SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY SECTION Report for the month of October 2015
SM Dan Pruitt, AE6SX- ASMs K6YK and N2NS, ACC W6DPD, SEC KF6FIR, OOC N1VM, STM K6RAU, PIC vacant, TC W6TE. Thanksgiving! Being grateful. We radio operators have a spectrum we can use, a hobby to enjoy and the ability to make friends no matter how far distant they are. This is enough to be thankful, but there is more. We all should appreciate those that came before us (Marconi, Fessenden, Bell Labs and even Maxim), way to many to address here. Still we need to recognize all those that have contributed to our hobby and industry. How and why was this possible? It was permitted by a people that saw that freedom of will and choice was encouraged. All protected by individuals that committed themselves to protecting those freedoms and guaranteed the future of our way of life. It is in November, on the 11 day, at the 11 hour that we honour those that served in our military. In peace and war, times of national or international strife, they stand between us and harm. For this I encourage you to add a few more seconds to your Thanksgiving list of things to be grateful. For me, it will be the first line of my prayer when I ask his blessing. Make sure you have your letter in to ARRL. The link is: www.arrl.org/amateur-radio-parity-act. Skywarn Recognition Day is December 5, 2015. Contact your local weather station for details. Dan Pruitt, AE6SX NEWS: From ARRL newsletters. Read complete articles from October to now. 10/07/2015 | New ARRL Handbook, Antenna Book Editions Now Shipping 10/07/2015 | ARRL President Congratulates Hurricane Watch Net on its 50th Anniversary 10/08/2015 | Now, “Clarity on Parity” — the Video! 10/08/2015 | AMSAT Fox-1A CubeSat Launches from California 10/12/2015 | IARU Administrative Council Stresses Importance of Antenna Systems for Amateur Radio 10/13/2015 | ARRL Asks FCC to Clarify that Hams May Modify Non-Amateur Gear for Amateur Use 10/15/2015 | “ARRL National Parks on the Air” Event to Mark National Park Service Centennial 10/19/2015 | ARES/RACES Teams Expected to Join MARS in Coronal Mass Ejection Disaster Exercise 10/20/2015 | Parity Act House Cosponsors Now in Triple Digits! 10/21/2015 | ARRL Executive Committee Presented with Draft Enforcement Improvement Plan 10/21/2015 | Use of 146.52 MHz FM Simplex Frequency Cleared for ARRL Contests 10/23/2015 | Fox-1A (AO-85) Transponder Again Open for Use 10/27/2015 | Amateur Radio to Have a Presence at National Tribal Assistance Coordination Group Workshop 10/27/2015 | ARRL Field Day 2015 Results Now Available: 10/28/2015 | ARRL Medium-Wave Experimenters Sponsoring Special Event in November 13 thru 14 November, see details 10/29/2015 | ARISS Celebrates 1000th Event, 15 Years of Permanent Ham Radio Presence in Space 10/30/2015 | Polish Radio Amateur May Be a Step Closer to Activating North Korea 10/30/2015 | Putting Contesting to Work for Your Public Service Team 10/30/2015 | It’s ARRL November Sweepstakes Season! 11/04/2015 | January VP8 DXpedition to Incorporate “Youth and Community Participation” 11/04/2015 | Amateur Radio Parity Act Continues to Gain Traction in US House Contests: November 2015 + RSGB 80m Club Sprint, SSB 2000Z-2100Z, Nov 11 + NCCC RTTY Sprint 0145Z-0215Z, Nov 13 + WAE DX Contest, RTTY 0000Z, Nov 14 to 2359Z, Nov 15 + 10-10 Int. Fall Contest, Digital 0001Z, Nov 14 to 2359Z, Nov 15 + JIDX Phone Contest 0700Z, Nov 14 to 1300Z, Nov 15 + OK/OM DX Contest, CW 1200Z, Nov 14 to 1200Z, Nov 15 + Kentucky QSO Party 1400Z, Nov 14 to 0200Z, Nov 15 + Homebrew and Oldtime Equipment Party 1300-1500Z, Nov 15 (40m) and 1500-1700Z, Nov 15 (80m) + Run for the Bacon QRP Contest 0200Z-0400Z, Nov 16 + NAQCC CW Sprint 0130Z-0330Z, Nov 19 + NCCC RTTY Sprint 0145Z-0215Z, Nov 20 + YO International PSK31 Contest 1600Z-2200Z, Nov 20 + SARL Field Day Contest 1000Z, Nov 21 to 1000Z, Nov 22 + LZ DX Contest 1200Z, Nov 21 to 1200Z, Nov 22 + All Austrian 160-Meter Contest 1600Z, Nov 21 to 0700Z, Nov 22 + Feld Hell Sprint 1700Z-1859Z, Nov 21 + NA Collegiate ARC Championship, SSB 2100Z, Nov 21 to 0300Z, Nov 23 + RSGB 2nd 1.8 MHz Contest, CW 2100Z, Nov 21 to 0100Z, Nov 22 + ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, SSB 2100Z, Nov 21 to 0300Z, Nov 23 + UKEICC 80m Contest 2000Z-2100Z, Nov 25 + RSGB 80m Club Sprint, CW 2000Z-2100Z, Nov 26 + NCCC RTTY Sprint 0145Z-0215Z, Nov 27 + ARRL EME Contest 0000Z, Nov 28 to 2359Z, Nov 29 + CQ Worldwide DX Contest, CW 0000Z, Nov 28 to 2400Z, Nov 29 December 2015 + NRAU 10m Activity Contest 1800Z-1900Z, Dec 3 (CW) and 1900Z-2000Z, Dec 3 (SSB) and 2000Z-2100Z, Dec 3 (FM) and 2100Z-2200Z, Dec 3 (Dig) + NCCC RTTY Sprint 0145Z-0215Z, Dec 4 + ARRL 160-Meter Contest 2200Z, Dec 4 to 1600Z, Dec 6 + TARA RTTY Melee 0000Z-2400Z, Dec 5 AMATEUR RADIO CLUBS CLOVIS ARP ++ Rob announces the CARP Christmas Party - Friday December 4th, 2015 - 7:00pm at the Clovis Senior Center classroom. Windows 10 vs. Baofeng, and Chirp - The Windows 10 installation/upgrade includes a newer version of the Prolific USB-Serial driver. This is the interface driver software that translates many USB to Radio adapters via a Com-Port (for lack of a more complex explanation). There is one problem. The newer drivers prevent any updates to the radio using Chirp software and forces your radio into an undesired transmit state. by: Conrad Nerdahl – WA6KUE. www.k6arp.org/ FRESNO ARC++ Ron, N6MTS said “The FARC Field Day effort resulted in the second highest score for the SJV, not only in our 3a category, but in all categories.” Swap meet at the November meeting! December FARC Banquet Dec. 11. The Central Valley T-hunters November 21, 2015. www.w6to.com LODI ARC ++ Jason, KE5JTS opened up the floor for nominations for the offices of president and vice president. Jason nominated Maria, KK6COR, for president and Emilia, KI6YYT, for vice president (both are general class hams). It was seconded by Ron Simpson. Emilia moved that the nominations from the floor be closed and a vote was taken. The nominated individuals were elected by a verbal vote. Jim and Doug will retain their current positions as secretary and treasurer respectfully. December - Christmas Party @ Casa Flores, Dec 5th, 6:30 PM. lodiamateurradioclub.org/ LOS BANOS ARC ++ Please note that were it not for Phil, KC6JDL, we would not have meeting pictures to include in your newsletter. So, please, join me in thanking Phil for his service to the Club. I continue to be challenged by my work schedule and am only able to sporadically take part in Club activities. We're hoping that will all end soon, so please bear with me for the time being. Schedule: Nov Party. It seems only right that Veterans Day and Thanksgiving should fall only days apart, in the same month. We should first thank God and then honor our veterans, who served their Country to preserve our freedom. www.aa6lb.org SIERRA ARC ++ T HE A IRWAVES C ALENDAR Every Monday IWV Emergency Net 730pm WA6YBN Repeater-147.00MHz +, 107.2 tone 09 Nov SARC Board Meeting, 6:30pm - USO building 09 Nov SARC General Meeting 7:00pm - USO building - Program : "Grounded for Safety" 14 Nov Ridgecrest Desert Classic. Mike WA6ARA had the presentation on Satellites- the future of ham radio. Satellite sub-bands were covered and the various orbits used. Modes of the satellites include linear, FM, APRS, and video. Simple antenna and 10 watts of power will do it. Computer software is handy to have to plot where a satellite is located. Mike also reviewed the use of commonly used forms in EmComm: ARRL - Radiogram, both general and as a Disaster Welfare message, General Message (ICS-213), and the Activity Log (ICS 214). The group then conducted a practice emergency net using the Club's emergency net script as a guideline. Both presentations inspired numerous practical comments. To wrap up the meeting, a live microphone was handed to Mike (KK6TAZ) to be Net Control for the SARC emergency net. He did quite well, despite it being his first time as Net Control. One of the goals of the Ridgecrest ARES group is to see that all members are capable as the Net Control operator. Pacificon - A session with the NORCAL QRP group with a MUPPET build. Chuck (K7QO) has developed the Manhattan-Ugly-Professional-Placement-Experimental-Technique (MUPPET) for construction of electronic circuits. It’s actually quite pretty. No holes, no numbers, just etched with household chemicals. This is a multi-frequency signal generator with interchangeable crystals. Mike (WA6ARA) whiz-built his signal generator with the help of his multi-element transistor tester. The perfect Christmas present - is a half scale model of the J-36Vibroplex. These limited production collectible CW keys are handcrafted, numbered, with every part made in the USA. Field Day Results! or It all matters how you look at it! The Field Day results are in! We were near the bottom of the 4A list, out of 155 total. We have been lower! But, we are at the top, number uno, for our section, San Joaquin Valley (SJV)! Yah! (there were only two entries for 4A in SJV). During a recent public service event base camp kept hearing a QSO. Repeated attempts to notify the two holding the QSO that a public service event was being held went unacknowledged. Strange, some with the event were hearing the QSO, other were not. Finally the repeater identified, and it wasn't ours! As it turns out another 147.00 repeater is on the air west of Lake Isabella. What can we do about it? Tone Decode. If implemented the squelch only opens if it receives the specified sub audible tone and our repeater re-transmits the 107.2 Hz tone. So the fix is to implement your radio's tone encode and decode for the 147.000 repeater. You. www.qsl.net/wa6ybn/ SEQUOIA ARG ++ W6SV says “Weather will be a large concern this year. Emphasis on BE PREPARED.” Saturday December 12, 2015. Our annual Christmas Dinner will be held at the Elk’s Lodge. Camping at 7,500’ in October? Well 7 of your club members did just that. On Oct. 6th we went to Glass Creek Campground just north of Mammoth Lakes. . www.n6krv.org STOCKTON DELTA ARC ++ October 15th , 2015 – Great Shake-out Earthquake Drill www.shakeout.org . The Stockton-Delta Amateur Radio Club has participated in this drill for several years with check-in numbers rivaling larger cities like Sacramento and Fresno. The plan was a directed net on the W6SF 147.165 repeater and take check-ins from around the city and county. Participating stations checked-in with their call sign, location and radio capabilities.. www.w6sf.org TURLOCK ARC ++ Dick, K6SUU, was called forward to make an announcement regarding a program with Pacificon. Mission 22 will be this October 17th. For information go to parachutemobile.org. Also, the radio to hit the ISS has been fixed. There was an issue with the GPS, but hopefully it won’t be a problem. Let Dick know if you are interested in using the radio. Grady Williams, K6IXA, gave the evening presentation on the W6BXN Repeater System. His presentation was excellent, including a Power Point with a diagram of all the repeaters, how they work together, and pictures of the different sites. (Turtle Dome, Sentinel Dome and Buck Rock. It was very interesting and informative. Grady stated that the new engine has been put in, tested and is working fine. An alarm panel with three lights has been ordered. There was a question about if there were power failure, how long would the system run? There would be approx. 72 days power to run it. On behalf of the TARC we would like to thank Grady, W6BXN, and Spencer Boyd for the extensive commitment they have shown, taking care of the W6BXN Repeater System. www.w6bxn.org. The following Amateurs became Silent Keys since the last report: Mario W6FMC, John KK6DIG, Suzanne KD6ANX, Jerry WB6ZTI, Gary K6RYD and Sandi KJ6KEF. They will be missed. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- SJV Section ORS/FOR 2015 Traffic Report: [Oct 2015] Call Total ------ ------- w6sx 51 ws6p 751 k6rau 17 ------- ------ Sum: 819 =========== SJV Section PSHR/FOR Reports: [Oct 2015] Call (T) -------- ------ w6sx 65 ws6p 190 k6rau 85 ========== Mark your Calendars: 01/17/2016 | Quartzfest 2016 Location: Quartzsite, AZ Type: ARRL Convention Sponsor: QuartzFest Planning Committee Website: http://QuartzFest.org 02/19/2016 | Southwestern Division Convention (Yuma Hamfest) Location: Yuma, AZ Type: ARRL Convention Sponsor: Yuma Amateur Radio Hamfest Organization Website: http://www.yumahamfest.org/ 03/12/2016 | Hamfest 2016 Location: Loomis, CA Type: ARRL Hamfest Sponsor: Sierra Foothills Amateur Radio Club Website: http://www.w6ek.org 03/12/2016 | Palm Springs Hamfest Location: Palm Springs, CA Type: ARRL Hamfest Sponsor: Desert R.A.T.S. ARC Website: http://www.palmspringshamfest.com 04/29/2016 | Nevada State Convention (NVCON) Location: Las Vegas, NV Type: ARRL Convention Sponsor: Las Vegas Radio Amateur Club Website: http://www.nvcon.org 06/03/2016 | Northwestern Division Convention (SEA-PAC) Location: Seaside, OR Type: ARRL Convention Sponsor: Oregon Tualatin Valley ARC Website: http://www.seapac.org 06/18/2016 | Santa Maria Radio Swapfest Location: Orcutt, CA Type: ARRL Hamfest Sponsor: Satellite ARC Website: http://satellitearc.com Need to take an Amateur exam? Are you having an exam? Check the ARRL web page, www.arrl.org/arrlvec/examsearch.phtml for exam information. You can also search for Amateur Radio Classes in your area and register your exam. Instructors can also register classes there. Card Checking in the Section: You can get cards checked for awards within the section. W6XK, K6ZZ, and W6DPD can check your cards for DXCC in accordance with the rules for field checking. DXCC card checkers may now check cards dated from Nov 15, 1945, including Deleted DXCC Entities. K6ZZ can now check 160 Meter Cards. DXCC card checkers may, at their discretion, check cards for WAS, WAC, and VUCC. W6DPD and K6ZZ can check cards for the CQ Awards, WAZ, DX, Field, and Prefixes. The card checkers may also check applications for the IARU Region 2 Award. ARRL Special Service Clubs may appoint a HF awards manager for WAS and a VHF Awards Manager for VUCC. The Webinar by Hank Garretson, W6SX, has been posted to the WWROF webpage (www.wwrof.org) under the Webinars link. Hanks presentation will be of particular interest to "Little Pistols" and those who are space limited. He added a link to the elevation plot which can be viewed at http://www.heywhatsthat.com/ It's worth checking out! Also the Ladder Snaps in the presentation can be found at http://www.73cnc.com/product_p/ls100.htm You can e-mail Hank at w6sx@arrl.net for additional details. The K6RAU (our Traffic Manager) Morse Code Instruction Course is available at www.pdarrl.org/K6RAU or www.pdarrl.org/k6rau. No need to know a "dit" from a "dah", simply with paper and pencil, and following the instructions. CWops Tests are held weekly – Every Wednesday at 1300Z, 1900Z, and 0300Z (Thursday). Info and rules at http://www.cwops.org/cwt.html . San Joaquin Valley Nets: The Noontime net meets on 7.268.5 MHz. This net handles a lot of messages. Daytime Region 6 Traffic Net meets daily at 3:30 pacific time on or near 7.275 MHZ. This one is probable not in operation at this time. The California Traffic Net meets daily on 3.906 MHZ and 6:00 PM local time. The Golden Bear Amateur Radio Net meets nightly at 7:00 PM local time on 3.975 MHZ. Northern California Net (NCN), the Section Traffic Net, meets nightly on 3.533 MHZ at 7 PM Pac Time. San Joaquin Net meets Monday-Saturday on 3918khz, at 6 PM Pacific Time. Western Public Service System (WPSS) meets nightly on 3952khz, roll - at 7:30 PM local Pacific Time. The Mission Trail Net meets nightly on 3.856 MHZ at 8:00 PM local time. Northern California Net 2 (NCN2) The slow speed training session of NCN, meets nightly on 3.533 MHZ at 9 PM Pacific Time. Handling traffic on CW is a good way to improve your CW skills. -------------------------------------------------------------------- ARRL San Joaquin Valley Section Section Manager: Dan Pruitt, AE6SX ae6sx@arrl.org --------------------------------------------------------------------