BAA Marathon Volunteers Sought

Marathon Amateur Radio Communications 2011 logoBob De Mattia, K1IW writes:

Volunteer registration for the 2011 Boston Marathon is now open! The Marathon will be held on Monday April 18th. Radio operators are needed to provide safety communications and to assist the Red Cross. Assignments are available in Hopkinton, along the route, and in downtown Boston. To volunteer, go to http://marc.mmra.org and follow the instructions.

 

 

Halloween and PART Pumpkin Patrol, Sunday, Oct. 31, 2010

PART of Westford logoTerry Stader, KA8SCP writes on PART-L:

As we have done for many years, [the Police Amateur Radio Team of Westford] will once again be providing the Pumpkin Patrol service to the Town of Westford. Many of you are veterans and others may be volunteering for the first time… which ever you are… thank you in advance for your help!

Pumpkin Patrol involves the use of Amateur Radio volunteers providing additional eyes and ears to the Town of Westford during the annual Trick or Treat event. Our purpose is to observe and report any potential safety concerns back to the PART Pumpkin Patrol Net Control Station which will be located at the Westford Police station. A report from one of our patrols will get handed off to the Westford PD dispatcher and addressed by the Town’s public safety services. Our role is ONLY to report what we see and provide input to our Town’s public safety departments.

We normally require 5 – 8 radio operators per “shift” that will patrol various geographical sections of town. Maps and a checklist of locations to watch will be provided when you check-in for your assignment. Check-in occurs at the Westford Police station where we record your call sign and your vehicle information. You do NOT need to be a resident of the Town of Westford to volunteer, but a basic familiarity to the town’s geography is a plus! We have quite a few new hams and club members this year. If warranted, a meeting prior to the event may be scheduled. This will give our new folks and veterans a chance to interact and become comfortable with the operation.

The normal time for Trick or Treaters is 6 PM until 8 PM. Our activities have varied over the years, but we normally will run the operation from 5:30 PM until 10:00 – 11:00 PM. If the weather is lousy, the net closure time will be adjusted accordingly. We try and accommodate every individual’s schedule, we have run with 2 shifts in the past… an early and a late shift. We will accept your offer to assist at any time throughout the course of the evening.

The plans are to use the WB1GOF 2 meter repeater, 146.955 (PL 74.4), for the entire event. So all a volunteer will need is a radio capable of operating on that frequency. A vehicle will help too… but if you don’t drive and want to ride shotgun with another ham, that can be accommodated as well. If you’d like to do a bike or foot patrol, please contact me and we could talk thru that kind of an operation.

As you may have noticed, Pumpkin Patrol occurs at the same time as our regularly scheduled PART Net. The PART Net will run as normal. Pumpkin Patrol operations will inject with their traffic as necessary, so please standby for that traffic if you hear it.

Feel free to drop me a note with any questions and/or if you would like to volunteer. Pass this along to others who may be interested.

Terry Stader – KA8SCP
PART of Westford, Senior Club Advisor
(H) 978-692-2069
(C) 978-490-8150

Cranberry TriFest – Aug 28 & 29, Volunteers Needed!

Hello to all..

Please see the notice below on the Cranberry Trifest from Roland Daignault-N1JOY. Please also note that this is the same weekend as the New England ARRL Division Convention and Hamfest in Boxboro, Massachusetts:

*_Cranberry Trifest Aug. 28th & 29th_*

* Volunters Needed!

Team HAMCOW will again be supporting the Cranberry Trifest on both days.

*Cranberry Trifest offers a terrific weekend of racing including a sprint distance triathlon, a kids duathlon and the “classic” olympic
distance triathlon which has been selected as the 2010 USAT Northeast Regional Club Championship.

*Event Dates, Times and Location:

*Saturday, August 28, 2010: Sprint triathlon (9:00AM start) and kids duathlon (12:00PM start).
Sunday, August 29, 2010: Olympic triathlon (8:00AM start). The site of  the Cranberry Trifest is the Ted Williams Camp in Lakeville, MA with
entrances off Precinct Street and Rte 18.
*Ted Williams Camp, 44-47 Precinct St., Lakeville, MA

Beneficiaries of the 2010 Cranberry Trifest:*
A portion of the proceeds from the Cranberry Trifest will be donated to the Ted Williams Camp. Other beneficiaries include the Kiwanis of
Bridgewater, West Bridgewater Drama Club and the Freetown-Lakeville Aquatic Program.

Many racers participate in the DetermiNation program to raise funds for the National Cancer Society and the fight against cancer. We all
know somebody touched by cancer, so this is a good opportunity to have some fun and fight back by supporting those who are donating their efforts to fund research.

*Event Distances:
*Sprint: Swim: 0.5 mile; Bike: 11.5 miles; Run: 3.1 miles
Kids Duathlon: 1km, 2km, 1km**
<http://www.active.com/triathlon/lakeville-ma/cranberry-trifest-kids-duathlon-2010>
Olympic: Swim: 0.9 miles; Bike 26.3 miles*; Run: 6.2 miles

Please check out the Cranberry TriFest web page at:
http://www.cranberrycountrytri.com/

The HAMCOW will be our net control station and operators will be needed around the course at checkpoints, water stops, course rovers, and
people to stay at the camp to monitor the swim, bike, and run transition areas. Camping on site will be allowed for the radio operators, so
please consider joining the gang and staying for the Friday and Saturday night activities.

After Sunday’s olympic triathlon, a nice catered meal will be provided for everybody. We also receive nice sports T-shirts and occasionally
hats. Free stuff is always cool!

Radio ops can use 2 Meters, 440, HT’s or mobiles. We have plenty of locations along the course to accommodate everybody.

I’m going to say it here so everybody is aware; this event falls on the same weekend as the Boxboro Hamfest, which puts extra pressure on
getting volunteers for the triathlon. Please pass the word along to anybody you might know who would be interested in supporting us at the
Cranberry, even for only one day. I have always tried to be accommodating to folks who need to depart early, so I can assign them to
a checkpoint that will clear out early, but we do need folks to stay the duration.

If you are interested, please contact me via e-mail (n1joy@arrl.net) or on my cell phone at (617)-839-9081.

Thanks!

Roland – N1JOY

Volunteers Needed For Good Friday Walk, Hingham MA

Harold “Pi” Pugh, K1RV writes on the K1USN reflector:

Anne, WB1ARU is looking for an additional 1-3 ham operators for a Good Friday Walk. The Good Friday Walk is held on a 20-mile course in Hingham to raise money for Sharing Inc. She could use from 1 to 3 more operators in the morning and/or early afternoon for shifts of 3 to 4 hours.

“A two meter hand-held or mobile radio is needed; we use the Weymouth repeater. We have not had much in the way of problems over the years, most of the communication is routine and infrequent. It’s a great bunch of people dedicated to a good cause.”

If anyone would like more information, they can contact Anne at enoaru at gis.net.

Kuss Middle School Ham Radio Class Needs A Volunteer

teach logoRoland Daignault, N1JOY writes on the BCRA-club reflector:

I received a message from Joe Cote, KB1LJG who is the instructor at Kuss Middle School in Fall River, MA]. Joe will be out the last seven weeks of school due to shoulder surgery and is looking for a volunteer to pick up the ham radio class for that time. There will be a substitute instructor, but they will not have the ham radio background. The ham radio class is part of the regular Kuss curriculum, and the classes will be 3 days a week on Wednesday, Thursday, & Friday. Wednesday is from 12:30-2:00 PM, Thursday from 2:00-3:30 and Friday from 7:40 AM -9:00 AM. Wednesday April 29th would be the first class and it will end Friday June 12th.

Anybody interested? Maybe a couple of people could split the duties?

Joe can be contacted directly at: joecotekms at yahoo.com.

 

Call For Volunteers–Walk For Hunger, May 3, 2009

Project Bread logoEric Horwitz, KA1NCF writes:

Greetings! This is for Boston, MA area hams. It is that time again… Public Service season is here. We are now looking for help for this year’s Project Bread Walk for Hunger on Sunday, May 3, 2009.

This will be the 41st running of the event. We need people to provide communications support for the Project Bread Staff and volunteers along the 20 mile walk in Boston, MA.

If you are interested in helping out this year, go to http://wfh.mmra.org to log in and fill out the signup form.

If you have questions please send an email to: w4h@nsradio.org

73,
Eric – KA1NCF
Walk For Hunger 2009
Amateur Radio Communications Coordinator
Email: w4h@nsradio.org

2009 Boston Marathon — Call For Volunteers

BAA logoThe 2009 Boston Marathon will be on Monday, April 20. Registration for amateur radio volunteers for the has already opened. If you would like to volunteer, follow the instructions on the following website:

http://marc.mmra.org

Assignments vary greatly and equipment needs will vary with the assignment that you select. Generally, at least a 2M/440 HT is required, with batteries to last the entire day, but please refer to the assignment details or ask the event coordinators (see website address above for names, email addresses and phone numbers). All Boston Marathon volunteers receive a light jacket.

Thanks, wma.arrl.org

Volunteers Needed For Cranberry Country Triathlon, August 24, 2008

Cranberry Country Triathlon logoRoland Daignault, N1JOY writes on BCRA-Club list:

Just a reminder that the Cranberry Country Triathlon is on August 24 and we’re looking for radio operators to cover the course. If this race runs the same as the Patriot event, the swim portion didn’t really require radio ops, and the running race was over by noon time. Then the bike race lasted until about 4:30 PM. I will be hauling out the HAMCOW for Net Control. Operators will need at least a 2 Meter HT, and we will be using repeaters and simplex. The start point will be at the Ted Williams baseball camp in Lakeville, which is a nice facility if you’ve ever been there.

Check out the triathlon web site, complete with maps of the course.

http://www.cranberrycountrytri.com/

I hope to see you there!

Police Amateur Radio Team To Assist In Westford Apple Blossom Parade

Police Amateur Radio Team of Westford logoTerry Stader, KA8SCP writes on PART-L:

Once again, the ham radio community has been asked to assist as a communications resource for the Westford Apple Blossom Parade on Saturday, May 17, 2008.

The parade starts around 10 AM and will start near the junction of Graniteville Rd and Main St. and ending at Abbot School. Duty will be from 8:30/9:00AM until 11:00AM/noon at the latest. You will need to bring a 2 meter walkie. We need about 10-12 operators for this event.

Most volunteers will be assigned to “shadow” various members of the Parade committee. We will also be manning the Special Operations Vehicle (which may actually be a parade participant) as well as the Net Control Station at the Police station. Our actual duty will not start till about 9:00AM but we need to get into the center of town (meet in the PD/Town Hall parking lot) before the roads are closed and we need to establish our assignments by 8:30 AM or so.

Please contact me if you are interested and can assist or need more information.

Terry Stader, KA8SCP
ka8scp@wb1gof.org

BAA Marathon Call for Volunteers

BAA logoThe Marathon Amateur Radio Communications (MARC) consortium is looking for ham radio operators to assist at the 2008 Boston Marathon. The Marathon is held annually on Patriots Day, this year that’s Monday, April 21. We need people to provide communications is support of three areas:

START LINE (Hopkinton)
Runner & observer safety & security, parking lots, VIP escorts

COURSE (Hopkinton to Boston)
First Aid & Water station coordination

FINISH LINE (Boston)
First Aid, safety & security

If you are interested in any of these positions, please visit the MARC website to sign up:

http://marc.amateur-radio.net

73,
Bob – K1IW
MARC Recruitment Coordinator 1 1 1

BAA Marathon Call For Volunteers

BAA logoThe Marathon Amateur Radio Communications (MARC) consortium is looking for ham radio operators to assist at the 2008 Boston Marathon. The Marathon is held annually on Patriots Day, this year that’s Monday, April 21. We need people to provide communications is support of three areas:

START LINE (Hopkinton)
Runner & observer safety & security, parking lots, VIP escorts

COURSE (Hopkinton to Boston)
First Aid & Water station coordination

FINISH LINE (Boston)
First Aid, safety & security

If you are interested in any of these positions, please visit the MARC website to sign up:

http://marc.amateur-radio.net

73,
Bob – K1IW
MARC Recruitment Coordinator

PART To Conduct Annual “Pumpkin Patrol”

The Police Amateur Radio Team of Westford will conduct its annual “Pumpkin Patrol” on Wednesday, October 31, 2007. Participants will patrol various neighborhoods of Westford during and after “treat or treat” time, and radio any unusual activity to the police. PART conducts this activity with the cooperation of the Westford Police Department.

“This is an activity that PART has been doing since its inception back in the late 1970’s,” writes PART President Art “Bo” Budinger, WA1QYM.

“It is mainly a mobile operation but indeed we can use people with handi-talkies and people to help out at the police station,” Bo adds. “We don’t have a coordinator for this event yet, but when we do I will let you all know and you can volunteer directly to that person.”

–Thanks, PART Particles, Vol. 12 Number 7

Ham Volunteers Sought For Chelmsford Fourth of July Parade

Alan Martin, W1AHM writes on PART-L:

The Northern Middlesex ARES group is organizing ham radio event support for Chelmsford’s annual 4th of July parade. The parade is on a Wednesday this year.

Ham radio volunteers are needed to work the parade by shadowing officials, helping to organize floats and marchers, or monitoring the route. If you are interested, please contact Darrel Mallory at k1ej at arrl dot net.

Volunteers Sought For Middleboro YMCA Walk-a-thon

Massasoit ARA logoThe Massasoit Amateur Radio Association is calling for ham radio volunteers to provide emergency communication support for the Camp Yomechas 5k Road Race on June 3, 2007. The volunteers will congregate at 8:00 a.m. at Camp Yomechas and receive communication assignments for one of the various intersections along the race course. Talk-in will be conductedd on the Bridgewater 147.180 MHz repeater.

–Thanks, Whitman ARC Spectrum, May 2007

Volunteers Sought For Apple Blossom Parade

PART of Westford logoThe Police Amateur Radio Team of Westford is seeking volunteers for the Apple Blossom Parade Communications Event on Saturday, May 12, 2007. According to PART’s Bo Budinger, WA1QYM, “A number of people have volunteered to assist, but we are still looking for additional help.”

The parade runs from 10 AM until 11 AM starting near the junction of Graniteville Road and Main Street and ending at Abbot School. Duty will be from 8:30/9:00AM until 11:00AM/noon at the latest. Adds Budinger, “You will need to bring a 2-meter walkie.”

If interested, please contact Terry Stader, KA8SCP at ka8scp at wb1gof dot org.

–Thanks, PART Particles, Volume 12, No. 3

Boston ARC Honored For MS Walk Volunteer Work

Boston ARC logoAt a meeting of staff and hundreds of volunteers of the Central New England Chapter of the Multiple Sclerosis Society, Bob Salow, WA1IDA and the Boston Amateur Radio Club were honored with the MS Walk Volunteer Award for 2006.

Salow and BARC were cited for the notable communications support given to the MS events. An engraved glass medallion was presented to WA1IDA by the Chairman of the Board of the Central New England Chapter of the MS Society.

BARC is looking for volunteers to support two concurrent MS events on April 29, 2007: the Boston MS Walk which will start and finish at the Harvard athletic facility on North Harvard Street near Soldiers Field Rd in Brighton, and the MS Journey of Hope which runs at Elm Bank in Wellesley and finishes at the Harvard athletic facility. If you can lend a hand, contact Bob, WA1IDA at wa1ida@arrl.net or call 508.650.9440.

Red Cross Backs Off On Credit Checks For Volunteers

Red Cross logoCQ Magazine Public Service Editor Bob Josuweit, WA3PZO, reports that the American Red Cross has announced changes to its controversial policy requiring background checks of all volunteers, including, in many cases, hams working through the Amateur Radio Emergency Service. Many hams were concerned about invasion of privacy, as the standard consent form granted permission not only for criminal background checks but also for credit checks and “mode of living” checks.

A spokeswoman for the Red Cross region serving Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas, has confirmed the following changes in the background check policy:

* A new consent form will be developed that eliminates all references to credit checks and mode of living.

* People who signed the previous forms will not be subject to credit checks or mode of living checks. A new form will be developed for those positions requiring credit checks.

* Red Cross senior management will establish a policy to define which positions will require credit checks and how those checks will be evaluated.

WA3PZO will have additional details in his April “Public Service” column.

–Thanks, Stillwater ARA Radioham.org

K1USN To Operate In JOTA Oct. 21

Watson Library, photo courtesy K1USN RC web siteMembers of the K1USN Radio Club plan to operate W1BSA during the upcoming Jamboree On The Air on Oct. 21, according to Harold “Pi” Pugh, K1RV.

“This should be a good opportunity to demonstrate our capabilities as well as introducing people to the Thomas Watson Library and Research Center,” writes Pi. “We have made a lot of progress getting K1USN back on the air and want everyone to see how it looks.”

[See also: USS Salem RC Has A New Home At Watson Library]