EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS SECTION NEWS – May 2017
ARRL EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS SECTION STAFF
Section Manager (SM) – Tom Walsh, K1TW
Assistant Section Manager (ASM) – Phil Temples, K9HI
Assistant Section Manager (ASM) – Andy Stewart, KB1OIQ
Assistant Section Manager (ASM) – Rob Leiden, K1UI
Affiliated Club Coordinator (ACC) – Andy Stewart, KB1OIQ
Official Observer Coordinator (OOC) – Ed Parish, K1EP
Public Information Coordinator (PIC) – Open
Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC) – Marek Kozubal, KB1NCG
Assistant SEC (ASEC) – Rob Macedo, KD1CY
Assistant SEC (ASEC) – Mike Leger N1YLQ
Section Traffic Manager (STM) – Marcia Forde, KW1U
Assistant STM (ASTM) – Greg Bennett, KC1CIC
Section Youth Coordinator (SYC) – Jeremy Breef-Pilz, KB1REQ
State Government Liaison (SGL) – Hank Mc Carl, W4RIG
Technical Coordinator (TC) – Dan Brown, W1DAN
TRAFFIC NETS (EMA/WMA)- Information via Marcia, KW1U EMA STM
EM2MN 145.230 MHz 8 PM Daily EMA 2 Meter
Net
MARIPN 3978 KHz 6PM Tu, Th, Sa MASS/Rhode Island
HHTN MMRA Repeaters 10PM Su, M, W, F Heavy Hitters
CITN 147.375 MHz 7:30PM M, Tu, Th, Sa Cape & Islands
MARI 3565 KHz 7PM Daily MASS/Rhode Island
CM2MN 146.970 MHz 9PM Daily Central MA
WMTN 146.910 MHz 10AM Daily WMA
WMTN 146.910 MHz 1PM Daily WMA
WMEN 3944 KHz 8:30AM Su WMA
NEPN 3945 KHz 8:45 Su NE Phone Net
It is a great pleasure to recognize the contributions of the following local amateurs for the month of April. Those who qualified for the Public Service Honor Roll (PSHR) or the Brass Pounders League (BPL) are also recognized in the monthly Field Organization Reports column in QST. Congratulations to all!
April BPL (500 or more points): KW1U (820)
April PSHR (70 or more points): W1RVY (180), KW1U (135), KC1CIC (135),
N1LAH (130), N1IQI (110), N1TF (105), N1SYC (102), N1LKJ (90).
Bill Mann, W1KX, sends me a report about the First Region Net (1RN) activity every month. There were 218 1RN net check-ins who passed 139 pieces of traffic during 60 net sessions in April.
Getting involved in our EMA traffic nets helps keeps this system active and provides excellent training for ARES members interested in helping during emergencies. We are particularly looking to increase participation in both the Cape and Islands Traffic Net (CITN) and the MA RI Phone net (MARIPN). After passing traffic, there is usually time for general discussions.
ARES NETS – Information via Marek, KB1NCG EMA SEC
ARES Monthly HF Net:
First business Mondays 1845 3930 kHz (up to 3955 kHz)
ARES Monthly Net:
First business Mondays 2030 on the MMRA network (www.mmra.org)
Eastern MA Monthly Hospital Net:
First Saturdays 1000 on various repeaters (see ares.ema.arrl.org)
W. Middlesex ARES Simplex Net:
Second Tuesdays 1900 147.435S PL110.9
Cape Cod ARES Net:
Every Wednesday 2000 Barnstable Repeater 146.955– PL88.5
South Shore SKYWARN Net:
Every Saturday 2000 Bridgewater Repeater 147.180– PL67.0
Norfolk County Emergency Preparedness Net:
Every Sunday 2000 Walpole Repeater 146.895– PL123.0
CALENDAR:
June 2-4, 2017
Museum Ships on the Air (MSOTA) weekend
0000Z June 2 through 2359Z June 4
Find further information at <http://ema.arrl.org/node/2186>
June 24-25, 2017
ARRL Field Day: <http://www.arrl.org/field-day>
July 1, 2017 (1300 UTC) to July 7, 2017 (0400 UTC)
Annual 13 Colonies Special Event
<http://13colonies.net/>
September 8-10,2017
New England Division Convention
<http://www.boxboro.org/>
NEWS:
The highlight of the past month must be the Harvard Amateur Radio Symposium held on April 27. Better still, at its conclusion, the club announced their intention to make this an annual event. Congratulations to the students, faculty and members of W1AF, the Harvard Wireless Club. An excellent summary of the event was provided by the ARRL at <http://www.arrl.org/news/harvard-wireless-club-sponsors-inaugural-amateur-radio-symposium>.
Field Day is June 24 and 25, always the fourth full weekend in June. Last year ARRL reported 33 Field Day entries from the Eastern Massachusetts section. Most activity was from clubs but individual participation is also welcome.
Are your club’s field day plans shown on the EMA Field Day web site? If not, please send an update to Bill, N1VUX, as soon as possible at <n1vux@arrl.net>. This is one of the best ways to get publicity for your club’s efforts and attract visitors.
Right after Field Day comes another very special event for our region. The Ninth Annual Thirteen Colonies Events will take place between July 1-7, 2017. This exciting on the air event is supported by many clubs and individuals throughout the original 13 colonies. Look for Massachusetts stations signing K2H during the special event. <http://13colonies.net/>
The New England ARRL Division Convention, also known as “Boxboro-2017!”, is not very far away. A call for speakers has been issued by this year’s program chair, Phil, K9HI. If you have an interesting presentation to share with your fellow amateurs, then sign up at <http://www.boxboro.org/forums-and-classes/speaker-signup>. New this year, in addition to all the great presentations, are the “Open Mic: Share your Story” segment and the Saturday night “Jam Session” and “Making Waves” movie showing. <http://www.boxboro.org/>.
Do you enjoy Amateur Radio public service events? The North Shore Radio Association (NSRA) maintains a very active engagement with public service and has one of the finest listings around of upcoming events. Check out their website <http://www.nsradio.org/events/>.
ARES activated a stand by HF net during the Boston Marathon and asked other ARES members to be ready on non-Marathon frequencies in the event other activations were needed. Thankfully it was a very successful day and no unexpected activations were required. The Marathon was a huge success, thanks to more than 280 Amateur Radio volunteers and everyone else who made this complex event a success. (Marek, KB1NCG)
Cape Cod ARES conducted a technical test exercise on April 22 to test its capability in establishing communications between one of its primary regional shelters and other fixed sites. Participants included area MACCs, EOCs, hospitals, home stations, etc. The drill utilized HF, VHF, and UHF frequencies. (Marek, KB1NCG)
SKYWARN had two main activations for significant weather in April. (Marek, KB1NCG)
The Chatham Marconi Maritime Center will be opening for its summer season in June. Built by Marconi in 1914 and the last of the stations to retain the original buildings, the museum building was home to WCC, the 20th century’s premier ship-to-shore radio station on the east coast. The museum also features an Amateur Radio station with several call signs for various purposes. The station has three operating positions, and a variety of antennas including a tri-band beam and many wire antennas for all the HF bands. Visiting hams are welcome to operate. Check out <http://www.chathammarconi.org> for museum hours and contact ASM Rob, K1UI if you’re coming to Chatham and would like to operate or just see the station.
There is a new local ten-meter net on Friday evening at 9 PM local time, 28.350. Net control stations are located north of Framingham.
Six student projects were chosen by NASA to fly in a rocket or high-altitude balloon this summer. As part of the activities offered by the Clay Center Amateur Radio Club (CC-ARC) at Dexter Southfield School, students designed projects for the NASA “Cubes in SpaceTM” program, the only program in the world to provide students (ages 11-18) with a free opportunity to design experiments to be launched into space on a NASA rocket or balloon. Lead members include Julie KC1GMW, Morgan KC1GRZ, Nathan KB1RD, Hardy KC1ESU, Raif KC1GRX, Jason KC1GBV, Conrad KC1GBW, Rishi KC1BKX, and Sean K3FAY. Thanks to adult supervisors Christy KC1GAF, Bruce N9JBT, John AB1ZV, Ted KB1NTJ, Marlene Schwarz, and Dan Sage. (Thanks, Clay Center ARC)
The April Quannapowitt Radio Association (QRA) meeting featured a presentation by Steve Davidson, K1SMD, about new equipment that is available for the ham community. Steve is manager of the Salem, New Hampshire Ham Radio Outlet. <http://www.w1ekt.org/>
The April Nashoba Valley ARC (NVARC) meeting was hosted by member Dr. Phil Erickson, W1PJE, at the MIT Haystack Observatory. Highlights of the meeting included a talk on E skip by club member Joe Dzekevich, K1YOW, discussions with 25 visiting students from the University of Pennsylvania, and an overview of the Haystack radio telescope. Dr. Erickson and club president Stan Pozerski, KD1LE, announced a new cooperative arrangement between NVARC and Haystack which will encompass mutual outreach to youth, the possibility of joint EME activities, and the conduct of “HamSCI” experiments.
The Linden Ponds club station, W1LPH, had a table again at the annual club fair and supplied potential future hams with ARRL information pamphlets. (W1TPB, Ted N. Smith)
The Norton Founders Day has been cancelled due to the failure of the Proposition 2 1/2 Override and the resignation of the entire Parks & Recreation Commission/Department. (Ray Cord via W1SMH).
Jack, W1AKN, President of the Genesis Amateur Radio Society (GARS) informs us the next Local Area Ham Breakfast will be May 27 at 9AM, at Mo’s Place, Hanson MA. GARS also reported a successful Boy Scouts in the Air event.
The Wellesley ARS will host Gary, N1ZCE, who will speak on the “maker scene” on Tuesday, May 16. This DIY culture is a new area where folks are experimenting and building things – all kinds of things.
PART of Westford Field Day activities will take place at the Concord Rod & Gun Club in Concord. There will be several stations: CW, phone, satellite, 6m/2m, digital, and GOTA. PART intends to operate the CW and phone stations all night. They expect 50 people to attend over the course of the weekend. Contact George, K1IG, the PART Field Day Chairman, for more information.
PART of Westford members performed community service by helping the local Kiwanis Club at the annual Apple Blossom Parade.
The Billerica ARS (BARS) created a webpage devoted to their planned Field Day activities in Chelmsford, along with a very nice amateur radio calendar, at <http://www.w1hh.org>. BARS welcomed Tom, N1CPE, who presented a talk on the Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS). N1CPE is currently the Army MARS Region One Executive Officer. MARS has changed dramatically in the past few years, shifting away from MARS-grams as the primary activity, to support for Department of Defense missions and training for communications support in a “very bad day” scenario. Tom discussed what MARS members do, and how all Amateur Radio operators can help in these missions. Every day, MARS operators train to be better communicators.
SILENT KEYS:
We are saddened to report the news from the Quannapowitt Radio Association (QRA) that Jackie Jones, KB1NNA, has become a Silent Key. Her funeral was on the day of the April QRA meeting. (via QRA Newsletter and Brian, WO1VES).
We are saddened to report the news from the Wellesley ARS (WARS) that member Jack, N1TPU passed away Thursday, April 13. He was 86 years old, and WARS member since 1994. The Wellesley club will hold Field Day in June, honoring member Jack, N1TPU. (via the WARS newsletter).
FINAL WORD
What’s new in your club? Contribute to the EMA section news!
For the latest updates to section news, please check our website regularly at <http://ema.arrl.org>.
73,
Tom, K1TW
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ARRL Eastern Massachusetts Section
Section Manager: Thomas D Walsh, K1TW
k1tw@arrl.org
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