Serving ARRL members who reside in the New England sections
From ARRL News:
05/16/2024—We are in the process of responding to a serious incident involving access to our network and headquarters-based systems. Several services, such as Logbook of The World® and the ARRL Learning Center, are affected. Please know that restoring access is our highest priority, and we are expeditiously working with outside industry experts to address the issue. We appreciate your patience.
The Maine State Convention & Hamfest is about 3 months away, Saturday June 15th. The Androscoggin Amateur Radio Club is excited to host this at our new venue, the Augusta Civic Center. There is 32,000 square feet of vendor space! Plenty of rooms for people to sell as well as club tables and EmComm groups.
People are starting to get tables so be sure to purchase yours in advance. 73 Electronics has already confirmed their attendance. Individual vendors are also starting to buy their tables.
The following clubs will be in attendance: Androscoggin ARC, Wireless Society of Southern Maine, UFB New England, Women Radio Operators of Maine (WRONE) and York County ARC. Androscoggin ARES/RACES will be in attendance for EmComm groups. We are hoping to see more Clubs and EmComm teams get a table.
Vendors can start setting up at 6:00 AM. Doors to the public will open at 8:00 AM. Hours for the convention will be 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. A variety of talks will be held including a club officer meeting, ARRL Forum, Parks-on-the-Air presentation, NanoVNA talk, Maine Mesh Project update, ARES/RACES/EMCOMM meeting as well as TWO VE Sessions (Morning – 9 AM and Afternoon 2 PM).
A general admission ticket gets you a chance to win a door prize. The Grand Door Prize is an Icom 7300 HF Radio. Other door prizes will be available. The winner does not need to be present.
A separate raffle is being held for a Honda 2200 watt super quiet generator (Model EU-2200i). You can contact an Androscoggin ARC member to buy raffle tickets or purchase them the day of the convention. Again, you do not need to be present to win.
Special Convention Hotel Rates are available – $140 per night. You can either stay Friday night into Saturday or Saturday night into Sunday, whichever you prefer.
Mention special discount code – Maine State Hamfest. If you are interested in camping, this option is also available. NO TENT CAMPING ALLOWED. You must be in a camper. Camping is free, but you must register with the Civic Center – check in NO LATER than 3 PM Friday. No water hookup. Electric hookup is available for $50 through the Civic Center.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***********************
For further information contact NH ARRL Section Public Information Coordinator Skip Camejo
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Governor Chris Sununu issues proclamation designating June as “Amateur Radio Month” in New Hampshire
In public recognition of the valuable service that amateur radio operators provide to their communities at no cost, Governor Chris Sununu issued a formal proclamation designating June as “Amateur Radio Month” in New Hampshire.
Amateur radio operators, also known as ham radio operators, offer their services to their communities in time of emergency to assist local, state and federal public safety agencies in providing auxiliary communication capabilities to allow regular public safety communication systems to concentrate on the emergency. In particular, NH-ARES (New Hampshire Amateur Radio Emergency Service) has groups and members situated throughout the state to provide assistance as needed. ARES is an emergency communication organization sponsored by the ARRL (American Radio Relay League), the leading non-governmental amateur radio organization in the United States. In addition to ARES, the ARRL sponsors the NTS (National Traffic System) which routinely transmits message traffic by radiogram, similar to telegrams, throughout the country. In the event of an emergency the NTS would be available to provide long distance communication capabilities to responding agencies as well as health and welfare messages to or from the disaster area to family members outside the area when conventional communication systems are not functioning. To practice their radio communication skills, amateur radio operators participate in an annual event called Field Day. This event is held every June and involves operators setting up their radios in sometimes remote locations to practice and train for emergency communication. Many local amateur radio clubs set up public demonstrations and encourage members of the public to try their hand at amateur radio. This year Field Day will be held the weekend of June 22 and 23rd.
In addition to emergency communication capabilities, amateur radio operators routinely assist their communities by providing communication services at events such as marathons, bicycle races, canoe races and other similar events. Most recently NH-ARES responded to northern New Hampshire for the solar eclipse to provide communication assistance to the American Red Cross in the areas of Coos County with limited or no cellular service.
END
Additional information regarding ARES and NTS: https://www.arrl.org/nts https://www.arrl.org/ares
Copy of the Governor’s proclamation attached as a PDF.
Paul Gayet, AA1SU writes on the ARRL Vermont Members list on May 07, 2024:
Subject: Get The Most Out of Your Field Day GOTA Station
On page 69 of the June QST is a nice article on how to set up at successful GOTA station at Field Day.
I recommend checking it out.
Here is a link to the whole issue, not just page 69: https://edition.pagesuite.com/html5/reader/production/default.aspx?pubname=&pubid=604160a2-6442-4ed0-9695-2e753da4eb98
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ARRL Vermont Section
Section Manager: Paul N Gayet, AA1SU
aa1su@arrl.org
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Approximately thirty-five club leaders and Section Managers (SMs) attended last night’s New England Division Cabinet meeting via Zoom to hear an update from Division Director Fred Kemmerer, AB1OC; his immediate staff, and section reports from the New England SMs.
The meeting featured a panel presentation by active New England club leaders who shared their thoughts on how to mentor and grow their respective clubs.
From the YCCC mailing list:
April 25, 2024
Dear Fellow hams and Friends,
It is with a sad heart as I write this letter.
As many of you have heard by now, MFJ is ceasing its on-site production in Starkville, Mississippi on May 17, 2024. This is also the same for our sister companies: Ameritron, Hygain, Cushcraft, Mirage and Vectronics.
Times have changed since I started this business 52 years ago. Our product line grew and grew and prospered. Covid changed everything in businesses including ours. It was the hardest hit that we have ever had and we never fully recovered.
I turned 80 this year. I had never really considered retirement but life is so short and my time with my family is so precious.
I want to thank all of our employees who have helped build this company with me over the years. We have many employees who have made MFJ their career for 10, 20, 30, 40 and more years.
We are going to continue to sell MFJ products past May 17, 2024. We have a lot of stock on hand. We will continue to offer repair service work for out-of-warranty and in-warranty units for the foreseeable future.
Finally, a special thanks to all of our customers and our dealers who have made MFJ a worldwide name and a profitable business for so many years. You all are so much appreciated.
Sincerely Yours, 73s
Martin F. Jue, K5flu
From the WSSM Facebook page:
The Wireless Society of Southern Maine participated in the Cumberland County Regional Communications 2nd annual Touch-A-Truck on April 21, 2024 from 10 AM until 2 PM. The group reported, “It was a good crowd despite some rain.”
From HamXposition.org:
Open to all New England Amateur Radio Clubs
The Meriden Amateur Radio Club (W1NRG) is pleased to announce W1NRG & the National Weather Service, Upton, NY (OKX) is holding a FREE in-person three-hour SKYWARN Training Session.
REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN
Thursday Wallingford Public Library (Community Room)
200 N Main Street
Wallingford, CT 06492
7:00 -10:00 pm
June 6th, 2024
HOW TO REGISTER:
Weather.gov/nyc
Go to SKYWARN icon in lower left corner. Click on SKYWARN Training Schedule. Chose in-person event and fill out on-line form.
This program is free and open to the public – you do NOT need to be a licensed amateur radio operator. Registration will be limited to 125 attendees.
Ed W1YSM
President, W1NRG
Wallingford Amateur Radio Group/Meriden Amateur Radio Club
ARRL CT Affiliated Club Coordinator
EC SKYWARN NH/Middlesex Counties
W1YSM@arrl.net
The New England QSO Party on May 4th and 5th is a great time to check out antenna systems and offers a moderately paced opportunity to work new states and countries. You’ll find a wide variety of participants, from newcomers to experienced contesters, all interested in making contacts with New England stations.
Our goal is to get every one of the 68 counties in New England on the air so we hope you will encourage your friends to join in the fun! Even if you can only join us for a couple of hours, we’d appreciate it! Will you be QRV? Let us know with a message to info@neqp.org.
The New England QSO Party is 20 hours long overall, in two sections with a civilized break for sleep on Saturday night. It runs from 4 pm Saturday until 1 am Sunday, then 9 am Sunday until 8 pm Sunday. Operate on CW, SSB and/or digital modes on 80-40-20-15-10 meters. For each QSO you’ll give your callsign, a signal report and your state/county. Top scorers can earn a plaque and everyone who sends in a log with at least 25 QSOs will be sent a certificate. The goal is to work stations anywhere in the world – and their goal is to work New England stations, so you’ll be very popular!
Last year we received logs from 784 stations from around the country and world. There were 808 stations from New England on the air!
The full rules are here -> http://neqp.org/rules/
Results from the 2023 NEQP were posted a couple of weeks ago – https://neqp.org/2023-new-england-qso-party/
The 2024 NEQP will take place in three weeks. Please get on and make some QSOs even if you don’t want to send in a log!
Thanks!
73 Tom/K1KI