Hamfests & Conventions

Northeast HamXposition “Grand Finale” Virtual Weekend, November 6-8, 2020

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Northeast HamXposition logo with datesHamXposition 2020 Chairman Bob DeMattia, K1IW, writes:
 

We are coming up on a grand finale virtual weekend.  If you haven’t already, there is still time to register! This email gives a brief summary – see http://www.hamxposition.org for details and to sign up.

  • Our HamXposition special event station – W1A – will be activated on Friday evening, November 6th and will be on the air through 7 PM the following Sunday.   W1A will be operated from individual operator’s home stations – you can sign up so that your station is one of them.
  • On Saturday, November 7th at 10 AM, the Nashua Area Radio Society will be holding an online version of the “Ham Radio Bootcamp”.   The cover story in October QST, this activity is geared for new hams looking  into the various ways they can experience the hobby.  However, even if you’ve had your license for a long time you might learn something new!
  • On Saturday November 7th at 7 PM, we will be holding our “Virtual Grand Banquet”.  Order your favorite take-out or delivery, pull up your chair, and enjoy an evening highlighted with keynote speaker Gordon West.  At the conclusion of the event, we will hold a drawing for the banquet prize – a Kenwood V71A dual band transceiver with Astron power supply and dual-band mag mount antenna.  You must be present at drawing time to win.
All of these events are free, but all require preregistration.  Once you preregister, you will be given the connection details.
Finally, we are running a donation drive this year to help offset some of the annual costs we have and to help keep the revenue stream toward the scholarships flowing. Anyone donating $5 or morewill receive a souvenir HamXPosition 2020 general admission ticket by mail.
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Those donating $25 or more will be listed on our electronic honor wall, and those donating $50 or more will receive a limited-edition “Moonbounce” badge ribbon (which you can use in 2021) and a limited-edition T-shirt:
 
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Preregistration and donations can all be done on our website:   http://www.hamxposition.org
 
To get to the donation section, click on the banquet Event Registration link.
I hope you are able to enjoy all or part of our events – and hope to be able to see you at our in-person convention on July 23, 24 and 25, 2021.
 
73,
 
Bob – K1IW
Chair, HamXposition 2020
 

Northeast HamXposition Schedule, October 10-November 7, 2020

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HamXposition logoFrom https://hamxposition.org:

New England ARES Academy

October 10-31, 2020

View the full schedule and sign up at
<https://hamxposition.org/2020/ne-ares-academy>

The first-ever New England Division ARES Academy, originally scheduled for the Division Convention in November, will instead be held over a period of several weeks in October via Zoom. There are five Basic Track classes for those just getting started, and more advanced classes and workshops for those who already have the basics. One-hour classes will be held on weeknights from 7:30 to 8:30 PM EDT, and two-hour workshop sessions will be held Saturday mornings from 9:00 to 11:00 AM EDT.

Just a few of the topics covered include:

* Go Kits
* Hardening Your Station or Repeater
* Expedient Training & Utilization of Volunteers
* Working with Served Agencies (Panel Discussion)

The NE-ARES Academy is an outgrowth of the successful NH-ARES Academy program that ran at the NH State Fire Academy for eight years. The program’s goal is to offer both basic and advanced skills training based in ARRL ARES training standards. Academy Instructors are all recognized experts in their subject area.

Event Details:

Date: October 10th to October 31st
Time: 7:30 to 8:30 PM EDT (weeknight courses), 9:00 to 11:00 AM EDT
(Saturday workshops)
Cost: Free

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HamXposition Virtual Banquet

November 7, 2020, 7PM

Event registration at <https://hamxposition.org/register/register.php>

On Saturday, November 7th, the HamXposition Convention Committee will be hosting our very first Virtual Banquet! Order your favorite take-out or delivery, pull up a chair to your screen, and join your friends for an interesting presentation. The event will be emceed by our very own Mike Raisbeck, K1TWF, and featuring Keynote Speaker Gordon West, WB6NOA.

In addition, there will be a grand prize drawing of a Kenwood TM-V71A Transceiver, Astron Power Supply, and dual band mobile antenna, generously contributed by the Minuteman Repeater Association (MMRA) (must be present during prize drawing to win).

The event is free, but we ask that you please register using the link above. Instructions and a link to join the event will be delivered to your inbox a few days before the event.

Event Details:

Date: Saturday, November 7th
Time: 7:00 PM EST (UTC-05:00)
Location: Your computer or mobile device, anywhere!
Cost: Free

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Ham Bootcamp

November 7, 2020, 10 AM

Sign up on the NARS website at <https://www.n1fd.org/ham-bootcamp/>

The Nashua Area Radio Society (NARS) will again be hosting their wildly successful Ham Bootcamp, recently featured on the cover of QST magazine, on Saturday, November 7th via Zoom.

Ham Bootcamp is a series of activities designed to help newly licensed Technician and General class license holders get on the air and use their amateur radio license, or for prospective hams who are interested in seeing what the hobby has to offer, including:

* Radio Programming Tutorials and Help
* Getting Started with EchoLink
* Joining a Repeater Net
* Putting together a Station for Repeaters
* Building an HF Station including simple HF Antennas
* Putting up an HF Antenna, Feedline, and Ground
* Getting started with WSJT-X and FT8 Digital

… and more!

Event Details:

Date: Saturday, November 7th
Time: 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM EST (UTC-05:00)
Cost: Free

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W1A Special Event Callsign

November 6-8, 2020

Operating schedule and sign up at
<https://hamxposition.org/2020/w1a-special-event-callsign>

The W1A special event callsign will operate from individual operator’s home stations during the weekend of the HamXposition Virtual Banquet. Yours could be one of these stations!

Event Details:

Start: Friday, November 6th 7:00 PM EST (UTC-05:00)
End: Sunday, November 8th 7:00 PM EST (UTC-05:00)
Location: Your shack!
Cost: Free

HamXposition / New England ARES Academy Schedule

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ARES logo

Updated: October 1, 2020

From ema.arrl.org:

The first-ever New England Division ARES Academy, originally scheduled for the Division Convention in November, will instead be held over a period of several weeks in October via Zoom. There are five Basic Track classes for those just getting started, and more advanced classes and workshops for those who already have the basics. One-hour classes will be held on weeknights from 7:30 to 8:30, and two-hour workshop sessions will be held Saturday mornings from 9:00 to 11:00.

A big benefit of the on-line schedule is the opportunity to take every single class and workshop instead of having to pick and choose. Weeknight class participants will be able to ask questions and interact with the instructor via chat. The two-hour Saturday workshops are designed to be even more interactive. Academy Instructors are all recognized experts in their subject area.

The NE-ARES Academy is an outgrowth of the successful NH-ARES Academy program that ran at the NH State Fire Academy for eight years. The program’s goal is to offer both basic and advanced skills training based in ARRL ARES training standards.

We plan to continue this program at the Convention once the pandemic is over, in hopes that building a standardized base of training across New England will enhance our ability to provide better local emergency communications, and an effective ARESMAT (ARES Mutual Assistance Team) response across the region, and beyond.

NE-ARES-Academy-Schedule

 

 

Academy coordinator Dave Colter, WA1ZCN, was the original editor and principal author of ARRL’s Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Course series in the early 2000s, and creator of the original NH-ARES Academy. He is currently ASEC-Training for NH-ARES.

 

NEAR-Fest and the Road Ahead

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Mike Crestohl, W1RC, writes:

Dear Friends of NEAR-Fest:

Now that NEAR-Fest XXVII and XXVIII have been cancelled there are some important issues with which we must deal.

First,  this is going to be a major hit on our treasury because, notwithstanding the reason we are being canceled, we have contracts that need to be honored.  2019, as you may remember, was plagued with wet weather for both May and October.  Attendance was down and so are our cash reserves.  Consequently, the hard facts are that we need to raise some new capital starting this Fall if NEAR-Fest is to survive.

In order to do this beginning soon we will be selling advance admission tickets for NEAR-Fest XXIX ($10.00) and inside parking passes ($10.00) either at Ham Radio Outlet in Salem NH and Ross Hochstrasser’s Clock Shop, 40 Walnut Street, Whitman MA as well as by mail to Michael Crestohl, W1RC, 316 Atlantic Avenue, Marblehead MA 01945 with a check or money order and a SASE.

The exciting thing about the advance tickets are that all purchasers of advance tickets will be entered in a special prize drawing for either a Xiegu G90 HF SDR Transceiver (value $425.00) or a Yaesu FT-891 HF Mobile Transceiver (value $559.00).  Winner does NOT have to be present to win.

We are going to offer a special “VIP Pass” to NEAR-Fest for those who really want to see us through this difficult and trying time.  It will be good for the person to whom it was issued for life, allow that person and the occupants of their vehicle (up to four people) and the vehicle to enter at 8:00 AM on Friday morning.  Cost of this VIP Pass is $250.00 and is available by mail only.

Additionally, the cost of admission at the Fairgrounds will be increased to $15.00.  This added $5.00 is to help alleviate the cost of not having NEAR-Fest XXVII but advance ticket buyers will be able to save this $5.00 per ticket surcharge.   I cannot tell you at this time if this $5.00 surcharge will be permanent.  Once we are financially comfortable again we will decide whether or not to restore the cost to $10.00.

In the event that the May 2021 event cannot be held any tickets or passes purchased will be valid and honored at the next NEAR-Fest so no one will lose.

We are asking our association and clubs if they can help us sell advance tickets to their members.  The procedure will be simple and straightforward.  Clubs would determine how many tickets and parking passes their members want, collect the money, send the list with this information along with a check payable to NEAR-Fest to us.  We would take care of making sure that the prize draw stubs are properly filled in and put in the prize barrel for the drawing in July.  After that takes place we would ensure they are kept safe so they can be put in the prize barrel at NEAR-Fest in May.   The tickets would be sent to the club for distribution to the members.  Members should be informed that they are buying admission tickets for our fall event.  They are not buying a raffle ticket.  However there is no limit on the number of tickets anyone may purchase.  Drawing will take place at NEAR-Fest XXIX in May 2021.

Secondly, clubs who have already applied for the 2020 Association and Club Early Entry passes will not have to reapply again in January 2021.

With your help we will survive this horrific nightmare.

73,

Mister Mike