May 2025 Section News Update
HAPPY SPRING! And this weekend, HAMVENTION (Dayton/Xenia)! Wow, the time is really flying past. It’s hard to believe it’s Spring already, but the temperatures are getting reasonable, the flowers are blooming, the pollen level is beyond crazy, and allergy meds have become a required part of the daily regimen! And here on the Cape, the inevitable trickle of tourists has begun. It’s getting harder daily to make left turns, with the increased traffic. And some of our favorite restaurants are awakening from their winter slumber. Let Spring begin!
* HAMVENTION is Just Around the Corner!
Sadly, I won’t be attending HamVention this year – maybe next year – but here’s a hearty “safe travels” to all from Eastern MA heading to Xenia. When you get back, please email with stories – even better with pictures! Tell us about that great deal you scored or that long time radio buddy you finally got to have an eyeball QSO with. I love having new material to post on the Section website and in this newsletter.
* Field Day is June 28-29
I hope your plan for Field Day 2025 is coming along! It’s coming up quick – June 28-29 this year. The League has all manner of materials to help you and your club get started, including the FD site locator, and the 2025 ARRL Field Day Public Relations Kit [PDF] at https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zMzEwNjY0JnA9MSZ1PTUyNDYxMTkzMiZsaT0zNzcwMTg1MA/index.html to get you started – including a press release template that you can use for your activation. Full details at https://arrl.org/field-day
This year I intend to visit as many Field Day sites in person as I can fit in. I’ll be starting Saturday morning in northeast MA (Cape Ann ARA, I’m lookin’ at you), then making my way through the section over Saturday and Sunday. Please, PLEASE register your FD site on the FD site locator on the ARRL website so I can plan my journey. I’m very much looking forward to seeing so many of you!
* Boy Scout Camp Greenough Amateur Radio Station Grand Opening
The Barnstable Amateur Radio Club is very excited to announce the Grand Opening of the newly constructed Camp Greenough Amateur Radio Station scheduled for Saturday May 31st starting at 2PM, in conjunction with the Chuck Wagon Event. The station is located in the basement of the Maushop Lodge.
This station is the culmination of the efforts by members of the Barnstable Amateur Radio Club, contributions of the American Radio Relay League, and many local businesses and the support of the Cape and Island council leadership. More details at https://ema.arrl.org/2025/05/07/camp-greenough-amateur-radio-station-grand-opening-yarmouth-port-may-31-2025/
* EMA Hams Developing Ham/STEM Course for Local Private School
Geoff, W1GCF, is developing a ham course for Al Hamra Academy. Al Hamra is a private school that promotes itself as an “Islamic progressive STEM school.” The progressive part includes interlocking courses with ambitious curricula. So, for example, there is an architectural physics course where the instructor will be talking about resonance in structures and the importance of damping it. Geoff and Andy, KB1OIQ, made a presentation to the school that was very well received.
The course Geoff is developing is not a typical license course. Most of the course is about introducing students to the concept of Electromagnetism along with underlying electronics and test gear. The focus is hands on experience rather than requiring too much of the math. Getting licensed is part of the course, but this is a graded academic course on the physics of electromagnetism. Contact Geoff at w1gcf@arrl.net with questions and for more information.
* New Version of Andy’s Ham Radio Linux (AHRL) Available
Andy’s Ham Radio Linux (AHRL) v26d has been released. Several software packages were updated (enumerated in the CHANGES file). Support was added for LMDE6. For more info and a link to download it:
https://sourceforge.net/projects/kb1oiq-andysham/
* Reviving the Harvard Wireless Club
Leo Koerner W1SSS is trying to revive the Harvard Wireless Club, a group of amateur (“ham”) radio enthusiasts. Unlike the student DJs at WHRB, Koerner’s crew operates two-way radios: essentially superpowered, imprecise walkie-talkies. Harvard’s ham radio station is the sixth oldest in the country, founded in 1909. Full story at https://ema.arrl.org/2025/04/29/small-talk-from-afar/
* 2025 Northeast HamXposition is Coming!
Mark your calendars! The 2025 Northeast HamXposition is not that far away: August 21-24, 2025, in Marlborough, MA. This is New England’s premier ham gathering. I hope to have an eyeball QSO with all of you at HamX! More info at https://hamxposition.org/
* Recruiting IT/Website Talent to Help Maintain EMA Section Website
Are you an IT person with some experience with WordPress? Could you volunteer an hour or two per week to help keep the EMA website? I’m looking for someone to provide some backup/relief for our tireless web site administrator, to keep an ear open for goings-on in the section, and to timely post short articles to the site, keeping the news fresh. If you are interested, please email me at n1ilz@arrl.org.
* Virtual NTS Traffic Net Going Strong
Many Technician class amateurs miss out on fun and skills learning of traffic handling because they reside in areas of the country where local traffic nets on VHF repeaters don’t exist. The Virtual NTS Traffic Net (VNTN) seeks to address this problem with the creation of a Zoom-based local traffic net that can be accessed by anyone with an internet connection.
The Net meets weekly, and held its inaugural session on Wednesday, March 5, 2025, at 7:00 PM ET. The VNTN URL is: https://bitl.to/3xj4 The net will be changing time to 8 PM ET soon – stay tuned for details.
Full details at https://ema.arrl.org/2025/03/05/virtual-nts-traffic-net-begins-march-5-2025/
* Still Recruiting a New Section Youth Coordinator
Sadly, our Section’s former Section Youth Coordinator, Paul K1YUB, is now a Silent Key. I need to fill this important position on the EMA Section Staff. The SYC requirement and job description is at https://www.arrl.org/section-youth-coordinator If you are interested in this volunteer position, please contact me at n1ilz@arrl.org – I’ll appreciate it greatly!
* N1ILZ for a Final
I hope you’re all enjoying the joys that Spring brings, with warmer weather, no more snow, and – lest I forget – ice cream!! Get out there and get those new antennas up or fix the damage from the ravages of winter. Most of all, get on the air and have fun!
Can you write a paragraph or two about what you’re up to, so I can publish it in the Section Update? Let me know via email at n1ilz@arrl.org!
* For always up-to-date news, please visit the EMA Section website at http://ema.arrl.org
This Section News Update was brought to you by Section Manager Jon N1ILZ.
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Jeff Stuparits, W4DD, will present “Locating Power Line Noise and other RFI” at the Sci-Tech Amateur Radio Society hybrid meeting on May 13, 2025 in Natick and online.
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Barnstable Amateur Radio Club Press Release:
David Marcucci, KC1TLF, writes on the Billerica ARS Facebook page:
Dom Mallozzi, N1DM, will present “A Smorgasbord of Radio” at the May 8 meeting of the Algonquin Amateur Radio Club at 7:30 PM in the library of the 1st Lt. Charles W. Whitcomb School, 25 Union St, Marlborough, MA. Enter from Agoritsas Drive next to police station and use Door #1 at rear of building.
