November, 2011 Section News

ARRL EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS SECTION  

Section Manager (SM) - Phil Temples, K9HI
Assistant Section Manager (ASM) – Jeremy Breef-Pilz, KB1REQ
Affiliated Club Coordinator (ACC) - "Bo" Budinger, WA1QYM
Official Observer Coordinator (OOC) - Ed Parish, K1EP
Public Information Coordinator (PIC) - Bob Salow, WA1IDA
Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC) - Rob Macedo, KD1CY
Section Traffic Manager (STM) – Marcia Forde, KW1U
State Government Liaison (SGL) - Shawn O'Donnell, K3HI
Technical Coordinator (TC) - Eric Falkof, K1NUN


NOVEMBER, 2011 SECTION NEWS:

First it was tornadoes. Then a hurricane called Irene. Then there was
flooding. And now… this.

Massachusetts, along with much of the northeastern U.S. is still
reeling from the historic Oct. 30th Nor'easter that stuck the region,
bringing with it widespread tree and wind damage. Portions of Central
and Western Massachusetts received measurable amounts of snow of up to
two feet or more. Over a half-million people were left without power.

ARES®/RACES/MARS and EmComm personal were on standby in case Amateur
Radio communications were called upon. SKYWARN gathered reports from
observers for the National Weather Service. At this writing, only a
single shelter in Eastern MA has requested assistance, but ARES
leadership continue to monitor the situation closely in case more
support is needed.

Murphy was working overtime, as the Halloween storm severely impacted
contestants in the CQWW SSB contest Oct. 29-30. Many stations could
only operate for a portion of the contest period due to power outages.
And those lucky enough to have generators were forced to go barefoot.
Antennas came down left and right, and those that didn't loaded
erratically due to snow load.

The storm delayed Halloween Trick or Treat in Westford, but couldn't
cancel it completely. PART of Westford will once again be providing the
Pumpkin Patrol service to the Town on the rescheduled date on Nov. 6
from 5-7 PM. Hams wishing to help are encouraged to contact
<KA8SCP@WB1GOF.ORG>.

K1NR is polling Algonquin ARC members to see if there's interest in a
group purchase of Honda generators. He has several takers so far.

Members of the Taunton SKYWARN ARC (WX1BOX) attended the recent
Southern New England Weather Conference on Oct. 22 at Meditech in
Canton. Co-sponsored by the National Weather Service and the Blue Hills
Observatory, the Conference "has provided a place for weather
enthusiasts and professionals to gather and share their knowledge and
expertise regarding topics such as winter weather forecasting, severe
weather, hurricanes, advances in the science of meteorology, and
emergency preparedness, as well as numerous other topics." Thanks, TACG
News

The ARRL Foundation awarded a $200 grant to the Cape Ann Amateur Radio
Association towards the purchase of equipment to support CAARA's
ongoing weekly Morse code classes. Details at
<http://ema.arrl.org/node/1903>.

EMA SEC Rob Macedo, KD1CY spoke at the Framingham ARA October meeting
about SKYWARN and EmComm during the Springfield tornados and Hurricane
Irene.

Framingham ARA mourns the loss of Silent Key Bill Smith, KE1GF of
Hopkinton.

Carol, K1CSF presented a show-and-tell on vintage computers along with
an intro to networking at the October Pilgrim ARC meeting in
Provincetown.

This SM, along with SEC KD1CY completed an ARES® survey in October to
provide input for the ARRL's Emergency Communications Advisory
Committee.

Shortwave broadcast station WBCQ in Monticello, Maine vacated 7.415 MHz
on Oct. 24 per FCC order. It has QSYed to 7.490 MHz. WBCQ also
broadcasts on 5.11, 9.33 and 15.42 MHz. Thanks, KC1MA.

Boston news outlets reported that a tower worker fell 1,000 feet to his
death on Oct. 16 from the American Radio Systems Tower (formerly known
as FM-128) next to Rt. 128 in Newton. Let this be a wake up call to
all amateur tower climbers: safety first! Don't EVER take chances with
your equipment. Be mindful of where those power lines are located
relative to your tower/antennas. Never work alone. And always, ALWAYS
be sure that you have at least one strap around your tower at all
times.

KA1EWN and KB1KA worked extra hard to help with antenna assembly work
for the Sturdy Memorial Hospital ARC's repeater. Other club members
contributed to the effort too, according to SMHARC's K2TGX.

Dennis Foley (SWL) and Paul Foley, N1KQR gave one of their "Tube Talks"
at the Whitman ARC's October meeting.

EMA ACC Bo Budinger, WA1QYM presented on "Growing Your Club" to members
of the Boston ARC in Brookline in October. Bo will give a repeat
performance to the folks at the Whitman ARC on Nov. 2.

Members of the Framingham Amateur Radio Association demonstrated
Amateur Radio to a Wellesley Cub Scout troop. Cub Master Jeff Piazza
paid the FARA crew a nice complement: "Thank you for a great evening
for the boys. As you can appreciate, keeping a group of boys this age
engaged and not bouncing off the walls can be a significant challenge,
but this was not an issue with last night's event. Clearly you were
doing something right!"

Yankee Clipper Contest Club conducted a recent "Contest University" in
Andover. "Professors" K1DG, K5ZD, and K1RX were on hand to present
tips, tricks, and techniques for maximizing contest performance.

WB1HGA saw this humorous video of a functional Lego Morse code paddle
on YouTube: <http://tinyurl.com/3zchxwd>.

North Shore amateurs provided communications support on Oct. 23 for the
Yukan Run Marathon in Rockport and Gloucester.

Amateurs assisted with communications at the Bay State Marathon on Oct.
16th in Lowell, according to KA8SCP.

The first nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System will take place
at 2 PM ET Nov. 9, 2011. The purpose of the test is to assess the
reliability and effectiveness of the system in alerting the public.

A hearty "welcome back" to Tom Walsh, K1TW. After a five-year hiatus,
Tom has returned home to Eastern MA from the Santa Clara Valley
section.

Colonial Wireless Assoc. members heard a presentation on ionospheric
sounding and propagation by David Kitrosser at CWA's October meeting.

Whitman ARC members will once again operate a special event station
from the Plimoth Plantation Nov. 25-27. Look for them on Echolink, IRLP
and 14.260, 18.160, 28.460 and 7.260 MHz.

Members of the Eastern MA ARRL staff will meet on Nov. 14 in Hopkinton
for their final quarterly meeting of 2011.

The Genesis ARS will conduct a General license class and VE session in
November, 2011. See <http://ema.arrl.org/node/1907> for more info.

WB1HGA reports that "HF has been hopping like the old days." Ron worked
T32C (Christmas I.) with only 3 watts on CW!

Nashoba Valley ARC Nov. 28 meeting will feature talks by K1DG on the
World Radiosport Team Championship, followed by EMA OOC K1EP on the
Amateur Auxiliary/OO Program.

KB1LXI reports that Taunton Emergency Management Agency received a
grant for an amphibious vehicle. The craft has eight wheels, carries
six people and/or equipment. They're possibly getting and outboard
motor, too.

73, de K9HI

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ARRL Eastern Massachusetts Section
Section Manager: Phillip Temples, K9HI
k9hi@arrl.org
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