RASON General Class Licensing Course Begins March 16, 2022

Mark Noe, KE1IU, writes on the RASON mailing list:

RASON [Radio Amateur Society of Norwich, CT] will be offering a General Class Amateur Radio License Course beginning Wednesday, March 16, 2022 and continuing through the end of May.  Class times will be held at 7:00 PM on Wednesday evenings via Zoom.  The course is free to the public, but you must register to take the course.  Registration will get access to the Zoom link as well as a link to my server, which will host all of the course materials.  Each lecture will be recorded and will be accessible after the class on that server.

You will need to purchase the ARRL General Class License Manual. which can be purchased directly from ARRL at http://www.arrl.org/shop/Licensing-and-Education/ or from Amazon.  Make sure that you get the 9th Edition, which is valid through June, 2023.
 
Your instructors will be: Mark Noe KE1IU, Chip Griffin N1MIE, Tony Girasoli W1TTL and Payton Noe KC1IVR.  We will take you through all the material that is part of the General class license syllabus, and you will be well prepared for the exam at the end of the course.  It is recommended that you have a Technician class license or that you have studied materials for the Technician exam prior to taking this course.  You must take and pass the Technician License Exam before you can take the General License Exam.  All messages regarding the course will be sent out at the RASON@groups.io website.  Please check out the RASON website https://rason.org for more information about our club.  

Send an e-mail to KE1IUmark@gmail.com if you have any questions about the course or if you would like to register.

QSO Today Ham Expo 2022 to Feature Two Build-a-thons

Joe Reynolds, KA1GDQ, writes on the Algonquin (MA) ARC mailing list:

Two prominent Maine amateurs–Rex Harper, W1REX,  and Stephen Houser, N1SH, will join the QSO Today Ham Expo 2022 for a fourth time with two new Build-a-thons, allowing Expo ticket holders to build kits with them, in real time, with demonstrations and mentoring.  Since the interaction is two-way video webinar format, builders can ask questions and get help. Once the Build-a-thon session ends, the recordings will be put up in the Expo library for future reference.

There are two Expo Build-a-thons:

Beginners Build-a-thon
Level: Beginner
Kit: WBB Transmitter
Click here to go to QRPme to purchase this kit

Another slightly more difficult LIVE Build-a-thon
Level: Intermediate
Kit: Tuna Can Switch Inductor Tuner
Click here to go to QRPme to purchase this kit

For more information:

https://www.qsotodayhamexpo.com/#buildathon

Ham Expo information:  https://qsotodayhamexpo.com

Expo Tickets: https://qsotoday.vfairs.com/en/register-form 

The ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio® in the United States, is a QSO Today Virtual Ham Expo Partner.  FlexRadio is the Expo’s Platinum Sponsor, and Elecraft is the Gold Sponsor. 

Build-A-Thon kits are provided by QRPme directly and not purchased through the Expo. You must have an Expo ticket to participate in the Build-a-Thons.

photos of two qrp kits

Free On-Line Technician Class Starts February 15, 2022

icon of zoom classWestern MA Section Manager Ray Lajoie, AA1SE, writes:

The Western Mass. Train & Test Group would like to invite you to a FREE on-line course so you too can get your ham radio license.

Free on-line classes will begin Tuesday, February 15th on Zoom. Classes will be held on Tuesday and Thursday evenings starting at 7 PM. If interested, contact Ray Lajoie via e-mail at ray.aa1se@gmail.com.

Talk to the world and support your local area, too. Ask us how!

Amateur Radio and AUXCOM Support to the Department of Defense

ARRL will present a webinar on Thursday, February 17, 2022 at 8 pm ET (0100Z Feb 18) on Amateur Radio and AUXCOM support to the Department of Defense.

Use this zoom link to attend:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83781154615?pwd=L0NOY0hEV0tBdmNDWVNNeWRaVXJ5dz09

Check out the ARRL link below for more detail:

http://arrl.org/news/webinar-set-to-discuss-amateur-radio-and-auxcom-support-to-department-of-defense

This webinar will coincide with the start of MARS Exercise 22-1, which should provide opportunity to practice these skills.

Tom Kinahan
US Army Military Auxiliary Radio System
Region One Director
aaa1rd@usamars.us

RASON Mentoring Program

RASON website screenshotThe Radio Amateur Society of Norwich (RASON) in Norwich, Connecticut, has established a mentoring program designed to match people with experience in one or more aspects of the hobby with individuals who would like mentoring. 

A web page on the club’s website lists  members who are willing to share their expertise.  Those who wish to benefit from a mentor’s expertise are encouraged to contact a mentor using the contact information on QRZ.com.  Alternatively, mentees can submit a form and be matched to a mentor by RASON club officers.  They’ll be connected through an introductory email after which they can continue the conversation. 

This program is available to RASON members only.

 

K1BG, W1EKG: “How to Run a Successful Technician Class” Online Presentation, December 28, 2021

Recent licensing class held by the Whitman ARCEastern MA Affiliated Club Coordinator Bruce Blain, K1BG, writes:

The ARRL website has a page which lists upcoming license classes (http://www.arrl.org/find-an-amateur-radio-license-class). To my dismay, when I entered the Eastern Massachusetts section, I found no upcoming classes listed. Nothing! Nada! While I know that this is not the case (a number of local clubs do run license classes), it also worries me. Where are future generations of hams going to come from if WE are not bringing them into the hobby?

Ross Hochstrasser, W1EKG, of the Whitman Amateur Radio Club runs very successful license classes (technician, general, and extra). I used Ross’ template for the technician classes the Nashoba Valley ARC has run. We would like to share this experience with you, with the goal of having all ARRL Affiliated Clubs in Eastern Massachusetts sponsor amateur radio classes.

On the evening of Tuesday, December 28th at 7PM, we will have a zoom session called “How to run a successful Technician Licence Class” where we will introduce Ross’ program to you.

This program is by no means the only way to sponsor a successful class! If you have success stories that you would like to discuss or present, please let me know. Again, I’d like to see us having more classes, and I’d like us to be sharing ideas as to how we can make this happen.

If you can’t make it, please delegate this to someone in your club who can. Thanks in advance.

I look forward to seeing you on the 28th.

Bruce, K1BG
ARRL Affiliated Club Coordinator, EMA

[For Zoom conference information, contact Bruce Blain, K1BG, at <k1bg.bruce@gmail.com>.]

New England CW Friends Meets Weekly via Zoom

Larry Krainson, W1AST, writes on the Hampden County Radio Association mailing list:

Did you know there is a group in New England that discusses all things CW?

Learn about it here and join their weekly Zoom meetings:

Starting Tuesday, December 21, the weekly CW friends zoom meeting will now start one hour later at 8 PM.

CW Friends weekly meeting
Time: Every Tuesday evening at 8 PM (new time)

At last week’s meeting we discussed: “Making the transition from a straight key to a keyer.”

This week one of the topics will be: “What are the elements for a complete CW contact.”

The New England CW Friends has a group.io along with the weekly Zoom meeting to help folks at all levels of experience with their CW.

https://groups.io/g/ne-cw-friends

[Contact Tom, K1TW, at k1tw -at- arrl -dot- net for Zoom conference details.]

“Ham Radio University” Going Virtual Again, January 8, 2022

Ham Radio University 2022 logoWith COVID-19 uncertainties precluding an in-person gathering for a second year, the 23rd annual Ham Radio University (HRU <http://www.hamradiouniversity.org/>) educational conference will be held as a virtual event again this year, on Saturday, January 8, 1300 – 2000 UTC, as an online GoToWebinar videoconference.

Advance registration is required and begins on December 20.

HRU 2022 will be adding five forums this year, for a total of 19 presentations by experts in a broad range of amateur radio activities, including Amateur Radio Emergency Communications. Other topics are:

*       Basics of HF Operating
*       Ham Radio Contesting and DXing
*       Communicating through Amateur Radio Earth Satellites
*       Software-Defined Radios
*       HF and VHF Digital Communications
*       Parks on the Air
*       SKYWARN
*       Cables and Connectors
*       Using Raspberry Pi Computers in Amateur Radio.

Online attendees will be able to ask questions of the presenters. Founded by Phil Lewis, N2MUN (SK), HRU also serves as the  online convention of the ARRL NYC-Long Island Section.

As in past years, participation in HRU 2022 is free; an optional donation of $5 is suggested. Additional information is online, including the schedule of forums and advance registration starting December 20

Fox Hunting Video Conferences Over the Winter Months Proposed

From ema.arrl.org:

George Allison, K1IG, writes on the NEMassFoxHunters list:

As the snow season arrives, we’ll be taking a hiatus from our outdoor fox hunting events. To keep our expertise up, though, what is the interest in having one or more video conferences over the winter to show off equipment and techniques? I can host the conferences with a Webex account (very similar to Zoom).

Possible meeting agendas could include fox and fox-finding equipment demos, photos of memorable hunts, discussions of hunting techniques, and improvements or variations to our events.

Depending on interest, the first video conference could be held in December or January. 

Please reply to the group to let us know if you’re interested. Tell us your preferred day(s) of the week, suggested agenda items, and when you want the first meeting (specific date not required; preferred month is fine). When I get the info I can send out some date choices.

73,
George K1IG