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January 2015
Let me take this opportunity to wish everyone Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year!
Reflecting back on this past year, it sure has been a good year for our club! Thank you to all our volunteers, and to everyone who joined with us in club activities and events this year. It really is great to be part of an active club like ours!
Recapping this past year, you need look no further than at all the hearty souls who made it out to the January meeting, despite the weather, to realize there’s more than just this crazy radio hobby that makes it fun to get together. But, of course, there’s more. What about “Pedestrian Mobile”? Who’d even heard of it until our guest speaker Ed Breneiser described what this is all about at our February club meeting. And what about those radio fox hunts, starting with the “spring has sprung” fox hunt in March? That was followed up in April by a trip to be guest operators on board the Battleship New Jersey. April was also the start of major upgrades to the repeater systems the club maintains when we became one of the first in the nation to install and begin field trials of one of the new DR-1 C4FM dual analog/digital voice repeaters. We are now finishing the year with four repeater systems on the air, with C4FM capability on both 2M and 70cm.
By May, we got the certificate of occupancy for our new clubhouse trailer, and were supporting local charity walk events with radio support here in our local communities. In June, there was field day, where we managed to put 12 stations on the air simultaneously, plus a “Get on the Air” station run by the Boy Scouts, and if that wasn’t enough, we also had the public debut and grand opening celebration for our new clubhouse! In August, we were on the air from there as one of the W1AW/2 stations representing New Jersey as part of ARRL’s Centennial celebration. But this just scratches the surface, as there’s way more than just what I’ve mentioned here. I could go on and on about the representation our club had in providing radio support to the MS150 City to Shore bike ride this year, our record breaking volunteer support to pull of the fantastic Hamfest we had as our fund raiser in September, the fun time we had at our holiday celebration party in December, but I don’t have to. You were there, and were part of it all too!
On behalf of the Club’s new and returning officers, thank you again for making 2014, the 55th year of our club, the Gloucester County Amateur Radio Club, such a great year. And now, onwards, and upwards into 2015!
Respectfully, Jim Wright, N2GXJ
February 2015
Super Bowl Sunday, and the NFL’s flat football fiasco (a.k.a. “Deflategate”), are sure to make this February memorable. But that’s not all that’s happening this February. Let us not forget, the month kicks off with Groundhog day!
Yes, the Punxsutawney radio club will be on the air again this year with their Groundhog Special Event Station, offering a fun certificate to any amateur who gets an on-air confirmed contact number. Listen for them near 7.225 Mhz starting around 9am on Saturday morning, Jan 31. Then let me know if you manage to catch ‘em. Good luck!
More information can be found at www.punxyclub.com/special-events/ground-hog-day
Just a few days later, on February 4, we have quite the club program lined up. In a “double feature”, you’ll first get to meet-and-greet with our newly elected ARRL Southern New Jersey Section Manager, Thomas “Skip” Arey, N2EI. And then (fingers crossed), Steve Molo, KI4KWR, representing Gigaparts, will be treating us to one of the first ever live demonstrations of a certain vendor’s high tech, brand new, highly anticipated, backordered radio. Read more about this program, and more, later in this edition of Crosstalk.
And then there’s this funny place called Navassa. Never heard of it? Me neither, until Bill Grim mentioned it in last month’s Down Jersey DXing column. It seems that it has been 22 years since anyone has been able to secure permission to transmit ham radio from there. Helicopter flights lined up to get equipment in to get K1N on-air as soon as possible once the USFWS has declared it is safe to proceed? This is a big deal! The expedition even has their own website, www.navassadx.com. Oh boy. Get ready for some serious QRM!
Last month, a big hit was our first Tech Saturday held at our new clubhouse on the first Saturday after the club meeting. There were “ask the guru” sessions, and live satellite tracking and HF radio demonstrations. Several visitors stopped in. Got questions? Bring a friend. You don’t have to be a ham yet to stop in. We’ll do it again this month, Saturday morning, February 7. You in?
See you Feb 4 at the club meeting,
Respectfully, Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Super Bowl Sunday, and the NFL’s flat football fiasco (a.k.a. “Deflategate”), are sure to make this February memorable. But that’s not all that’s happening this February. Let us not forget, the month kicks off with Groundhog day!
Yes, the Punxsutawney radio club will be on the air again this year with their Groundhog Special Event Station, offering a fun certificate to any amateur who gets an on-air confirmed contact number. Listen for them near 7.225 Mhz starting around 9am on Saturday morning, Jan 31. Then let me know if you manage to catch ‘em. Good luck!
More information can be found at www.punxyclub.com/special-events/ground-hog-day
Just a few days later, on February 4, we have quite the club program lined up. In a “double feature”, you’ll first get to meet-and-greet with our newly elected ARRL Southern New Jersey Section Manager, Thomas “Skip” Arey, N2EI. And then (fingers crossed), Steve Molo, KI4KWR, representing Gigaparts, will be treating us to one of the first ever live demonstrations of a certain vendor’s high tech, brand new, highly anticipated, backordered radio. Read more about this program, and more, later in this edition of Crosstalk.
And then there’s this funny place called Navassa. Never heard of it? Me neither, until Bill Grim mentioned it in last month’s Down Jersey DXing column. It seems that it has been 22 years since anyone has been able to secure permission to transmit ham radio from there. Helicopter flights lined up to get equipment in to get K1N on-air as soon as possible once the USFWS has declared it is safe to proceed? This is a big deal! The expedition even has their own website, www.navassadx.com. Oh boy. Get ready for some serious QRM!
Last month, a big hit was our first Tech Saturday held at our new clubhouse on the first Saturday after the club meeting. There were “ask the guru” sessions, and live satellite tracking and HF radio demonstrations. Several visitors stopped in. Got questions? Bring a friend. You don’t have to be a ham yet to stop in. We’ll do it again this month, Saturday morning, February 7. You in?
See you Feb 4 at the club meeting,
Respectfully, Jim Wright, N2GXJ
March 2015
Where is La Aurora International Airport? And why was it closed? If you answered the Republic of Guatemala, and the erupting Fuego Volcano as the reason, you would be right. And bonus point if you knew the Club of Amateur Radio of Guatemala activated their emergency station TG0AA on 7.118 MHz during the event in which tourists who were hiking on the volcano and those living in nearby villages had to be evacuated.
Seeking reliable backup communications in a crisis is nothing new. What many in this info age are beginning to realize is that wide-area infrastructure-based communication systems cannot be relied on for local crisis management. It is with no surprise to us that emergency managers are finding new solutions to this problem that involve ham radio.
From Cooper Hospital, to the Clayton EOC, ham radio is part of our region’s emergency response. More importantly, you, as a ham radio operator, can be part of the solution should there be a local crisis. Interested in learning more? You will want to come out to our Wednesday March 4, 2015 club meeting. Guest speaker for the evening will be our section’s Emergency Coordinator, John Zaruba Jr., K2ZA, who will be treating GCARC to one of the first public unveilings of “the Pod”. You can get insider’s sneak-peak ahead of the meeting on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/W2MMD) or on the 2015 Programs/Activities/Events Page of this website.
While on the topic of club meetings, a special thank you goes out to newly elected section manager, Skip Arey, N2EI, for visiting and speaking with us at our February club meeting. Welcome to your new role in our section! Also, a special thank you to Steve Molo, KI4KWR, representing GigaParts, for the free “swag”, and our first look at Yaesu’s new FT-991 transceiver. It was a very informative meeting for all.
Beyond the unveiling of “the Pod” at the March 4 club meeting, we are excited to announce that legendary radio historian John Dilks, K2TQN will be our guest on Wednesday April 1, and that Nobel Prize recipient Dr. Joseph Taylor, K1JT will be speaking at our club meeting on Wednesday May 6. Mark your calendars; invite a friend! Visitors and guests are always welcome at our club meetings and events!
Speaking of events, we have some coming up that you might want to set reminders for. Come join us for a “Has Spring Sprung?” radio direction finding hunt activity, followed by “Tech Saturday” at the Clubhouse on March 7. On April 26, make plans to be a guest radio operator on board the museum ship Battleship New Jersey! And it’s not too soon to mark your calendar for Field Day (June 27 and 28), and (yes!) our GCARC Summer Family Picnic on Saturday July 25! More details on these and other events can be found on our website.
See you at the meeting on Wednesday March 4,
Respectfully, Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Where is La Aurora International Airport? And why was it closed? If you answered the Republic of Guatemala, and the erupting Fuego Volcano as the reason, you would be right. And bonus point if you knew the Club of Amateur Radio of Guatemala activated their emergency station TG0AA on 7.118 MHz during the event in which tourists who were hiking on the volcano and those living in nearby villages had to be evacuated.
Seeking reliable backup communications in a crisis is nothing new. What many in this info age are beginning to realize is that wide-area infrastructure-based communication systems cannot be relied on for local crisis management. It is with no surprise to us that emergency managers are finding new solutions to this problem that involve ham radio.
From Cooper Hospital, to the Clayton EOC, ham radio is part of our region’s emergency response. More importantly, you, as a ham radio operator, can be part of the solution should there be a local crisis. Interested in learning more? You will want to come out to our Wednesday March 4, 2015 club meeting. Guest speaker for the evening will be our section’s Emergency Coordinator, John Zaruba Jr., K2ZA, who will be treating GCARC to one of the first public unveilings of “the Pod”. You can get insider’s sneak-peak ahead of the meeting on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/W2MMD) or on the 2015 Programs/Activities/Events Page of this website.
While on the topic of club meetings, a special thank you goes out to newly elected section manager, Skip Arey, N2EI, for visiting and speaking with us at our February club meeting. Welcome to your new role in our section! Also, a special thank you to Steve Molo, KI4KWR, representing GigaParts, for the free “swag”, and our first look at Yaesu’s new FT-991 transceiver. It was a very informative meeting for all.
Beyond the unveiling of “the Pod” at the March 4 club meeting, we are excited to announce that legendary radio historian John Dilks, K2TQN will be our guest on Wednesday April 1, and that Nobel Prize recipient Dr. Joseph Taylor, K1JT will be speaking at our club meeting on Wednesday May 6. Mark your calendars; invite a friend! Visitors and guests are always welcome at our club meetings and events!
Speaking of events, we have some coming up that you might want to set reminders for. Come join us for a “Has Spring Sprung?” radio direction finding hunt activity, followed by “Tech Saturday” at the Clubhouse on March 7. On April 26, make plans to be a guest radio operator on board the museum ship Battleship New Jersey! And it’s not too soon to mark your calendar for Field Day (June 27 and 28), and (yes!) our GCARC Summer Family Picnic on Saturday July 25! More details on these and other events can be found on our website.
See you at the meeting on Wednesday March 4,
Respectfully, Jim Wright, N2GXJ
April 2015
Spring has sprung now, but you wouldn’t have known it back on March 7 when we had our “Has Spring Sprung?” hidden transmitter foxhunt. Sometimes the best hiding places are man-made, like behind a 15-foot tall snow mound at the edge of a parking lot! More pictures are on the GCARC Fox Hunts/Fox Hunt VII page.
Glad that is behind us, and we are now looking forward to more pleasant weather and outdoor activities, like a trip to be guest operators on board the museum ship Battleship New Jersey (April 26), radio support for the MS Walk (May 3) and Tour de Pitman bike race (June 13), Field Day at our clubhouse site (June 27/28), and our summer family picnic at the Red Bank Battlefield Park overlooking the Delaware river (July 25).
Did you happen to catch an in-person look at the Amateur Radio Emergency Service communications pod at the last club meeting? An amazing integration of tactical communications capabilities it is, well introduced and demonstrated by John Zaruba Jr., K2ZA, our ARES Section Emergency Coordinator; Bob Saunders, KC2UYS, Medical Coordination Center/Emergency Preparedness Manager for Cooper Health Systems; and our club’s vice president, Cory Sickles, WA3UVV.
It is recognized that amateur radio has consistently been the most reliable means of communications in emergencies when other systems failed or were overloaded. As the complexities of commercial communications infrastructures increase, the message is as clear as ever; When all else fails…Amateur Radio. If you have not already, and are interested in joining an emergency communications group, please contact John K2ZA, or Ed N2RO on-air after the ARES/RACES Net on Sundays at 2000 Hours on our 147.180 MHz repeater, or in person at our next club meeting.
This month, we have legendary radio historian John Dilks, K2TQN as guest speaker.
On May 6th we will be hosting weak signals specialist and Nobel Laureate Dr. Joe Taylor, K1JT.
These are two presentations you won’t want to miss!
Happy Spring everyone!
Respectfully, Jim Wright, N2GXJ
May 2015
What do the Kentucky Derby, Star Wars Day, Cinco de Mayo, Mother’s Day, Towel Day, and Memorial Day all have in common? Of course, they’re all celebrated in the month of May!
Will it be an American Pharoah or Dortmund to Carpe Diem this year (a Derby trifecta prediction)? It’s tradition. It’s Mint Juleps. It’s the greatest two minutes in sport. The elusive quest for the triple crown starts with the run for the roses each year. Secretariat. Seattle Slew. Affirmed. Nobody has done it since those three did it back in the 1970’s. The 1970’s! We’ve come a long way since those old “CB” radio days. Will this be the year?
If the Kentucky Derby is not your speed, perhaps Indianapolis has something more to your liking. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway ARC callsign W9IMS will be on the air twice this month, and if you’ve not scored one of their QSL cards before, they’re awesome! Top notch glossy QSL cards to collect with an SASE the old fashioned snail mail way. If you want to chase them, try 40 meters May 6-9 for the Grand Prix of Indianapolis, and May 18-24 for the Indy 500 Special Event. More info and card examples at www.qrz.com/db/w9ims.
Are you a fan of Ham Nation? They hit their 200th episode this month; a Bicentennial Broadcast! Be part of the celebration, as they host 6 on-air special event stations W0H, W1H, W5H, W6H, W7H, and W9H from May 27-June 4. A certificate is available for working at least 4 of them. Not yet a fan of Ham Nation? They’re live every Wednesday, with past episodes also available online at www.twit.tv/show/ham-nation.
On a more serious note, are you, or someone you know, antenna restricted due to homeowners’ association regulations or deed restrictions? It is time for a change. And HR-1301, the Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015 is that change. Now introduced in the US House of Representatives, the measure would direct the FCC to extend its rules relating to reasonable accommodation of Amateur Service communications to private land use restrictions. If there has ever been a time to write your Representative in support of your fellow Ham radio operators, this would be it. I mailed my letter to Representative Don Norcross this morning. Details at www.arrl.org/hr-1301. Won’t you consider writing to support this grass roots effort too?
As a general interest club, our members are as diverse in our interests as are those of the distinguished guest speakers that we have the privilege of learning from each month. Yet we all share a common bond in this community we call ham radio. At the next meeting we’ll reprise our recent field trip to be radio operators on board the Battleship New Jersey, and communications support provided to the MS Walk at Washington Lake Park, and planned for the Tour De Pitman bike race on June 13. And don’t forget Tech Saturday at the clubhouse May 9th, or the eQSL card contest! We’ll get an update on plans for Field Day weekend June 27-28 (the biggest on-air event of the year), and for our summer family picnic at the Red Bank Battlefield Park on the Delaware River July 25. And mark your calendars now for our annual Hamfest out at the 4-H Fairgrounds September 13!
A special thank you to radio historian John Dilks, K2TQN, our featured guest speaker at our April club meeting. Those in attendance were treated to a rare glimpse into the history of a local radio legend.
This month, it is our honor to host world famous weak signals specialist Dr. Joe Taylor Jr, K1JT, as guest speaker for the May 6 club meeting.
The meeting starts at 7:30pm at the Pfeiffer Center in Williamstown, NJ. Directions are available on our website, w2mmd.org. Visitors and guests are welcome. Hope to see you there!
Respectfully,
Jim Wright, N2GXJ
June 2015
It’s June already! And you know what that means…Field Day! For newbies and veterans alike, this is your weekend! This is a club-sponsored event; and all members are invited to participate. The non-stop 24 hours on-air festivities begin Saturday afternoon June 27 at 1pm local time out in the fields surrounding our clubhouse at the 4-H Fairgrounds. We’ll start setting up that morning. It’s a picnic, a camp-out, practice for emergencies, an informal contest, and a public relations event all in one. It’s the single most popular on-the-air event held annually in the US and Canada. With off-the-grid generators, tents, and temporary antenna set up all over the fields at the 4-H Fairground, do you really need a better excuse to play radio all weekend? Talk with a band chair for some operating time, or contact our field day chairman Kenny WB2P direct if you would like to set up your own station. There are still some band/mode slots available. CQ CQ Field Day from W2MMD, Whisky Two “Make My Day”! Stop on by anytime for some socializing, some operating, and some fun! Guests welcome. Directions on our w2mmd.org website. Hope to see you there!
In addition to Field Day June 27, we will be celebrating our club with Free Pizza! Night at our club meeting on June 3. Then we are having an open door Tech Saturday Forum at the Clubhouse June 6. Stop by to say hello, meet some other hams, play on the station’s radios, and more. If you are a club member, we’ll have training available to show you how to use a personal access code properly to access the Clubhouse to operate there during the week. On June 13, ARES/RACES members will be providing radio support to the Tour de Pitman bike race. Contact Ed, N2RO, if you’ve not signed up yet to participate. And don’t forget the ARRL’s 50 MHz and up VHF contest starts later that same evening! On July 25 is our club sponsored summer family picnic at the Red Bank Battlefield Park on the Delaware River. Thank you Jennifer, KD2EYR, for organizing! Looking forward, please reserve September 13 for our annual Hamfest out at the 4-H Fairgrounds! These and other events are noted on the new “Calendar” tab that our outstanding web master, Jeff, WB2ZBN, has added to our w2mmd.org website. Thank you Jeff!
And Dr. Joe Taylor, K1JT, if you’re reading this, thank you again for visiting with our radio club here in “down Jersey” last month. A most amazing presentation! The weak signals modes you have pioneered have sparked a newborn curiosity in the possibilities of ham radio for me and so many others the world over. The parking lot discussions continued long after the evening was over. Thank you again for giving so much to the hobby that we have grown to love!
Respectfully,
Jim Wright, N2GXJ
p.s. Go American Pharoah! Triple crown? June 6, we find out!
July 2015
It was a great month for Ham Radio! How “Radioactive” have you been since reading Crosstalk last month? In case you missed it, there was:
- Free Pizza! with swap meet and socializing at our last club meeting.
- Ham license testing session for new hams, and for those looking to take the General test before the question pool was upgraded.
- Museum ships from around the world were on the air, including our own Battleship New Jersey that we visited as a club earlier this year, each with a QSL card available, and a certificate to anyone able to contact 15 or more. Were you one of the lucky ones?
- The ARRL sponsored a 6 meter and up contest, giving us an opportunity to discover and learn about grid squares and East Coast propagation characteristics on bands above HF, including 2 meters.
- The very popular Ham Nation program celebrated their bi-centennial on-line show with a chance to make on-air contacts with the show’s celebrities running special event stations leading up to the event.
- We had a fun contest, as previewed in our May Crosstalk, for you to develop and submit your own original designs that our club could use as an electronic QSL card for our Field Day contacts.
- A continued campaign of your letter writing to our local representative, Don Norcross, in support of HR 1301, the Amateur Radio Parity act of 2015. If you haven’t already, help out your fellow deed-restricted ham! As described in the May Crosstalk, details at: www.arrl.org/hr-1301.
- The National Weather service conducted several relatively local SKYWARN training sessions, in advance of the summer tornado and hurricane season, to train us, as hams, how we can actively support NOAA’s mission of protecting the public against loss of life and property.
- A state-wide radio call-up was conducted to prove that, if needed on short notice, communications could be established with amateur radio operators of every county in New Jersey.
- Members of our club, through the local ARES/RACES organization, provided radio communications support to the Tour de Pitman bike race.
- And, by the time this goes to print, we’ll have participated as a club in the greatest on-air event in North America each year – Field Day!
That’s really just a sampling. There was more. If you’ve been following Crosstalk for the past few months, then you also knew of American Pharoah, and that he had a fan, long before the first race of the Triple Crown. Now he’s a household name! Way to go American Pharoah!
If you’ve not been following Crosstalk, then welcome! I’m glad you’re reading this edition! If you are a GCARC club member, I’d like to bring your attention a major club event for this month:
The GCARC Summer Family PotLuck Picnic at the Red Bank Battlefield Park here in Gloucester County New Jersey. It’s free to you, our club members, and your families! Directions and details are on the 2015 Summer PotLuck Picnic page. Hope to see you there!
So now it’s up to you - what does July have in store for you? Get out there. Try new things. Be “Radioactive”!
Respectfully,
Jim Wright, N2GXJ
August 2015
Here in Southern New Jersey, where we are effectively a suburb of Philadelphia in one of the most densely populated states in the nation, what do torrential rain and 70 MPH straight line winds, trees uprooted, telephone poles snapped and roads blocked, stranded Amtrak trains, stop light malfunctions, nearly a half million residents without power, and a major cell phone carrier being completely knocked off the air (not even 911 calls from cell phones possible) in our tri-state area have in common with Field Day this year? If you guessed they all involved stormy weather, and happened in the same week, you’d be right! Even Good Morning America did a live weather story broadcast from my neighborhood (though I didn’t know it until later, since we had no services). If you missed it too, here’s the link: www.abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/storms-leave-half-million-residents-power-philadelphia-area-31988982.
The main storm hit the Tuesday evening before Field Day Saturday. All of our repeaters at the Pitman site went dead for a while, until power was manually switched over to backup generator (our 220 machine, which is at a different location, managed to stay online through this all). Many were still without power at their homes and running on generators for real when they came to operate on our generators at Field Day for fun. But that was just the lead-up to Field Day. Mother Nature wasn’t done with us yet. You can read more about our Field Day experiences later in the August edition of Crosstalk.
By Independence weekend, things were pretty much back to normal, and the 13 Colonies Special Event went on the air! Congratulations to all club members who participated in this event! And a special thank you to club members Ed (N2RO) and Tony (KD2AFY), both whom I was able to make contact with while they were operating official K2I/NJ stations this year. Ed was pushing an off the charts 59+++++ SSB signal at my QTH and seemed to have the whole planet responding to his QRZ on 40 meters. That’s crazy! Tony was operating from our clubhouse, which we were very happy to make available to support this event, due to storm damage at his house. It takes a special dedication to “give back” to the hobby for the enjoyment of others like this. Thank you to all the 13 Colonies operators in CT, DE, GA, MA, MD, NC, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, SC, VA for putting on the event!
So, what’s next? By the time this goes to press, we’ll have had our Summer Family PotLuck Picnic out at the Red Bank Battlefield Park, overlooking the Delaware River. We’ll hear more about that at the next club meeting on Wednesday, August 5, and in next month’s Crosstalk.
Also at the next club meeting, we’ll get an update on plans for an upgrade for our 2 meter repeater antenna system.
For the evening’s program, Mike Andrescavage (N2ICV) will be introducing us to DMR. Curious what that is? Come on out to the meeting and find out!
I know this is just the August edition, but there are some really big events for September that we have to look forward to as well. Sunday morning September 13, 2015 is our 37th Annual Hamfest. Please, spread the word! This is a huge event that many Hams from as far South as MD look forward to coming to each year. It is also our major fund raiser for the year, so how it turns out really makes a big difference to the club. Sheldon (K2MEN) and Bill (NJ2S) are the co-chairs, please give them your full support. From setting up tables the night before, to cleaning up on Sunday early afternoon, everyone has a part and any help you can offer is appreciated.
The next big event for September is on the 26-27. The Pope is making a historic visit to Philadelphia, and emergency communicator support is needed on both sides of the river. If you think you have what it takes, our section’s emergency coordinator, John (K2ZA) would like to hear from you direct.
Finally, I would like to draw your attention to the letter below that I received from Mike Harla (N2MHO), Cumberland County Radio Officer / EC. Thank you to everyone who works quietly, without fanfare, and without spotlights, behind the scenes year round to help make a positive difference for others.
Respectfully,
Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Letter from N2MHO
I'd like to extend thanks, on behalf of myself and of Cumberland County RACES, to Gary N2QEE for organizing special VE sessions last month and this month, for graduates of a Technician and General license training that we held here in Cumberland. I'd also like to thank Ed N2RO, John K2ZA, and Donna N2QED, for their assistance. The holding of the General testing on the last day of the question pool helped those examinees who had trained on it, and were nervous about being tested on the one in effect from today. Out of this, we have added about 12 new hams, 7 of whom were able to upgrade, and who will now have the chance to enjoy ham radio and maybe take part in some activities in our area. Hams helping hams like this is one of the things that makes this hobby worthwhile. Thanks again, Mike Harla, N2MHO Cumberland County Radio Officer / EC. |
September 2015
Are you ready for a September to remember?
South Jersey’s biggest Hamfest is Sunday morning September 13, 2015! Gates open at 6am with covered pavilion spaces available for tailgaters and sellers, and by 8am to the general public. With VEC testing at 9am, DXCC card checking at 11:30, good food at fair prices, and door prizes [including an amazing Yaesu FT-1DR System Fusion 144/430 MHz Dual Band Digital HT], this is a great event for you to meet up with other Hams in our area, while supporting our club, and Amateur radio in general. We hope to see you there!
Before talking about this month, first I’ve some big “Thank You(s)!” (plural of you, pronounced “youse” as we say here down Jersey) from this past month to shout-out. Let me start by saying, that was some great club picnic we had at the end of July!! Shout-outs to organizer, Jennifer KD2EYR, Laurie KD2EYW, and to all the club members and guests that came out to the Battlefield Park to celebrate with us. Great location, great food, great weather; it was a great event! Thank you(s)!
August started with a late breaking plea from a local swim club for parking lot volunteers, which we were able to step up and support at the last minute. The event was substantial in size – making KYW News, with over 8 thousand people moved from three different parking areas loaded onto a continuously circulating fleet of a half dozen chartered buses over two days. Special thanks to Frank W2FJM, Chuck KD2EIB, and Rick KC2SGR who, with me, responded to the call to help out on Sunday morning. Over the course of a few hours, we nearly filled the lots on both sides of the Washington Twp HS (that’s a lot of cars!), while managing to keep the peace in the queues of people waiting for bus pickup. Well done all! Thank you(s)!
That same week was our August General Membership Meeting. This time, a shout-out goes to club member and guest speaker for the evening, Mike N2ICV, for an informative presentation and hands-on demonstration of DMR in action. Who knew about this “other” digital voice mode gaining traction in Ham radio? Thank you(s)!
Honestly, there are so many activities and things our members do and are involved with, each that deserve recognition. I’m just scratching the surface when sending shout-outs to our Hamfest chairmen (Sheldon K2MEN and Bill NJ2S), to Kenny WB2P who organized and ran our Field Day this year, to our Vice President (Cory WA3UVV) who also coordinates programs for our club meetings, to Jeff WB2ZBN who manages our website and publications (including the Crosstalk), to our Treasurer (Al KB2AYU) who keeps our bills paid and finances in order, to all the Volunteer Examiners (Gary N2QEE, and his team), to all the ARES/RACES volunteers (Ed N2RO and his team), and to all our officers, directors, trustees, committee chairs, and to all of you who volunteer your time and talents as part of our growing membership who regularly reach out to serve and help others for the betterment of Amateur Radio, and our communities. This club is where it is at today because of you. Thank you(s)!
Since I mentioned ARES, and this is September, if you’ve been to any of our meetings recently, or have been watching the news, by now you’ve been getting a sense of how big an event the Pope’s visit to our area is going to be in the days surrounding the weekend of Sept 26-27. With the potential for in excess of 2 million people converging on the city and surrounding suburbs, including those here in Southern New Jersey, official sources have already begun announcing bridge and roadway closures to all but pedestrians and official emergency vehicle traffic for the duration of the event.
As reported by the local news, after a press conference with the Mayor, starting on Friday, the 25th, all of I-76 (the “Schuylkill”) will be shut down Eastbound from as far North as I-476 “the Blue Route”, past boathouse row, through center city, past the sports stadiums, to I-95. I-76 westbound will be shut down from I-95 out to US Route 1. Also to be closed is I-676, which cuts through center city near the parkway, as will be the popular mile and a half long and 7 lanes wide Ben Franklin Bridge that spans the Delaware river, connecting us in New Jersey to I-676 in central Philadelphia. For the duration of the event, the Ben Franklin Bridge will be converted to a pedestrian-only crossing. Cooper Hospital in Camden is located within walking distance of the base of the Ben Franklin Bridge, on the New Jersey side of the river.
As detailed in last month’s Crosstalk, SNJ ARES has been tasked with providing communications assistance to Cooper Hospital, and the Southern Region Medical Coordination Center-South. If you have the skills, www.snj-ares.org is the website to get you registered and in touch with the people organizing radio support for the event.
Let me wrap up with a special shout-out to organizers John K2ZA, and Tony W2WCC, and to the many club members and Amateur Radio Operators in our communities who have been helping with the planning, preparations, and training for an event like this, and to all who are now signed up to provide communications support during the Pope’s historic multi-day visit. Your service is greatly appreciated. Thank you(s) all!
Respectfully,
Jim Wright, N2GXJ
October 2015
Last month, the question was “Are you ready for a September to remember?”
Well, how’d it go for you?
Let me start with a big thank you to everyone who is reading this that joined us in South Jersey’s biggest Hamfest on Sunday morning, September 13. This event has become somewhat of a tradition amongst our local ham communities, offering not only a chance to swap gear, but also an opportunity to meet with fellow hams and radio operators from around the entire Tri-State area. Some may take it for granted, but we recognize that it takes considerable effort to put on a quality event of this magnitude. Please join me in thanking the Gloucester County Amateur Radio Club for hosting this event for all to enjoy! A full recap is planned for the October 7 club meeting.
If you would like to consider becoming a member of this club, you’re always welcome to stop by at any of our club meetings, activities, or events. Our next club meeting is October 7 for a recap of this successful event (and more). After taking care of the business portion, we typically set aside social time to meet and greet, and then usually have a guest speaker or educational program for the evening as well. Directions to the Pfeiffer Community Center in Williamstown, NJ, where we meet from 7:30pm-9:30pm on the first Wednesday of each month, are available from the “About GCARC” page tab on our club’s website. Hope to see you there!
Did you get a chance to play in the NJ QSO party Sept 19 & 20? Rumor had it that sponsor station K2AA had a rover that was planning on a stop at the Red Bank Battlefield Park here in Gloucester County on Sunday. Anyone catch them? We’d like to hear from you at the October 7 club meeting too!
When this went to print, we were only a few days away from a historic visit from Pope Francis to our area. Numerous club members and amateur radio operators from our area were finalizing their preparations to provide support for this event. This included support to our served agencies, as well as K2P, special event station to commemorate the Pope’s visit to the United States. Come on out to the October 7 club meeting to share some of your “behind the scenes” radio recap from this historic event.
In addition to recapping the September to remember, there is much happening in radio and in the club in October to look forward to as well. The MS City to Shore 2015 bike ride is October 3 and 4. As you heard at our September club meeting, if you’ve not signed up yet to help provide radio support – better get on that quick! There’s a link from our web page to help.
And for some on-the-air fun, school radio clubs from around the nation will be on the air from October 19-23 as part of the ARRL’s School Club Round-up. Join in if you’d like to help promote amateur radio for the next generation.
And it’s been a little while since our last radio direction finding fox hunt…we’ve had some great fun with those in the past. Any interest in a Saturday morning October 31 “spooky signal hunt”? We can talk about that at our next club meeting too.
Respectfully,
Jim Wright, N2GXJ
November 2015
Did you catch the discussion at the last club meeting? Philadelphia survived the Papal visit, as did (most) of the radio volunteers. Can’t quite say the same for the MS 150 City to Shore, however, which was cancelled due to high winds and rain conditions. Hurricane Joaquin was flirting with the East Coast, and it could have been much worse if it had decided to pay us a landfall visit. With Hurricane Sandy still fresh in the minds of NJ residents, we are thankful it did not!
In case you had not heard, there have been some promotions announced recently in our radio community.
- Congratulations to club member Tony Otlowski (new call W2WCC, former KD2AFY), who steps in as Section Emergency Coordinator for the ARRL Southern New Jersey section. He is swapping roles with club member John Zaruba Jr. (K2ZA), who is now his assistant.
- Congratulations also to Walt Seitz (KB2JCG), who steps in as Gloucester County Emergency Coordinator for club member Ed Champion (N2RO). Ed will be keeping the role as Radio Officer for RACES, working with Walt in that capacity.
- Congratulations to club member Jennifer Robinson (KD2EYR), who has been appointed ARRL Assistant Section Manager for Salem County.
Feeling blue about radio propagation, and looking to have some radio fun anyway? Well, originally we’d planned a “spooky” fox-hunt for Saturday, October 31 morning. Going to have to wait a little longer! Jeff tells me his roof is getting re-done, so he won’t be available to hide the transmitter for us then. We’ll postpone until a later date in November. Sorry about that!
As we look forward to year’s end, here’s some good news to share! Thank you to Phyllis (W2PDB), who is organizing an all-inclusive Holiday Dinner for our club to finish out this year. Save the date: Thursday December 3, from 6 to 9pm. She asks to please email or call her with your reservation and dinner choice by November 25.
Money will be collected for the Holiday Dinner at the November 4, 2015 General Membership Meeting. The cost is $25.00 per person. If Phyllis or Ray are not there, the treasurer, Al, KB2AYU, will accept the money.
And lastly, not sure if you knew about this. Did you know there is an opportunity this year to apply for Life Membership in the Gloucester County Amateur Radio Club? Perhaps that is something that you might want to consider. You’ll find more details later in this edition of Crosstalk.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone,
Respectfully,
Jim Wright, N2GXJ
December 2015
Gas under two dollars at the pump. Who would have guessed we were going to see that again? Yet just the other day, I filled up for an astounding low $1.89/gal. And, since this is NJ, they still pump it for you. What an excellent value for your money. Turns out, the good old USA is now the number 1 producer of oil and gas on the planet! Go USA!
And go GCARC! The next General Membership Meeting of our club is scheduled for Wednesday, December 2. I’ll be on business travel that day, but our capable VP, Cory, WA3UVV, will be able to step in to perform the duties as he has done before. In the business portion of our club meeting, we will hold our annual elections from the slate of candidates finalized at our November club meeting, and I hear a Milt Goldman Award may be presented. If you’ve not paid-up yet for your 2016 dues, you can do so in person at the meeting. Following the business portion of the meeting, we’ll have a little time for socializing. But that’s not all. The next night, December 3 is our Holiday celebration! Thank you to all who have RSVP’d, and to Phyllis, W2PDB, who’s coordinating the event again for us this year. It should be a good time!
December brings a couple of CW contests, one on the 160 Meter band (Dec 4-6), and one designed for rookies who want to try their hand at CW (Dec 20). There’s also the annual 10 Meter contest (CW & Phone, Dec 12-13) which may be worth trying, even with radio conditions seeming to be a bit unpredictable lately.
In more local radio news, we have started the process of investigating and improving the performance of our 2 Meter repeater at the Pitman water tower site. The goal is to be able to make facts-based decisions, rather than speculative ones, on where to spend our time and effort. This is not an “overnight” process. The first step in this process is to have a qualified expert perform professional-level on-site diagnostic tests on our repeater and antenna system, including duplexers, hardline, connectors, and antenna, and report on their findings. From the report, a facts-based action plan can be developed and prioritized for implementation.
Much appreciation goes out to Tekk Comm Communications, and Gary Bendy (KC2YWJ) in particular, who agreed to perform this first step for us at no cost to the club. Thank you Gary!
Both Al and I were present during the inspection and tests at the Pitman tower repeater site that were conducted on November 7. A copy of their report, along with a few pictures I took during the visit, are in the December 2015 edition of Crosstalk. From the report, you will see just how generous Tekk Comm is in helping us in this matter. Thank you, thank you, thank you Tekk Comm!
Our repeater technical committee will be acting on this report. I’d prefer to do the main work on this in this committee, with report-out at our regularly scheduled club General Membership Meetings, for the benefit of the whole club. If you would like to be appointed to the 2016 repeater technical committee, send me an email, or tell me in person at the Holiday Dinner.
Enjoy your Thanksgiving weekend, and the start of December!
Respectfully,
Jim Wright, N2GXJ