From the Upper Peninsula of Michigan along the South Shore of Lake Superior ~ Station K 8 L O D
Hiawatha Amateur Radio Association's Field Day
While some of the photos on the various HARA webpages can atest to the fact that the club has for many years
been involved with ARRL field day activities, only recently has there been a renewed interest in improving
the quality of the event for the members. In recent years an annual field day committee has been formed
to oversee the event. One only has to look at the annual improvement in the club's scores to see what a
great job the committee does.
In 1997, after a brief absence from participation in the event, our group put together a successful Field
Day, with good participation from our membership and a respectable showing of contacts. In 1998, with
the addition of a beam antenna, better propagation, and better club participation, we doubled the previous
year's score. In 1999, with beam antennas set up for both our side-band and cw stations, one year
closer to the solar cycle peak, and with a successful full-time VHF operation, we came close to doubling,
once again, the previous year's effort, this time ending up in the top 15 percent of our division nation-wide
and in third place for Michigan 2A entries. In 2000, we once again improved our score and this time
moved up to second place for Michigan 2A entries. How long we can continue to better the previous
year's effort is anybody's guess, but one thing is clear: H.A.R.A. has shown its commitment to making every
year¹s Field Day as good as we can make it. Of course, the whole purpose of the event is not just to
make as many contacts as possible. It is the getting together, the camaraderie, and the pulling
together of local hams that make this event special. Let's hope that for Field Day this year and every
year that follows we can continue to enjoy the success and pleasure that this event has brought us.
72,
Bruce, KG8YT
Field Day 2001 Pictures