November 2019: EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS (EMA) SECTION NEWS
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Welcome to the Eastern Massachusetts ARRL section newsletter.
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To see the complete monthly section news, which is updated regularly, visit <https://ema.arrl.org/>.
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UP FRONT
WELCOME NEW ASSISTANT SECTION MANAGER (ASM): STU SOLOMON, W1SHS
It is a pleasure to announce the appointment of Stu Solomon, W1SHS to the role of Assistant Section Manager (ASM). Stu has had a lifelong love of technology in all forms. Stu is currently a volunteer member of the leadership staff at New England Sci-Tech (NEST). As a section ASM, Stu will advise the ARRL EMA staff and assist with various projects.
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MASSACHUSETTS DISTRACTED DRIVING LAW
The story of the month certainly is the sudden surprise appearance of the Massachusetts Distracted Driving Law after it had been held in committee for months https://ema.arrl.org/2019/11/16/ma-lawmakers-announce-surprise-agreement-on-distracted-driving-legislation/.
With little time to react, amateurs across the state contacted their State House Representatives and Senators to get clarification on the impact the final text of the bill would have on continued use of amateur 2-way radio operation. This outpouring of concern from the ham radio community resulted in a statement sent on November 21 from the General Counsel’s office in the Joint Committee on Transportation to Tom, K1TW, the ARRL Eastern Massachusetts section manager.
An excerpt from that communication seems particularly relevant to the discussion on the distracted driving legislation. “It is the Committee’s view that the legislation does not alter, amend or limit existing language in section 13 of chapter 90 of the General Laws that expressly permits use of a ‘federally licensed 2–way radio’ provided that ‘1 hand remains on the steering wheel at all times.’ I have reproduced GL 90:13 below and highlighted the relevant provision.”
The General Counsel of the Joint Transportation Committee requested we distribute their statement to the amateur radio community in Massachusetts to clarify the impact the bill has on amateur radio operations.
The full statement has been posted on both the EMA and WMA ARRL websites:
https://ema.arrl.org/2019/11/21/impact-on-amateur-radio-from-distracted-driving-bill/
https://wma.arrl.org/impact-on-amateur-radio-from-distracted-driving-bill.html
Finally, a word of thanks to Massachusetts amateur radio operators from Ray Lajoie, KB1LRL, (WMA section manager), and Tom Walsh K1TW, (EMA section manager). Ray and Tom worked in unison to get the word out across the state. We are very appreciative of the excellent response from the amateur radio community statewide.
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K1IR TOWER SAFETY TALK ONLINE
Jim Idelson, K1IR, has been traveling around the Section and Division delivering his very important talk on Tower Safety. He has spoken at the Northeast HamXposition (a.k.a. the New England Division Convention), NEAR-Fest, and local clubs. A video of his talk recorded at the November meeting of the Billerica ARS is found at https://blog.thedrivenelement.com/2019/11/amateur-radio-tower-safety-presentation-for-the-billerica-ars/
Concerned with the number of tower tragedies Jim has started a blog called “The Driven Element” https://blog.thedrivenelement.com/. If you club would like to schedule the talk, please contact Jim directly at jim@k1ir.com.
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BURLINGTON EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS MEETING
Amateurs and public safety officials met in Burlington on October 30, 2019 to discuss emergency communications and preparedness for the Town, according to Section Emergency Coordinator Rob Macedo, KD1CY. “We had a successful meeting and presentation [attended by] a lieutenant from the Burlington Police Department, the Fire Chief/Director of Emergency Management, and the Director of Burlington’s Medical Reserve Corps along with several hams,” said Macedo. “The amateurs will work with the town officials to help establish strong contact with the local police, fire, and the Burlington Emergency Management Agency to assist with community events, hold exercises, and reach out to other amateurs in the community at the appropriate time.”
“It was a well informed and very educational meeting on emergency communication and preparedness,” remarked Burlington resident and Quannapowitt Radio Association (QRA) president Don Melanson, W1DM. “I believed it opened everyone’s eyes on just what Amateur Radio operators’ skills are. I have suggested using hams for some of the local events to start, like the town parades, car shows and other events for exposure and training.”
QRA member and Middleton resident Ron Draper WA1QZK, also spoke to the group about RACES, FEMA, and ARES involvement during emergencies.
Currently Burlington is looking for residents in the town to volunteer for community service for hazardous waste day, blood drives, flu clinics, and other events. The Town will kick off a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) beginning in early 2020, according to the police department’s spokesperson. Melanson hopes a large number of hams will become involved in the CERT effort.
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LOCAL CLUBS ASSIST OLIN COLLEGIATE ARC MEMBERS WITH ANTENNA PROJECT
Members of Olin College’s new amateur radio club visited New England Sci-Tech on Tuesday night, joining members of the Framingham Amateur Radio Association, Wellesley Amateur Radio Society and host group, Sci-Tech Amateur Radio Society (STARS), in a casual meet and greet. STARS members Nolan Palmer, KC1IEO, and Mindy Hull, KM1NDY, assisted the Olin students in testing their antennas out in the parking lot.
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BOSTON ARC TO PARTICIPATE IN SKYWARN RECOGNITION DAY, DECEMBER 7, 2019
On December 7, 2019, and for the 17th consecutive year, [the Boston Amateur Radio Club] will once again participate in SKYWARN Recognition Day. SRD is a joint event supported by the ARRL and the National Weather Service where weather stations and weather buffs from across the country contact each other for fun and to promote the SKYWARN Program. Our station, WX1BHO, will be located at the summit of Great Blue Hill in Milton, MA. For several decades, hams have assisted the National Weather Service by providing real-time reports of severe weather and storm conditions. Although the NWS operates a network of 120 Doppler radars to track severe storms, at greater ranges weather radar has a difficult time sampling conditions close to the ground. The information radio operators located near a storm provide plays a key role in aiding forecasters.
Stations will exchange signal reports, location and a brief description of the current weather at their respective locations (“sunny,” “partly cloudy,” “windy,” etc.). BARC will be on the air from approximately 0900 to 1500 local time. The event itself is a great way in a low-key environment to make HF contacts and get your feet wet in the HF Spectrum. In past years we have endured all kinds of weather including warm and cold days, clear and cloudy days, and yes, even a blizzard.
Currently, we expect to be operating on 2, 20, and 40 meters. We may add other bands and modes including CW on 15 meters.
Access to the summit is gained by a 20-minute hike from the base of Great Blue Hill located on Route 138 next to the DCR Trailside Museum or (if you arrive early in the day) by car. Further information is available by contacting Mark Duff, KB1EKN, at emgmgt@comcast.net. Joe Chapman, NV1W, will be unable to hike up this year, but will coordinate those who wish to walk up. Contact him at nv1w@arrl.net. (Courtesy, Boston ARC’s The SPARC, November 2019)
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NEW AFFILIATED CLUB SERVICE OFFERED: YOUR CLUB ON THE WEB!
We understand it’s difficult to recruit and retain a webmaster for your club. In fact, some clubs’ web sites have fallen into disrepair. That’s why we’re excited to offer this new service to ARRL affiliated clubs—a hosted page on the EMA ARRL web site. The address is of the form, https://ema.arrl.org/<Your Club Name>. The pages would be maintained by our webmaster, with input from your club officers.
What would the page look like? We’ve set up an example featuring the fictional “No Name” Amateur Radio Club, at https://ema.arrl.org/affiliated-club-template/ .
Questions? Contact ACC Andy Stewart, KB1OIQ, at <kb1oiq@mval.net> or ASM Phil Temples, K9HI, at k9hi@arrl.org.
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WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THAT RADIO CLUB?
Please visit <https://ema.arrl.org/affiliated-clubs/radio-clubs-of-yesteryear/> and send any information you might have to our Assistant Section Manager (ASM) Phil Temples, K9HI, at <k9hi@arrl.org>.
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FLEA MARKETS:
January 18, 2020 Whitman MA @ Knights of Columbus Rt18 Chris N1CFB 508-224-8528 http://www.wa1npo.org/WF/WinterfestFlyer2020.pdf
February 15, 2020 Marlboro MA Algonquin ARC 25 Union St Tim KA1OS 508-919-6136. https://www.qsl.net/n1em/
A full list of New England flea markets can be found at https://ema.arrl.org/2019/10/11/new-england-area-flea-markets-october-4-2019/
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PUBLIC SERVICE EVENTS
December 1: Santa Claus Parade, Gloucester
December 1: Holiday Marathon 5K/Half Marathon, Gloucester
December 1: North Attleborough Santa Parade, North Attleborough
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NEWS FROM EMA.ARRL.ORG:
Each day on the section web site we bring you news and information from Eastern Massachusetts and beyond. Visit https://ema.arrl.org for the latest.
Please visit the website for the latest news.
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EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS ARES
The first Monday of every month is a test of the Massachusetts RACES and ARES communication capabilities. The monthly ARES VHF Net is at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system.
To see all the recent news on Eastern Massachusetts ARES please visit <https://ema.arrl.org/category/emcomm/>. This site is constantly maintained with the latest happenings by our EMA SEC, Rob, KD1CY.
If you are interested in joining Eastern Massachusetts ARES, visit <https://secure1.ema.arrl.org/qilan/ares/EMA/ARES_about>.
To find out more about EMA ARES visit <https://ema.arrl.org/ares/>.
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Section Traffic Manager (STM), Marcia KW1U
The October section traffic manager report may be viewed at https://ema.arrl.org/2019/11/22/massachusetts-traffic-report-for-october-2019/.
This report lists all the PSHR and BPL recognitions for the month of October and details the very extensive level of NTS activity across the state.
September BPL recipients: KW1U, N1IQI
September PSHR recipients: KW1U, N1TF, N1IQI, W1RVY, KC1HHO, KD2JKV, N1LAH, KE1ML, WA1LPM.
Find the list of all NTS daily nets in Massachusetts here: <https://ema.arrl.org/national-traffic-system/net-schedule/>.
To see more news on Eastern Massachusetts Traffic Handling and Nets visit <https://ema.arrl.org/category/nts/>.
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NET REPORTS
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FIRST REGION NET (1RN) REPORT (CW)
Eric, W1RVY, is manager of 1RN Cycle 4, the evening CW net. As November is not quite over at this writing, the November net report will be in the next issue.
FIRST REGION NET (FRN) REPORT (SSB)
Betsey, K1EIC, is manager of FRN Cycle 2, the daytime SSB net. As November is not quite over at this writing, the November net report will be in the next issue.
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Section website: <https://ema.arrl.org/>
Section Facebook page: <https://www.facebook.com/easternmaarrl/>
Section Leadership: <https://ema.arrl.org/organization/#Section_Leadership>
Section Public Service List: <https://ema.arrl.org/2019/03/05/ema-public-service-list/>
Section Speaker List: <https://ema.arrl.org/2018/04/16/eastern-ma-club-speakers-list/>.
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FINAL WORD
Ray, KB1LRL, and Tom, K1TW, wish to thank all the ARRL members in both Western and Eastern Massachusetts who communicated our concerns so effectively as a community to the Senators and Representatives and staff across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Happy Holidays to all.
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To join EMA ARES visit <https://secure1.ema.arrl.org/qilan/ares/EMA/ARES_about>
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ACKOWLEDGEMENT
This November section news has been jointly produced by K9HI and K1TW.
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ARRL Eastern Massachusetts Section
Section Manager: Thomas D Walsh, K1TW
k1tw@arrl.org
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