Newsletter of the Titusville Amateur Radio Club

November 2003

TARC MEMBERS VISIT TALLAHASSEE

           TARC members Bob (W4YBI) and Linda (KG4YFN) Farrington, wirh Stephanie Phillips (K4MVO), joined four other hams from Brevard County October 12 and 13 on a trip to Tallahassee. The group toured the state Emergency Operations Center and got a briefing on the role of ham radio operators and other volunteers. In addition, members of the group were issued special ID badges which allow them to take roles quickly in emergency situations.

SHERRY’S IMPORTANT NOTES

By Sherry Hughes KU4ZO

321-269-0779

            Believe it or not the Holidays are here. We hope you can join us for the Titusville Amateur Radio Club Christmas party this year. We are having it early in December on the 7th at 6pm. This way it want get in the way of your holiday trips etc. The party will be held at the Knights of Columbus off 405. You must get your ticket by the December 2nd or at least let me know that you definitely want one. The tickets are $16.00 each. The menu is great (with a real cook). The menu is your choice of half a chicken broiled or Prime Rib, served with baked potato, a vegetable, a salad, dessert and tea or coffee. So Guys please let me hear from you soon. Sherry

PRESIDENT’S CORNER

by Bud Hughes W4CWG

           Hello fellow TARC members. The Titusville Amateur Radio Club will hold it’s annual election of officers and board of directors at the November 25th, 2003 club meeting. If you are a current member, please get involved in this most important event.

           If you wish you may go to the Internet and to TARC@TitusvilleARC.org. At this site you are encouraged to submit the name and call sign of those club members that you wish to nominate to the office of President, Vice President, Secretary-Treasurer and four Board of Director members. Before submitting your nomination, discuss with your candidate of choice and assure that he/she is willing to serve in the capacity of the office to which you wish to nominate him/her. Should for any reason you are not be able to submit your nomination(s) via the above Internet address, please attend the meeting and nominate the same from the floor.

           In accordance with the TARC By-Laws the voting for officers and board members will take place at the November (25th) meeting and the installation of the new officers will take place at the December (7th) meeting. The installation of officers will coincide with the TARC Annual Xmas Party to be held at the Knight of Columbus.

           Thanks to Mike Carter KG4PCK, Bob W4YBI, Linda KG4YFN, Sherry KU4ZO and yours truly had the honor of attending the November 11 Titusville Scottish Rite Club meeting.

           Bob was the guest speaker. His presentation to the Scottish Rite Club covered the amateur radio spectrum and then some. Let me tell you if you have never heard Bob speak, my friend you are in for some real serious entertainment. Bob, thanks for making my day.

           Hope to see you all on election night.

 73’s and 88’s

Bud K4CWG

OCTOBER MINUTES

By Becky Lee KF4HTB

           The October meeting was the annual potluck supper and it was well attended. The decorations were beautifully done. The food was delicious and the fellowship was just great. A good time was had by all.

BEARS REPORT

By Stephanie Phillips K4MVO

           At our last meeting, 11/11/03, we held our annual elections and the current staff was reelected (“railroaded” that train had run through the EOC before we knew it was even there...Bob) into serving another year. Meetings are the 2nd Tuesday of the month, at 7pm, at the County EOC in Rockledge. Talk-in frequency is 147.135.

        Many of you have been asking about Sky Warn Recognition Day activities and it was an item on the agenda at the last BEARS meeting on 11/11/03. We decided to support the event with a Comm Vehicle and operators if requested by the National Weather Service Station at Melbourne. An e--mail reply to our query was received on 11/14/03, which informed us that this year the Melbourne Weather Station will be working with Osceola and St Lucie Counties. Dennis explained that they'd like to work with as many different served counties as possible.

        For those of you who are unfamiliar with this event, you can check out the details on the following website: http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/skywarn-recognition-day.html .

        In the past few years Brevard County (BEARS) has partnered with other counties to help provide robust communications support to this National Weather Service and ARRL Special Event at the Melbourne Weather Station, WX4MLB. It is not a contest, rather it is an opportunity to work (make a QSO) with as many Special Event Weather Stations as possible, and to receive special QSL Cards from these Weather Stations throughout the United States. For those of you who work a designated number of Weather Stations in a region, you get a special certificate. Many of these Weather Stations don't have the "ideal" radio station and are using borrowed equipment and antennas strung up in an expedient manner, and most don't have amplifiers, so hearing them can be a challenge. And for some, this Special Event occurs during an actual Sky Warn event! Up in the North they could be having a blizzard or ice storm., so working them could be a rare treat.. It is fun and you should check it out.

        So don't forget December 6th, the day just before our TARC Holiday Party, and give those guys and gals at the Weather Stations a lot of QSO's.

        Don't forget to check-in to the BEARS nets: Wednesdays, 9am, and 7pm, on 147.135.

Give your call sign, using the standard phonetic alphabet, your location, and whether you are capable of going mobile.

        Also on schedule is an upcoming rocket launch on December 13th. Listen for the LISATS net on 147.135, and monitor 146.94 for launch information.

TREASURER’S REPORT

by Becky Lee KF4HTB

 MEMBERSHIP UPDATE

NEW MEMBERS

           RENEWALS

NOVEMBER BIRTHDAYS

ABELL’S ANECDOTES.

By Pike Abell W4EPU

           Yet Another Trip Report:

Clara and I just returned from a trip to Las Vegas and Laughlin Nevada. It was actually my Abell family reunion at my brother Nace’s home in Vegas. (Would you believe we never visited even one casino in Vegas? We never even saw the lights of ‘Glitter Gulch’ in downtown Las Vegas. The only time we saw the Strip was a magnificent view from an airplane at 10:00 PM.).

           Some of us wanted to see the Segfried and Roy show. As most everyone knows, that show was cancelled because on the night we arrived, one of Roy’s pet lions almost killed him in front of hundreds of people.

           All of my five brothers, one sister, and I, along with our spouses and countless nieces and nephews had a humongous cookout at my brother’s place on Saturday. All of us being together in one place, at one time was a great accomplishment in itself.

           After attending Mass on Sunday, just about everyone car pooled about l00 miles north of Vegas to Laughlin, NV and gathered at the Edgewater Hotel on the Colorado River, across from Arizona, about 80 miles down stream from Hoover Dam. There is where we made up for missing out on the glitter of Las Vegas. We deposited a few slugs in the one-armed bandits. Clara, as usual, covered my small losses with her small gains.

           In contrast to the excitement of the bright lights, glamour and casino atmosphere of Las Vegas and Laughlin, the highlight of our trip was a side trip from Laughlin to the town of Oatman, Arizona. The town is situated in a desert-mountainous area about 35 miles from Laughlin. Oatman was a thriving gold rush town in the late 1800s. The only gold mine in town ran dry after a few years. Everyone moved elsewhere and Oatman became a ghost town. The town then sat unoccupied for about l00 years. The conditions of the buildings, protected by the harsh dry desert atmosphere, were virtually unharmed.

           A few years ago someone got the bright idea of making Oatman into a tourist attraction. The main business district is the equivalent of about two city blocks in length. Every building is now occupied with some kind of tourist oriented business, including some nice eating establishments with reasonable prices. Numerous donkeys (Jackasses) roam the streets freely. Tourists can buy bunches of carrots to feed them. Some of the businesses take advantage of the presence of the donkeys to name their establishments. Examples – “Jackass Junction”, “The Classy Ass Gifts and Things”, etc.

The center of attraction was the gold mine at the end of the main street. For a dollar, a person can walk into the mine. Once inside, one cannot help but think about what must have been going on there over l00 years ago.

73s es 88s

CLUB MEMBERS IN ACTION

           On October 18th, Jan Ferguson (W4REN) and I (W4YBI) participated in a "Radio Jamboree" for the Boy Scouts in Troop 543 in Merritt Island. Members of the Indian River Amateur Radio Club also helped. The boys talked with other scouts in the United States and as far away as Rome, Italy. The BEARS (Brevard Emergency Amateur Radio Service) mobile unit COMM-2 was a major attraction.

SUCCESSFUL CONCLUSION TO IRCC AMATEUR RADIO CLASS

           The Indian River Country Club training class for passing the FCC qualifying examination for the “Technician” radio license came to a successful conclusion on Monday, September 29th when four class members passed the exam and have received their new FCC Call Signs.

           This class was organized and coordinated by Jim Davis, W4TTE and Don Alford, K1DRA on behalf of the IRCC Amateur Radio Club. They were fortunate in having Stephanie Phillips, K4MVO, President of Brevard Emergency Amateur Radio Services, Inc. (BEARS) and a member of TARC as a highly qualified volunteer instructor for the class.

           The FCC examinations were administered at IRCC’s Colony Hall by Volunteer Examiners (V EC’s) under the leadership of Bud Hughes, President, Titusville Amateur Radio Club. The newly licensed radio operators are:

Robert Pimentel, KI4CGW.

Lillian Hall*, KI4CJV.

Robert Hall, KI4CJW.

Larry Hughes, KI4CJU.

*Lillian was “Validictorian” of the class with her very rare score of 100% CORRECT on the FCC Exam!

MEMORIES OF HOBBIES

By Clyde Lee K4EOS

           From my early childhood, I have been a ‘hobby’ person. Born and raised in a textile mill village in upper South Carolina, very early in life the hobby bug got me. First it was model airplanes. Then, when we acquired an old Attwatter Kent Radio with large speaker horn and 3 dials to tune, that probably started it. I, as a lot of other people, got a crystal set with head phones, and I could hear WSM Nashville.

           Jump to my late teens and WWII. I was drafted in the Air Force and sent to radio and radar school to become an air crew member. The radio school was 8 hours a session in 3/24 hr. shifts. Sometimes I’d start at midnight when sleep would have been better. I finally ‘crewed’ up with an air/sea rescue unit and went to the pacific theater. At that time I was a “hot” CW operator. After the war I lost interest in radio, and went into all the phases of photography. Then in 1959 some local hams renewed my interest in radio. I managed to get my novice ticket and built a DX 40 radio. I strung a wire in the attic and made my first contact on my lunch hour the day my license came. That did it for me! I was off and running. In the following years I worked a lot of AM until SSB came in. Finally, I joined in and acquired some Hallicrafter SSB gear. My friends helped me erect a 60 ft. tower with a 15M 5 element beam. This worked great. I never used a linear, but got a WAS and WAC from ARRL with my 100 watts.

           When I moved to Florida, I kept contact with the SC hams for some time, then the flying bug bit me, and I had to get my pilots license. The waterway bug was next so there was a boat in my yard. That lasted some time until the motorcycle bug hit - etc., etc…

           Through it all I retained my license, but disposed of my radios. In the 80’s the 2 meter bug hit. Well, you know how that turned out. Today I do more listening than talking. This is my story - and is probably a typical ham story. 73

BOB’S WORDS OF WISDOM

By Bob Green N3DMI, Editor

           Well my first issue is over with, and I see that no one read the Back cover, because I had put the wrong date for the pot luck dinner. The turn out for the dinner was great, the food was even better and the deserts... they were beyond delicious. You see, I start with the deserts, that’s the only way to go at a dinner of this style.

           I finally got my Alinco DX-70TH and auto-tuner installed in my truck. Still debugging and tidying up the installation. Now I can enjoy those short 54 miles round trip, trips to and from work. Checked into the Pacific Maritime Mobile Net on 20 meters, and found it quite informative. Still have some ignition noise to search out and remove.

            I am planning to work on upgrading to Extra Class and was wondering if there is any interest out there for an Extra Class upgrade class. I have forgotten much of the technical side, and it would be beneficial for me to attend a class which would spend time on the on the technical side. I am sure that I am not the only one out there who has forgotten the basics. What is an ohm? Picafarads, or inductance? Perhaps we might even find an instructor. The class might even be a refresher for some.

           Recently I purchased some accessory items for my shack and for portable use. The primary purchase was for a “Mini-Manual” for my Yaseu FT-90R and Icom IC-706MKIIG transceivers. In addition to the transceiver guides I decided to purchase a set of HF Bands Operating Guide (2 sheets) and a VHF/UHF Bands Operating Guide.

           The products are 4"X8" laminated sheets of white paper, multi-colored printing, well laid out and above all current with a 2003 copyright. In fact the HF Bands included info on the new 60 meter band. The guide for the FT-90R is on a horizontal or landscape format and is a single sheet, while the IC-706MKIIG guide is 11 pages and is on a vertical or portrait format. The products appear to be or good quality. The guides are designed to cover the most commonly used features of the radio.

           At this point the price was right and I am satisfied with what I purchased and will keep you advised at to my impressions as I use these guides. For additional information:

www.niftyaccessories.com.

           Now that I have my mobile rigs up and operational, I have found it quite distressing when I and others call out on the repeater and hear absolutely zilch. What’s really interesting is that there was activity when you turned on the radio and as you turned it off. This is one of my pet peeves. Ham radio is where we meet people and comunicate with each other. Well how can we communicate when there is selective hearing on the repeater? This is not limited to the TARC repeaters but is a problem nationwide. We can turn the tide on this problem, let’s get off our duffs and keep the repeaters continuously operating.

           This issue has articles from some of our club members who are not afraid to write. So what about the rest of you? I have started a collection of articles and items for publication in future issues. Let’s keep our eyes alert for a new and better newsletter each month. 73's

HAMFESTS

Nov 22            Titusville, FL

North Brevard ARC

Nov 29             Okeechobee FL

Okeechobee ARC

Dec 6-7            Palmetto, FL

West Central Florida Section Convention

Jan 10, 2004   Boca Raton, FL

Boca Raton ARA Free Flea

Jan 10, 2004   Fort Myers, FL

Fort Myers ARC

Jan 31, 2004   Arcadia, FL

DeSoto ARC

Feb 7-8, 2004  Miami, FL

Florida State Convention

Feb 10-15, 2004 Christmas, FL

ARC of Wally Byam Caravan Club

Feb 13-15, 2004         Orlando,FL

Southeastern Division Convention

Feb 21, 2004 Sebring, FL

Highlands County ARC

For additional information check the ARRL website.

ARRL Southern Florida Section News

New look to section website: www.sflarrl.org

New section wide 2 meter SSB net starting December 4. Thursdays 144.210 MHZ

2030 EST

CLUB INFORMATION

Meetings: Monthly on the 4^th Tuesday at 1900 at the Jaycee Building, N. 405 Singleton Ave.

CLUB OFFICERS

President:

Bud Hughes K4CWG 269-0779

Vice-President:

Ozzie Osband N4SCY 543-8633

Secretary/Treasurer:

Becky Lee KF4HTB 267-9375

ELECTED BOARD MEMBERS

Pike Abell W4EPU

 269-4208

Ed Summersett WA3FKC

269-5890

Hank Phillips AA4HP

264-2492

Ralph Hall AE4LE

267-9418

REPEATER CUSTODIAN BOARD

Les Griner K4SJC     (146.94)

267-1565

Warren Murray W4CEL (146.97)

638-5476

Mike Hensley   W4LOV (444.15)

639-1553

Ozzie Osband N4SCY (145.09)

Packet Rose Node 543-8633

Ken Denman KD4HNW(146.775)

269-5711

Newsletter Editor:

 N3DMI Bob Green.

 N3DMI@IJ.NET

NETS

Red Eye         Sundays 0600-0700

                       7.228 MHz

Traders          Mondays 1000

                         146.91 MHz

Friendship     Tuesdays 0830

                         146.91 MHz

Mosquito       Wednesdays 1900

                         28.333 MHz

VIP                 Thursdays 1000

                         146.91 MHz