mike adams, wa2mwt, sk · march 2012 10-70 repeater association inc volume 25 - issue 3 mike adams,...
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10-70 REPEATER ASSOCIATION INC March 2012
Volume 25 - Issue 3 www.10-70.org
Mike Adams, WA2MWT, SK Mike Adams, a long time member of 10-70 and a promoter of all
aspects of amateur radio, passed away on February 21 2012. Mike was the Ramsey, NJ Emergency Management Coordinator
and also served as the Bergen County NJ SKYWARN Coordinator He held several official appointments in both ARES and RACES
He was also active with the Ramsey Ambulance and Rescue Squads as well as the Knights of Columbus.
Full Obituary
Joyce, KA2ANF: Rest in Peace my friend, you will be missed. 73, until we meet again. Matthew, K2NUD: R.I.P. Mike Adams; thank you for teaching me emergency management and getting me a job with FEMA, I will miss you very much. Charlie: N2RTS: Mike you will truly be missed! Thank you. RIP Gary, KC2UHS: Mike, you were our colleague and first and foremost our friend; all at the National Weather Service, will surely miss you. George, KC2GLG: Thank you Mike for showing the way to so many of us. From amateur radio to Emer-gency Management, to responding to Ambulance and Rescue calls whenever needed, to doing severe weather spotting, your mentoring and leadership were without equal. Rest in Peace my friend. Dennis, K2DCD: This is very sad news...Mike was al-ways very supportive of ARRL and EmComm when he and I worked on projects at ARRL HQ, he was one of the "good guys" you could always count on. A huge loss to amateur radio and EmComm everywhere Tim, KA2A: I am very sorry to hear of Mike Adams passing. My condolences to his family. Paul, KC2FMJ: Mike was kind, gentle and dedicated to a mission of helping others. We will miss him and things will not be the same without this very special man.
Scott, KC2JCB: During my 10 years as a forecaster and SKYWARN Coordinator at NWS Upton, Mike was our Ber-gen SKYWARN coordinator for most, if not all of them. Whether it was helping to gather data, finding a suitable training class venue, or offering to be the guinea pig group for the Advanced Class, he was always there for the NWS. He will be sorely missed. 73 and Rest In Peace my friend. Nick, W2NAB: Mike Adams enjoyed people more than any-one I have ever met. The world is a sadder place today with the news of Mike's passing Avi, KC2NDO: RIP Mike. I learned so much from you and loved the time we spent hanging out at the EOC Andrew, KC2LTO: Mike, it was great working with you through the years. You've been an outstanding mentor and friend. The inspiration you've given all those around you, and particularly the youth, is unrivaled Bob, N2SU: Sorry to hear of Mike's passing. A fine amateur and a true gentleman Howie, WB2AWQ: Sue and I will miss his easy manner, infectious sense of humor and genuine caring for his fellow men and women. Mike put public service and community welfare boldly in the forefront in Northern New Jersey. We’ve lost a good one. Pete, W2PM: There is no better example of a gentleman than Mike. He was a mentor to many, including younger people and always polite and caring.
Remembrances Of and Tributes To Mike Adams, WA2MWT, SK
Welcome to Spring – a time of renewal. It certainly feels a lot like Spring outside. The birds have returned to begin nesting and the flowers are about to bloom. And here we are ready to enter the month of March! A few things have happened lately, which most of you might already be aware of. We have lost one of our most dedicated leaders in the world of Emergency Com-munications and Amateur Radio – Mike Adams, WA2MWT, has passed away on February 21st after a short illness. There are no words to express this loss that all of us feel. I only know that he is at peace and the great things that he has done for all of us will live on forever. May You Rest in Peace, Mike. You are loved and missed by all. 10-70 Club meetings will continue to be held on the first Wednesday of each month at the Ramsey Rescue Squad building in Ram-sey, NJ. Thanks to the gracious-ness of Bruce Greenwood, he has arranged for us to continue to use this meeting place. Continued Page 6
10-70 REPEATER ASSOCIATION INC March 2012
Volume 25 - Issue 3
President’s Message
Date Event Type Location
February 29 2012 2012 Membership Renewals Close
All 2012 Mem-berships Due
March 7 2012 10-70 Club Meeting Ramsey Rescue Squad Ramsey
NJ
March 11 2012 BARA Auction Westwood High School
March 24 2012 Split Rock ARC Ham-fest Succasunna NJ
April 4 2012 10-70 Club Meeting TBD
Some Dates To Remember
10-70 Repeater Association
Proud To Be An ARRL Affiliated Club For Over 25 Years
www.10-70.org
March Meeting Pro-gram: QSLing 3
Internet Finds and More 3
10-70 Members Seen, Heard & In the News 3
10-70 Does Its First Google+ Hangout 3
Watts New 4
News From WRC-12 4
10-70 Board Meetings 4
10-70 Contesters Blog About CQ WPX RTTY 5
Local Auction & Ham-fest, Contests, Hamven-tion & Field Day News
6
10-70 On Twitter—Here’s What We’ve Been Tweeting About!
7
10-70 West Checks In 8
Meeting Minutes 9-10
10-70’s New Member Application Form 11
10-70’s 2012 Member-ship Renewal Form 12
10-70 Contact Info 13
WA2MWT Tributes 13
Inside This Edition You’ll Find These Articles and More!
CLICK HERE To See The Full 10-70 Online Calendar
!!Its Membership Renewal Time!! A 2012 Renewal Form Is Included On Pg 11
2012 Payments Are Now Due
The Renewal Deadline Is February 29 2012 Don't Be Left Off The New 10-70 Club Roster
Next Meeting March 7—7:30 PM Ramsey Rescue
Squad Program: QSLing
Directions at: www.10-70.org
Special Collection For A Mike Adams Tribute 10-70 is collecting donations, for a Mike Adams
Tribute, from the Club, to Ramsey Rescue Squad.
Please bring donations to the March 7th Meeting, or mail to:
10-70, WA2MWT Collection 235 Van Emburgh Avenue
Ridgewood, NJ 07450 Checks should be made payable to
10-70 Repeater Association. We would like to make the presentation at the April 4th
meeting, so please contribute before March 24th
Join other 10-70 members and friends on Wednesday March 7 for a Program on QSLing, given by our own Joyce, KA2ANF! Joyce has been licensed since 1979 and has been a member of the ARRL’s DXCC Honor Roll with over 330 countries con-firmed by only paper QSLing. Her experience spans the width and breathe of the entire QSLing world, from Paper based QSLing of the past to today’s technol-ogy with Logbook of the World (LoTW). Joyce is also a QSL Card Checker for the ARRL, doing WAS and VUCC. Joyce will also be showing many of her col-lected QSL cards (we’ll have these shown on a video projection system so you can easily see them in large scale!). Bring some of your own Cards to share too!
March Meeting Program: QSLing, Art, Science or Both? By Joyce, KA2ANF
10-70 Repeater Association Volume 25 - Issue 3
Page 3
10-70 Members - Seen, Heard and In The News: Congratulations to Matthew, K2NUD on 10 years in Amateur Radio and on the promotion at work! To celebrate, he seems to have purchased a new Mobile an-tenna for his vehicle. I guess those antennas are only good for about 10 years???
March 2012
NJ VHF Late Night Traffic Net
Each Evening at 10:30 PM local time
Checkins welcome from all amateur radio opera-
tors, especially those interested in
learning more about Formal Traffic Handling
via amateur radio
More Info At: www.arrl.org/nts
BergenSkywarn Weekly Drill Net
Every Monday evening at 10:00 PM local time
Checkins welcome from all amateur radio
operators, not just SKYWARN® Spotters
More info at: www.bergenskywarn.org
10-70 Is Proud To Have The
W2PQG 2 Meter Repeater
As The Host And Home For These Amateur Radio
Nets
Looking for Amateur Radio Microphone Pin Outs? CLICK HERE for a very comprehen-sive listing; and its even recommended by Bob Heil, K9EID of Heil Sound
Speaking of Bob Heil, K9EID if you haven’t connected with Bob and his Guests on his weekly Internet Show (HamNation) on the TWiT network (CLICK HERE Tuesday eve-ning at 9PM Eastern to see the live show), then you are missing a lot of great tips and learning about amateur radio and more! CLICK HERE for more info about HamNation
We all know electronics don’t like high heat levels...so how can you keep a Laptop (or other similar devices, i.e. radios) from over-heating, be it in your shack, living room or at Field Day? CLICK HERE for some cooling ideas from Lifehacker.com
A Few Useful Things Recently Seen and Heard On the Internet
10-70 Does Its First Ever Google+ Hangout: Sunday, February 12 2012 KA2ANF, K2DBK, N2SU and KC2GLG inaugurate this new 10-70 event! On Sunday, February 12, immedi-ately following the live Webcast of a tour inside ARRL’s W1AW historic amateur radio station, 10-70 mem-bers joined on the internet for their first Club sponsored Google Hangout! Joyce, KA2ANF, hosted and moderated the event, with K2DBK, N2SU and KC2GLG all join-ing her for a 30 minute audio and video chat! Everyone in the Hangout had watched the ARRL Webcast, and shared their own experiences from their experiences visiting and operating at W1AW. 10-70 plans to have more of these gath-
erings, and is looking for topics and themes. Already suggested is to have one to show and share interesting QSL cards! If you would like more information on how you can take part in future Hangouts with other 10-70 members, contact Joyce, KA2ANF ([email protected]). You will need a computer, or supported mobile device that has a Webcam and Microphone, and headsets are recommended to keep the audio from echoing. CLICK HERE for more info on setting up and using Google+ Hangouts
Bob, N2SU Reports On Happenings At The World Radiocommunication Conference In Geneva Switzerland (WRC-12) CLICK For More Info on WRC-12 In recent years, the thought of a second amateur band in the MF range has gained more credibility with experiments in the 500 kHz area. Recently, at the latest World Radiocommunication Conference in Geneva (WRC-12), dele-gates recommended a secondary allocation to the amateur service between 472-479 kHz. What does this mean? For starters, don’t go running out and buying old AM transmitters that were used on 540-570 kHz. Users would be limited to 1W effective radiated power, so don’t waste your time and money!!! Continued Page 4
Congratulations to Matthew, K2NUD on reaching 10 years in Amateur Radio! News from our friends at Metroplex is that they gather at the Red Oak Diner -2191 Fletcher Ave- Fort Lee, New Jersey on Saturday afternoon from 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm. All are invited to join them for some coffee or a meal and to participate in some good conversation. So, if you have nothing planned for a Saturday afternoon, drop by and visit with the club members. 10-70 Wear – Frank N2VIG has offered to help with 10-70 Clothing for purchase. Stay tuned for more information. Thank you, Frank!
Watts New: Did you know that back in the early 1980’s the 10-70 Newsletter used to be called “Watts New”? Well, eventually it became the 10-70 Repeater Association Newsletter, but we kept the inside column for new information and named it ‘Watts New’.
10-70 Repeater Association Volume 25 - Issue 3
Page 4
March 2012
Are you TUNING IN for the Last Man Stand-ing television show? The show runs each week at 8PM EST on ABC. Watch and see some ham gear on the set. Read More Here A weekly internet broadcast, HamNation, airs every Tues-day evening at 9PM EST on the TWiT-TV netcast system. Bob Heil (K9EID) does an hour-long show each week centered on all aspects of amateur radio. TWiT shows and podcasts can be seen on a computer at: http://twit.tv/ and all previous episodes of HamNation can be accessed at http://twit.tv/show/ham-nation/
The 2012 Board of Directors has set a schedule for 2012 10-70 Board Meetings. See the dates on 10-70’s online calendar at this link:
www.10-70.org/1070calendar.htm
The Board has recently implemented an online electronic conference system, that includes the ability to share and edit docu-ments online by Board Members before and during the meetings. Board members connect to the meeting with both Audio and Video or they can be connected via phone.
10-70 Board of Directors Sets 2012 Schedule for Meetings The first electronic 10-70 Board Meeting was held on Thursday 1/26 and another on 2/9 and things went very smoothly for all of those connected and that many things were learned with an over all positive result. Joyce notes that 10-70 will be making more use of technology in the way of 21st century communications techniques see the article on Page 3 about 10-70’s 1st Google+ Hangout She added: “Amateur radio operators have always been a in the forefront with new tech-nologies, 10-70 is leading that march now!”
CLICK HERE to view the 10-70’s
Online Calendar
If you use Google Calen-dar you can even link the 10-70 online calendar directly into your own calendar and have eve-rything you need in one place
To Subscribe to 10-70’s online calendar
search using the use the calendar address of [email protected]
CLICK HERE for more info on how to add (subscribe to) other
Calendars, such as 10-70’s
to your personal Google Calendar
Spray On
Antenna
Tell us what YOU
think about this
!!!!!!!
Could it be real?? Or?
CLICK HERE To Watch the Video And then Email as at
[email protected] with your thoughts for our next newsletter
Bob, N2SU Continues His Report On The World Radiocommunication Conference In Geneva (WRC-12) Continued from Page 3
What it does allow for is that old-fashioned amateur virtue: Experimentation! Could you imagine a short vertical for this band a la Jerry Sevick, W2FMI (SK)? The low-power digital modes like PSK could really come into play here, with their small bandwidth and efficiency. The QRP folks would have a field day here and I’m sure simple transmitter/receiver kits would become available.
Remember that longwave broadcasting is still used in some areas in Europe, and beacons abound, so the spectrum below 500 kHz is not a wasteland. It’s an interesting juxtaposition when you consider that, in the early days of radio, amateurs were relegated to “200 meters and down” because the conventional wisdom of the day thought that part of the spectrum was use-less. As a broadcaster, 200 meters has a special place in my heart because I’ve been on that frequency more than a few times in my career. When will this take place? Knowing how bureaucracy works, it may still be a few years off. Re-member how long it took for the 5 MHz channels to become available. I had the opportunity to listen to that band as it became available for the first time and it was an interesting experience hearing the amateur signals appear out of nowhere. That was all on SSB, but this would be dif-ferent. Just another way to have fun on the ham bands! 73/Bob N2SU
10-70 Repeater Association Inc Volume 25 - Issue 3
Page 5
March 2012
Joyce, KA2ANF The CQ WPX RTTY contest was a nice change of pace. RTTY is now becoming one of my most favorite modes. On Saturday, February 11th, I found that 20 meters was very busy with RTTY ac-tivity, but so was 15 meters and even 10 meters was alive and bustling with sig-nals! Around 4:00 pm on 10 meters I was scanning up in the PHONE portion and heard a nice QSO between a guy in Phoenix and a guy in Australia! I hurried back down the band to continue to work the contest and found a station calling CQ WPX RTTY from New Zealand! Even off of the back of my beam he was 59. I gave one call and he came right back to me! I never did get down to 80 meters to see what was there, because 10, 15 and 20 were So jammed packed full of stations. I hope to pick up some band countries for another DXCC award and possibly a Digital/RTTY Endorsement. I operated the Contest using my Ken-wood 940s, with a PK900 as the digital interface, running 60-75 watts connected to a 10m, 15m and 20m beam (yes, still missing 1 element on the back end) us-ing an IBM desktop PC running N1MM software I hope all of you enjoyed operating this contest! And, yes I uploaded my Log into LoTW and also sent in my Cabrillo file to CQ, with 10-70 Repeater Assn as my Club Affiliation!
10-70 Members Recent Contesting Blogs: CQ WPX RTTY Contest: From KA2ANF & KC2GLG
George, KC2GLG I was able to spend a few hours in the CQ WPX RTTY contest on the weekend of Febru-ary 10-12. Starting off with some 20m operat-ing on Saturday for an
hour or so, then doing a few more hours on Sunday late morning and early after-noon. As this was a Prefix hunting contest, I concentrated as much as I could on get-ting as many unique ones as possible, ending up with 58 different prefixes out of the 66 QSOs I logged! The bands (I operated 10m, 15m and 20m) were not only busy, 20m in particu-lar was crowded! (Some contesters have since written in their Blogs that it was overcrowded, with many stations step-ping over each other!) What I found, was that I had to employ not just the digital filters in my rig, but also use the Notch and Bandpass filters in my N1MM soft-ware to distinguish between (among) stations in the lower parts of 20m. While some found the crowded conditions up-setting, I found them a good challenge to me as an operator, and I learned much about proper filter setup! I used an ICOM IC-7000, into a G5RV type antenna with an IBM desktop PC, connected via a Westmountain RigBlas-ter, all controlled and logged with N1MM software. After the contest I output and then up-loaded my Cabrillo (you can see my Log by Clicking Here) Log to CQ, where their Contest Robot immediately replied back immediately its successful receipt. I also output an ADIF file from N1MM and used that to create my Logbook Of The World digitally signed TQ8 file, which I then up-loaded into ARRL’s LoTW system. (The LoTW system already confirmed 1 new country for me in this contest, and also 1 new State in my WAS quest; for just this one contest, LoTW confirmed 40 matches out of the 66 QSO’s I submitted!
The ARRL Contact Corner
Over 65% of 10-70’s members are also ARRL Members. The Links be-low are being provided to assist both ARRL Mem-bers and Non-Members (especially those looking to become ARRL Members!)
ARRL Website: www.arrl.org
ARRL Hudson Division Website
www.hudson.arrl.org
Current Edition Of The ARRL Hudson Division
Beacon Newsletter
All Past Editions of the ARRL Hudson Division
Beacon Newsletter
ARRL Hudson Division Director
Joyce Birmingham, KA2ANF [email protected]
ARRL Hudson
Division Vice Director Bill Hudzik, W2UDT [email protected]
ARRL Northern
New Jersey Section Manager:
Richard Krohn, N2SMV [email protected]
ARRL Northern
New Jersey Section Emergency Coordinator George Sabbi, KC2GLG
KA2ANF and KC2GLG’s Radio Desk
BARA Auction Sunday March 11 2012
Westwood High School Cafeteria (same location as the BARA Hamfests)
701 Ridgewood Road Township of Washington, NJ 07676
Contact: Jim Joyce, K2ZO: 201-664-6725 ([email protected])
CLICK HERE For Map and Driving Directions
BARA’s 2012 Auction Is Coming
We are sincerely grateful to him and the mem-bers of the Ramsey Rescue Squad for making space for us. In memory of Mike Adams, WA2MWT, the 10-70 Repeater Association would like to make a donation and any of it’s members who care to contribute, can send a check payable to 10-70 Repeater Assn. along to us and we will include that donation along with a card to the Rescue Squad. Please, send donations to KA2ANF – Joyce Birming-ham, 235 Van Emburgh Avenue Ridgewood, NJ 07450. Thank you all for your support. (more on WA2MWT SK Pg 1, Pg 2 & Pg 13) The past two 10-70 Meetings have included programs geared to new Technology that is going to be a BIG part of your and 10-70’s future. George, KC2GLG, recently showed how Social Media works and last month, he covered using Computer logging with pro-grams like Logbook of the World, and N1MM for our Amateur Radio ‘life’. Thanks, George!
And, speaking of new technology, even our 10-70 Board of Directors just did an online meeting using Google+ and for the most part it was very successful and certainly an easy way to communicate and share documents enabling us to easily and collectively work on new ideas. Thank you Board for making the commitments to adjust to this style of meeting.
President’ Message – continued from Page 2
10-70 Repeater Association Volume 25 - Issue 3
Page 6
March 2012
10-70 is back to participating in Contesting, as a Club, again. There has been good response from those who have done the last two months of contesting in both CQ and ARRL Contests. Some members have learned to use Logbook of the World, and also new Logging programs, like N1MM. At our March Meeting, I will share some information on QSLing and interesting QSL Cards that I have collected over the years. There have been a few new hams on the air, requesting signal reports and ‘testing’ their equipment. We need to acknowledge them when they call in. Give them a signal report and let them know how they sound. Welcome them to 10-70 too! Remember, we are the Friendly Repeater! Encourage them to visit the website: www.10-70.org and perhaps attend a meeting. Remember to support our nets on 10-70. Every Monday evening at 10:00 PM we host a SKY-WARN Training Net on 146.70 Repeater. Every night at 10:30 PM is the NJVN Late Night Traffic Net, also on the repeater. There are newcom-ers to both nets and these nets provide an ex-cellent opportunity to practice our operating skills and make sure our equipment is in good working order. See you all at the next meeting in Ramsey on Wednesday, March 7th at 7:30pm. As Stan, W2PQG would say – BE THERE!! 73 Joyce KA2ANF
ARRL June
VHF QSO Party
Objective: To work as many amateur stations in as many different 2
degrees by 1 degree grid squares as possible us-ing authorized frequen-
cies above 50 MHz. For-eign stations work W/VE
amateurs only.
Date and Contest Pe-riod: The second full
weekend in June. Begins 1800 UTC Saturday,
ends 0300 UTC Monday
This years dates are: June 9-10 2012
CLICK HERE For Info
ARRL Field Day June 23-24 2012
ARRL Field Day is the single most popular on-the-air event held annu-ally in the US and Can-ada. Each year over
35,000 amateurs gather with their clubs, friends or simply by themselves to
operate.
10-70 is already planning its field Day 2012 setup and operations. Contact
Joyce, KA2ANF ([email protected]) for
more info or to volunteer!
CLICK HERE For All ARRL 2012 Field Day
Rules And Info
Bergenfield Scouts Hamfest
Saturday - April 14 2012 Location: Conlon Hall
19 North William Street Bergenfield, NJ 07621
Boy Scout Troop 139 / Venture Crew 7373 Talk-In: 146.955- (PL 141.3) & 146.52 Simplex
Contact: Gordon Beattie, W2TTT Phone: 201-314-6964 Email: [email protected]
CLICK HERE For Map and Driving Directions
Looking For A Place To Stay at the Dayton Hamvention This Year??? Bob N2SU will have rooms available at the Airport Holiday Inn in Englewood north of Dayton for $240/person double occu-pancy. Includes use of hospitality room with bev-erages and munchies Friday and Satur-day nights. E-mail Bob at: [email protected] if interested.
CLICK HERE for More Hamvention Info
ARRL DX SSB Contest March 3-4 Will YOU be on the Air??? For this contest, stations in the US and Canada work only DX stations, and DX stations work only the US and Canada. Alaska and Hawaii are con-sidered DX for this contest. DX stations will be trying to make QSOs with all US states and Ca-nadian provinces. More Contest Info Is HERE! The contest exchange is simple: US and Cana-dian stations send a signal report and their state or province; DX stations send a signal report and the amount of power they are transmitting
10-70 Repeater Association Inc Volume 25 - Issue 3
Page 7
March 2012
10-70 Is Now On
We’ve setup a Twitter Account
so you can follow 10-70 activities and announce-
ments on your mobile phone or other Twitter
enabled devices!
@1070ra You can see our Twitter Feed at:
www.twitter.com/1070ra
10-70 On Twitter: Here’s What We’re Tweeting About! Signup and Follow 10-70ra for Free and Timely Notifications Of Many 10-70 and Other Amateur Radio Events and Happenings 10-70 Is On Twitter at: www.twitter.com/1070ra
10-70 Is Now On Google+
We’re excited about the possibilities that having a
Google+ presence will bring to 10-70.
Sharing photos, videos, even real-time connections are just some of the things
were thinking about
Google+ makes connect-ing on the web more like
connecting in the real world. Share your
thoughts, links and photos with the right circles. Use easy, spontaneous video
chat to strike up conversa-tions with as many as nine
people at once.
CLICK HERE To Visit
10-70 On Google+
10-70 Repeater Association Inc Volume 25 - Issue 3
Page 8
March 2012
Howie’s Happenings from 10-70 West: Seems I can’t stop tinkering with antennas! I’m back on the loop kick again. I’ve installed a new capacitor on my 40 meter to 20 meter 5 ft square copper loop. Now loops are nice in that they are small, yet offer decent performance, but their downfall is very narrow bandwidth. My 40M loop has a 2:1 SWR bandwidth of just 30 Khz, which is about right. Wider, and I would suspect something wrong. I changed the capacitor because the one I had on there was just too temperature sensi-tive, changing the loop frequency about 40Khz between day and night. This cap, a huskier one with thicker plates and a beefy frame changes less than 20 Khz. I still have the narrow bandwidth, but at least it’s usable without fussing with the ca-pacitor trim between day and night. First contact on the new setup was JG6JAV, 5700 miles west. Second was ZF2LC in the Cayman Islands, 2700 miles southeast. The loop was mounted on a fence in between two houses, and just 6 inches off the ground at the bottom. I’ve also done some experimenting with very thin wire anten-nas. I set up a #28 magnet wire, just for durability tests, going up a small tree, then from the tree to a fence, some 25 ft away, secured with 30 lb monofilament fishing line. I intentionally left the wire a tiny bit slack. The wire has survived three periods of very high winds, twice with frequent gusts over 60 MPH, for 24-36 hours each. Emboldened by the durability of that wire, I put up a near-end-fed 20M dipole, running from a roof peak at the rear of the house towards a tree on the hill behind the house. It’s still up after a gusty but dry storm came through just before Valentines Day. I can’t believe #28 wire could be so durable. This antenna is up a maximum of 16 ft, and performs nearly as well as my vertical wire on 20.
Sort of antenna related, what’s DX? The most common defini-tion of DX, if you ask a group of Amateurs, would be, a station in a foreign country, with the desirability of working that “DX” country being inversely proportional to the number of hams in the country, or how often an otherwise-uninhabited location is put on the radio map by virtue of a DXpedition. That’s a fine definition, and one which I lived by for most of my ham career. But moving to Nevada has changed all that for me. With my necessarily very low, hidden antennas I’ve gained a new per-spective on DX, and it gets back to the original meaning of the acronym DX, which is, distant station. Now, with my meager antenna farm I have worked to date 67 countries total. By band, 10 on 80M, 13 on 40, 32 on 20, and 34 each on 15 and 10 meters.
No surprises on the numbers by band, the higher frequencies are better for “DX” anyway, and on the lower bands low an-tennas are a liability for DX. Curiously though, according to QRZ.com, my farthest “DX” is to South Africa, on 40 meters, a haul of 10100 miles. Second farthest is to Malaysia, 8600 miles on 20M. Thus my hunt for DX now has me looking for those stations far, far away. Rare or not, in demand or not, I’m after the miles. Not that I ignore the other stuff though. I’ve bagged many of the current DXpeditions. So, where is the farthest point (about 12,500 miles) from Reno NV, it’s in the ocean at approximately 161E, 39S, or about 2000 miles east of the tip of South Africa. Probably no one there to work…..
The farthest point of land I could work would be, probably, Heard Island, some 11,444 miles distant.
How do I know that? Go here, a great-circle-route distance calculator:
www.daftlogic.com/projects-google-maps-distance-calculator.htm
What’s YOUR best DX?????
Think Field Day – it’s just 4 months away…..
73, WB2AWQ/7
40M to 20M loop capacitor. Note the braid connection from rotor to frame.
Ken, KB2SFS with dogs DJ & Cash,
scouting out a potential FD site
Tamarack Peak, NV, 9900 ft elev.
Recalling Good Memories & A Good Friend: The first Saturday in December for many years found 10-70 members and friends up at the crack of dawn, down in the Ramsey EOC, setting up for SKYWARN Recognition Day.
The cellar of the Ramsey Municipal Building, housing the EOC, was a warm and inviting place. But the warmth had nothing to do with the heating system, rather, it emanated from the friendly, welcoming, gentle man behind the desk, who couldn’t do enough for Ham Radio and Emergency Communications.
The coffee was hot, a box of donuts was ever present, and Mike Adams greeted everyone warmly, often with a bunch of stories to hash over before we began operations.
Sue and I will miss his easy manner, infectious sense of hu-mor and genuine caring for his fellow men and women. All this, and Mike put public service and community welfare boldly in the forefront in Northern New Jersey. We’ve lost a good one.
73 Mike, Howie and Sue Holden, WB2AWQ/7 Reno NV
10-70 Meeting Minutes: January 2012
10-70 Repeater Association Volume 25 - Issue 3
Page 9
March 2012
10-70 Club Meetings &
VE Sessions Are Held At Easy To
Find Locations Please check the Calen-
dar on Page 1 of the Newsletter to see which
ones will be used on which dates
Ramsey Rescue Squad Building
38 South Island Ave (Between E. Main and
Prospect Streets) Ramsey, NJ 07446
N 41.0564, W 74.1368
Pompton Lakes First Aid Squad Building
700 Ramapo Avenue (Hershfield Park Place)
Pompton Lakes NJ 07442 N 40.9940 W 74.2865
Biagios Restaurant
299 Paramus Road Paramus NJ 07652
N 40.9465 W 74.0937
CLICK HERE For Maps and Driving
Directions For 10-70 Meeting Places
10-70 Repeater Association Meeting Agenda
Ramsey Rescue Squad Building Ramsey NJ February 1 2012
Members Present: 10 Guests Present: 0 • Call to Order • By: President Joyce Birmingham, KA2ANF
• Time: 19:35, Wednesday, 1-Feb-2012
• Approval Of Previous Minutes • As Published In February 2012 Newsletter
• Corrections: (none), Motion to Accept: Justin Mattes, KC2GIK, Second: Herb Van Den Houten, K2VDH, Passed by Acclamation
• Treasurer’s Report: • Reported • List of Expenditures Made In January: Repeater site fee• Motion to Accept: Paul Beshlian, KC2CJW, Second: Frank Viglietta N2VIG. Passed by Acclamation • 2011 Financial Audit Review by BOD
• President’s Report on review given by Joyce Birmingham, KA2ANF • 2012 Budget Status Report
• Club needs to stay solvent more renewals to carry for the year. • Frank Viglietta N2VIG commented there will be revenue from the equipment
sale.
• Membership Report • 2012 Membership Renewals now due
• Deadline for 2012 renewals is February 29 • Email to all not Renewed going out this week • Follow-up Email will go out 2 weeks later to those still not renewed
• 2012 Renewals and New Members Recorded to Date: • Number of Members Renewed So Far for 2012 reported
• Renewals Short for Basic 2012 Solvency more still needed • New Members for 2012 - 4 thru 1/29/2012
• Database Status - 32 entries made so far • A 2012 member roster, using the database, will be ready to send out in early
March to all Members of record for 2012. • ARRL Report on 10-70 Members Eligible for Contests
• Using the new member database, a query is being run to output a report of all 10-70 members eligible for participation in ARRL Club Contests. The list, along with the category the Club will contest in, is again being submitted to the ARRL for each Club Contest event as per ARRL Club Contesting Rules (Gavel Competition).
• Data for these Contests since November of 2011 was sent already
• Health and Welfare Report • Update on Mike Adams – WA2MWT still in Valley Hospital, not accepting visitors. (To respect the family's wishes, the club will not publish further details.) • Other updates – Richard, K2ZB doing well after cardiac surgery. • Howie Holden WB2AWQ has been in contact w/ Justin Mattes KC2GIK. Howie & Family doing well.
10-70 Meeting Minutes: February 2012 (continued)
10-70 Repeater Association Volume 25 - Issue 3
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March 2012
• Electronic Publications and Information Technology Report • 10-70 Voicemail and Recorded Message setup under consideration by BOD, via a Google phone num-ber (201-381-1070) There is no cost. • A Conference Calling Setup for Board and Committee Meetings has been setup • Newsletter Articles, Pictures, etc are welcomed
• Please send things to [email protected] • Submission deadlines for each edition are posted on the 10-70’s online calendar, available on
the Website from the Calendar link • Technical Report
• 2m Repeater Status – up, running fine • 220 Repeater Status – about to be re-worked with quasi-new controller • 440 Repeater Status – Receiver repaired, KC2CJW is taking the rest of the machine to the shop to make sure it's within spec. • FUTURES: might link the 220 & 440 machines, see how well it sounds... and if it gets used.
• By Laws Review and Revision Committee Report • Sample Web based review and comment setup has been completed and ok’d • Awaiting additional Committee appointments before starting work, Volunteers please!
• Old Business: • 10-70 branded clothing – Paul KC2CJW brought one of the older Club shirts done by Samel's in Clifton, and Bruce Greenwood K3OEM gave the club contact info for the embroidery house the town of Ramsey uses. • 10-70 Used Equipment Offerings to be for Members first still in editing
• Used Equipment will then be Offered on E-Bay Many thanks to Frank Viglietta N2VIG for his efforts sprucing up photographing & cataloging the gear.
• VHF Contest • Reports published in the February Newsletter
• New Business: • Club Table at the BARA Spring Hamfest - Saturday May 26 2012
• Chairperson and Committee needed – please volunteer! • Upcoming Amateur Radio Events
• Contests for Club Participation: • February 10-12 CQ Worldwide RTTY Contest • February 18-19 CQ CW DX Contest • March 3-4 ARRL SSB DX contest • March 23-25 CQ Worldwide SSB DX Contest
• BARA Auction • March 11 at Westwood High School (date changed due to conflict) • More info is now at www.bara.org
• BARA Spring Hamfest • Saturday May 26
• Field Day 2012 • June 23-24
• Next Meeting Time and Place • Date: March 7 2012, Location: Ramsey Rescue, Ramsey NJ
• Adjourn • Motion To Adjourn Business Meeting By: Joyce Birmingham, KA2ANF; 2nd by Paul Beshlian, KC2CJW • Business Meeting Adjourned At: 20:35
• Program Presentation • Social Media - What Is It and How 10-70 and Others Use It – KC2GLG
10-70 Repeater Association Inc Volume 25 - Issue 3
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March 2012
10-70 Repeater Association Volume 25 - Issue 3
Page 12
March 2012
10-70 Repeater Association, Inc. 1 Cozy Glen
Saddle Brook, NJ 07633
E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.10-70.org
Twitter: @1070ra (www.twitter.com/1070ra)
1 0 - 7 0 R E P E A T E R A S S O C I A T I O N , I N C O P E R A T I N G T H E 3 F R I E N D L Y W 2 P Q G R E P E A T E R S
1 4 6 . 7 0 0 M H Z , 2 2 4 . 8 4 0 M H Z & 4 4 4 . 1 5 0 M H Z
President: Joyce Birmingham - KA2ANF Email: [email protected]
Treasurer: Herbert Van Den Houten - K2VDH Email: [email protected]
N2SE, 10-70 Club Callsign Trustee: Matthew Ryffel - K2NUD
W2PQG, Club Repeaters Callsign Trustee: Joyce Birmingham - KA2ANF
NX2ND, USS Ling Callsign Trustee - William Stagg - KC2BLN
Vice President: Bob Antoniuk - N2SU Email: [email protected]
Secretary: Paul Beshlian - KC2CJW Email: [email protected]
The 10-70 Repeater Association, Inc. is an ARRL Affiliated Club, located in the ARRL Hudson Division. We hold regular VE licensing test sessions as well as take part in Club activities include hidden transmitter hunts, Field Day, Contests, Special Events.
The 10-70 Repeater Association is a Non-profit corporation dedicated to the promotion and enhancement of amateur radio. Opinions expressed within articles published in the 10-70 Repeater Association’s Newsletters do not necessarily reflect
those of the 10-70 Repeater Association Inc., its officers, trustees or members.
Articles for publication consideration in the 10-70 Repeater Association’s Newsletter may be submitted to: [email protected]
Membership Applications In Both MS-Word and Adobe PDF Formats are available for download from the Forms Section of 10-70 Website at:
www.10-70.org
Paul, KC2FMJ Speaks About Mike Adams: Michael Adams was kind, gentle and dedicated to his mission of helping others. I met Mike in 1999 at a 10-70 Repeater Association monthly meeting. He later invited me to participate in various Ramsey, NJ - Office of Emergency Management functions. I joined with others as Mike guided us in programs supported by Ramsey OEM. Mike also attended most of these classes held at the Mahwah Police and Fire Academy to achieve our accreditation in: CERT, EMS, CPR recertification, and Sky-Warn. He was instrumental in my Ramsey award in 2009 for Outstanding Volunteer service. Mike and I also par-ticipated in other Ramsey town events and Field Day where our Ham radios were used. My wife Elaine and I both enjoyed the annual Ramsey Me-morial Day parade. Elaine would walk this event and I would ride an old English bike converted to run an electric motor and operate a 2-meter radio which communicated with his police car. Mike always was pleased when I rode my bike in the parade. I always took a position in the parade ahead of his car as I warned him to “please keep his distance”. We surely will miss him and things will not be the same without this very special man.
Lou, N2CYY’s Sends Photo Memories of Mike Adams: