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W2CRA
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UP-LiNK THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE
CHERRYVILLE REPEATER ASSOCIATION II, INC. “Community Service Through Communication” October 2000 |
BOARD MEETING November 1 8:00
PM CLUB
MEETING October 13 7:30 PM
LICENSE CLASS OFF AND RUNNING
Barry
Campbell, Education Chairman
This is the
highest number of participants seen at a Cherryville license class for some
time. It is also the first course we have taught after the FCC implemented its
license restructuring which took effect on April 15, 2000. Several participants
are affiliated with a rescue squad, and one with the American Red Cross. All
have indicated they know the importance of amateur radio and RACES during
emergencies. This area of New Jersey has had more than its share in recent
years.
Cherryville Class of 2000
For those who
would like to upgrade to General class can join the class sessions when the General
class sessions are scheduled to begin, Thursday, October 19th. Current Tech
Plus holders may find it useful to attend October 19 and thereafter, but
Tech-only licensees may want to start attending early to learn the code, which
is required for General class.
Classes meet
each Tuesday and Thursday evenings, from 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. Code sessions with
either George, W2RIJ or Roberto, K2PA run from 6:30 to 7:00, then the lectures
go from 7:00 until about 9:00 p.m. There are two books for the entire course,
ARRL's Now You're Talking for the Technician class and ARRL's General Class
License Manual for the General sessions. The cost is $19 and $15 respectively.
The sessions are held at the Somerset County Technical Institute, North Bridge & Vogt Drive in Bridgewater (just 1\2 mile east of the Bridgewater Commons Mall).
Harry Shepherd, Hunterdon County's Emergency Management
boss had been invited to talk to the CRAII membership about Emergency Management
and RACES, its communications arm. To
the surprise of all present, Harry began by awarding special Certificates of
Appreciation to six of the thirty-odd Hams who provided emergency
communications during Musconetcong flood.
The certificates were awarded to: Pat-K2EVG, Sandy-WA2JVK,
Charlie-WB2NQV, Roy-WA2TWS, Patrick-N2ZVY, and Roberto-K2PA for their "
assistance over and beyond the call of duty during the recent flooding of
the Musconetcong River", and indicated that their "…dedication to
the residents of Hunterdon County is greatly appreciated."
Following the awards, Harry delivered a lively and
inspiring presentation describing the mission of Emergency Management and
especially the role of RACES (the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service). He made it clear that during a widespread
emergency we would need many more RACES operators than we currently have. (Mike Varas, the County RACES coordinator,
says that his current roster contains only 42 operators, and asks "why
isn't every CRAII member a RACES operator?")
Harry's presentation was warmly received by the members,
and he was invited to make an encore appearance in the near future.
RACES TEST PROVIDES USEFUL INSIGHTS
Roberto Matos, K2PA (Deputy County RACES Coordinator)
On September 11, 2000, Harry Shepherd conducted an Emergency Management drill, to test the effectiveness of his RACES communications organization. This drill required the activation of the Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs) of nine selected municipalities. The Emergency Management staffs of each municipality were expected to be on hand, and each EOC was provided a RACES operator.
The scenario was known only to Harry Shepherd, and each new situation that was introduced required a unique response from each EOC. A wide range of disciplines was needed to make the necessary responses meaningful.
The exercise commenced at 7:00 PM and ended shortly after 9:00 PM, and simulated an emergency that included many new problems not previously dealt with in our emergency drills.
This was a brand new experience for all of us. Harry thought it went very well. In my opinion it went well enough, but there were a number of glitches in the radio procedure that can be readily improved. Mike Varas and I are looking forward to receiving all of the operator's critiques, which will undoubtedly contain some improvement suggestions.
The participating municipalities and their operators were:
Bethlehem Township Bruce, WA2EPY
Clinton Township Nick, KC2EVJ
Franklin Township John,
W2GD -- Jim, WA2BZF --
Wayne, N2YIU
Glen Gardner Borough Denis, KA2YYB
High Bridge Borough Mike, KA2TOV -- Tom, AB2DW
Lambertville City Ray, N2RVV -- Mark, KC2GRE
Lebanon Borough Brian, N2RDL
Raritan Township Leslie, KC2EIN
Readington Township Dave, WB2AZE -- Marge, KC2GGV
Net Control (Hdqtrs) Mike, KC2CMC -- Charlie, WB2NQV, -- Roberto, K2PA
My heartfelt thanks go out to all of the RACES operators for their participation in this first-of-its-kind drill.
A CLOSE CALL
NWS and Steve W3EEE
SEPTEMBER 15, 2000: 10380 lightning strikes light up the night when a cold front rolls through. Some came a little too close. Here is a short story from Steve to help us remember to think about our lightning protection.
“Greetings,
Yesterday evening, as most of us were aware, a cold front laced with
flash-boomers rolled through. No problem. Living on a ridge I take more than
the usual precautions; feed-lines all grounded at point of entry, disconnected
from radios, power lines unplugged from wall (less heroic than it seems; I find
it easier to yank one plug at night or during storms than turn thirty-eleven
things off; same with my office zone).
Even so it has not been unusual with nearby strikes for the end of a coax to go
"CRACK!" and on occasion be so scarred as to need replacement. Three
things happened when we took a hit right in the backyard last night:
1> My daughter, to whom I was reading a bedtime story, inadvertently learnt
an interesting new word.
2> The 'D' connector end of a 'puter keying interface exploded; charred,
toast. And it wasn't plugged in at either end. Just lying on the bench curled
up a few inches from the coax ends.
3> Oddest of all, my hoity-toity 21" CAD monitor (unplugged from
power!) has taken four or five de-gauss cycles to restore anything like normal
colour balance and rectilinearity.
All good fun.”
Steve
RF Safety
Rules Now In Force
For All Amateurs
Starting September 1, every US amateur is required to fully comply with the FCC's RF exposure guidelines.
The regulations, which went into effect January 1, 1998,
require US Amateur Radio operators to read and understand the rules and, where
necessary, perform technical evaluations to determine that their stations are
compliant with the new regulations. Up until now, only hams who have had to
file an Amateur Radio application with the FCC have had to certify
compliance with the RF exposure rules. As of September 1, all amateurs must
comply.
Under the regulations, an amateur station must not exceed the maximum
permissible exposure limits for transmitter operation. There is some good news
with this development. Many of our
stations are exempt from a routine exposure evaluation because the power levels,
station configuration or operating duty cycles are presumed to comply with the
Maximum Permissible Exposure (MPE) limits.
Our mobiles and portables are excluded provided they use push to talk or
equivalent operation. Our fixed
stations are excluded provided the PEP power input to the antenna does
not exceed the levels shown in the following table. If an evaluation is required the ARRL and FCC both provide details on various
evaluation methodologies suitable for amateur use.
BAND |
POWER THRESHOLD (watts) |
|
160 m |
500 |
|
80 m |
500 |
|
75 m |
500 |
|
40 m |
500 |
|
30 m |
425 |
|
20 m |
225 |
|
17 m |
125 |
|
15 m |
100 |
|
12 m |
75 |
|
10 m |
50 |
|
6 m |
50 |
|
2 m |
50 |
|
70 cm |
70 |
|
33 cm |
150 |
|
23 cm |
200 |
|
13 cm and above |
250 |
''These regulations are not a major
burden on the Amateur Radio Service,'' said ARRL Lab Supervisor Ed Hare, W1RFI.
''Most hams are already in compliance with the MPE requirements; some hams will
need to conduct a simple station evaluation.''
A complete description of the rules is
available on the ARRL Website at www.arrl.org/news/rfsafety/.
Address questions about RF safety and the FCC exposure guidelines to ARRL Lab Supervisor Ed Hare, W1RFI, ehare@arrl.org.
The FCC has numerous web pages devoted to RF safety and
compliance. A good starting point
is www.fcc.gov/oet/dockets.
THANK YOU KEITH
WA2EPY
We Cherryville members have enjoyed and benefited from
Keith Burt’s work on the Uplink for many years. I have not attended club functions on a regular basis for several
years due to other commitments but could always count on being kept up to date
on club and hobby happenings when Keith’s Uplink arrived in the mail every
month. As most are aware, Keith has
relocated to beautiful San Luis Obispo in 6-land. Unfortunately for us, Keith is no longer able to fulfill the
editorship of Uplink. We haven’t heard
the last of him though. He has promised
periodic contributions to the newsletter.
I think I speak for the membership at large in saying: Thank
you Keith, not just for your hard work on Uplink, but for all the years of
service you have given the club. The
very best of luck in California or
wherever you may go.
I have volunteered to fill the Uplink editor slot. Fortunately for me, KA2YYB has also
volunteered to help. I realize there
are big shoes to fill; the high standards and high expectations established by
N5RA but with Denis’ help, I think we can continue to bring you a high quality,
monthly newsletter. All comments,
suggestions, advice, guidance and material for publication will be gratefully
accepted. I look forward to hearing
from you.
New Frequency Coordinator For NNJ
A
new, independent agency has been formed to provide Amateur Radio frequency
coordination for the New York City/Long Island, Northern New Jersey, and
downstate New York region. The Metropolitan Coordination Association Inc—or
MetroCor--was organized by a volunteer group of concerned Amateurs. MetroCor
intends to address spectrum usage issues in one of the most densely populated
areas of the country, which has been without such services for several years.
MetroCor has notified the FCC, the National Frequency
Coordinators' Council Inc, the ARRL, and the spectrum management councils in
adjacent states of its intention to voluntarily provide coordination services
for facilities operating on frequencies above 29.5 MHz. The ARRL's
Brennan Price, N4QX--the League's point man for repeater and coordination
issues--says MetroCor is the only entity that has notified the ARRL of its
intention to provide coordination services for the region. But he points out
that the ARRL does not certify frequency coordinators. "Frequency
coordinators derive their authority from the voluntary participation of the
local amateur community that they serve," he said. MetroCor has defined
its service area to include Bronx, Kings, Nassau, New York, Orange, Putnam,
Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester counties
in New York, and the Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Monmouth,
Morris, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union, and Warren counties in New Jersey.
These areas, along with Dutchess County in New York, and the entire state of
Connecticut, were formerly served by the Tri-State Amateur Radio Club. TSARC
has been inactive for several years. Additional details are available on
MetroCor's Web site, http://www.qsl.net/metrocor or by
calling MetroCor evenings before 10 PM at 973-875-4772; e-mail metrocor@qsl.net.
SPACE RADIO
A lot has been happening overhead the past month. AO-27 has been returned to analog FM service following a computer crash on July 31. Ground control requests that you wait to hear the bird in analog mode (no data being sent) before using it . Uplink is 145.850 and downlink is 436.800 MHz.
Three new satellites were launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome aboard a refitted Russian SS-18 “Satan” ICBM. The Saudisat-1A, Saudisat-1B and Tiungsat all appear to be functioning. They will be capable of 9600 baud store and forward packet as well as FM analog repeater operation. Two meter uplinks and 440 MHz downlinks will be used.
The space shuttle Atlantis carried the first amateur gear for the International Space Station when it lifted off September eigth. Atlantis delivered the ARISS VHF and UHF hand-held transceivers as well as a TNC for packet, a specially developed headset and signal adapter module plus power adapters and interconnecting cables.
The ARISS initial station gear will be installed temporarily aboard the Functional Cargo Block module and use an existing
antenna that's being adapted to support FM voice and packet
on 2 meters but not on 70 cm. The ARISS gear will get a more permanent home
aboard the Service Module next year, once VHF and UHF antennas can be
installed.
CRA PROGRAM SCHEDULE
Denis KA2YYB
OCT 13 "APRS, theory and practice"
(Automatic Position Reporting System)
Ronald Hepburn N2LCZ and Ken
NOV 10 "Overview of Hurricane Floyd 1999"
Harry Shepherd, Hunterdon O.E.M.
DEC 8 CRAII Awards Banquet
JAN 12
"What's Happening at the ARRL"
Frank Fallon N2FF,
ARRL Hudson Division Director
FEB 9
“The Future of Amateur Radio”
Steve Mendelsohn, W2MF
MAR 12 “About verticals...” (in the works)
JOTA
Jamboree On The Air is scheduled for October 21 and 22. This is a great opportunity to get on the air and help introduce boys and girls to the fun of amateur radio. The Jamboree starts 0001 local time on the twenty first and runs until 2399 local time on the twenty second. Some activity carries over from Friday to Monday to take advantage of DX time differences. The following table lists the official calling frequencies for the event.
JOTA CALLING FREQUENCIES |
||
|
BAND |
PHONE |
CW |
|
80 |
3.740 & 3.940 |
3.590 |
|
40 |
7.270 |
7.030 |
|
20 |
14.290 |
14.070 |
|
17 |
18.140 |
18.080 |
|
15 |
21.360 |
21.140 |
|
12 |
24.960 |
24.910 |
|
10 |
28.390 |
28.190 |
Get on the air and
call "CQ Jamboree". Once
contact is established move off frequency to continue the QSO. Calling CQ 10 to 15 kHz off the calling
frequency often yields more contacts.
Remember, this is not a contest but an opportunity for fun and a chance
to bring new people to the hobby. Need
more information? Go to
www.arrl.org/ead/#scout. See you on the
air!
Hamfest
Calendar
|
Oct. 14 |
Garden State ARA |
Leonardo, NJ |
|
Oct. 15 |
Hall of Science ARC |
Queens, NY |
|
Oct. 20 |
Sussex Co. ARC |
Newton, NJ |
|
Oct. 21 |
Tri-City ARC |
Waterford, CT |
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Oct. 22 |
RF Hill ARC |
Sellersville, PA |
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Oct. 22 |
Radio Central ARC |
Farmingdale, NY |
|
Oct. 29 |
Great South Bay ARC |
Lindenhurst, NY |
|
Oct. 29 |
South Mtn. Rptr. Assn. |
Carlisle, PA |
PUBLIC SERVICE
N2UYV
The Battle of the Bands will be held Oct.14 (Saturday Night)starting at about 5:00 P. M.. We need about 10 people for the event. It usually lasts until about 8:30 or 9:00. We help with parking and general safety communications. The event is at Hunterdon Central High School in Flemington Just off Route 31.
The next event is November 5. It is a Horse event. It starts about 8:30 A.M. in Blackwells Mills. Six or seven people are needed to cover the event. It is low key and we get lunch too!
HOLIDAY PARTY
Tim-N2UYV
The Holiday party will be held instead of the normal club meeting. Bill Greenhalgh - W2NCN, Cheryl Mc Laughlin KB2RWY and I are getting things set up for the party. It will be a magical night at the Coach and Paddock. The same location as last year. The menu has not been finalized yet, but the plan is for a sit down dinner. The Cost will be $25 per person. There will be a cash bar. The Hors d'oeuvre will start at 7:00 P. M., and dinner will start at 8 P. M. There will be door prizes and lots of fun. Early responses can be sent to Bill Greenhalgh W2NCN. He can be reached at (908) 369-3191. Reservations must be into Bill or Cheryl before November 30th. Advanced payment is requested but you can pay at the door as we have done in the past. The club needs at least 50 people to attend. We have really enjoyed these parties in the past, the food is good, the company is great,and Tim's jokes…. Well, 2 out of 3 ain't all bad.
CRA II CLUB
INFORMATION
The Cherryville Repeater Association II, Inc. is a non-profit New Jersey Corporation dedicated to Community Service Through Communication. Meetings are held on the second Friday of each month at 7:30 PM at the Flemington Baptist Church unless otherwise announced. Visitors are always welcome! Also, everyone is welcome on the Thursday Night Traffic Net, at 8 PM every Thursday, followed at 9:30 by the Swap-Net, and the ARES-RACES net at 8:30 PM on the first Thursday each month (immediately following the traffic net), all on the 147.375 repeater.
UPLiNK
A CRA II Publication
Editors
Articles & Info:
WA2EPY, Bruce Cunningham – bcc@interpow.net
KA2YYB, Denis Albisser – KA2YYB@arrl.net
Interviews:
K2PA, Roberto Matos –
K2PA@arrl.net
Roster
& Mailing:
W2CG, Marty Grozinski __
W2CG@arrl.net
Many thanks to all those who have contributed articles or information for this publication, including: The ARRL, ARRL Letter, QST, The Hudson Loop, W2CGX, N5RA, K2PA and all not mentioned for their help. This newsletter is an open forum for the Cherryville Repeater Association, II Inc. and its members, of general interest Club and ham radio related interest items. The opinions contained herein are those of the authors who have contributed their work. The officers and members of the CRA II Inc. are not liable for its contents.
Articles and information are always welcome, and
may sometimes be edited for content, punctuation, grammar, and newsletter
space.
Deadline for submission for
all issues is two weeks prior to the Board meetings.
THE CHERRYVILLE REPEATER ASSOCIATION II
CLUB INFO:
|
Club Info Line |
Website |
Packet |
|
(908) 788-4080 |
W2CRA 145.51 |
EXECUTIVE
BOARD:
|
Pres |
N3QDC |
Rob France |
(215) 766-8066 |
|
|
VP |
KB2DDM |
Susan MacRae |
(908) 475-5299 |
|
|
Sec |
K2YSY |
Pete Sneed |
(908) 369-5095 |
k2ysy@arrl.net |
|
Treas |
W2NCN |
Bill Greenhalgh |
(908) 369-3191 |
greenhalgh@rcn.com |
MEMBERS AT
LARGE:
|
|
W2CGX |
Barry Campbell |
(908) 725-0478 |
|
|
|
N2ZVY |
Patrick Mauro |
(908) 470-6346 |
n2zvy@att.net |
|
|
W2GD |
John Crovelli |
(908) 996-3043 |
|
|
|
N3MSK |
Ed Kita |
(610) 252-6193 |
|
|
|
K2PA |
Roberto Matos |
(908) 788-8253 |
COMMITTEE
CHAIRPEOPLE:
|
Public service |
N2UYV |
(908) 253-8783 |
|
|
Technical |
N3MSK |
(610) 252-6193 |
|
|
Emergency |
KC2CMC K2PA |
(908)
806-3998 |
|
|
Education |
W2CGX |
(908) 725-0478 |
|
|
VE Testing |
W2CG |
(908) 788-2644 |
|
|
Field Day |
N3QDC |
(215) 766-8066 |
|
|
Holiday Party |
KB3RWY |
(908) 253-8783 |
|
|
Merchandise |
N2VWL |
(908) 475-4716 |
|
|
Traffic net |
N2MIF |
(908) 638-6172 |
|
|
Programs |
KA2YYB |
(908) 537-2501 |
ka2yyb@arrl.net |
|
Refreshment |
KB2YJX |
(908) 725-0478 |
|
|
Roster |
W2CG |
(908) 788-2644 |
|
|
Scholarship |
N2ZVY |
(908) 479-6346 |
|
|
SkyWarn |
N2VWL |
(908) 475-4716 |
NET SCHEDULE:
|
Hunterdon County
Traffic and Emergency net |
Thursday, 8:00 PM |
147.375 |
|
Races net |
1st Thursday, 8:30 PM |
147.375 |
|
SkyWarn net |
Thursday 9:00 PM |
147.015 |
|
Swapnet |
Thursday, 9:30 PM |
147.375 |
|
Complex repeater
net |
Sunday, 7:30 PM |
147.015 |
MAJOR EVENTS:
|
W2CRA Hamfest |
March 17, 2001 |
Talk-in 147.375 |
|
W2CRA Field Day |
June 23, 2001 |
147.375 |
|
|
446.475 - |
444.850 + |
224.120 - |
147.015 + |
147.375 + |