ARRL Club News for July 2007

ARRL Club Newsletter
July 13, 2007
____________________________________________________________________

Norm Fusaro, W3IZ, Editor

IN THIS ISSUE:
+ Salute to PR for FD
+ It Doesn't Hurt To Ask
+ QSL Party
+ Safety Always
+ Elmer's Corner


_______________________________________________________________________

Salute to PR for FD

ARRL Media and Public Relations Manager Allen Pitts, W1AGP reports
that he has received numerous media hits from clubs about Field Day
operations.  Allen is quick to point out that these stories are not
the usual one paragraph obligation on the back page, but are
interesting stories about the people in the local clubs and the role
that Amateur Radio plays in the community.

Congratulations to your PR people if your club was one of the
hundreds that were able to get quality news coverage.

_______________________________________________________________________

It Doesn't Hurt To Ask

The West Allis ARC (WI) sent us some pictures of their Field Day
operation and I could not help but notice the number of bucket trucks
that were used to support the antennas. I was told that as luck would
have it a contractor for the local power company was using part of
the Field day site as a temporary base for their equipment while
working in the area.  So the club tracked down the foreman and asked
for a favor and just like that, the club had instant support for some
full wave loop antennas.
< http://www.warac.org/fd/index.htm >

_______________________________________________________________________

QSL Party

If your club is looking for a good meeting program that will bring
people together then try a QSL party.  Many hams have colorful QSL
cards with stories associated with the contact.
Ask your club members to bring in their QSL albums or a few of their
favorite QSL cards and give everyone an opportunity to share the
cards and a few stories with the club.  QSL cards can range from a
memorable QSO or rare DX or a first QSO on a given band or mode. 
This is a great opportunity for new hams to see what QSLing is all
about and what they can expect as they become more involved in
Amateur Radio activities.

For a free Power Point program and accompanying handout material
please visit the ARRL multimedia library at < www.arrl.org/multimedia
>.
_______________________________________________________________________

Safety First --- Safety Always

Summer is when many radio amateurs perform work on their antennas.  A
lot of clubs will rally around members' projects to assist with
raising antennas and towers.  PLEASE keep safety as your number one
priority when performing this kind of work.

Watch out for overhead powerlines and other dangerous situations. 
Care should also be taken not to strain backs and muscles attempting
to lift heavy loads.  Heat can be another danger to some people when
working outdoors.  Remember to hydrate and rest when necessary.

The Amateur Radio Community Services club, KI4OIP in Paintsville,
Kentucky presented their club with a demonstration on tower safety at
the June meeting.  The demonstration included all of the necessary
climbing gear and a section of tower to show proper techniques on how
to use the equipment.  The presentation was given by experienced
tower climbers Ralph Tuley, KB9ORD, and Mark Holbrook, KE4KAD.  Mark
climbs towers for a living and routinely ascends to heights of 1000
feet.  

The ARRL Technical Information Service (TIS) has information on
antenna and tower safety. 
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/pdf/0106091.pdf

Playing it safe today means that you will have a chance to come out
to play tomorrow.

ARCS < http://www.ki4oip.org/ >

_______________________________________________________________________

Elmer's Corner
A Letter From A Local Club 

Thank you ARRL for the great Elmer Award.  We presented it today to
Alan,
WA4SCA at his house.  He was very pleased to receive it, and said he
never expected such a thing.  It was great to see him with the award,
thank you so much for supplying it.

Our club, Williamson County Amateur Radio Emergency Service in
Williamson County Tennessee, has regular monthly breakfast meetings
that usually see 35 club members in attendance.  At one such meeting
we were discussing Field Day and plans for a satellite station at
Field Day.  
As soon as a satellite team was recruited, Alan Biddle WA4SCA stepped
up to offer his help.  Alan is not as active with Field Day as he
once was, however he was very enthusiastic about helping the club and
supplying much of the equipment needed for this specialized mode.

Alan was never put-out by the excessive e-mails and barrage of
questions.  He guided us as we procured antenna hardware and tried to
assemble an earth station.  Alan was always there to offer
encouragement when we experienced frustration from not being able to
make a contact during many "practice" sessions.  Eventually our group
was able to make contact with Alan through one of the satellites.  He
congratulated our success and presented us with QSL cards confirming
the QSO.

Alan was very enthusiastic and in the time leading up to Field Day he
kept the club informed with satellite tracking information and advice
on how to maximize our effort through the software programs that we
were using.
Thanks to Alan's help we were up to speed by the time Field Day
rolled around, and we were tracking the birds and making regular
making FM contacts using 
yagi antennas.  We became proficient enough to be able to
successfully use a handheld Arrow antenna with a 5W HT to make a
contact through a satellite.

Being inexperienced made understanding the material in 'The Radio
Amateur's Satellite Handbook' (ARRL) a bit difficult.  This material
became clearer as time went on thanks to Alan's help and
encouragement.

This has been one of the better experiences of my life and has opened
up another new avenue of Amateur radio for me.  Thank you again for
providing the Elmer Award for Alan.  Being able to recognize him with
an ARRL certificate for his unselfish deeds meant a lot to our club
and to Alan.

73, 
Dave KI4PSR

If you or your club would like to recognize someone for their
mentoring accomplishments send your request for an Elmer Award to
clubs@arrl.org.  Please include:
1.	the name and call of the person who will receive the award 
2.	the name and call of person or club presenting the award
3.	The address where the award is to be sent.
ARRL offers the Elmer Award mounted on a beautiful walnut plaque. 
Please call 860-594-0230 for details and cost of this service.
 
ARRL Affiliation Milestones for July 2007

	10 Years	
*W2		
ENY   	Ridge Top ARC	KC2BYY
NNJ   	Irvington Amateur Radio Team	N2JGC
 	 	 
*W3	 	 
WPA   	Belle Vernon High School ARC	KB3BKW
 	 	 
*W4		
GA    	South East Contest Club	KF4OIC
 	 	 
*W5	 	 
OK    	Choctaw ARC	K5CAR
		
	25 Years	
*W1	 	
ME    	Blackstrap Repeater Assn	K1GAX
 	 	 
*W5	 	 
OK    	SOUTH CANADIAN ARS	W5NOR
 	 	 
*W6	 	 
ORG   	Coachella Valley ARC	NR6P
 	 	 
*W9	 	 
IN    	Hoosier DX & Contest Club	KJ9D

=============================================================================
The ARRL Club News is published on the first Wednesday of each month by
the American Radio Relay League--The National Association For Amateur
Radio--225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax
860-594-0259; www.arrl.org. Joel Harrison, W5ZN, President.

The ARRL Club News is an e-mail digest of news and information of
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