Georgia Section On My Mind

September, 2005

Greetings, All. Just a few short comments here before getting into the meat of this newsletter: First, have you filed your comments with the FCC about their proposal to eliminate element one? If not, AFTER you finish reading this tome, why not go to http://www.msu.edu/~volzmich/commenthelp.htm and take care of that today?? Complaining to me or to the ARRL or to your buddies at the local ham club won't cut it. Enough said.

Next, the SET is coming up, officially on the weekend of October 1, but your ARES group can participate anytime between now and the end of November. Please DO. And PLEASE file your SET report (as well as your annual report) in a timely manner, BEFORE the posted deadline! You can send your reports directly to HQ to STEVE EWALD, WV1X, at sewald@arrl.org and please don't forget to send a copy of those reports to our SEC JIM COTE, N4PJR, at n4pjr@jesup.net, to our assistant SEC STAN EDWARDS, WA4DYD, at wa4dyd@arrl.net, and to keep another file for your own records. Some of our ECs have told me that they sent in reports to HQ in the past, but it was never reflected in the QST report. Sending a copy of your report to Stan will help us keep better track of those reports from the entire Section. (More info on the SET in the body of this newsletter.)

And finally, the GA Section Young Ham of the Year Award deadline for nominations is coming up at the end of this month. This could be a very good thing for our Section, but we can't do much if you guys and gals don't submit a nomination for that special young person that YOU know. We all know they're out there, all over the state, but we need YOUR help to enable us to give one of our young hams the recognition he or she deserves. See www.arrl-ga.org for instructions and that nominating form.

OK, let's get on with it. So, what's been happening, and what's coming up just around the corner....? P.S. The one-liners this month fall under the topic of Zen Sarcasm.

Always remember that you're unique. Just like everyone else.

AUGUST HIGHLIGHTS

August 13 --- Ellijay Hamfest --- You've all heard those expression about how "you can't get something for nothing", or that oh-so-cynical "you only get what you pay for"? Well, you know what? Sometimes that just isn't so. Take the Ellijay Hamfest, for instance. With FREE admission, FREE tailgating, and even FREE indoor tables, the hams who were able to attend this fest found out that they could get a whole heck of a lot for nothing. Club members of the Ellijay ARS went out of their way to make this a most enjoyable event, tending to such important details as posting numerous signs directing us flatlanders to their location, and providing early morning coffee and donuts once we got there, plus a good choice of lunch goodies... for a reasonable cost, of course. (Hey! You can't expect to get EVERYTHING for free!) There were drawings for lots of goodies.... also FREE... plus separate tickets which could be purchased for drawings on a couple of ICOM radios. Congratulations to MARVIN COOPER, N2MC, for winning the IC-2100H, and to BILL HOUSTON, WD4LUQ, for winning the IC-V8, and a great big congratulations to the club for hosting such a fun event. I predict a bright future for this Hamfest in their new location at the Lions Club. If you missed it this year, hope you'll be able to make it next year. A great place to bring a load of treasures to sell.

August 20-21 --- Huntsville, AL Hamfest --- This was the site for the SE Division convention this year, and it was another good 'un. The temperature was beastly hot outdoors, but fortunately, this is one of the few Hamfests that is held entirely indoors in air-conditioned comfort. Despite the high price of gasoline these days, attendance was very good, with about 5000 or so hams from all over the southeast in attendance. Several ARRL HQ Staffers were there, as well: MARY HOBART, K1MMH, with the ARRL Foundation, DAN MILLER, K3UFG, who's done such a great job with the Certification & Continuing Education Program, and BILL MOORE, Chief DX dude. SE Director FRANK BUTLER, W4RH, was there, of course, as was SE Director of Vice SANDY DONAHUE, W4RU, and a whole host of other SMs and Field officials from all over the south. The forums were plentiful and covered many diverse topics, including a very good two hour inter-service MARS meeting. One thing that actually happened on Friday night at the Hamfest site bears mentioning. Huntsville ARC members hosted a building event, where twenty-some folks, ranging in age from 5 to 60, spent the evening building a regenerative receiver that one of the club members had designed. It was rather interesting to hear that the one who successfully completed his kit first was the five year old! Club members patiently taught this youngster and others in attendance how to solder, and guided them as needed, but each individual successfully completed the kit-building on his own. As each one finished the project, a foreign broadcast station of some kind would be tuned in on it, generating enthusiastic applause and excitement from everyone there. This event was more successful than club members had even dared to hope for, and they were actually forced to turn away a number of would-be builders. An article is supposed to be submitted to QST about this event, including the schematic for the receiver which was built, and plans are already underway for another building project for next year. Just goes to show you: with the efforts of caring Elmers, the thrill of building can still beat strongly within the heart of amateur radio.

Never test the depth of the water with both feet.

CLUB NEWS

ALBANY ARC --- Congratulations to members of this fine club, who were recently honored at a Southwest GA Red Cross luncheon, in recognition of their dedicated support of this organization. ARTHUR SHIPLEY, N4GPJ, who has been a Red Cross volunteer since 1994, received the Carl Langley Award in appreciation of his efforts. Other club members who were also on the receiving end of special recognition were Bob Smith K4PHE, Ken Adams K1KBA, Russell Allan KI4HLN, Kay Smith W4KAY, Dan Tyson KB4OMV and Richard Morefield WB4TFW. It's worth mentioning that most of these fine folks are also active leaders within the GA ARES organization. Some people just "hafta dance"? These folks just "hafta serve", and we're grateful to all of them for their continuing support of emergency communications.

ALFORD MEMORIAL ARC --- ANDREA HARTLAGE, KG4IUM, wowed 'em with a terrific presentation on her recent adventures at the Space Camp in Huntsville, AL, which was part of her prize earned as last year's Young Ham of the Year. Plans are hot and heavy for the club's Lawrenceville Hamfest, coming up the first weekend in November. Always a top-notch event, this year will once again have some great activities geared for youth, including the presentation of the first GA Section Young Ham of the Year Award. Alas, I'm afraid we can't offer anything quite so cool as a trip to Space Camp, but we're working on some pretty terrific prizes, so get those applications in ASAP.... Deadline is the end of September. See www.arrl-ga.org for details.

BILL GREMILLION MEMORIAL RC --- Club members will once again be hosting an amateur radio demo table and a Special Event Station, K4NRC, at the Power's Crossroads Country Fair & Art Festival in Newnan, from September 3-5, operating from 1300-2100Z each day.

COLUMBIA COUNTY ARC --- Club members were treated to what sounds like a very interesting program at their August meeting, when ALAN JAMES, AG4ZE, spoke to them about 6M meteor scatter propagation and even provided some sample WSJT software and grid square maps. This group is selling raffle tickets for a Kenwood 2M radio, which will be presented at the Augusta Hamfest, coming up on October 8th, and they will also be operating a Special Event station W4O on October 1 for the Oliver Hardy Fest.

CONYERS ARG --- The word is that these folks will once again be building and selling 2M/440 J-poles and offering them for sale for $25 each. Those who've purchased them in the past have been very pleased with the performance of these antennas.

DALTON ARC --- These folks will be offering a couple of terrific courses in the near future: MARVIN COOPER, N2MC, will be teaching a class on the ins and outs of soldering, and DAVID STANLEY, WI4L, will be leading a class in which members will be building a 10M antenna. This will be a particularly useful project for these folks, because Dalton club members like to congregate on 28.410 about 9PM every night for some serious rag chewing. They've drawn hams from many other states on this nightly get-together, as well. Why not check in with them? Coming up on September 10 will be this club's annual tailgating Swapfest at Prater's Mill. A great event, but you'd best plan on getting there early in the morning for maximum enjoyment.... It's usually over round about lunchtime.

GWINNETT ARS --- A terrific PowerPoint presentation / show and tell was provided at the August meeting by ANDREA HARTLAGE, KG4IUM, in which she shared the experiences she had during a recent week at Space Camp in Huntsville, AL. Fact is, she enjoyed the experience so much that she already has her reservation in for a return trip next year. Also during the meeting, a nice "First Contact" certificate was presented to newly-licensed MARK WILSON, KI4LAS, (OOPS! He now has the cool callsign of WI1SON...) by fellow club member DAVE BRUCE, W4DTR.

MACON-BIBB EMA AR GROUP --- These folks will be operating Special Event Station W4G on September 30- October 1, from the GA State Fair in Macon, in celebration of the fair's 150th anniversary.

NORTH GA ARC --- Club members will once again be providing communications in support of the Six Gap Bicycle Rally, scheduled to take place on Sunday, September 25. This year's event is expected to be much larger than previous years, with as many as 2,000 cyclists expected to participate. If you'd like to help with these efforts, please check into their weekly net, on Thursday nights at 8:30 PM, on the 146.835(+) repeater to offer your services.

NORTH GA QRP --- It was "Show and Tell" time for this group at their August meeting. Among other things, there was an interesting shoot-off between a commercial Antenna launcher, brought by JACK NELSON, K5FSE, and a home-brewed version, brought by PHIL SPECHT, K4PQC. With both versions receiving some air-pump assistance, Jack sent a tennis ball flying high, while Phil launched a plastic soda bottle almost as high. Though the store-bought Launcher, available both as a finished product and in kit form, may have scored higher on accuracy, the home-brewed version was quite impressive, too, and Phil was willing to provide details for construction to other club members. This group of QRP enthusiasts have proven, quite successfully, that a club doesn't necessarily have to have by-laws, dues, or officers to succeed. Sometimes all it takes is a shared love of the hobby. If you have any interest in QRP and in building, this is the group for you. See http://www.nogaqrp.org for details.

PAULDING ARC --- This club will be hosting its 15th annual Hamfest at Paulding Meadows Park, about two miles north of the Paulding County Courthouse on Highway 61, on September 17, from 8AM until 4PM. VE testing at 11 AM and talk-in on 146.895+/PL 77. FREE admission, FREE tailgating, and FREE indoor tables. A pleasant location with some real friendly folks. Hope to see you there.

QCWA, CHAPTER 49 --- At the August meeting, BOB ALLPHIN, K4UEE, gave a very interesting presentation about the Peter One DX-pedition. It is amazing just how much effort (and money) goes into planning an adventure of this sort. Current plans will take this never-say-die group of DX-pedition adventurers to that icy land of Peter One after the first of next year.

SE DX CLUB --- They must be doing something right. Club officers, that is, because they were all re-elected for a second term. Congratulations to this team of winners: President- WES LAMBOLEY, W3WL; VP- AL LUDWICK, N4ZZK; Secretary- GEORGE NICHOLSON, N4GRN; Treasurer- HARRY SAUNDERS, W4KJ; and Activities- JOHN TRAMONTANIS, N4TOL. At the June meeting, Wes gave a presentation on his FT5XO DX-pedition, and in July, members had fun in the sun with their annual picnic, held at the lakefront home of KEN BYERS, K4TEA, and his bride TRISH. At the August club meeting, Metro Atlanta DEC TONY KING, W4ZT, provided members some insight on the operations of ARES and of the value of providing emergency communications for our communities. Coming up in September, CHAZ CONE, W4GKF, and DAVE JOHNSON, K4SSU, will be presenting a program on the '72 and '78 DX-peditions to Navassa.

SOUTHEASTERN VHF SOCIETY --- This group will be sponsoring several VHF sprints in September and October: From 7-11PM EST on September 19, it'll be 144 MHz; on September 27, 222 MHz; on October 5, 432 MHz. On October 15, the 902 MHz and up sprint will be from 6AM until 1PM, and the 50 MHz sprint will be from 2300Z October 22 until 0300Z October 23. For more info, see www.svhfs.org/fall_sprint_rules.htm 

THOMASVILLE ARC --- Many of us enjoy making contacts with the Museum Ships on the Air every year, but this year's event was especially meaningful for the members of this club. KEN LANTER, W4MWW, is a much-loved and long-time member of the Thomasville ARC. He is also one of the few remaining survivors of the USS Indianapolis. (If you aren't aware of the historic significance of this ship, please look it up.) Several members of this club made a special trip to visit with Ken on the weekend of the Museum Ships event, and with their help, Ken was able to have a QSO with the crew operating from the USS Indianapolis. Can you imagine the reaction that was generated when they heard the USS Indianapolis station and responded into the pile-up: "USS Indianapolis Survivor"? Everyone respectfully stood by while Ken made his contact, and a few weeks later, Ken went to Indianapolis for a reunion and got to meet the operating crew in person. This wonderful story, with some terrific pictures will soon be posted on our www.arrl-ga.org website. Don't miss it! Coming up at the club's September 10th meeting, PAUL DUVAL, with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA) will be doing a presentation on the 2005 Atlantic Storm Season.

**** Is your club planning to hold a licensing class? Registered ARRL instructors can now list their classes on the ARRL website by visiting the Volunteer Instructor Support page and completing a simple form.
http://www.arrl.org/FandES/ead/instructor/ This could be a huge help to those prospective hams who may be looking for a class in your location.

If at first you don't succeed, skydiving is not for you.

ARES NEWS

CAMDEN COUNTY ARES --- Congratulations to EC CHUCK COOPER, N4TIS, and this fine enterprising group of folks. Would you believe that they've already held their SET, and Chuck has already completed his SET report? Sounds like they had a very successful exercise, and I'd like to share with you Chuck's After Action Report on their activity, which was based on a simulated nuclear accident at Kings Bay NSB, and sponsored by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency:

Drill, DINGO KING, Simulated Nuclear Accident Kings Bay NSB sponsored by Camden County ARES was activated on 22 August 2005 at 0828 by the Camden County Emergency Management Director. Charles Cooper EC for Camden assembled operators at the temporary EOC anticipating the need for amateur radio operators to support American Red Cross. The Navy/County drill was to test the response and ability of both the base emergency and county personnel. Additionally coordination between the two entities would be evaluated.

American Red Cross had been asked to support the drill with aid stations for the drill participants. ARES radio operators would maintain communications between three ARC ERVs, two vans and ARC HQ in Jacksonville, Fl.

At 0845 a radio net was established with eight operators checking in. During the course of nine hours there were 22 operators, 4 base stations and 2 packet stations logged. Traffic was passed between the Red Cross mobiles and their on scene commander and the chapter HQ.

AEC JOHN PLAYFORD, WD8LQT, Also sent an account of this exercise:

This past week the local ARES group (CCARES) participated along with the American Red Cross in a major disaster drill involving the US Navy, and many state, local and federal government agencies. The drill began on Monday, August 21, 2005 and lasted throughout the week. Our participation was on the first day of the drill. The drill simulated an accident involving nuclear weapons and was sponsored by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. Its purpose was to measure the preparedness of the military as well as civilian emergency response to such an incident.

The local ARES group ran a net during the day on Monday with several operators obtaining clearance and entrance to the Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base. These operators (KC4WWU, WP4AFT, WD8LQT, KI4LHQ and KI4CXZ) manned Red Cross ERVs (Emergency Response Vehicles) from Jacksonville, FL, Savannah, GA, and Brunswick, GA as well as supply vans. The net control station, KD4KOE, kept the traffic flowing in an extremely efficient manner over the net. Camden County EC, N4TIS oversaw operations from a secondary EC which saw many come and go throughout the day. Alan, N4ZON became our resident GEMA representative during the day at this secondary EOC in Kingsland. Alan worked closely with the Camden County Director of Emergency Management, Mark Crews (N6EMA), to coordinate local and state response.

Throughout the day some 21 stations checked into the net to offer assistance. By utilizing the net and the stations that checked into the net, we were able to coordinate traffic between the Jacksonville office of the American Red Cross, the Brunswick, Georgia Red Cross Office, and Savannah office of the ARC. Packet radio was also used to pass messages between Kingsland and Brunswick.

If you go to the following link you should be able to get some pictures if you would like. They are from a two page article in the Camden Courier. Unfortunately, on the link only the front page is available. http://www.camdencourier.com

GWINNETT COUNTY ARES --- EC STAN EDWARDS, WA4DYD, reported: "On July 28, 6 members participated in an East Metro Health District exercise designed to evaluate the ability to treat patients in a mass medical response. ARES came to the rescue when EMHD communications did not work inside the treatment facility and there was a need to communicate information to the rally point. The MCF was employed as a relay point between two nets." Members of this group are also into the "experimentation" mode, with many of them evaluating WiFi as a means of providing communications for the group. At the August meeting, a terrific presentation was given on the dynamics of handling stress following a disaster.

WARE COUNTY ARES ---This report comes to us from PERRY BLACKBURN, KF4SUY: "Amateur Radio Day was at Lowe's, of Waycross from 9 a.m.- 4 p.m. on Saturday July 30. The Ware County ARES were present, we handed out amateur radio information, had a Video of amateur radio set up and running for the Public to view. We also had the Ware County Emergency Management Agencies mobile Communications bus on display. Perry Blackburn, KF4SUY, ARES EC for Ware County, and Rick Lutzinger, KD6ZR, ARES EC for Pierce County was there with other amateur radio operators from Ware, Pierce, and Brantley County. We were there to put the word out about amateur radio. We were also interviewed by local TV station channel 42 and it was broadcast on channel 42 Thursday night. I would like to say a special thank you to Pete Wheeler, Manager of Lowes in Waycross, and his staff for their support of amateur radio. I would also like to thank Latisha Blackburn, KG4AJG for her help and support in getting the day at Lowe's up and going, thanks to Ware County Emergency Management Agency Director Jonathan Daniell, and the Ware County ARES team for suffering through the heat to promote amateur radio."

*** SE GA NEWS --- SE DEC GREG TILLMAN, N4VAD, shared this report about a recent class he taught. Greg wrote, " In Brantley Co. On the 23rd of July I did a one day no code tech class for Brantley Co EMA Dir Billy Lartz. The class started out with 22 of course after lunch 3 said it was too much for them so they did not return..... We had a total of 19 test at the end of the day with a whopping 14 new amateurs for this area.... including Brantley county's EMA Director BILLY LARTZ, Admin, Asst. MICHELLE LARTZ, Pierce county's EMA Director KENNETH JUSTICE and 911 Director JEROME WILSON, and numerous County employees, Fire fighters, EMS, Rescue Teams and others involved in various fields of emergency preparedness. This is one of our largest and most successful classes to this date. I would like the Thank the testing team that comprised of hams from Glynn and Wayne County that was led by N4PJR Jim. The team is listed as N4RRO Wilma, WD8KJXBrad, KG4WPD Tom, AG4DD Art, W5UX Bob, K5LBM Leon. Our EC for Pierce Co. Rick Lutzinger KD6ZR also upgraded to Amateur Extra. A hearty Congratulations goes to his efforts in becoming more efficient in his knowledge of Ham Radio."

*** For an interesting story about the Chinese equivalent of ARES and a competition they held recently, see
http://www2.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-08/05/content_466505.htm 

*** STORM SPOTTER'S CLASS --- Arranged by Grady county EMA Director JIM ELLIS, this class will be held on September 8th at 5PM at the Roddenberry Memorial Library in Cairo.

*** WINLINK 2000--- To help answer some of the lingering questions you may have about WinLink 2000, please see this wonderful website, which was set up by JOHN KRAUS, KC4ZGQ, our DEC for Digital Communications. You can find a list of WinLink stations around the state, a PowerPoint presentation, the handouts that John has given to attendees at the classes he has taught, and more. http://www.kc4zgq.com/ham.htm 

*** From DAVE SUMNER, K1ZZ: What makes amateur radio unique is that we can communicate with one another, anywhere in the world (and even in orbit), without having to rely on any infrastructure whatsoever. Experienced radio amateurs take for granted that we can do this, but in the general public there is very little awareness of our abilities. So, what better way to mark Amateur Radio Awareness Day (this year on September 17) than by calling attention to this unique capability? It is particularly appropriate since September is the Department of Homeland Security's National Preparedness Month. September QST (page 49) announces that on September 17 there will be a 15-hour Emergency Power Operating Event for stations operating "off the grid." It is not a contest. It is simply a demonstration of what we amateurs can do without having to rely on the commercial mains, and what we WILL do whenever the need arises. We hope home stations operating on batteries or generators, mobiles, and possibly even some portables will participate, although -- unlike Field Day -- the emphasis is not on setting up a temporary station, but rather on operating your regular station on emergency power. In particular, W1AW will be on the air on emergency power for the event. I hope we can work stations operating on emergency power in all 50 states This could be a significant media event. In any case it should be a lot of fun, and we may even learn something!

*** NEW!!! There is now a wonderful ARES E-letter available to ARRL members. The first edition premiered on August 17th, and it was chock-full of useful information. Upcoming issues will be released on the 3rd Wednesday of every month, so you can sign up now to get that next issue. Sign up today to receive this informative newsletter about emergency communications and public service activities, with a wealth of after-action reports, editorials, technical tips, news and views at http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/ares-el/about.html  Because emergency communications is such a vital issue, subscribers are invited to share a copy with club newsletter editors or with friends who may not be ARRL members.

If you lend someone $20 and you never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

ALL YOU EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT THE SET

Although all of our ARES groups are encouraged to participate in this year's SET on the weekend of October 1-2, any time between now and the end of November would be fine. Better at "some time" than at "no time". NOTE: On Saturday, the 1st, the GEMA SOC station will be in operations from 8AM until 6PM, and available to accept your group's traffic via 3.975 MHz, 7.275 MHz, the 146.820 Atlanta ARC repeater, Packet Client, APRS, and WinLink 2000.

STEVE EWALD, WV1X, with the ARRL Field Organization and Public Service Team, provided the following information as way of explaining the Simulated Emergency Test, what it is, and why we do it.

The ARRL Simulated Emergency Test is a nationwide exercise in emergency communications, conducted by ARRL Section, District and local Emergency Coordinators, and by Net Managers. Both Amateur Radio Emergency Service(r) (ARES (r)) and the National Traffic System (NTS) are involved. The SET weekend gives communicators the opportunity to focus on the emergency-communications capability within your community while interacting with NTS nets. The main SET weekend to focus on thisyear is October 1-2, 2005.

During September, the ARRL will be among dozens of organizations and agencies taking part in National Preparedness Month. "The Ready Campaign," produced by the Ad Council in partnership with the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), is aimed at making citizen preparedness "a priority for every city, every neighborhood and every home" in the US. The ARRL encourages you to consider this year's Simulated Emergency Test and preparations for it as a demonstration of Amateur Radio's readiness and as an active participant in National Preparedness Month.

Purpose of SET

1. To find out the strengths and weaknesses of ARES and NTS, the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES) and other groups in providing emergency communications.

2. To provide a public demonstration--to served agencies such as Red Cross, Civil Preparedness, and through the news media--of the value tothe public that Amateur Radio provides, particularly in time of need.

3. To help radio amateurs gain experience in communications using standard procedures and a variety of modes under simulated-emergency conditions.

Format

The scoring format reflects broad objectives and encourages use of digital modes for handling high-volume traffic and point-to-point Welfare reports out of the affected simulated- disaster area. Participants will find SET an opportunity to strengthen the VHF-HF link at the local level, thereby ensuring that ARES and NTS are working in concert. The SET will give all levels of NTS the chance to handle exercise-related traffic. The guidelines also recognize tactical traffic on behalf of served agencies.

Test messages should carry the word "TEST" before the precedence; that is, "Test Priority" on phone and "TEST P" on CW. The text of such messages should also begin with the words "TEST MESSAGE."

ARES units and other groups are free to conduct their emergency exercises anytime between September 1 and November 30 if an alternative date is preferred. The activity period should not exceed 48 hours.

The ARRL Web Page is a resource available to you as you prepare for the upcoming test. Check the ARRL Field Organization Page on the ARRL Web Site, http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/forms/ for electronic versions of the SET reporting forms, traffic handling information, and several other items related to public service and emergency communications. You may e-mail your SET summaries to ARRL Headquarters via sewald@arrl.org. If you mail them to ARRL via the postal service, the address is: ARRL Headquarters, 225 Main Street, Newington, CT 06111-1494.

Preparation is Important

Steps for the Emergency Coordinator

1. Sign up all available amateurs in the area under your jurisdiction and work them into your SET plans.

2. Call a meeting of all ARES members and prospective members to briefly outline (no details!) SET activities, and give general instructions. Do not divulge the exact time or nature of the test to them at this time. This should come as a surprise. Take this opportunity to register new ARES members and get up-to-date information on others. Hold an on-the-air meeting if it's not possible to meet in person.

3. Contact served agencies and explain the intent and overall purpose of the SET. Offer to send test messages to other branches of their agencies, and invite officials to your ARES meetings and SET operating sites.

4. Contact officials of any adjacent communities having no active amateurs and offer to provide representation in amateur networks for them as well.

5. Arrange publicity in consultation with an ARRL Public Information Officer in local newspapers and radio/TV stations by preparing an announcement and/or inviting the press to observe your group's SET operation.

6. Set up liaison with one or more NTS local/section nets (if you don't already have liaison) so you will have an outlet for all messages out of the local area.

7. Formulate your plans around a simulated disaster. Possible "plots" include: a flood, a serious fire, an ice storm, a missing person, a serious accident (automobile, bus, aircraft, for examples), a broken gas line, and so forth. Elaborate on the situation by developing a scenario, but please be realistic.

During the SET

1. Announce the emergency situation. Activate the emergency net. Dispatch mobiles to served agencies.

2. Have designated stations originate messages on behalf of served agencies. Test messages may be sent simulating requests for supplies. Simulated emergency messages (just like real emergency messages) should besigned by an authorized official.

3. Emphasize tactical communications for served agencies.

4. As warranted by traffic loads, have liaison stations on hand to receive traffic on the local net and relay to your section net. You should also be sure that there is a representative on each session of the section net to receivetraffic going to the local area.

5. Operate at least one session (or substantial segment of a session) of the local net on emergency-only basis. Or, if a repeater is on emergency power, allow only emergency-powered stations to operate through the repeater for a certain time period.

After the SET

An important post-SET activity is a critique session to discuss the test results. All ARES (and RACES) members should be invited to the meeting to review good points and weaknesses apparent in the drill. Emphasize ways to improve procedures, techniques, and coordination with all groups involved. Report your group's effort using the appropriate forms and include any photos, clippings and other items of interest.

The Role of NTS

The main function of the National Traffic System in an emergency situation is to tie together all of the various local activities and to provide a means by which all traffic destined outside of a local area, section or region can be systematically relayed to the addressee. Normal NTS routing should be followed. A valid exception is the handling of emergency traffic that should be routed as rapidly and efficiently as possible, bypassing various levels of nets when delivery can be expedited. Another exception is when one station is loaded down with traffic for one region or section. At the discretion of the Net Control Station (NCS), the station may be directed to bypass a normal channel and go directly to a lower (or higher) echelon net.

The interface between NTS and ARES lies in the liaison function between local nets and other NTS nets, particularly at the section level. Responsibility for representation of the local network on the section net lies with the local net manager who may or may not be the EC. Although we usually think of ARES members being the representatives in section nets, it is equally valid to expect NTS personnel to act as liaison to local nets. At least one net session or substantial segment of a session should be conducted on emergency power. Plan a surprise session or two. Advise the NCS just before net time. If NCS is unable to operate on emergency power, then someone else must be net control. Only stations operating on emergency power may report in during this time.

Summary

One of the first steps on the way to a successful SET is to try to get as many people as possible involved and especially new hams. In a real emergency, we find amateurs with all sorts of varied interests coming out of the woodwork. Let's get them involved in SET so they will know more about how emergency communications should be handled. Promote SET on nets and repeaters, and sign up new, enthusiastic radio amateurs. Many of those offering to help will be inexperienced in public-service activities. It's up to you to explain what's going on to them, and provide them with useful roles. They may like it so much that they become a permanent fixture in your ARES or NTS group. For a review of last year's nationwide Simulated Emergency Test, read the article in July, 2005, QST, or see the SET announcement in September QST.

You can download a copy of the 2005 SET reporting forms and read the SET Guidelines on the ARRL Web Page. See http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/setguide.html for appropriate links. The reporting forms (Forms A, B, and C) are found at this specific address in Adobe PDF and Rich Text RTF formats: http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/forms/#ec_set 

If you would like to submit your SET reporting forms and EC Annual Report via e-mail, please send them to sewald@arrl.org And please send a copy of these reports to both our SEC JIM COTE, N4PJR at n4pjr@jesup.net and to our ASEC STAN EDWARDS, WA4DYD, at wa4dyd@arrl.net

To tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.

ARES/ MARS INTEROPERABILITY

As some of you may recall, we made an attempt to start incorporating some interoperability between our ARES and MARS organizations back in June, when we invited our ARES members to participate in the annual Grecian Firebolt-05 exercise for the first time. Although we did have a bit of welcome participation from a couple of our ARES leaders, we believe that the major reason that there wasn't MORE participation was due to a lack of understanding as to what our expectations were and exactly how to go about meeting them. To address this issue and to lay out our vision for interoperability, my better half MIKE SWIDERSKI, K4HBI, our DEC for GA Army MARS, has put together some wonderful guidelines for us. This move towards working together is being encouraged by both the ARRL, as well as by MARS. It isn't just a good path for Georgia; it's good path for the country.

GEORGIA AMATEUR RADIO EMERGENCY SERVICE (ARES) AND GEORGIA ARMY MILITARY AFFILIATED RADIO SYSTEM (MARS) INTEROPERABILITY AUGUST 2005

HISTORY

ARES and MARS in the past have not shared much in the way of interoperability. Under direction of the Office of Homeland Security (OHS) interoperability is a task to be accomplished.

ARES is typically a deploying communications group for a multitude of served LOCAL agencies.

MARS is typically a non-deploying stationary traffic network sponsored by the Department of Defense (DOD). MARS is also tasked with:

1. Provide DOD-sponsored emergency communications on a local, national, and
   international basis as an adjunct to existing Department of the Army (DA) communications.

2. Provide auxiliary communications for military, Federal, civil, and/or disaster support officials during periods of emergency.

3. Assist in effecting normal communications under emergency conditions.

4. Provide a network for reporting Essential Elements of Information (EEI) on matters of interest to emergency management agencies.

PURPOSE

During emergencies ARES is typically on-site and dealing with the situation at hand and providing information to the local authorities as requested. A lot of this information stays only in the local area because the emergency activities take priority. MARS can provide the role of getting the information out of the local area to authorities that should be made aware. These authorities may use the information to ready additional resources or prepare for additional activation. These are not the times to rely on the media and reporters for accurate notification. MARS reports of actual events go straight to the Director of Military Support (DOMS) for dissemination to many agencies.

TRAFFIC TYPES

MARS can accept traffic in two ways, one is by refile where the exact text of the message is relayed as received. The second way is via interview where the MARS member constructs a DOD format message based on the information received

1. Message refile
Since MARS is a DOD-sponsored entity certain DOD rules must be followed to refile a message into the MARS network, such as the following. An amateur radio service message will not be accepted for refile into the MARS system unless it contains all of the following:

· Message number
· Call sign of the amateur station of origin
· Precedence [Routine (R) for exercises or Priority (P) for actual events]
· Place of origin
· Complete TO address for military, MARS member, or Served Agency
· Complete text
· Signature

2. Interview type Message

The MARS member will construct from the information supplied a report of the essential elements of information requested by our served agencies.

The following items are requested in your message or would be requested in the interview.

1. INCIDENT TYPE - such as earthquake, flood, fire, volcanic eruption, forest fire, chemical spill, train wreck, or victims needing rescue, evacuation, medical treatment.

2. TIME OF INCIDENT actual time incident occurred

3. LOCATION OF INCIDENT town/city, state, highway, railway, or other location(s) of victims needing rescue, evacuation, and emergency medical treatment

4. SOURCE OF INFORMATION - if ARES member observation amateur callsign; if disaster official - name & agency (if known); if radio/tv supply station id or network.

5. DATE AND TIME RECEIVED SOURCE INFO the time you received information, preferably in UTC

6. GENERAL DAMAGE CHARACTERISTICS -major structures - government, schools, public utilities, etc.) physical damage to residential, housing, commercial property (office buildings, plants, etc.) and public facilities, particularly in high-density areas.

7. STATUS OF EMERGENCY MEDICAL FACILITIES - should include facility name/location and status operational, damaged or destroyed

8. STATUS OF LOCAL TRANSPORTATION - specific location and condition of major roads (restricted or impassable), railroads (restricted, impassable, damaged or destroyed), bridges (restricted, damaged or destroyed),airports (restricted, inaccessible, damaged or destroyed), waterways, ports, etc.

9. STATUS OF LOCAL AREA UTILITIES should include the type utility (gas, water, electricity, water purification and sanitation systems, etc.) and status (limited or unavailable).

10. STATUS OF COMMUNICATION FACILITIES this includes telephone (cell, landline), radio, tv, etc. Give type, geographical location and condition (operational, limited or unavailable)

11. ADDITIONAL COMMENTS - If status is expected to change on above items add here, as an example: Telephone company expects to have full service restored in 24 hours.

12. You may not know all of the details of an incident, this does not matter - just send the facts of what you do know immediately. Additional information can be submitted as updates later. Information may be listed simply as operational if unaffected, or unknown if status is not known.

HOW DOES ARES GET THE INFORMATION TO MARS MEMBERS?

Since MARS is a part of DOD, operational security (OPSEC) prevents us from disclosing personal information of MARS members. However we have common ground, the amateur frequencies, HF, VHF, UHF etc. We all join in on a lot of amateur nets where traffic or information can be relayed.

To comply with OPSEC any amateur entering a net could simply list at check in I HAVE MARS TRAFFIC. The net control could request IS THERE ANY STATION THAT CAN ACCEPT MARS TRAFFIC. Any MARS member OR any amateur station who knows a MARS member should respond I CAN ACCEPT THAT TRAFFIC. Thus OPSEC is maintained.

Through the ARES architecture and rosters/QRZ you know at least three relay stations to MARS, the District Emergency Coordinators (DECs) for Army, Air Force, and Navy-Marine Corps.

Contact them direct, telephone, email, NTS, or over the air (voice or digital). The MARS DECs usually check into the 3975 LSB Statewide ARES net on Sunday at 6PM local time.

Utilize your local ARES VHF nets to determine which stations can accept MARS traffic. Consider modifying your check-in preamble to include PLEASE ADVISE NCS IF YOU CAN ACCEPT MARS TRAFFIC or something similar, but please do not ask if there are any MARS stations on frequency as this would violate OPSEC.

If your city/county/area utilizes a VHF digital system that has known stations that can accept MARS traffic, work out a message header such as MARS TRAFFIC to alert those stations that can accept MARS traffic that there is traffic being held. As an example, in Gwinnett County the folks know that I am DEC for Army MARS and can relay MARS traffic. The ARES folks also know that I am up 24/7 on the "Emergency Service Packet Client" (WA4DYD's program) on VHF-FM, 1200 baud, 145.030 MHz, SSID of K4HBI-1, so any Gwinnett ARES member should be able to relay as needed. Thus expanding my accessibility to ARES.

Check in your area on various VHF/HF amateur nets and club meetings as to who can accept MARS traffic. Attempt to work with these stations to establish reliable and redundant communications paths.

The GA Army MARS web site http://www.gamars.org/gram.htm  has a fill in the blank MARSgram message feature that can be used to direct traffic to a known MARS member.

Remember, MARS does not want ARES job, just want to expand ARES communications effectiveness. Also some MARS members are also National Emergency Communication Network (NECN) authorized through the Shared Resource (Shares). Let us try to build the ARES/MARS interoperability to better support the Office of Homeland Security.

TNX Mike Swiderski, K4HBI, ARES DEC GA Army MARS

Some days you're the bug; some days you're the windshield.

ARES REPORT FROM STAN EDWARDS, WA4DYD, ASEC

Total Net Sessions: 91
Drills, Tests, Training Sessions: 103 Man-hours: 704
Public Service Events: 8 Man-hours: 271
Emergency Operations: 5 Man-hours: 406
Misc. Events: 33 Man-hours: 136

Total Events: 148 Total Man-hours: 1517

Reporting by District:

Metro Atlanta 54.6%
Southeast 37.0%
Northeast 28.6%
Southwest 22.2%
East Central 16.7%
Northwest 16.7%
Central 10.5%
West Central 0.0%

Non-District DECs 21.4%

Total Reporting 28.6%

A closed mouth gathers no foot.

NET REPORT FROM JIM HANNA, AF4NS, STM

PUBLIC SERVICE HONOR ROLL:

STATION ACTIVITY REPORTS:

Traffic handled (QTC):

** SID HUTCHINSON, WB4GGS, earned yet another BPL listing in QST, with 258 messages sent, 272 received, and one delivered, for a grand total of 531. CONGRATULATIONS!

"In days of old, when ops were bold and sideband not invented,
the words were passed by pounding brass, and all were quite contented."
Anonymous

AMATEUR RADIO AWARENESS DAY

This message comes to us from ALLEN PITTS, W1AGP, ARRL Media and Public Relations Manager:

Amateur Radio Awareness Day is Saturday, September 17.

The ARRL will be among dozens of organizations and agencies participating in National Preparedness Month in September. The campaign, headed by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/), is aimed at making citizen preparedness "a priority for every city, every neighborhood and every home" in the US. The League will combine its role in National Preparedness Month with its own "Amateur Radio Awareness Day" on September 17.

We are especially encouraging hams to invite their local Citizens Corps leaders to come and see Amateur Radio installations. To find out how to contact a Citizen Corps group, visit this Webpage: http://www.citizencorps.gov/councils/.

"The two events offer great opportunities for Amateur Radio to showcase its valued service to the nation," said ARRL Field and Educational Services Manager Rosalie White, K1STO. She encouraged ARRL-affiliated clubs and Field Organization volunteers to take advantage of the occasion to set up public demonstrations of Amateur Radio and to present or even demonstrate--under the banner of National Preparedness Month--the free services Amateur Radio provides to the community.

"This is also an excellent opportunity to recruit prospective hams for licensing classes that clubs may be forming for the fall," ARRL Club/Mentor Program Manager Norm Fusaro, W3IZ, added. In addition, ARRL encourages all Amateur Radio operators to have a family emergency communication plan in place in case of an emergency, such as a severe weather event. Visit the http://www.ready.gov/ Website for more information.

Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.

BORN TO BE WI-I-ILD

I just loved this, and got permission to share it with you. It was in the latest ARRL Contest Rate Sheet. (To sign up to receive this, you have to be registered at the ARRL Members Only website, http://www.arrl.org/members/. If you're receiving THIS newsletter via email, you're already registered. Under the Member Data Page, you have the opportunity to select all of the goodies you want to receive via email, including this Rate Sheet. The ARRL Contest Rate sheet is full of information about contests (naturally) but it also has a bunch of useful technical tidbits, etc.)

OK, ready? Pull out your air guitars, and all together now....

(Transmogrified from "Born to Be Wild" by Steppenwolf)

Get your rover runnin'
Head out on the highway
Lookin' for the high spots
And whoever tunes our way
Let's drive and go make it happen
Run the bands at a laser's pace
Work all of the grids at once
And be heard up in space

I like smoke and arcing
Metal yagi wonders
Bounce off the aurora
And the E-layer that I'm under
Let's drive and go make it happen
Run the bands at a laser's pace
Work all of the grids at once
And be heard up in space

For a true radio child
There are bands, bands to be dialed
There's no band too high
I wouldn't wanna try

Bands to be dialed
Bands to be dialed

73, Ward N0AX

(You tried singing it... you KNOW you did!)

Generally speaking, you aren't learning much when your lips are moving.

TECH TIPS & MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION

** Never quite sure of how to best set your beam when trying to make that DX contact you're chasing? In a recent posting on the Athens ARC reflector, BILL WILSON, KJ4EX, provided this helpful URL for the New Jersey DX Association website that should take the guesswork out of making those contacts. If you enter your zip code, name and callsign, it'll obligingly provide you with beam headings for all of the DXCC countries. Cool, huh? Check it out! http://www.njdxa.org/dxcclist.shtml

** There's a DX and Contest Conference coming up in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee on October 1 that you might be interested in attending. It'll be held at the Mainstay Suites, and will feature a host of programs and a big dinner, to boot. Sponsored by the Southeast DX and Contest Organization, you can go to http://www.sedco.homestead.com for more information.

** CAL NEFF, K4JSR, is known by many of us as a source of witty repartee and groan-worthy puns. This time, he got momentarily serious, as he came across a URL that many of you will find to be of some interest, and he wanted to share it with you. LED flashlights have become quite popular, and this site offers LED replacement bulbs for flashlights. As Cal noted, " The LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) provide more light and draw less current than standard bulbs. The more light is great and the lower current draw means a significant lifespan for your batteries. The bulbs are a bit pricey, but over a period of time the cost would be recovered from replacing fewer conventional bulbs and fewer expensive Alkaline batteries. Also, it don't cost a thing to look!" Check it out at http://www.theledlight.com/ledbulbs.html

** The August edition of CONTACT! - the ezine for PIO's is up on the web at http://www.arrl.org/pio/contact/2005/08/

** ED TANTON, N4XY, shared a whole slew of useful sites on the QRP reflector recently:

GENERAL ELECTRONICS:
http://www.electronics-tutorials.com/
http://www.epanorama.net/links/audiocircuits.html
http://ee.wustl.edu/class/fl04/ese498/Electrical%20Engineering%20Design%20Reference%20Information.htm
http://www.toancausoft.com.vn/utc/hsg/GradEngineering.html

FILTERS:
http://www.flashwebhost.com/tcvr/ladder_filter.php
http://www.aade.com/filter.htm
http://lea.hamradio.si/~s57nan/ham_radio/xtl_fltr/xtl_fltr.html

ANTENNAS:
http://www.cebik.com/
http://www.cebik.com/fdim/fdim9.pdf

The last one is on: My Top Five Back-yard Multiband Wire HF Antennas

** For those with an interest in WiFi, you might find these sites to be of some interest. Posted on the Conyers ARG reflector by ED LENT, KS4TY, the first site is about a competition of sorts. Ed reported, "The final result was a full 11 Mbps data transfer rate over a distance of 125 miles, a new world record for an unamplified wireless networking connection." See how they managed that amazing feat at http://www.wifi-shootout.com/ Two similar sites, on some similar local stuff are http://www.bsrg.org/wifi/index.php and http://www.atlantafreenet.org/home.php

** DAVE PETERSON, KD4POG, wanted to inform us that there's a new/old SEDAN node operational in the Metro ATL area. (Freq. 145.770) Dave wrote, " The call for the SEDAN node is KD4POG-7 alias is OGA...This node used to be located in Ochlocknee GA many years ago. Anyways, I dusted the cobwebs off and found a new home for it. The node does have emergency power capabilities. This node will connect to the following nodes: LVL, FTV, CDX, WKV, and sometimes JASP. I hope to have another node operational in the near future and this node will be located in the south Fulton County area."

** If you've been thinking about putting in an application so your school can become one of the new Big Project schools, be aware that the deadline for filing for the next round of grant application is November 1. You can find an application at http://www.arrl.org/FandES/tbp/ and you can send it directly to Mark Spencer, WA8SME, at 774 Eastside Rd, Coleville, CA 96107.

** For those of you still not sure if your HF rig is NTIA compliant or if it can be made compliant for operations on the 60M channels, or for meeting the stricter requirements on the horizon for MARS frequencies, here's the website that can put your mind at rest (or send you to the nearest hamfest in search of another rig!)
https://ntc.cap.af.mil/comm/equipment/hf_equipment.cfm

** If you spent countless hours on the air recently in a vain attempt to make contact with the doctor who was expected to be operating on 20M from South Korea as P5/KA2HTV, the poor propagation wasn't the only reason you came up empty. According to a post by IRA BRAY, KA4JNB, on the Bill Gremillion Memorial RC reflector recently, he wrote, " A bit more information coming out now that Dave is back in the states. He was not allowed to operate, with officials saying that his license was given by a person "not authorized" to do so. Most of the equipment that he took was "accepted as a donation" by the authorities."

** In a recent exchange of emails with EMORY GORDY, W4WRO, we were discussing the correlation between musical ability and Morse code proficiency. He has convinced me that there is a genuine relationship there. (OK, Mike, so you were RIGHT!) Emory even informed me that "toward the end of WW2 the Armed Forces were trying to find a quick aptitude test to determine the best candidates for CW ops. The ONLY correlation they could find was: Those people with an aptitude for music were also good candidates for learning CW. Turns out there's a VERY specific area of the brain that deals with music...it's the same area that deals with CW....Doesn't do much else (it just ciphers sounds)....generally located in the right brain (for right handed people)." Emory wrote a terrific article dealing with the symbiotic relationship between music and CW, and I'd urge all of you to check it out. It can be found at http://www.arrl.org/members-only/contests/results/2004/FD/guiltless.html

** RON LANGSTON, WE5O, and I were recently discussing the matter of whether the amateur radio hobby is actually growing or if we're slowly fading away. I promised to put something in this newsletter about this, and lo! And behold! I found the perfect website that provides a fascinating analysis on just this subject. Created by JOE SPERONI, AHØA, you can find it at http://www.AHØA.org

Duct tape is like "The Force". It has a light side and a dark side, and it holds the universe together.

SECTION NOTABLES

** CONGRATULATIONS to JOHN (you may know him as SCOTT) REDD, KØDQ, who was selected by the White House to direct the country's new National Counter-Terrorism Center. A retired Navy career officer who was the former commander of the Naval Forces in the Middle East, Scott is also an avid contester and DX-er.

** A couple of fine fellas from the Conyers ARG took top honors in the Georgia section operating multi-op in the January UHF/VHF contest. CONGRATULATIONS to CHRIS HOFFMAN, K1KC, and JOHN SHUMAKE, WA4BLM, for their outstanding performance.

** Welcome aboard to our GA Section's newest Public Information Officer, CHARLES REID, W4MAZ, who is also a traffic reporter and video journalist for WMAZ/CBS in the Macon area. We sure do appreciate him bringing his experience to the team. It's also interesting to note that Charles recently celebrated one of those "milestone" birthdays, and the folks at the TV station presented him with a HAM radio. That is, it was a working radio that was actually built inside of a canned ham can. Talk about unique!

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a broken fan belt and leaky tire.

PIGLETS (AKA YOUNG HAMS)

** CONGRATULATIONS to eleven year old AMBER LYNN BUTLER, who recently passed her test and earned the callsign KI4LMW. Amber is the daughter of proud parents JAY, KF4ZLC, and TRISH, KI4BRQ, as well as a member of the LaGrange ARC. (Betcha they've ALL "adopted" her!)

** Think you can't make a difference for a youngster through amateur radio? Ask PAUL MANNO, KG4UVU, and he'll tell you differently. Young NOAH JAFFE visited the Kennehoochee ARC Field Day with his mother this year, just to "look around". Paul spent time with this young man, talked with him, and served as a gen-u-ine Elmer. Two weeks later, young Noah sent Paul an excited email, to tell him that he'd passed his technician test. Noah is a ninth grader, and now proudly holds the callsign KI4LIQ. Congratulations to Noah.... And to Paul.

** Here's yet another REMINDER about getting those applications in for the GA Section Young Ham of the Year Award, to be presented at the Alford Memorial ARC's Hamfest in Lawrenceville the first weekend in November. See www.arrl-ga.org for details and application. You can nominate your son or daughter, one of the kids from your local ham club or Scout group. Only requirements are that your nominee be a licensed GA resident under the age of 21.

*** REMINDER: JOTA (Jamboree on the Air) is coming up, October 15-16. A great opportunity to work with local Scouts and help get them hooked on the joys of amateur radio. For more info, see www.arrl.org/FandES/ead/#scout If you know that you'll be operating with a local Scout group, you can register that group at www.arrl.org/FandES/ead/youthskeds/ Registering your group would help those Scouts out there in search of a location that they can attend to participate.

Don't be irreplaceable. If you can't be replaced, you can't be promoted.

UPCOMING EVENTS

SEPTEMBER is National Preparedness Month. According to the Department of Homeland Security website www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/ "The goal of National Preparedness Month is to increase public awareness about the importance of preparing for emergencies and to encourage individuals to take action." A PRIME time for your club to set up an amateur radio demonstration in your area.

SEPTEMBER 2-4 --- Special Event Station KH6BB will be operating from the USS Missouri (Pearl Harbor), to mark the 60th anniversary of the formal ending of WWII, when the Japanese signed surrender papers aboard the USS Missouri. For history buffs, it bears mentioning that operators will be using the original Vibroplex key that was on board in 1945, and which was used to send out the first news of the signing of the surrender. In fact, operations will begin with a retransmission of the exact message that was sent from the Missouri in 1945 on September 2 at 0000Z (note that this is the afternoon/evening of September 1 in the US), because this time corresponds to 0900 September 2 in Tokyo Bay, the time and date that the papers were originally signed. Since Missouri's hull number is BB-63, the primary operating frequency will be 14.063 MHz CW. Depending on propagation, alternate frequencies will be 18.073 and 21.063 MHz. There may be combined SSB/CW operations on 14.263, 18.163, or 21.363 MHz. Operations will continue until approximately 0600Z depending on propagation. KH6BB will also be operating on September 3 and 4 from about 0000-0600Z (Friday September 2 and Saturday September 3 local time in the US), possibly earlier depending on propagation. There may be operations on September 2 and 3 around 1600-1800Z, again depending on propagation. Check the KH6BB web page event calendar at www.kh6bb.org for last minute details on times and frequencies.

SEPTEMBER 3-4 --- SHELBY Hamfest

SEPTEMBER 3-5 --- Bill Gremillion Memorial RC Special Event station K4NRC, Newnan, at the Power's Crossroads Country Fair & Art Festival. 28.370, 21.370, 14.260, 7.260 QSL BGMRC, P.O. Box 2327, Newnan, GA, 30264

SEPTEMBER 10 --- PRATER'S MILL tailgating Swapfest, off highway 2 in Dalton. Sponsored by the Dalton ARC, this one is FREE, and lots of fun. (but come EARLY!)

SEPTEMBER 10-12 --- ARRL VHF QSO party. See August QST, page 90, or www.arrl.org/contests/forms for more info.

SEPTEMBER 11-18 --- Special Event Station K6P, by the Anaheim Police ARC, to commemorate POW-MIA Recognition Day. 14.253, 18.150, 21.350, 28.495. QSL with SASE to MARK MCMULLEN, KM6HB, at P.O. Box 27271, Santa Ana, CA, 92799.

SEPTEMBER 16-17 --- "Get Your Feet Wet" CW contest. (WAIT! This could be JUST what you're looking for!) This is designed especially for people who've never gotten the nerve to do much in the way of CW operating, with a focus on sending slowly and clearly, and sending the exchange in proper order. (Heck! Maybe I'll even give this one a try...) Exchange: Callsign/N (for newcomers) or Callsign/E (for experienced), RST, Name, QTH, FISTS number or power level, and the last two digits of the year you were licensed. 2 points for working someone out of your category, and one for working someone from the same category. Multipliers: those stations who were licensed between 2000-2005. Stations may be worked once on each band, but multiplier counts only once. Logs and score summary go to NANCY KOTT, WZ8C, at P.O. Box 47, Hadley, MI 48440. See http://www.fists.org for more info.

SEPTEMBER 17 --- Paulding ARC's 15th annual Hamfest, 8AM until 4PM, at Paulding Meadows Park about 2 miles north of the Paulding County Courthouse on Highway 61. (Dallas, GA) Talk in will be on the 146.895+/77Hz tone and the 224.700 repeaters. VE testing at 1 PM.

SEPTEMBER 17 --- Amateur Radio Public Awareness Day and from 9AM EST to midnight, Emergency Power Operating Event

SEPTEMBER 17-19 --- QCWA QSO party. 1800Z Sept 17- 1800Z Sept 19

SEPTEMBER 25-26 --- Classic Exchange, from 1300Z September 25 until 0700 September 26. (AM & SSB) Where it's an advantage to rotate multiple rigs on the air, and the older, the better

SEPTEMBER 30- OCTOBER 1 --- Ten-Tec Hamfest, Sevierville, TN

SEPTEMBER 30- OCTOBER 1 --- Special event station W4G, operated by the MACON-BIBB EMA AR GROUP from the GA State Fair in Macon, in celebration of the fair's 150th anniversary.

OCTOBER 1 --- Saturday, October 1st, 2005, Harlem, GA - the annual Oliver Hardy Festival (OHF) held each October in Harlem, GA. To recognize and commemorate thelife, comedy work and festival event, the Columbia County Amateur Radio Club (CCARC) is hosting an on the air special event using call sign W4O (Oh for Oliver Hardy). The station will be on the air from 9 am to 5 pm EDT on or about the following frequencies - 7.260 Mhz, 14.260 Mhz, 21.260 Mhz +/- a few Khz for QRM. Two special guests will be joining our club's special event station to help dedicate our new club banner - Dennis Moriarty, K8AGB is a Stan Laurel look-a-like. He is joined by Dale Walter, an Oliver Hardy look-a-like. These fine gentlemen will participate in the special event station, briefly during the day. Photos of the banner dedication will be passed along to Susan AF4FO for publication in the GA Section News. Also a special event certificate is available to those stations that QSL and send along an SASE to, CCARC - OHF, PO Box, 800, Evans, GA 30809.

OCTOBER 1-2 --- SET

OCTOBER 2-3 --- Classic Exchange (CW)

OCTOBER 8 --- Augusta Hamfest--- Sponsored by the ARC of Augusta, and held at the Evans Middle School, 4318 Washington Road. 9AM. VE testing at 9AM. Talk-in 145.490(-)

OCTOBER 15 --- NW GA ARC's Al Brock Memorial Hamfest, in Rome. Located at the Rome Civic Center, Civic Center Hill. Talk-in 146.940(-) PL 88.5

OCTOBER 15-16 --- JOTA For more info, see www.arrl.org/FandES/ead/#scout 

NOVEMBER 5-6--- Alford Memorial ARC Hamfest, at the Gwinnett county fairground, Sugarloaf Parkway, in Lawrenceville. Just keeps getting better and better. Hope to see you there.

Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day.
Teach him to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day.

SILENT KEYS

CARL PLOTZ, WB9JSW

Sincere condolences to Carl's family and many friends. He will truly be missed.

Well, folks, that's about it for now. Until next time, this is AF4FO, signing clear. Take care of yourselves. And each other. And remember: The best vitamin for making friends is B-1. 73, Susan

73, Susan af4fo@arrl.org   (Send me your news and tech tips!!)
ARRL Georgia Section Manager

No trees were killed in the sending of this message. However,
a large number of electrons were terribly inconvenienced.

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