The Static |
Christmas Party
The annual SAARC Christmas Party will be on December 19. We will be meeting in room 106 of Petoskey High School at 7:00 pm. Since it is so close to the holidays and everyone is always so busy, we are not going to have a dinner. Instead, we are asking that everyone bring their favorite holiday appetizer or snack to share. Please let Maxine know what you are bringing so we don't end up with ten of the same dish. You can call her at 242-0050. Family and friends are welcome, so be sure to tell her how many people are coming so we can have enough plates and silverware. To help add to the Christmas cheer, check with some of our local hams that you haven't seen in a while and see if they need a ride to the party.
WA8OTH SK
As some of you may already know, Harry Neumann WA8OTH passed away on August 28. Harry was from Manistique, Michigan and was a Reverend. He was 68 years old. 73 Harry.
"Seeing rust on your mast is a sure sign your tower is too short."
Your New Officers
At our November meeting we elected our new officers. Congratulations and thank you to the following people for being willing to step forward and take the reigns of the SAARC.
President - Jack Felton
Vice-President - DeWayne Holmes
Secretary - Annette Rosebohm
Treasurer - Maxine Holmes
New Band Allocations
On November 15, 2006, the FCC released the Report and Order (R&O) in the "Omnibus" Amateur Radio proceeding, WT Docket 04-140 (FCC 06-149) to the public. This order establishes new frequency limits for the HF phone bands. The changes include the following:
· On 80 meters the top end of the CW/RTTY/Digital band now will be at 3600 kHz. Phone will now begin at 3600 kHz for Amateur Extras; at 3700 kHz for Advanced; and at 3800 kHz for Generals.
· On 40 meters the top end of the CW/RTTY/Digital band now will be at 7125 kHz. Phone will begin at 7125 kHz for Extras and Advanced, and at 7175 for Generals.
· There are no changes on 20 Meters.
· On 15 meters the only change was to move the bottom of the General Class phone band to 21275 KHz. The bottom of the phone band for Extra will remain at 21200 KHz and 21225 kHz for Advanced.
· On 10 meters Novices and Technicians with CW credit will now be able to use CW/RTTY/Digital from 28000 kHz to 28300 kHz in addition to the unchanged voice privileges from 28300 kHz to 28500 kHz.
· In addition, for Novices and Technicians with CW credit, there are now privileges for CW use only on the same frequencies as General and Advanced licensees on 80, 40, and 15 meters: 3525 kHz to 3600 kHz; 7025 kHz to 7125 kHz; and 21025 kHz to 21200 kHz. Amateur Extra licensees have full CW privileges on all bands.
These changes take effect on Friday, December 15, at 12:01 AM EST. Sorry, but the changes do not include the dropping of the Morse Code requirement. Maybe our new president will add a CW class to his repertoire.You can find a band plan chart at http://www.arrl.org/announce/regulatory/wt04-140/Hambands3_color.pdf. For you die-hard fists like me, don't fret. CW is still allowed even in the phone portions.
SAARC VEC
Here is our schedule for 2007. This year we are implementing a new policy. We are asking all testers to pre-register. This will avoid having to bring in our volunteer examiners when no one is planning on taking a test that day. All you need to do is contact KG8JK, our test liaison, one week prior to the test date. You can call 231-348-5043 or email [email protected]. If no one signs up for a test session, it will be canceled. However, if you have a special date you would like us to hold a test session, like we did for Jack's class, we will be happy to schedule a session just for you.
January 6 - March 3 - June 2 - July 14* - October 6 - November 3
All sessions will be in room 106 of Petoskey High School at 10:00 am.
Remember to bring a photo ID, a copy of your license and, if applicable, a copy of your "Certificate of Successful Completion of Element" you received at your last session. You will also need $14, a pen and pencil, and a calculator if you think you'll need it.
Upcoming Hamfests
December 16 - Lowell High School - Lowell, MI
January 20 - Bentley Middle School - Burton, MI
January 21 - Hazel Park High School - Hazel Park, MI
February 3 - Negaunee Township Hall - Negaunee, MI
February 10 - Immaculate Conception Middle School - Traverse City, MI
Contest Calendar
ARCI Holiday Spirits Homebrew Sprint - 2000Z-2400Z, Dec 17
Run for the Bacon QRP Contest - 0100Z-0300Z, Dec 18
Original QRP Contest - 1500Z, Jan 6 to 1500Z, Jan 7
ARRL RTTY Roundup - 1800Z, Jan 6 to 2400Z, Jan 7
Kid's Day Contest - 1800Z-2400Z, Jan 7
MI QRP January CW Contest -1200Z, Jan 13 to 2359Z, Jan 14
North American QSO Party, CW - 1800Z, Jan 13 to 0600Z, Jan 14
North American QSO Party, SSB - 1800Z, Jan 20 to 0600Z, Jan 21
ARRL January VHF Sweepstakes - 1900Z, Jan 20 to 0400Z, Jan 22
CQ 160-Meter Contest, CW 0000Z, Jan 27 to 2359Z, Jan 28
Field Day Results
The results are in for the 2006 ARRL Field day. If you check your December issue of QST you will see the SAARC listed along with all the other 2A stations. Our score of 2268 puts us in the top 25% of all the stations in our class. Be sure to set aside the 4th weekend in June 2007 and join in the fun.
Local Area Nets
MONDAY
8:00 pm EST - The Bill DeMay Memorial Two Meter Social Net
146.680 MHZ - Net Control - Rotating
WEDNESDAY
8:00 pm EST - The Chain - O - Lakes Net
147.280 MHZ w/Pl 103.5 - Net Control - Rotating
THURSDAY
8:00 pm EST - The Charlevoix Cheboygan Emmet County ARES RACES Net
146.680 MHZ - Net Control - Rotating
SATURDAY
8:30 pm EST - The Dip Net
146.680 MHZ - Net Control - Cliff Rosebohm KC8NVI
Morse Code Course
If you are looking to upgrade to your General class license but the code still has you down, Chuck Adams K0ADE has a CW tutorial on compact disk that is a free download. Simply go to his website http://www.k7qo.net/ and download the file. It is a rather large file so be sure you have a high speed internet connection. If you don't or prefer not to download programs to your computer, you can also request a copy by mail. You can send a SASE CD mailer, this means a CD mailer box with an address label and enough postage to get the box with the code course CD back to you. You can find mailers at any office supply store or the US Postal Service. Send the SASE CD mailer to Nancy, WZ8C 5450 Diehl Rd Metamora, MI 48455. You might throw in a buck or two to help defray their costs and help the cause. If enough people would like a copy, I can download it on my computer and then transfer it to compact disk. We can then make as many copies as we need. Let me know if you are interested.
The SAARC Officers
PRESIDENT: |
DeWayne Holmes - KC8LJX |
[email protected] |
73 KG8JK