Circuits
June, 2005
Club Call - K4KSC
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Circuits |
TARC
Newsletter
June, 2005 Club Call - K4KSC |
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Club Officers
Bud Hughes, K4CWG 269-2796 k4cwg@cfl.rr.com Jose` Ramos, KC4VIO 267-5892 kc4vio@yahoo.com Becky Lee, KF4HTB 267-9375 lees@titusvillearc.org Titusville, FL
32781-0073 Pike Abell, W4EPU 269-4208 pikeetal@digital.net John Renninger, KE4ZPA 267-9431 ke4zpa@gnc.net Mic Woltman, KI4CFA 632-4601 mjwoltman@mindspring.
com Bob Farrington, W4YBI 633-5664 bobandlinda3@juno.com Les Griner, K4SJC 267-1565 Warren Murray, W4CEL pager - 638-5476 Mike Hensley, W4LOV 639-1553 Ken Denman, KD4HNW 269-5711 Next meeting Tuesday June 28th at 7:00 PM Titusville Public Library 2121 S. Hopkins Ave behind Titusville High School The President's Page Kudos' are in order to our own Wayne W4GBW and Ozzie N4SCY. With Wayne providing the soft ware and
Ozzie's computer skills you can go to our club's website at www.titusvillearc.org, scroll down the page on the
right side, click on the heading "W4GBW Merritt Island WX". At this site you may find many details relating
to our local weather. Thanks fellows for this neat addition to our website. Our Field Day Chairman Mic KI4CFA and his committee are making great strides in preparing for this event. If
you haven't had a chance to get involved with this annual event and would like to participate we cordially invite
you to roll your sleeves up and come join us. Field Day is just a few days away (June 25 & 26). Partial set up will
commence Friday the 24th. Saturday morning all antennas, operating stations etc. will be put in place. The on-air
activities will consist of 3 stations plus 1 gota (Get-on-the -air). This year we will be operating as Class 3A. Saturday afternoon during the Field Day exercise at 5:00PM we will gather for the annual Potluck diner. The
club furnishes the entrée, coffee, ice tea, sodas and snacks. Our ladies will bring a covered dish and boy oh boy
this gang knows the meaning of the word feed bag. The Technician/General class taught by Stephanie K4MVO is moving right along. Four of her students have
already taken the Tech exam and are licensed. The new hams are Azentha Leonard KI4KLH, Jerry L Leonard
KI4KLI, Catherine Leonard KI4KLJ and Jerry Malm KI4KLK. We welcome these new licensees to amateur
radio and look forward to many QSO with them. Our best wishes to the remaining class mates and know they
will be joining our ranks soon. Keep up the good work Stephanie. President's Page Con't John WB3JBK and his bride Pat KA3AAG from that far North state of Maine joined us on the Red Eye Net this
past Sunday morning. We are hoping Jim N3OZZ will soon join us as well. We did not hear Jim W5CIP from
Springfield, Va. as we did last week. (Red Eye Net is on 7.228 at 6 AM. Everybody's invited!) Neither rain, nor sleet nor snow could deter a small contingent of TARC members from sallying forth to east
Orlando and arriving before dawn at the UCF Tailgate the morning of June 11. Although the venders and buyers
were somewhat sparse that did not prevent those in attendance from making the seemingly much needed world
decisions on topics important to us all. Once it was determined that much rain was in store, puddles were getting
deeper and umbrellas were quite cumbersome the partygoers decided to return to higher grounds. On the way
back we sighted at least three "funnel clouds" which wasn't surprising since there was a tornado watch in effect.
Stephanie K4MVO opened up a SkyWarn net in the 146.91 repeater and relayed our report to the weather
bureau. Please continue to visit and call on our many friends who are not in our midst due to illnesses. It means so much
to let them know we care. Special thoughts go out to Bob Husband K4WSJ who had his gall bladder removed
and Gary Johnson W4RBI who gave up part of his liver. Trusting the heavens have momentarily finished delivering the most welcomed moisture we hope to see you at
Field Day and then the club meeting the June 28th, 7:00PM at the North Brevard Library. 73s and 88s Bud K4CWG The Vice Squad By Jose` Ramos KC4VIO TARC Vice President Will you be at Field Day? We are ready to go but only you can make it a success. Mic, KI4CFA, was our guest
speaker at the last club meeting and presented the details for the event. We need operators so don't be shy, come
by and join the fun. The covered dish dinner on Saturday is one of the highlights of Field Day. Do not miss it. Do you have any idea how aircraft communicate with each other, with the control tower and other ground
personnel? Can you listen in with your ham gear? With so many on the air at the same time, how on earth (no
pun intended) do they keep their communications straight to keep from running into each other? Is that what
avionics is all about or is there more to it? All those secrets will be revealed at our next club meeting by our
mystery guest speaker (and hopefully assisted by his able right seat partner). You want to be there for this one. There will also be a special audio visual presentation of the club's involvement in the NASA's Return to Flight
picnic at KARS Park. See 'ya, KC4VIO, José Abell's Anecdotes By Pike Abell W4EPU As this is being written it is the first week of June, 2005. To this old WW-II soldier it is a week of very
memorable anniversaries. D-Day, the landing in Normandy, France on June 4, 1944; Battle of Midway was won
during this week in 1942; Japanese invasion of Kiska and Attu (the only time that enemy soldiers have ever set
foot on soil in the Western Hemisphere) and the Bombing of Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Islands in Alaska,
June 3 & 4, 1942. My most vivid memory was of the bombing of Dutch Harbor, because I was there! It was June 3, 1942. Around daybreak we were awakened by anti-aircraft guns firing just a few hundred yards
away. We quickly scrambled out of bed, got dressed and prepared to leave the building. Just as the first person
reached the door, the bombs started exploding all around us. We all fell to the floor and remained there. When
the bombing stopped, we went outside to leave the area. The barracks next to us, which was hit, was engulfed in
flames. Several men, dead and wounded, were lying in the street. Abell's Anecdotes, Cont. I could hear sirens of approaching emergency vehicles. Everything was chaotic, to say the least. Heavily laden
with my personal belongings, gun, ammo belt and backpack, I walked along the beach road looking for better
shelter. On the way, I passed by a truck that had been riddled with shrapnel. Nearby were two men, both dead. As
indicated by the crater, a fragmentation bomb had landed only a few feet from the men and the truck. The men
had apparently stopped the truck, gotten out and were running for cover when the bomb hit. I reached a sandbag protected Quonset hut at the foot of an embankment just in time to hear the anti-aircraft
batteries again commence firing at a formation of a dozen or so bombers approaching. We saw the planes
release clusters of bombs. We all took cover between the Quonset and the sandbags. Again, the bombs landed
all around us. One landed on the hill just above us and sand and gravel rained down for what seemed like
eternity. That turned out to be the last raid of the day. The next air raid came the following day on June 4. We were better prepared for them. This time I only saw zero
fighters and dive bombers. The fighters relentlessly strafed the hill on which we were located as well as other
areas. Several strafing fighters flew within 50 feet or so of my foxhole. One was so close I could see the pilot
and could almost see the expression on his face. I fired one clip (8 rounds) with my M-1 rifle at each passing
fighter and reloaded in time for the next. A devastating, but spectacular sight was the dive bombers making their bombing runs. They scored direct hits on
huge petroleum storage tanks with the ensuing spectacular explosions and fires. (I had a "bird's eye" view of it
all.) They "wasted" several bombs on a beached ship used for sleeping quarters for civilian workers. One of our favorite evening pastimes was listening to Tokyo Rose, an American defector who broadcasted
propaganda from Radio Tokyo. That evening she boasted that the Japanese bombers had destroyed a war ship
at the Dutch Harbor Pier. She was obviously referring to the beached ship. In those two days they destroyed several buildings with their contents, probably half of the petroleum products
stored on the island, the beached ship, and, last but foremost, killed some 29 men and wounded a number of
others. Every year about this time, it all comes back to me. 73 es 88s Pike Editor's Note: Our congratulations to Pike Abell for being recognized by Governor Jeb Bush for his volunteer
efforts to support the Brevard County Court system. Pike received the Points of Light Award for his 16 years
of service. The Governor's citation also said in part, "Pike Abell is to be commended for his many acts of service
to his community. He is a true example of the positive difference one man can have on the lives of many." Pike, W4EPU, leaves people much younger than his 86 years trailing in his dust. In addition to his work with
the courts, his citation noted efforts for Meals on Wheels and the Community Watch. We have come to depend
on Pike when the club is called out for emergency operations. Last fall, he stayed on the job after most of us
had gone home exhausted handing out ice and supplies at the Miracle City Mall. This month's column shows the serious side of Pike Abell. Most of us know him for his quick smile and easy
story telling style. He seldom talks about his many experiences in the military and years working for the CIA. Of course, we should not forget Pike's strong right arm Clara KE4YQL. Best wishes to the both of them! TITUSVILLE AMATEUR RADIO CLUB P.O. Box 73 Titusville. FL 32781-0073 FIRST CLASS MAIL TREASURERS REPORT Beginning balance 1/1/05 $2894.35 Deposits in 2005 2642.54 Total Income $5536.89 YTD Expenditures -1814.58 Balance as at 6/13/05 $3722.31 JUNE MINUTES By KF4HTB Becky Lee After the usual opening ceremonies, President Bud Hughes K4CWG turned the program over to
Vice President KC4VIO Jose Ramos who updated the members on the Wednesday class which
has 9 students. He said the class had received good support from members dropping in to share
their experiences in Amateur Radio with the students. He also said that Pike W4EPU and Clara
KE4YQL would be going to the Governor's Mansion soon to receive a Point of Light Award.
He also updated the members about the illnesses and deaths within the club. He then introduced
Mic KI4CFA who is Field Day Chairman. Mic explained to new members what field day is - an
operating event to demonstrate ham radio in extreme conditions. He passed out an activity list
for the days (Saturday, June 25 and Sunday June 26). Also a map of how to get to the field day site and a
map of the proposed layout of equipment and stations. He asked that any member who planned
to help with the setup, operation and takedown sign up and indicate the times they would be
available. He stressed that if not enough members volunteered to work, there would be no Field
Day activities. Ozzie N4SCY talked about the club website and the hurricane map on the
website. FOR SALE Looking for a 9 foot "rooftop" tower. Art Wood W2GIT has one for sale for $100. The tower
weights approximately 80 pounds. If interested, call Art at 631-1781 or catch him on 146.91.
President
Vice President
Secretary-Treasurer
PO Box 73
Board Member
Board Member
Board Member
Board Member
146.91 Repeater Trustee
146.97 Repeater Trustee
444.15 Repeater Trustee
147.775 Repeater Trustee