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President's LetterJonathan Pearce, WB2MNFOctober 2025 |
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September is always a busy month for the Gloucester County Amateur Radio Club, and this year was no exception. An active Tech Saturday Forum occurred along with a well-attended Fox Hunt 34, but the premier activity is always the Annual HamFest, an event for which the Club holds its collective breath for good weather. Throughout August and early September we were blessed with clear skies and moderate temperatures, which created the hope that similar weather would occur on that important date. Ron Block NR2B and his forty person HamFest team had planned for every contingency in a document whose level of detail rivaled that of the plan for the Normandy invasion, but also knowing that the ultimate risk was out of the hands of even the most thorough hamfest planner. And although every Club member swore that they had offered the most humble prayers to the gods of weather, had followed each of the principles of the ARRL
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HamFest Chairman Ron Block NR2B Planning The Event
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Amateur’s Code, had always used the minimum power necessary and had never looked up a station’s grid square on QRZ.com during the DX contest - still the heavens opened up and poured forth rain.
Despite that, attendance at the event was good - most vendors still showed up although there were no tailgaters (looks like that Lafayette Radio receiver and Heathkit grid dip meter will sit in your basement for yet another year). The seminars were excellent, with Jim Wright N2GXJ's in-depth session on antenna design and optimization in 3D, Robert Famiglio K3RF's ARRL update, and Angela Metzger KE2DRJ's talk on engaging middle school kids in STEM through ham radio. The balloon launch that was planned gave us a chance to experiment with the effect of rain on a balloon, which predictably rose from the Clubhouse lawn, flew over the ticket booth and landed in the field about 100 yards away, whereupon we dumped another 10 grams of helium into it and sent it into the clouds, never to be heard from again.
Final attendance counts remain to be reported but the financial results are promising - we were only about slightly below our budgeted net income from the event, and combined with the surplus from other activities (notably strong membership growth) we expect to end the year with a financial surplus despite the HamFest rainout. And massive thanks go to Ron, Mike Resnick N2WOQ who assisted, along with gate staff, announcers, speakers, security, and Clubhouse welcomers - their efforts underscore why our Club stands out.
Other Activities - In other September activities the Tech Saturday Forum drew about 15 participants focused on setting up and testing 915 MHz unlicensed Meshtastic radios, exploring channel configs, encryption, and mesh networking for emergency or extended-range comms. The Fox Hunt was a solid success, with participants honing their direction-finding skills in a fun, competitive format - congrats to the winners, and we look forward to the next one.
CPR Course - Sign-ups for the CPR/First Aid classes led by Josh Boylan KE2FSC are moving along steadily, with sessions scheduled for October 5 and 12. These are essential skills for any operator involved in public service or emergency comms - registration closes September 30th, so if you're planning to attend, get your name in now via the registration form at GCARC Heartsaver CPR and First Aid Class – GCARC Payments and Registration Portal.
Tech Saturday Forum - The October 4th Tech Saturday Forum will dive into APRS, covering the basics of packet radio for position reporting, messaging, and digipeating. We'll explore setup with common HTs and mobile rigs, including integration with GPS for tracking balloons or field ops, and touch on using APRS for real-time weather or event coordination. This hands-on session builds on Club experiences like using the digipeater on the International Space Station and is ideal for those looking to understand and use this interesting capability.
Remote HF Station Operation - Activity on this station has grown recently and several instances of lack of coordination in scheduling were discussed at the September Board meeting. Remote operators should be careful to note the sign-ups on the "Clubhouse Calendar" page of our website and not to interfere with an operator who has reserved and is using the station.
EME Dish Mount - The pipe for mounting our 2.4-meter EME dish has been cemented in place just outside the VHF room window, setting the stage for the ARRL EME Contest the weekend of October 11-12. Al KB2AYU, Frank N3PUU, and John K2QA are making final adjustments to the station, so plan to stop by the Clubhouse to see 1296 MHz signals bounced off the moon. Operating hours will be announced closer to the event.
Dinner at the W2MMD Clubhouse - Don't forget our monthly dinner at the Clubhouse, held on the fourth Wednesday. This month, with five Wednesdays, that falls on October 22nd. It's a great chance for eyeball QSOs and catching up on Club projects.
Congrats to SJRA - A special congratulations to the South Jersey Radio Association and their President Rick Lawn W2JAZ on their outstanding article in the October issue of QST, detailing engaging fox hunting activities tailored for kids. SJRA has been a leader in working with the Scouts in South Jersey and the article describes a very successful event.
73 de Jon WB2MNF
Despite that, attendance at the event was good - most vendors still showed up although there were no tailgaters (looks like that Lafayette Radio receiver and Heathkit grid dip meter will sit in your basement for yet another year). The seminars were excellent, with Jim Wright N2GXJ's in-depth session on antenna design and optimization in 3D, Robert Famiglio K3RF's ARRL update, and Angela Metzger KE2DRJ's talk on engaging middle school kids in STEM through ham radio. The balloon launch that was planned gave us a chance to experiment with the effect of rain on a balloon, which predictably rose from the Clubhouse lawn, flew over the ticket booth and landed in the field about 100 yards away, whereupon we dumped another 10 grams of helium into it and sent it into the clouds, never to be heard from again.
Final attendance counts remain to be reported but the financial results are promising - we were only about slightly below our budgeted net income from the event, and combined with the surplus from other activities (notably strong membership growth) we expect to end the year with a financial surplus despite the HamFest rainout. And massive thanks go to Ron, Mike Resnick N2WOQ who assisted, along with gate staff, announcers, speakers, security, and Clubhouse welcomers - their efforts underscore why our Club stands out.
Other Activities - In other September activities the Tech Saturday Forum drew about 15 participants focused on setting up and testing 915 MHz unlicensed Meshtastic radios, exploring channel configs, encryption, and mesh networking for emergency or extended-range comms. The Fox Hunt was a solid success, with participants honing their direction-finding skills in a fun, competitive format - congrats to the winners, and we look forward to the next one.
CPR Course - Sign-ups for the CPR/First Aid classes led by Josh Boylan KE2FSC are moving along steadily, with sessions scheduled for October 5 and 12. These are essential skills for any operator involved in public service or emergency comms - registration closes September 30th, so if you're planning to attend, get your name in now via the registration form at GCARC Heartsaver CPR and First Aid Class – GCARC Payments and Registration Portal.
Tech Saturday Forum - The October 4th Tech Saturday Forum will dive into APRS, covering the basics of packet radio for position reporting, messaging, and digipeating. We'll explore setup with common HTs and mobile rigs, including integration with GPS for tracking balloons or field ops, and touch on using APRS for real-time weather or event coordination. This hands-on session builds on Club experiences like using the digipeater on the International Space Station and is ideal for those looking to understand and use this interesting capability.
Remote HF Station Operation - Activity on this station has grown recently and several instances of lack of coordination in scheduling were discussed at the September Board meeting. Remote operators should be careful to note the sign-ups on the "Clubhouse Calendar" page of our website and not to interfere with an operator who has reserved and is using the station.
EME Dish Mount - The pipe for mounting our 2.4-meter EME dish has been cemented in place just outside the VHF room window, setting the stage for the ARRL EME Contest the weekend of October 11-12. Al KB2AYU, Frank N3PUU, and John K2QA are making final adjustments to the station, so plan to stop by the Clubhouse to see 1296 MHz signals bounced off the moon. Operating hours will be announced closer to the event.
Dinner at the W2MMD Clubhouse - Don't forget our monthly dinner at the Clubhouse, held on the fourth Wednesday. This month, with five Wednesdays, that falls on October 22nd. It's a great chance for eyeball QSOs and catching up on Club projects.
Congrats to SJRA - A special congratulations to the South Jersey Radio Association and their President Rick Lawn W2JAZ on their outstanding article in the October issue of QST, detailing engaging fox hunting activities tailored for kids. SJRA has been a leader in working with the Scouts in South Jersey and the article describes a very successful event.
73 de Jon WB2MNF
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Thursday, October 2, 2025
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Fire Prevention Week : October 5 - 11, 2025
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Monday, October 13, 2025
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Full Harvest Moon : Thursday, October 06, 2025 @ 2347 Hours. The Harvest Moon relates to the timing of the autumnal equinox, so it changes each year. In 2025, look for the brilliant Harvest Moon from October 5 to 7. In 2025, the brilliant Full Harvest Moon is on Monday, October 6, reaching full illumination at 11:47 P.M. It will appear full for three days, including the prior night of October 5 and the following night of October 7.
Old Farmer's Almanac - www.almanac.com