Operators Sought for MA 13 Colonies Special Event, July 1-7, 2026

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K2H 250th QSL cardLarry Krainson, W1AST, writes:

I’m looking for volunteers to serve as special event station operators for 13 Colonies 2026. It runs July 1-7.

If you would like to experience what it’s like to be the “DX” in a pileup and enjoy the rush of making contacts, become a 13 Colonies K2H op.

Your transmitter MUST be in Massachusetts at all times.

This year’s theme is the Declaration of Independence, which was first read in the state 250 years ago.

This is a fun operating event. You can be one of approximately 20 ops in MA. Last year we made close to 20,000 QSOs in just seven days.

The deadline to sign up is May 30th, 2026. If you’re interested in becoming an op for K2H, please contact:

Larry, W1AST
FunHamRadio@gmail.com

 

2026 World Soccer Tournament Coming to Foxborough!

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W1C QSL CardLarry Krainson, W1AST, writes:

The 2026 World Soccer Tournament is coming to Massachusetts. There will be special event stations running each of the following days. This is a worldwide event with games held here in Massachusetts.

There are seven games being played at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro.

Hams are needed every day to run a special event station with the call sign W1C. A special QSL card will be available. All modes and bands can be active.

The dates operators are needed:

Sat, June 13
Tue, June 16
Fri, June 19
Tue, June 23
Fri, June 26
Mon, June 29
Thur, July 9

If you are available to operate any or all of these dates, please contact:

Larry, W1AST
FunHamRadio@gmail.com

2026 National Hurricane Conference Amateur Radio Hybrid Workshop, March 31, 2026

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hurricane flagsRob Macedo, KD1CY, writes:
 
Amateur Radio will again be represented at the 2026 National Hurricane Conference which will be held this year in Orlando, Florida <http://www.hurricanemeeting.com>. This year, the workshop will be done both live at the conference and over livestream similar to 2025.  The conference theme is to improve hurricane preparedness as it has been in past years. After the workshop is completed, the Amateur Radio Workshop will be uploaded to YouTube for those that can’t attend the sessions live. For 2026, all the Amateur Radio sessions will be on Tuesday March 31st, 2026 from 130 PM-315 PM EDT and from 330 PM-500 PM EDT. Each presenter will not only give an overview of their respective group but also how their group handled the significant hurricanes over the past year. Here is the session breakdown:

NHC Session #1 – 130 PM-315 PM EDT: Bob Robichaud-VE1MBR from the Canadian Hurricane Centre will present on Hurricane Meteorological topics and a 2025 Hurricane Season review. He will also provide a brief overview of Canadian Hurricane Centre Operations. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) will present a NHC Overview of Amateur Radio Collaboration During Hurricanes. Julio Ripoll-WD4R will present WX4NHC Operations. KB5HAV-Bobby Graves will give an overview on the Hurricane Watch Net (HWN).

NHC Session #2: 330 PM-500 PM EDT: Rob Macedo-KD1CY will present on the VoIP Hurricane Net and best practices in SKYWARN for Tropical Systems, Bill Feist-WB8BZH & Joe Bassett-W1WCN will present a SATERN (Salvation Army Team Emergency Response Radio Network) overview. Josh Johnston-KE5MHV will give an ARRL update. This will be followed by a Q & A session and raffle prizes will be offered.

Amateur Radio presentations will be recorded and posted to YouTube after the workshop within the month of April. The Amateur Radio presentations will also be livestreamed via YouTube as a best effort. It is noted that Internet connectivity can be a challenge at hotel locations for livestreaming though it has been very robust in 2024-2025 so we expect 2026 to be no different. That said, we remind participants that we will do our best to livestream the workshop but please note technical difficulties could affect the livestream so please be patient if you watch the livestream and we will have recordings available post workshop. The YouTube livestream link will be <https://www.youtube.com/live/k9aHwsliekU>.

 
2026 National Hurricane Conference Presenters and Moderator:
•    Moderator: Rob Macedo, KD1CY, VoIP Hurricane Net
•    Special guest speaker Bob Robichaud, VE1MBR, Canadian Hurricane Center
•    Special guest speaker Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, Director of Emergency Management, ARRL HQ
•    Bobby Graves, KB5HAV, Hurricane Watch Net – Net Manager
•    Julio Ripoll, WD4R, WX4NHC Assistant Amateur Radio Station Coordinator
•    Bill Feist, WB8BZH, SATERN, Salvation Army Team Emergency Response Radio Network
•    Joe Bassett, W1WCN, Southern Territory Assistant SATERN Coordinator
•    Rob Macedo, KD1CY, Director of Operations, VoIP Hurricane Net & ARRL ARES Eastern Mass SEC
•    Jim Palmer, KB1KQW, VoIP Hurricane Net (Videographer)

Detailed Schedule Outline – All Times (Eastern Daylight Time):
130-135 PM: Opening Remarks
135-200 PM: Canadian Hurricane Centre and Hurricane Meteorological Topics (VE1MBR-Bob R) 
200-210 PM: NHC Overview of Amateur Radio Collaboration During Hurricanes (NHC)
210-245 PM: WX4NHC Amateur Radio Station at the National Hurricane Center (WD4R)
245-315 PM: HWN Overview (KB5HAV)
315-330 PM: Break
330-400 PM: VoIP Hurricane Net Overview & Best Practices in SKYWARN for Tropical Systems (KD1CY) 
400-420 PM: SATERN – Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network Overview (WB8BZH & W1WCN) 
420-440 PM: ARRL Update (KE5MHV)
440-500 PM: Moderated Q & A session/Panel Discussion & Door Prizes (All)

We hope folks can attend the conference live and in person for those in and around the Orlando FL area or attending the conference and that those outside of the area can participate in the livestream. For those can’t see it live, the workshop video will be posted online via YouTube within a week or two after the conference if not sooner. Thanks to all for their support of Amateur Radio and the NWS Boston/Norton SKYWARN program.

Sci-Tech ARS Girl Scouts’ “First Contact” event

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STARS patch(2026-03-21, Natick, MA) The Sci-Tech Amateur Radio Society (STARS) in Natick, MA hosted a girl scout troop from Melrose, MA. Sincere thanks go to: Barbara, KC1KGS; Jocelyn (TBD); Seth, KC1PZY; Max, WØMXX; Brad, KC1TUY; Zachary, KC1NXK; and Bob, K5TEC, for helping teach the scouts on Saturday. It was nice that the girls got to hear from two YLs as well as the rest of us.

In the first of many activities, the scouts got to hold a meteorite from an asteroid and one from the moon, discuss earth to space communications, then watch a three-minute ARRL video about ham radio. 

Next, Barbara gave an inspiring talk about ways girls can get involved with ham radio and become one of the YLs. Joscelyn, a young student here at Sci-Tech, gave a thoughtful and encouraging talk about her journey to get her radio license with suggestions to the scouts for success. 

We watched a two-minute video about our StratoScience Workshop where ham radio is highlighted with high-altitude weather balloon launches, then we visited Max at his research workstation to learn about radio electronics and soldering APRS circuits to track the science projects carried by those balloons. A teen in high school with an Amateur Extra license, Max runs the New England Weather Balloon Society hosted here at New England Sci-Tech.

Then we went outside for a Fox Hunt with Seth who showed off the homemade Yagi antenna and helped the girls find the hidden transmitter. While outside, the scouts had a short exercise in contacting each other using four FRS HTs.

The final activity had the scouts in the radio room where they first listened to contacts made through the International Space Station (ISS). Thanks to Max for arranging that with NASA! (haha) and for running the rooftop satellite tracking system for this activity. Then the girls lined up at the HF station for a lesson with Zachary and Brad. There they all got to make a contact with a YL named Jessica in Oklahoma, KJ5NSH. Thank you Jess!

At the end of the event, the scouts each got an ARRL “First Contact” certificate, carefully filled out by Brad and individualized by the scout leader. They were also thrilled to receive an ARRL radio patch, and a Sci-Tech logo patch. Fun was had by all (and lots of learning, too)! 

— Bob, K5TEC, STARS Secretary

Ninth Annual HamSCI Workshop, New Britain CT, March 14-15, 2026

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HamSCI 2026 logoThe 9th annual HamSCI Workshop is upon us! Join us at Central Connecticut State University and the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Headquarters in Newington, CT on March 14-15, 2026. We’re excited to welcome you to this fast-growing meeting. Organizers have worked hard to put together a memorable two-day event.

This year’s theme, “Discovering Science Through Ham Radio”, celebrates the community’s achievements, including Personal Space Weather Station deployments, meteor scatter propagation studies and the promotion of WSPR as a propagation sensing tool. The workshop is expected to feature more than 50 poster and oral presentations, plus invited tutorials, and a banquet with a keynote address by a prominent member of the community. [More]

HAM-CON, Colchester VT, February 28, 2026

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ARRL Vermont Section Manager: Paul Gayet, AA1SU, writes on the ARRL members list:

HAM-CON, the ARRL Vermont State Convention will be Saturday, February 28 at the Hampton Inn Colchester, conveniently located at I-89, Exit 16. HAM-CON is unique as it is the only hybrid convention. If you are unable to travel, you can join the forums and demonstrations on-line from the comfort of home.

We have another great show planned. Elecraft co-owner Wayne Burdick N6KR will do a presentation on the various Elecraft radios you might consider.

The World Radio Team Championship (WRTC) will be held in England this July and chairman Mark M0DXR will be available to tell us about it.

We’ll have forums on POTA activations, operating the ham satellites and operating on the long wave bands. Demonstrations will include AREDN, DMR and our HF station W1V. Add to this the flea market, ham exams, game shows, door prizes and hundreds of hams and you have a great time in the making.

If you buy your tickets by February 14th, it is only $8. Not sure you will be going? Buy your ticket anyway. If you cannot attend in person, watch the event on-line either during or after the event. However you choose, please attend, and bring a friend! Or if you are out of town, come up Friday, and spend the night in the hotel and wake up the next morning ready to hamfest!

Details:
HAM-CON Web: ham-con.org
HAM-CON Tix:: ham-con.org/hamconpay.html

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ARRL Vermont Section
Section Manager: Paul N Gayet, AA1SU
aa1su@arrl.org
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Mt. Tom Hamfest Canceled

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Hello all, regretfully I have to inform you that the Mt.Tom hamfest [in Chicopee, MA, on February 28, 2026].has been cancelled due to low vendor participation. I truly hope it will return next year.

Have a great day
73
Ray AA1SE

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ARRL Western Massachusetts Section
Section Manager: Raymond P Lajoie, AA1SE
aa1se@arrl.org
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Connecticut Parks On The Air Activators Group Becomes an Official Club

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CT POTA WB1CT logoThe Connecticut Parks On The Air Activators group has become an official club. Formed as a 501(c)3 non-profit entity in late 2025, the club was assigned the call sign WB1CT by the FCC. What started as an informal gathering of hams interested in Parks On The Air activating in the Spring of 2021 has evolved into regular meetings of the group on each Support Your Parks weekend for the past three years and over 100 active POTA activators in the state communicating regularly on their groups.io list.

Group organizers and now officers of the club include Trustee, Shawn Warren, KC1NQE; Director, Conrad Trautmann, N2YCH; Treasurer, Peter Cimino, K1PCN; and Secretary, Brian Horne, N1BAM.

To formally christen the new call sign, the officers and some close friends gathered on a cold morning on January 1, 2026 at US-1728, Wharton Brook State Park to activate the park under the new club call sign, WB1CT.

In addition to regularly scheduled outings to allow POTA hunters worldwide get Connecticut in their log, the CT POTA Activators schedule a special “park-to-park” net during each Support Your Parks weekend on 40 meters to allow all of the activators to make contact with each other. As hunters well know, hunting parks within their own state or adjacent states can sometimes be the most difficult to get. The park-to-park net is organized in a way that allows each activator to act as net control and call all of the other activators to get those Connecticut parks in their logs. They go down the list until everyone has completed a QSO with everyone else. 40 meters seems to work well across the state with everyone being able to hear each other.

If you’d like to join the club, which is presently limited to activators within the state, you can look us up on QRZ at WB1CT, which also links to our CT-POTA groups.io site for more information.

Brian, N1BAM; Conrad, N2YCH; Peter, K1PCN; and Shawn, KC1NQE

 

Maine ARRL Section News, January 2026

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ARRL logoPhil Duggan, N1EP, writes on the ARRL Maine Section Members List:

Happy New Years to all Maine hams!

Aloha from Hawaii. Yes, we are on our dream vacation, but will be back in Maine soon sharing the cold and snow with all of you, hi hi.

BOAT ANCHOR HAMFEST

FEB 14 from 8am until noon at the Calumet Club in, 334 W River Road, Augusta.

LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITY

It has been an honor to serve these past few years as your section manager. I am not running for reelection this time. This is a perfect opportunity for you to exercise your leadership skills and lead Maine’s ARRL section into the future. The section manager responsibilities are listed at this url:

http://www.arrl.org/section-manager

Here is a link to the section manager nomination requirements, examples, etc.

http://www.arrl.org/section-terms-nomination-information

The ARRL must receive your nomination no later than March 10. My term ends on June 30, and the new section manager would begin on July 1 for a 2-year term.

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ARRL Maine Section
Section Manager: Philip W Duggan, N1EP
n1ep@arrl.org
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2026 Boston Marathon Amateur Radio Volunteer Registration Remains Open – Volunteers Still Needed – Deadline – Friday 2/6/26

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The BAA Amateur Radio Communications Committee Writes:

Volunteer registration for the 2026 Boston Marathon is open and ongoing. If you’ve already registered to volunteer at the 2026 Boston Marathon, we’d like to thank you for your interest in joining our team!

For anyone who hasn’t yet, please don’t delay! Volunteer registration closes on Friday, February 6. It would help our planning processes if you could complete your registration by Friday, January 30.
Registration Link (for new and returning volunteers):
https://www.baa.org/races/boston-marathon/info-for-volunteers/

Step by Step Sign Up Guide:
https://hamradioboston.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/44002570599-2026-volunteer-registration-step-by-step-guide

A few notes for volunteers:

Almost all amateur radio positions are single person assignments. We are not able to group people on a single assignment, but we will try to accommodate which segment you are assigned to in order to allow for similar start/end times.

We’d like to extend our sincerest congratulations to the winner of the Boston Marathon ARO bib lottery, Sparsh Bansal, KC1MGP. We’re looking forward to cheering you on!

Final documentation is generally released during the first week of April. Before this can happen, we need the final logistical details from the various area coordinators for Start, Course, Finish, and Transportation. Where possible, we will release documents as they become available. In this case, look out for emails from the committee and your Team Captain.

As always, we appreciate your help in getting the word out to prospective volunteers. Please send this to hams or clubs that you think may be interested in joining us on the amateur radio team for the 2026 Boston Marathon!

If you have any questions about the content of this message or about volunteering at the marathon in general, please don’t hesitate to send them to contact@HamRadioBoston.org.

We’re looking forward to seeing you all again soon!

Thank you, and 73,

Boston Marathon Communications Committee
contact@HamRadioBoston.org

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