactments. Those who made radio contact often heard the
roar of jets and the sound of Huey's in the background. Operators
frequently moderated their observations creating much excitement on the frequency.
One of the highlights on Friday was a visit by various schools who
brought STEAM students to the MCARA / MC ARES station for a brief
presentation. The tri-band beam atop the portable tower connected to a
Kenwood TS-590 SG provided contacts from all over the US and was a
treat for these young adults. A manned 2M station created excitement
for youth of all ages.
W1OP VISITS W1AW FOR 100TH CELEBRATION
The Providence Radio Association, W1OP, visited ARRL Headquarters and
W1AW on Thursday December 9th, 2021, to celebrate the 100th anniversary
of their club's affiliation with ARRL. Accompanied by Bob Beaudet,
W1YRC, the Rhode Island Section Manage, the club visited headquarters
and met with David Minster, NA2AA, ARRL CEO.
They displayed their original affiliation certificate signed by the
"Old Man" himself Hiram Percy Maxim. Minster presented them with a new certificate commemorating their 100 years. They then visited W1AW and
after lunch operated the memorial station. It was noted that even
though there are several clubs around the country at the 100 year mark
they are still rare and ARRL wants to recognize them for their
continued hard work.
PORTAGE COUNTY AMATEUR RADIO MAKES LARGEST-EVER DONATION TO LOCAL
FOOD PROGRAM
Ravenna, Ohio - For the past 16 years, Portage County Amateur Radio
Service (PCARS) has raised funds for local food program, the Center of
Hope, a program of Family & Community Services (FCS).
This year, however, PCARS made their largest donation yet - $10,471.76
- all of which will go to help the Center of Hope with their holiday distribution that provides toys and food for Ravenna families in need.
PCARS Vice President Mike Szabo and Treasurer Paul Hyland, presented
the check to Mark Frisone, Executive Director of Family & Community
Services, as well as Lajoyce Harris, Program Manager of the Center of
Hope. The donations are collected from club members as well as the
community and have made a significant impact on Portage County over the
past years.
In their December newsletter, PCARS President Nick Wagner said, "I'm
proud to say that over the past 16 years that PCARS has existed, our
total contribution to support our community in this way is over
$67,000. Well Done PCARS! Let this part of our legacy be something that
defines us in the future as an intentional part of our mission."
Each year, the Center of Hope impacts hundreds of families in Portage
County by providing hot meals five days a week through its congregate
dining center, as well as emergency groceries through its choice
pantry. Services are free of charge and dependent on an individual's
income.
"FCS is grateful for this generous donation and for the support of
PCARS, year after year" said Frisone upon accepting the club's
contribution. "It's donations like this that help us continue the
important work we do and ensuring that families have access to one of
life's most basic needs."
For more information about the Center of Hope, visitwww.fcsserves.org/program/center-of-hope, or Portage County
Amateur Radio Services, visit www.portcars.org.
RADIO CLUB ENJOYS REBIRTH THANKS IN PART TO POTA
Getting its start in the early 1970s, the Triple "A" Amateur Radio
Association of Beaver County, Pennsylvania laid claim to the first
licensed repeater in the third call area. WR3AAA was the repeater's
call, and in those days, obtaining a repeater license was no small
task. Still, the founding members pushed forward to realize their
vision.
Like so many other amateur radio organizations, Triple "A" has found
itself navigating the changing landscape of the hobby in recent years.
Emerging technologies and lack of engagement made for some thin years
where the membership roster was concerned.
It was true then, and it still is. Triple "A" is not an organization
that shirks away from a good challenge.
This year, thanks in part to new leadership, we have a new mission:
Reacquaint with previous members and welcome new ones.
Encourage them to become active and involved, sharpen their operating
skills, and enjoy the comradery this great hobby has to offer.
Thanks to a chance conversation regarding POTA (parks on the air), the
club has taken a new and exciting turn! We enjoyed three successful
POTA events this past summer. Held at Beaver County's own Raccoon Creek
State Park, multiple stations plus multiple bands plus multiple modes
equaled lots of fun. So much fun that several of the members now enjoy
POTA activating and hunting on their own.
In addition to operating in the field, the members expressed a desire
to take on project builds. Twenty or so hams built an end-fed antenna.
Low cost and lightweight, the antenna is handy for both POTA
activations, as well as being an excellent addition to their "go bags".
Triple "A" has also put much effort into enhancing the existing ARES /
ACS emergency communications program. Operator enrollments are up and
the Skywarn program has also been revived.
It looks like 2022 is going to be an exciting year. Membership has
doubled and there are already activities on the horizon. POTA
activations, picnics, more antenna builds, and a fox hunt exercise.
Just to name a few.
We are so proud of the membership. They stepped up, got involved, and
made radio club membership fun and exciting again.
We are equally proud to be leaders of this new and reborn ham radio
club!
FOX HUNTING AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AMATEUR RADIO CLUB, W8UM
By Michael Fluegemann, KE8AQW, ARRL Life Member
The goal of any university club is to organize activities in which
their members want to participate. On the top of our list at the
University of Michigan Amateur Radio Club, W8UM: Fox Hunting. Fox
Hunting is a high pace activity where hide and seek, radio, and
competitive spirits collide. The idea is there is a 2-meter transmitter
(fox) hidden on campus that is emitting a Morse code message at
specific intervals: one minute on, one minute off. Participants use
directional antennas built out of tape measures, PVC pipe, and
home-made 4 MHz crystal attenuators to find the fox before the other competitors.
For clubs that may want to host your own fox hunt, it is easy to put
together. For the fox you can use an inexpensive 2-meter handheld
radio. Our club used an Arduino microcontroller to emit the Morse code
message and created a cable so we could send the beacon audio into the
radio's microphone jack and turn on the VOX. We then used a piece of
coax as the antenna. By placing all of this and a battery in a plastic container, you can then hide it on campus, or wherever your club is
conducting the hunt. Be sure to write your club's info and phone number
on it in case anyone else finds it.
For the antennas and the attenuators, you can find designs online that
are easy to follow. The key thing for us was making sure the radios we
used had S-meters so we could tell which direction the signal was the
strongest and making sure we had all the correct adapters for the
antennas and the radios. One radio that is relatively inexpensive and
seemed to do the job was the Baofeng UV-B5.
Overall, we had a great event. Five students participated including two
who were not yet club members. It can be a great recruiting activity
when members bring their friends. Everyone who participated found both
hidden foxes and are eagerly looking forward to the next one. I highly
suggest other clubs hold fox hunts as part of their yearly activities.
Go Blue!
SUBMITTING INFO FOR THIS NEWSLETTER
ARRL Club News is for radio clubs to show how they are working in the
community and the hobby to advance amateur radio. If your club does a
project, supports an event, does an EmComm activation or activates a
park, we want to hear about it. You can submit your newsletter article
to us at
clubs@arrl.org. We like to get them as text or Word files
instead of "PDFs". If you have pictures, please submit them with any
caption information, as well as the name and call sign of the
photographer. We want to highlight the good work being done by the
clubs and show others in the community of clubs. Think of this as a
chance to show off your club and your programs.
HOW TO PLAN AND APPLY FOR AN ARRL HAMFEST OR CONVENTION
If your amateur radio club is planning to host a convention, hamfest,
tailgate, or swapfest, please consider applying for ARRL sanctioned
status for your event. To learn what it means to be an ARRL sanctioned
event, and to get some ideas on how to prepare for and conduct a
hamfest or convention, visit www.arrl.org/arrl-sanctioned-events <
http://www.arrl.org/arrl-sanctioned-events>.
To apply for ARRL sanctioned status for your event, log on to www.arrl.org/hamfest-convention-application <
http://www.arrl.org/hamfest-convention-application>.
The ARRL Hamfests and Conventions Calendar can be found online at www.arrl.org/hamfests <
http://www.arrl.org/hamfests>. In addition, the Convention and Hamfest Calendar that runs in QST each month also
presents information about upcoming events.
IMPORTANT LINKS
ARRL Home: www.arrl.org <
http://www.arrl.org/>
Find an ARRL Affiliated Club: www.arrl.org/clubs
<
http://www.arrl.org/clubs>
Find Your ARRL Section: www.arrl.org/sections
<
http://www.arrl.org/sections>
Find a License Class in your area: www.arrl.org/class <
http://www.arrl.org/class>
Find a License Exam in your area: www.arrl.org/exam
<
http://www.arrl.org/exam>
Find a Hamfest or Convention: www.arrl.org/hamfests <
http://www.arrl.org/hamfests>
Email ARRL Clubs:
clubs@arrl.org
ARRL Club News is published every month (12 times each year). ARRL
members may subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing their Member
Data Page as described at
http://www.arrl.org/club-news.
Copyright (c) 2021 American Radio Relay League, Incorporated.
Use and distribution of this publication, or any portion thereof, is
permitted for non-commercial or educational purposes, with attribution.
All other purposes require written permission.
<
http://www.arrl.org/>
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