Author: k9hi

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Major Announcement: Northeast HamXposition (formerly Boxboro!) is MOVING!

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Bob DeMattia, K1IW, writes: I am pleased to announce that the Northeast HamXposition (formerly Boxboro!) is MOVING! The 2020 Northeast HamXposition will be held July 24th, 25th, and 26th at the Best Western Royal Plaza Hotel & Trade Center, conveniently located in Marlborough, Massachusetts. The new venue offers us much-needed additional capacity for forums, a larger flea market, and ample parking right in the hotel’s main lot. For those staying at the convention hotel, your room rate includes a complimentary breakfast buffet. We will announce very soon when the hotel is accepting reservations. For those that like to take a …

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Affiliated Clubs

K1TWF: “ARRL Board Structure and Responsibilities” at Billerica ARS, February 5, 2020

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Andy Wallace, KA1GTT, writes on w1hh.org: Everyone, please mark your calendars for the next [Billerica Amateur Radio Society] meeting: Wednesday, February 5, 2020. Our speaker that evening will be Mike Raisbeck, K1TWF,  who was just elected as First Vice President of the American Radio Relay League. Meetings begin promptly at 7:00 PM, first Wednesday of the month. Our meeting location in Chelmsford is at: Chelmsford Bible Church 128 Gorham St. (Route 3A) Chelmsford, MA 01824 Please park in back and enter by the rear door. A map can be accessed by the “Club Meetings” notice on the right side of …

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Affiliated Clubs / Operating

PART Winter Field Day Wrap-up

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Brian McCaffrey, W1BP, writes on the PART of Westford mailing list: Thank you to everyone that helped make our Winter Field Day a success. Alan’s sign-in log indicates 12 attendees. On Friday, George and Alan helped get Bob’s 80m OCF antenna and tent up. On Saturday, Niece, Alan and George helped get the station running. Bob, W1FDR spent at least 4 hours at the mic getting phone QSOs over the two days. Andy and John worked CW in the evening. Alan and John did an awesome job serving as WSC attendants to fulfill our obligation to have a WSC member …

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Affiliated Clubs

Algonquin ARC Meets February 6, 2020

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The Algonquin Amateur Radio Club will meet on Thursday, February 6, 2020–a week earlier than normal–due to the flea market occurring the following week on February 15. The club’s flea market will be discussed. Also, there may be a speaker (to be determined). AARC meetings are held at 7:30 PM in the library of the 1st Lt. Charles W. Whitcomb Middle School in Marlborough, 25 Union Avenue. Use Door #1 at rear of building.

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Licensing Education & Training

New ARRL Mentoring Guide Available

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From WMA ARRL web: Western MA Section Manager Ray Lajoie, KB1LRL,  Technical Coordinator Greg Algieri, WA1JAR, Technical Specialist Paul Topolski, W1SEX, Technical Specialist Bob Meneguzzo, K1YO, and others in the section have put together a mentoring guide which is intended to be downloaded by whoever needs it and can edit it specific to their club or group.  This should be given to a person that has passed their test to provide basic information, club and contact information so they do not seem lost when they leave the room.  Hopefully it will introduce them to an Elmer (Mentor) to aid in …

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Affiliated Clubs

Waltham ARA Meets January 29, 2020

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The Waltham Amateur Radio Association will hold its monthly meeting at 7 PM on January 29, 2020 at the New York Life building, 201 Jones Road, Waltham, MA.  Directions: From beautiful downtown Waltham, stay on Main St. where it forks right onto Route 117. Jones Rd. is the 2nd left after the bridge over Route 128/95. New York Life is a six story office building at the end of Jones Rd. Turn right immediately before the building into the main parking lot. If nobody is at the door to let you in, knock on the conference room window to the …

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Licensing Education & Training

New Amateur Extra class (Element 4) pool will take effect on July 1, 2020

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From the ARRL VE Newsletter, January 2020: The new Amateur Extra class license examination question pool, effective from July 1, 2020, through June 30, 2024, has been released and is available at the National Conference of Volunteer Coordinators (NCVEC) website. The 2020 – 2024 Extra class pool incorporates significant changes compared to the current 2016 – 2020 question pool, which expires on June 30. The number of questions in the pool was reduced from 712 to 622. The result was 239 modified questions, 49 new questions, and 139 questions removed due to changes in what was felt to be an abundance of outdated questions, while areas of …

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Organization

Mike Raisbeck, K1TWF, Elected to ARRL First Vice President

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The ARRL Board of Directors has elected Mike Raisbeck, K1TWF, of Chelmsford, Massachusetts as First Vice President during its recent meeting January 17-18, 2020 in Connecticut. According to the League’s web site, “[Mike] was first licensed in 1961 as KN1TWF, becoming K1TWF in 1962, and has held that call ever since.  His home club is the Billerica Amateur Radio Club [sic], where he has held various posts.  On the air activities include DXing, contesting, and recently, caring for a DMR repeater in the attic. He is a Volunteer Examiner and a Volunteer Counsel. “Of particular interest to Mike are the social and …

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Licensing Education & Training / Public Information

Message to US Educators: Amateur Radio on the International Space Station Contact Opportunity

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The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Program is seeking formal and informal US education institutions and organizations, individually or working together, to host an Amateur Radio contact with a crew member on board the ISS. ARISS will open a proposal window February 1, 2020 for ham radio contacts that would be held between January 2021 and June 2021. Crew scheduling and ISS orbits will determine the exact contact dates. To maximize these radio contact opportunities, ARISS is looking for organizations whose proposal features a way to draw large numbers of participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed education plan. The window for accepting …

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Licensing Education & Training / Technical

Antennas 101 with Kiersten Kerby-Patel, January 24, 2020

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Have you ever wondered what an antenna actually does? Why all those big pokey things on top of many tall buildings look the way they do? How we’ve engineered the ability to radiate electromagnetic waves across continents and oceans? If so, join us this Friday to hear about: Antennas for Amateur Radio: Everything is a Dipole (except when it’s a loop) Friday, January 24th at 5:00 PM at MIT in room 4-270 Kiersten Kerby-Patel, University of Massachusetts at Boston Hosted by the MIT Radio Society Part of the IAP Radio Lecture Series <http://w1mx.mit.edu/iap/2020/> DINNER (Pizza) will be provided

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2020 Northeast HamXposition: New Venue and New Date!

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Northeast HamXposition 2019 General Chair Mike Raisbeck, K1TWF, writes to convention vendors and exhibitors on January 23, 2020: To all our vendors, past, present, and (we hope) future: Northeast HamXposition at Boxboro, the New England ARRL Division Convention, is now four months behind us.  The 2019 show went well.  The gate remained steady.  Attendance at the banquets, forums, and flea market was solid, and there were many smiling faces.  We have a formula that works well. So now it’s time for us to raise the bar.  Some big changes are coming to the Northeast HamXposition. The biggest is a change of date and venue.  Going forward, the Northeast …

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Public Information

“Ham Radio: a Hobby Still Alive and Thriving”

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The Boston University News Service carried this favorable story about Amateur Radio, Alan Lewis, K1ALL, and Whitman Amateur Radio Club members, written by Lillian Eden, published January 22, 2020, entitled, “Ham radio: a hobby still alive and thriving.” “Alan Lewis pledged to do two things when he retired: learn to weld and get an amateur radio license. He did both, and then took his amateur radio license one step further.   “Almost immediately after getting his license, Lewis said he started getting involved in the public service aspects of amateur radio, including emergency communication.  “Amateur radio, or ham radio, for a …

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Affiliated Clubs

Norwood ARC Meets January 23, 2020

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The Norwood Amateur Radio Club will hold its monthly meeting on January 23, 2020 at 7:30 PM in the Norwood Civic Center’s Willett Room, 165 Nahatan Street, Norwood, MA 02062.  The Civic Center is handicapped accessible, and ample free parking is available. All regular club meetings are open to the public, and guests are always welcome. Talk-in to the regular club meetings is available on the W1JLI Club Repeater 147.210 (PL 100.0) up to the start of the meeting.

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Licensing Education & Training / Youth

New England Sci-Tech General Class Course, Natick, February 1-2, 2020

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For junior high and high school students, homeschool students, and adults who already have a Technician level license, this fast-paced, two-day course will get you ready to take the GENERAL license exam. Topics range from the science of radio electronics to the FCC rules governing the radio spectrum.  Some preliminary reading and study is necessary to get the best results from this course. Material will be sent approximately a week before the course. The GENERAL level course runs Saturday, 8:30 am – 5 pm and Sunday, 8:30 am to noon, followed by the FCC General exam at noon, at New England Sci-Tech, 16 …

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Organization

Barry Shelley, N1VXY, to Become ARRL Interim CEO

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From ARRL Web:   01/19/2020 – At its meeting this weekend, the ARRL Board of Directors did not elect Howard Michel, WB2ITX [of Dartmouth, Massachusetts], as the ARRL Chief Executive Officer. Beginning Monday, January 20, Barry Shelley, N1VXY, will become interim CEO. Mr. Shelley was ARRL’s Chief Financial Officer for 28 years and CEO during 2018 before his retirement. The board has created a search committee to select the next CEO. More details on this and other matters which took place at the board meeting will be released shortly.    

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Algonquin ARC Flea Market, Marlborough, February 15, 2020

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The Algonquin Amateur Radio Club will hold its Marlborough Flea Market on February 15, 2020 from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM at the 1Lt Charles W. Whitcomb School, 25 Union St., Marlborough, MA. Talk-in is on the MMRA repeater, 147.27+ (PL 146.2). A VE session will be held beginning at 9:00 AM. General admission is $5. Vendor tables are $15 before February 9, 2018, or $20 at the door if space is available. Each table includes one admission. For more information, contact Tim Ikeda, KA1OS at 508-919-6136 (before 9:00 PM), email fleamarket@n1em.org or visit https://www.qsl.net/n1em/AARC_flea_2020_flier.pdf.  

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