W4WVP

The meeting began with a presentation by Ken, WB4AKK on How to Build a Stealth Mobile Antenna on a Tight Budget. President Norton called the meeting to order at 8:00 PM. The Treasurer gave his report.

ARRL - Dennis reported the League had filed comments with the FCC on all pending issues. This should enable the FCC to act on these issues. He invited members to check out the Roanoke Division website. For DX confirmation, it was noted that International Return Coupons are no long available from the Postal Service. Advice was provided on how to facilitate written responses from DX contacts. Dennis also noted that use of the Log Book of the World would serve to confirm DX contacts.

Encomm - Gary noted the two up coming events was the Reagan Airport Drill on Sept 18th and the Marine Corp Marathon on October 31st. A form for participating in the Marine Corps Marathon will be posted on the web site. Our ARES net continues to run on schedule with good participation.

Members were encouraged to come up on our repeater following emergencies, such as the recent strong thunderstorms that hit the area. We were also encouraged to be capable of using the 449.325 MHz repeater that covers Arlington county fairly well. Members were also encouraged to work on their ISO 100 and 700 certifications.

CERT - Cynthia noted that CERT classes will begin on September 16 and 21st. These classes run for 8 weeks. About 450 Arlington residents have been trained by CERT and about 250 remain active in CERT.

Other news - Mike will make a montage of Field Day photo and post it on the web site. Dennis provided a gift to the club of two digital clocks. Folks interested in a presentation on traffic handling should speak to George about that interest.

The meeting adjourned at 8:45 PM

In attendance were: Ken WB4AKK, George KR4MU, Chuck KI4DHW, Dennis W4PWF, Mike KG4RKL, Arthur W4ART, Roy KI4GO, Gary KC5QCN, Jim AA0J, Randy WB4MJF, Erik KI4BXU, Mike KA8OPJ, Mike NW3V, Cynthia KJ4CLK, and Bill (Visitor).

The meeting was chaired by club president Mr. Chuck Norton and called to order at 7:30 PM. Introductions of members present were made.

The 13 club members in attendance were: Lew Doss – WB6YGX, Mike Skelly – KA8OPJ, Pat Lengle – KJ4OCA, Gary Sessums – KC5QCN, Chuck Norton – KI4DWW, Cynthia Kellams – KJ4CLK, Dave Shaw – KJ4EMI, George Saunders – KR4MU, James Adriansen – AJ4VP, Dennis Bodson – W4PWF, Mike Callaham – NW3V, Jim Murphey – AA0J, and Richard Simpson – WB3HYZ.

The guest speaker scheduled for tonight’s meeting was unable to attend. Mr. Chuck Norton shifted the agenda and moved into the business portion of the meeting. A motion was made by Ms. Pat Lengle to approve the June 2010 meeting minutes as distributed to club members. Mr. Dennis Bodson seconded the motion. The motion was approved by majority vote. In the absence of club treasurer Mr. Mike Ingles, Mr. Dennis Bodson gave the treasurer’s report.

A report on the club’s participation in the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Field Day activities conducted on June 26th was given. AARC participated as a Class 3-F station. Mr. Dennis Bodson, ARRL Roanoke Division Director, gave an update on the recent Board of Directors meeting that he attended at ARRL headquarters located in Newington, Connecticut.

A briefing on Arlington County Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) activities and opportunities for amateur radio public service was given by Mr. Gary Sessums, Arlington County ARES Emergency Coordinator. The Marine Corps Marathon is scheduled for Sunday October 30, 2010. The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority will be conducting an exercise at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) on Saturday September 18, 2010. Arlington County ARES has been invited to provide amateur radio support for both of these events.

Mr. Mike Callaham, AARC Net Manager, reported on the club’s weekly radio net held on the W4WVP repeater. Members are encouraged to volunteer as a Net Control Station (NCS) in order to gain experience running the club net. An update on Arlington County Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) activities and the availability of future training opportunities was given by Ms. Cynthia Kellams, Arlington County CERT Coordinator.

It was noted that the Berryville Hamfest is scheduled for Sunday August 1, 2010. A PDF flyer can be downloaded from http://www.svarc.us/flyer5.pdf . The next AARC meeting is scheduled for Tuesday August 17, 2010 at 7:30 PM at the Arlington chapter of the American Red Cross located at 4333 Arlington Boulevard Arlington, Virginia 22203. The scheduled guest speaker, Mr. Ken Heitner – WB4AKK, will give a presentation on building stealth HF radio antennas. The meeting was adjourned at 8:25 PM.

President Norton called the meeting to order at 8:05 PM. The minutes of the May 2010 meeting were approved and the Treasurer made his report.

ARRL - Dennis reported that there had been a good hamfest at Manassas. The ARRL Board of Directors will meet again in July. All pending items of interest at the FCC have been released (as proposed notices of rulemaking). This includes a ruling on spread spectrum operation without the need for automatic power limiting. Overall power is limited to 10 watts. The FCC has also clarified the issue of amateurs operating as part of their paid work in the amateur bands. Some additional flexibility has been granted in the use of the 5 MHz channels (60 meter band) . The ARRL will reply to all FCC proposals.

Encomm- Gary reported that at the Dayton Hamvention he spoke with the ARRL Encomm person and the Section Encomm manager. There may be drills within the state of Virginia in which AARC can participate. Members were encouraged to volunteer for the MC Marathon. This is a good opportunity for on-the-job training. Gary is looking for other opportunities were the club can support events. This will put us in a better position to support the Red Cross or State of Virginia if needed. Gary noted in emergencies we could operate either from the Red Cross station or the Pentagon MARS station. Consideration will be give to presenting the new ARRL basic Encomm training course later this year.

ARES Net - The net is operating typically with about a dozen check-ins each week. More net control stations would be welcome. The repeater is working fine. Art noted that the repeater could use a backup power system.

Red Cross - No changes are reported. The Red Cross emergency generator has been repaired. The club members were informed about our backup emergency location.

CERT- CERT now has trained a cadre of 30 to 40 people with both CERT training and amateur radio licenses. The opportunity to participate in the National Airport Emergency Certification Drill on Sept 18 was noted.

Old Business - The availability of the W8HNT repeater on 440 MHz band was noted again. Members were encouraged to take the FEMA ICS 100/700 courses. The club will start a Communications Committee to support the Red Cross. Volunteers are needed for that committee.

Field Day - An extensive discussion of Field Day was held by the membership. The general outline of a plan using three transceivers set up to operate on 80, 40, and 20 meters was the generally supported. The operations would be initially on phone and CW. Digital operations would be done on Sunday.

The meeting adjourned about 9:30 PM. In attendance were: Ken WB4AKK, Dennis W4PWF, Mike KA8OPJ, Pat Kj4OCA, Arthur W4ART, Gary KC5QCN, Curt N3GQ, Chuck KI4DHW, Mike KG4RKL, Cynthia KJ4CLK, Prentiss K4PDJ, Lew WB6YGX, and George KR4MU.

President Chuck Norton called the meeting to order at 7:30PM. The presentation for the evening was a short video produced by DHS / Citizen Corp depicting citizens in action. The minutes of the previous meeting which were posted online were approved without corrections. The treasurer, Mike/ KG4RKL, gave his report with new implemented changes suggested at the last meeting. Since Dennis /W4PWF was on travel, the ARRL update could be briefly described in the FCC article about changes to the 60 meter band where the power output was increased from 50 to 100 watts. Gary/KC5QCN was also unavailable to give the EnComm update.

Mike/NW3V gave the ARES Net update. He and Craig /K4GOR , the net managers, said that there have been a good number of people checking into the weekly net. George/KR4MU said that the situation with the Red Cross is ever changing and after July 1, new policies should be set in place. Pat/KJ4OCA reported that the CERT classes are over and new classes will form again in the fall. Chuck/K14DHW commented on the May 15, 2010 MMT-100 race where there was no cell phone coverage. There were 5 repeaters and lot of professional radio folks who worked together to monitor the 100 mile race.

Under “Old Business”, a reminder that the W8HNT 449.325 (-) PL tone of 151.4 repeater is available for use and that you do get good coverage in the area. Additionally, if you have some free time, take the IS 100 and IS 700 FEMA courses online. If anyone is interested in taking Red Cross courses, a handout listed the steps and description of the Red Cross Disaster Services.

New Business included one new member who was not present and so his application will be taken up at the next meeting. Randy/KWB4MJF submitted a bill for 2 antenna s and 2 lightning arrestors for repeater maintenance. He also had extra copies of radio HF,UHF and VHF Band Plans for distribution. Another handout listed qualifying items to take advantage of the “Hurricane Preparedness Sales Tax Holiday” . For more information go to www.tax.virginia.gov/salestaxholiday .

The main focus of the meeting is Field Day, to be held June 26-27. Mike /NW3V commented on lessons learned from last year. After a brief discussion, it was decided that emphasis be placed on training members to become familiar and comfortable utilizing several different types of radio equipment and to have a good time. The team approach per meter band was suggested. Mike/NW3V and Prentiss/K4PDJ will work together to suggest the formation of two or three teams correlating with the 80, 40, and 10 or 20 meter band usage . Both CW and voice will be used.

Prentiss/K4PDJ will take on the responsibility of publicity for the event . George/KR4MU will be the official chef and prepare sloppy joes for the Saturday evening meal and eggs cooked to order for the Sunday breakfast meal. Shirts, caps, and water bottles from ARRL commemorating Field Day, can be ordered through our treasurer, Mike/KG4RKL. Additional ideas can be discussed on net night. The meeting was adjourned at 9:08PM.

In attendance were : Mike KG4RKL, Mike KA80PJ, Jack K50TZ, Randy WB4MJF, Pat KJ4OCA, Chuck K14DHW, John KJ4SEZ, Jim K9AUC, George KR4MU, Efrain HK3TKI, Prentiss K4PDJ, and Mike NW3V

Respectfully submitted by Pat Lengle, KJ4OCA at the request of Chuck Norton K14DHW.

President Norton called the meeting to order at 7:30 PM. Mike Ingles showed a high visibility vest that is available from Casual Adventure on Washington Boulevard in Arlington. This vest would be very helpful in emergency situation where high visibility is important for a person’s safety.
The minutes from the March 2010 meeting were approved. The Treasurer made his report. Three new members were voted into membership. They are: Jim Murphy, AA0J, John Murphy, KJ4SEZ, and Keith Saari. In discussion it was noted that there may be some shrinkage in membership. There are 19 paid members for 2010 at this time.
Dennis reported on the ARRL. They are having continuing problems with their new website. The FCC has taken action on certain amateur radio matters including, Novice band reorganization and defining spread spectrum operation. Spread spectrum operation is limited to 10 watts. It was also noted that the FCC promptly handled a waiver request from the American Hospital Association. Revisions to Part 97.113 are out for comments. Dennis also mentioned that the ARRL was considering requesting manufacturer’s ads in QST to state clearly when new equipment would be available for purchase.
Gary reported on EmComm: The ARRL has consolidated former Level 1 and Level 2 training into a single package. If an EmComm course is offered later this year there will be a cost for the new ARRL book. Gary also has a request from Prince George’s County, Maryland ARES to help with their ARES drill. Planning is underway for the Marine Corp Marathon on October 31st. Gary will provide information on these events to the membership. Members were also invited to the Pentagon MARS station for the May 8th Armed Forces Day Cross Band test.
Mike Callaham reported that the club weekly nets are usually well attended. Ideas about supplementing the net format with formal traffic, CW training, amateur radio new, and other modes were mentioned. It was noted that Craig and Randy could change the repeater timeout period to accommodate other activities.
Jim and George reported on the Red Cross reorganization. The club will follow with suitable changes to reflect changes of status of the Arlington County Red Cross site. It was noted for emergencies that tests should be conducted with the Red Cross site in Fairfax. George noted that communications with the Richmond EOC on 80 meters were usually adequate.
Pat reported that the current CERT class is concluding. 35 new CERT members will be ‘certified’. Club member Cynthia was recognized by Arlington County as an outstanding volunteer.
Mike and Chuck noted that the club had submitted logs for the Virginia QSO party. The final scoring is still in work. It was described as a very user friendly event.
Chuck also attended the Bull Run Run event. He was there as an observer. He noted that their use of 6 meter radios was unusual. He noted in some cases relatively short paths of about 2 miles did not have good coverage.
There was additional discussion of who has Red Cross certification. About 4 members present have current Red Cross identification cards. It is up to the members to obtain their Red Cross cards if they want to be a Red Cross volunteer. As licensed radio amateurs and club members, they can still provide communications support to the Red Cross if requested.
It was decided that Field Day planning would begin next month. It was also noted that in addition to the club’s 2 meter repeater, that the W8HNT, K4AF, and NERA 440 MHz repeaters are available for coverage of Arlington County.
In attendance were, Ken WB4AKK, Dennis W4PWF, George KR4MU, Mike KA8OPJ, Gary KC5QCN, Jim K9AUC, Pat KJ4OCA, Chuck KI4DHW, Mike KG4RKL, and Mike NW3V.

Posted by Michael Callaham, NW3V, at the request of Ken Heitner, WB4AKK.

President Norton called the meeting to order at 7:55 PM. This followed a presentation on RMS Express - An Inexpensive HF Digital Messaging System by Ken, WB4AKK.

President Norton reviewed the Treasurer’s report.

Dennis provided an update on ARRL activities. He noted that there was a new Emergency Communications Advisory Board for this area. AE4EX was the Roanoke Division representative to this board. He also noted the FCC had released an article about radio spectrum use that was on the FCC web site. The ARRL is busy getting ready for the annual Dayton Hamfest. The National ARRL Convention this year would be in Plano, Texas.

Gary provided an update on Emergency Communications. He noted that the current QST had a good article on amateur radio’s role in the Haiti relief operations. He said this year there would be a Marine Corp Marathon website where members could volunteer for the MCM event. Volunteers were also needed for the National Marathon this weekend. There had been not EnComm requests for the local flooding that had occurred during the recent storms.

Pat reported that CERT classes were in progress at this time. (That is why Cynthia was not at the meeting.) Classes would be ongoing for the next 4 to 5 weeks. CERT is very interested in amateur radio as a communications resource in emergencies.

Mike reported that the local club repeater net on Tuesday evening would still welcome member to volunteer for Net Control duties if they were interested in getting that experience. There was no report from Craig & Randy about repeater progress in obtaining new power supplies.

Discussion was held about the changes occurring in the Red Cross operations in Arlington.
The club members noted that the club would have to be ready to adapt to any changes requested by the Red Cross. A number of alternatives were discussed.

Old Business - Art reported that the T-MARC meeting had no items of interest to the club and the club’s repeater operation. He reported that NERA was going to use a new site on the WAMU tower and their Washington repeater on 449.475 would be operational shortly.

New Business - The club will be on the air for the VA QSO Party this weekend. Operational setup will begin at 1 PM this Saturday. Operations can also be scheduled for Sunday. Contact President Norton by e-mail if interested.

In attendance were: Ken WB4AKK, George KR4MU, Chuck KI4DHW, Dennis W4PWF, Jack K5OTZ, Mike KA8OPJ, Prentiss K4PDJ, Pat KJ4OCA, Keith (New), Jim K9AUC, Arthur W4ART, Gary KC5QCN, and Mike NW3V.

This meeting began with a presentation on the Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS). The presentation was made by Mr. David Trachtenberg, State MARS Director of Virginia. Gary and Ken are both active in MARS and can answer any follow up questions the club members may have about the MARS programs.

President Norton called the business meeting to order at 8:05 PM. The minutes of the January 2010 meeting were approved as posted on the web site. The Treasurer made his report.

ARRL Business - Members noted that the new ARRL web site has not been put on line. It was noted that the ARRL was working on a draft proposal to address the use of the amateur bands by users who were in paid positions. This was seen to be in conflict with the inherent nature of amateur radio.

EnComm - Gary noted during the current snow emergencies, there had been no outages of normal communications. Thus there were not ARES or other amateur operations. Red Cross and Arlington County Shelter were opened during this period. Gary will be working towards organizing an ARRL Emergency Communications course in the near future. He noted that the course would include a Beginners and Advanced levels of training.

Club Weekly Net - Craig noted the club weekly net is doing very well with lots of check-ins. We continue to encourage members to join the weekly net. Gary again mentioned the idea of broadcasting material from the ARRL Newswire before net. Craig also mention the need for 12A or 20A power supplies for the repeater system. Check if you have an extra power supply to donate. The club voted to authorize Craig and Randy to acquire low cost used power supplies for the repeater system at upcoming hamfests or other opportunities.

Red Cross - George noted that Jim and he had been cleaning out excess and obsolete paper from the radio room in an effort to utilize the limited space more effectively. The will be a Red Cross meeting on communications tentatively on March 10 in Fairfax, Va.

CERT - Pat noted that a new CERT class will begin in March. Please contact Cynthia if you want to participate.

Old Business - Ken provided the club with a sound card interface for the TS-850S HF transceiver. This is stored in the top drawer of the file cabinet in the station.

New Business - 440 Repeater available for club use in nets or emergency training. This is W8HNT on 449.325 (-) with PL 151.4. This repeater is in the center of Arlington County.

T-MARC Coordination - Art will attend the upcoming coordination meeting at Winterfest and represent our repeater interests.

New Members - The club voted to approve membership for Dave Shaw, David Church, and Efrain R. Reyes.

Potential Changes to Club Meeting Times - This was discussed. President Norton will undertake an e-mail survey of club opinions on this question.

Upcoming Operating Events - This includes the VA QSO party on Sat, March 20 and Field Day June 26 & 27. The club has the room reserved for these events. Discussion on Field Day brought up the idea of a simpler setup that would focus on operating radios with less emphasis on a complex computer logging system. The focus would be having a smaller number of radios setup up, but manning each radio for a longer period during the 24 hour operating period. The approach would be less competitive, but emphasize having more fun. Further discussion will be held as we approach the event date.

Present at the meeting were: Ken WB4AKK, Arthur W4ART, Ian KI4DTP, Pat KJ4OCA, Randy WB4MJF, Craig K4GOR, David Church (SWL) , Prentiss K4PDJ, Gary KC5QCN,
George KR4MU, Chuck KI4DHW, Mike KG4RKL, Mike KA8OPJ, and Dave KJ4IMI.

Acting President Bodson called the meeting to order at 7:30 PM. Minutes for the December 2009 meeting were approved as posted on this site.

ARRL News - Dennis reported on the recent ARRL board meeting that elected the new ARRL President Kay Craigie, N3KN. Other new officers were elected. See the ARRL website or the new issue of QST.

The ARRL has signed an memorandum of understanding with the American Red Cross concerning radio amateurs who are credentialed to help in emergencies. Those who volunteer through the ARRL will be accorded recognition based on ARRL or local criteria. Those who volunteer through the Red Cross must meet the Red Cross requirement.

The ARRL has formed an Emergency Communications Advisory Committee to address issues in this important area.

EnComm - Gary reported that the Haitian relief efforts were well underway. There was no need for any amateur deployment at this time. All government communication efforts were being conducted on government frequencies.

Old Business - It was noted that current membership applications are pending. It was decided to defer these applications until the February 2010 meeting. The request from Yorktown H.S. for aid in starting a radio club was responded to, but no further requests were forthcoming.

New Business - A new schedule of CERT classes was provided for all members. It was noted that the Arlington Chapter of the American Red Cross has now been consolidated into the National Capital Region. Discussion was also held on topics relating to club operations. These included:

-Having program speakers start at 7:30 PM and then holding the business meeting later,
-Checking the website copies of the club’s constitution and by-laws,
-Checking to see if the club was required to file a Federal tax return,
-The need to archive club minutes, and
-The need to notify all members of club meetings.

Upcoming Events - The following events were noted for the calendar:

Sat Feb 6 - Frostfest in Richmond, VA
Sat March 20 - National Marathon and VA QSO Party
Sat April 10 - Bull Run Run
Sat/Sun June 26/27 - Field Day
Sun Oct 31 - Marine Corp Marathon

The election of officers was held and the results are posted separately on the website. New President Chuck Norton invited all members to submit new suggestions to him by e-mail.

Program - Mike, KA8OPJ demonstrated certain antennas including a two meter two element quad, a two meter wire element J-pole, and a 20 to 6 meter broadband coaxial antenna.

Present at the meeting were: Ken, WB4AKK, Dennis, W4WPF, Mike, KG4RKL, David Church, Craig, K4GOR, Jim, K9AUC, Gerry, KJ4DFY, Pat KJ4OCA, Cynthia, KJ4CLK, Chuck, KI4DHW, Efrain, HK3TKI, Arthur, W4ART, Prentiss, K4PDJ, Mike KA8OPJ, Mike, NW3V, Gary, KC5QCN, George, KR4MU, Randy, WB4MJF, Jack, K5OTZ, and John, W7JCF.

The next club meeting is on February 16, 2010.

President’s Report (Dennis)-
-The organization of the party contributions on the AARC net went well. The elections postponed in November will take place in January.

Program Chair and Emergency Coordinator’s Report (Gary)-
-Full information on the Marine Corps Marathon event will be put out in January.

Jim Hastings -
-The Red Cross now has four new UHF type radios. One is in a go kit with a mag mount antenna. Art asked about the “red” battery. It is charging.

New Business-
-Chuck is a grandfather for the first time and passed the Extra exam on Saturday.
-Art mentioned that the Chinese had launched a new amateur radio satellite yesterday.
-Art also mentioned that WAMU had provided tower space for the NERA repeater and we should thank them for that action.

ARRL Report (Dennis) -
-There will be a lot of change and shifting in the ARRL leadership. The Board of Directors meeting in January should be interesting.
-Senate Bill Number 1755 passed unanimously and has gone to the House. It is currently in the Energy Committee. It would be preferred if it was in the DHS Committee.

-The meeting adjourned at 7:50 PM. In attendance were: Chuck KI4DHW, Cynthia KJ4CLK, Pat KJ4OCA, Jim K9AUC, Gary KC5QCN, Prentiss K4PDJ, David Church, Craig K4GOR, Dennis W4PWF, Arthur W4ART, Randy WB4MJF, Chris KK4WB, Roy AI4GO, George KR4MU, Mike NW3V, Susan Strank, and Barbara Clemens. (Thank you to Cynthia for the meeting notes!)

President Reed called the meeting to order at 7:37 PM. Corrections were noted to the previous minutes and they were approved. The Treasurer made his report.

Tom Azlin, N4ZPT, made an excellent presentation on the use of 23 cm D-Star 128 kB data bridge and 9600 baud packet to be used for communications at the Marine Corp Marathon. This is a very sophisticated data system meeting all of the marathon’s communications needs.

ARRL News - Dennis noted that there was a contested election for the Director of the ARRL Roanoke Division. There had been some problems with the Log Book of the World and electronic certificates. These problems have been fixed. The ARRL is now shipping out the ARRL 2010 Handbooks. Everything else was quiet.

Our guest, Max, from Australia asked about the foundation license concept in the US. He noted that the foundation license has been generally successful in Australia. Dennis noted that the Technician license has been the foundation license in the US. The FCC was generally reluctant to add any new license classes.

EnComm - The Arlington ARES sponsored course last month produced eleven new Technician licensees. They are generally members of CERT. Gary noted it would be desirable if there were more ARRL certified VE’s available from Arlington. Currently, only Dennis and Mike are ARRL certified VE’s

Upcoming Events - President Reed noted there were the following possible future events:
-November Phone Sweepstakes
-10 Meter Contest (if any propagation on 10 meters), and
-January RTTY Roundup.
Please let him know if you are interested in participating in any of these events.

New Business - The club received and application from Craig Pennington, KJ4NJF. (This will be deferred until next month). The club will hold elections next month. The floor is open for nominations. The meeting was adjourned.

In attendance were: Ken WB4AKK, Gary KC5QCN, Prentiss K4PDJ, Gerry KJ4DFY, Jim K9AUC, Walter KJ4DZZ, Dennis W4PWF, Jack WA4FXX, Pat KJ4OCA, Chuck KI4DHW, Chuck KE4LYK, Mike KG4RKL, Roy AI4GO, Tom N4ZPT, Arthur W4ART, George KR4MU, Randy WB4MJF, Mike NW3V, and Max VK2ARZ/W4