The Georgia Section ARRL Web Site

Georgia Section On My Mind

November, 2003

Greetings, fellow hams-ters. Hope you've all been enjoying this delicious weather and the beautiful display of color that nature is starting to provide for us this year.

Thanks to those of you who've already taken the time to participate in the online polling on the future of element one, the 5 WPM code test. That site closes at midnight Friday, so if you haven't voted yet, better hurry up! And take the time to browse around the site a little, while you're there, especially under the "Georgia News". There are some good pictures to go along with some of the stuff you'll be reading about in this month's newsletter.

Without further ado, let's plunge right into this month's tome.

Confucius Say: "Man who sit on tack get point."

OCTOBER HIGHLIGHTS

Augusta Hamfest--- October 11--- In spite of weather that was just a wee bit on the wet side, spirits weren't dampened at all for this Hamfest, sponsored by the fine folks of the ARC of Augusta. The inside area was pretty well full-up, and in a true "the show must go on" attitude, tailgaters managed to improvise, adapt, and overcome to show their wares, in spite of the rain. SANDY DONAHUE, W4RU, our Southeastern Vice Director, and I held down the ARRL booth, and even managed to sign up some new members, in spite of the absence of Director FRANK BUTLER, W4RH, our number one "salesman". As always, there was a large contingency of Army MARS members in attendance, and we held a meeting that was very worthwhile and constructive. This is always an enjoyable Hamfest, because of the opportunity it gives us to see a bunch of hams that we don't see at other fests, like our buddy "SPARKY" MENGES, KF4NXL. A fun outing. Looking forward to coming back again next year.

Al Brock Memorial Hamfest--- October 18--- This was the first official Al Brock Memorial Hamfest, in honor of AL BROCK, KF4NYI, the club's beloved president, who became an SK on the eve of last year's Hamfest, in the midst of setting up for the Hamfest. Club members could think of no more appropriate a tribute than to name the Hamfest he loved so much after him, in appreciation for all he'd meant to the club as an enthusiastic leader, and all he meant to those who knew him as a caring and loving friend. His memory definitely lived on in the warmth and friendliness of this year's event, especially through that special lady of his, VIRGINIA BROCK, KF4NYH. She has the most unbelievable way of brightening a whole room with her voice, her laughter, her very presence. A truly remarkable woman. And talking about a remarkable woman, it was a real pleasure to share a booth with EDNA ANTHONY, KF4TZZ, again. Glad she was feeling well enough to be out and about and helping to spread the word about Army MARS. This was another enjoyable event, even if my better half, MIKE SWIDERSKI, K4HBI, was once again accused of having a shady past in the used car business. (But, hey! His tactics did manage to draw a crowd.... and he did manage to sell some more stuff for BILL CLONINGER, W4NX! That's what counts!!)

The easiest way to find something that's lost around the house is to buy a replacement.

CLUB NEWS

ALFORD MEMORIAL ARC--- This club had a fantastic picnic on October 4th, blessed with perfect weather at an idyllic location, thanks to club member GEORGE COLLETTI, KE4SFO, who graciously had the whole gang over to enjoy his recreational facilities for the outing. Great food and great company, enhanced by a pond for fishing, canoeing and paddle-boating. Even skeet shooting. There weren't too many perfect shots among the crowd, but like my Mike said, none of us had a good recipe for skeet, anyhow. A terrific time. And congratulations to the slate of officers who were elected to serve this fine club in the coming year: President- GENE BLACKBURN, N4UJ; VP- ROBERT TYLER, KF4VBR; Secretary- KARL PHILLIPS, K4GZZ; and Treasurer- LES SCOFIELD, W4SCO. Best wishes for another terrific year leading the club.

ATHENS ARC--- Club members participated in a drill on October 8th that reinforced their traffic handling skills. After splitting into teams, comprised of a base station, relay stations, and a mobile station, the base station operators were tasked with sending questions to the mobile stations through the relays, and then the mobile stations had to gather the data to respond back to base through the relays, all of which was done on various simplex frequencies. Each participant had the opportunity to write, transmit, and copy formal traffic. A good drill for all involved. After lots of preparations, club members put together a terrific ham shack/contest station in time for the CQ Worldwide DX contest, in which they ran a multi-operator, single transmitter station for the entire 48 hours, using callsign KD4QHB. What a great way to build team spirit, develop skills, and have a good time.

CHEROKEE CAPITAL ARS--- Club members achieved a long-time goal, due in part to the hard work and efforts of club member RANDY POWELL, KC4AQS, and the end result is a new 440 repeater in the Calhoun area, at 443.675, with a 100 PL tone. Additional funds for this project are being raised through the sale of raffle tickets for a $500 Wal-Mart gift certificate. The drawing won't be until November 20, so get in touch with one of the club members if you'd like a shot at this terrific prize that we could all put to good use.

DALTON ARC--- These fine folks will be handling communications for the Veterans Day parade on November 8th.

GWINNETT ARS--- The average age at the October club meeting was dropped quite a bit, because some of the terrific members of Venture Crew 73 were in attendance to give their annual report on their activities of the past year. This is a Scout group, similar to the Explorers, for all youth from 14 to 21, that engages in high adventure activities, and with a special interest in amateur radio. GARS has sponsored the Crew for about five years now, and there simply aren't enough good things to say about these outstanding young men and women, as well as for all of the adult volunteers who've worked with them. If these kids are representative of our future leaders, we'll be in very good hands. A farther affirmation of this club's interest in recruiting and supporting our young people was evidenced by a recent trip to Berkeley Lake Elementary School as an active participant in that school's Science Night. Club members and Gwinnett ARES members had set-ups on such things as CW, ARES, packet radio, an HF station, Echolink, Youth in Amateur Radio, ARRL, and my hubby's fun laser pointer activity. (NEVER fails to WOW 'em!) A reported 747 people passed through to ooh! and aah! and ask questions. It was a huge success, and kudos to all of the folks who took time out of their busy schedules to plant the seeds of interest in the minds of all of those youngsters and their parents.

KENNEHOOCHEE ARC--- At the October meeting, JAMIE MARCHALK, KG4FJK, presented a program on the ins and outs of APRS, and club members generously voted to donate $200 to the ARRL's BPL fund. Many thanks to this club for supporting the League in the fight against the biggest threat to our hobby today. At next month's meeting, Repeater Chairman MIKE JENKINS, K4MNJ, and other members of his committee, will de-mystify the workings of the club's stellar repeater system.

NORTH GA ARC--- Club members volunteered their communications skills again this year for the grueling Six Gap Century Bike Ride, in which the riders cross six of the highest gaps in the North GA mountains. Operators provided communications from the rest stops, for the start and finish lines, for net control, and for the mobile units that moved along the course with the riders. But you know what they say about "all work and no play". No fear. There was plenty of time for rest and relaxation at the club picnic, held at Hancock Park in Dahlonega, where members were able to feast on BBQ and fried turkey, while passing around the baloney. (AKA "swapping lies")

QCWA CHAPTER 100--- This august Augusta group's October dinner meeting was treated to a travelogue by president Andy Anderson, K4PSW, on his recent trip to Natchez, Mississippi, and to the D Day museum in New Orleans. Their next meeting will be in December, and as they have in the past, members will be bringing donations at that time for a local children's shelter. (The QCWA, Quarter Century Wireless Association, is for hams who were first licensed at least 25 years ago. You don't have to have been continuously licensed since that time, as long as you received that first license at least 25 years ago, and are currently licensed now. This is an outstanding group, whose main purpose is fellowship. Besides the terrific chapter in Augusta, there is another in the Atlanta area, and I've heard rumors of interest in the birthing of another chapter in South Georgia.)

STATESBORO ARS--- As planned, members spent every evening at the Kiwanis Ogechee Fair demonstrating the joys of amateur radio to all of the fairgoers. Using a G5RV up 40 feet on a pushup pole in the center and stretched out to adjacent structures, club members were able to make numerous contacts, in between answering questions and showing off their equipment. A great example of a way to get positive public exposure, and have a lot of fun in the process. Plans are afoot to have a program at an upcoming meeting on hazmats, to help members be prepared, should they be required to provide communications in a situation involving hazardous materials.

THOMASVILLE ARC--- I thought that it was amazing that club president MIKE BROWN, KE4FGF, has led this club for close to a decade. But now I've read that club treasurer "BILLY JOE", W4ZDP, has decided to step down after having served the club as treasurer since the club's inception, some FORTY-EIGHT years ago! Wow. That's gotta be a record. Congratulations to this fine gentleman for all of those years of service. Plans are being finalized for the club's annual fish fry meeting coming up on November 8th at the Pavo Civic Club.

I've seen and heard snippets of information on how various groups fared in the Field Day scoring from this year, but only one person notified me directly to crow a little about his club's performance. BILL RONAY, KM4LS, is justifiably proud of the OCONEE COUNTY ARS, who came in number 2 in the Southeast, running the new F class, and number 21 overall in the Southeast. He says they were surprised, because their intent was to have fun, which they did, but their competitive juices were obviously flowing, too. This crew of 15 operators kept up a steady flow of CW contacts the entire 24 hours, and the phone operators had a "take no prisoner" attitude that had them "stalking even the weakest signal trying to make contact." However, Bill gave top credit to the food crew, who kept the galley open and tended to those hunger pangs around the clock. Like I told Bill, while Field Day isn't technically a "contest", it's nice to end up near the top of the pile when the dust settles. Congratulations to the members of the Oconee Club for their perseverance in the face of lousy propagation to end up near that top of the pile.

Included in the Field Day results from Bill Ronay were some numbers showing a few other GA groups who broke into the top 20 overall in the Southeast. That eclectic group of enthusiasts who gathered together in Paulding county, running N4N, came in number four. The Buckhead Contest Club, W4TE, placed seventh; the Columbus ARC, N4WV, came in ninth, and Paulding ARC, W4TIY, came in number eighteen. Good job, all of you. (And congratulations to ALL of you who participated in this year's Field Day. Each year's participation makes us better prepared as operators, often under somewhat adverse conditions.)

The ARRL seeks opinions on Club Gazette (Oct 10, 2003) -- Attention clubs and ARRL affiliated club coordinators! ARRL Field and Educational Services (F&ES) is hoping to add a Club Gazette feature to its Club Companion pages http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/club/. The Gazette would feature the best stories, items and information gleaned from the hundreds of club newsletters that hardworking volunteers publish each month. Many clubs are justifiably proud of their unique activities and active members, and being able to share their successes and accomplishments may help other clubs to grow and prosper. Field &Educational Services has put together a survey to help nail down the most useful features of the Gazette. Questions were derived from items we've found in hundreds of club newsletters. We'd like to know what you'd like to see. To participate, click on the Club Gazette Survey http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2003/10/10/4/gazette-survey.html and follow the instructions. We appreciate your participation!

"Service is never convenient. Not being able to do everything should never be a reason to do nothing."
RICH ARMSTRONG, WM9X

DX NEWS

Two members of the SE DX Club will be part of another exciting DXpedition coming up in January of next year. You'd think that these guys would want to leave the dreary chill of Atlanta's winter to head to some tropical clime, wouldn't you? Well, where they're headed, it will technically be summer, but when you're talking the Antarctic region, frostbite will be more of a concern than sunburn. BOB ALLPHIN, K4UEE, and WES LAMBOLEY, W3WL, will be part of the team going to 3YØ land, the Southernmost DXCC entity in the world, Peter I Island, which is number seven on the Worldwide Most Wanted List. This will be only the third DXpedition ever undertaken for this forbidding, glacier-filled part of the world.

As you can maybe imagine, an endeavor of this sort costs a LOT of money. Estimates are in the $400,000 range, and what doesn't come to the team in the way of donations has to be dug out of their own pockets. So, those of you who are looking forward to making contact with them and sticking that new feather in your DX cap, and for those of you just want to support their adventures, your donations could really help.

Checks from individuals for $250 or more should be made payable to the Northern DX Foundation. All other checks should be made payable to Bob Allphin, and ALL checks should be mailed to Wes Lamboley, at 690 Hunter Hill Way, Roswell, GA, 30075. While sitting in your cozy shack next January, listening to these guys operating from the bottom of the world, wouldn't it feel good to feel like you're a small "part" of it? Any donations at all from individuals or clubs will be welcomed and much appreciated.

Confucius Say: "He who live in glass house should dress in basement."

NEW CONTESTING RULE?

MATT LEE, WB6BWZ, sent this along, indicating that some changes may be in store for future contests, and seeks our help to make it happen.

Subject: [SECC] IARU NEWS - YOUR HELP IS NEEDED!

The IARU Administrative Council took the following action (this is taken from the news release issued following the meeting):

"12. The Council requested that the ARRL, as the contest organizer, have its Contest Advisory Committee consider the merits of proposals for changes in the rules of the IARU HF World Championship."

David Sumner, K1ZZ, has confirmed that "a study by the ARRL Contest Advisory Committee has been commissioned as to whether, and if so, how, low-power and QRP categories should be added to the IARU HF World Championship. If the study concludes that rules changes should be made, the CAC has been asked to include recommendations for doing so in a way that does not increase the net cost of administration of the contest."

Interested parties may comment to their division CAC representatives whose contact information is listed at http://www.arrl.org/contests/cac.html.

Please contact your CAC representative(s) to express your support for these favorable changes. 

Here are some reasons these changes will prove to be favorable:

1. Adding additional categories will increase participation.

2. Adding additional categories, will mean the LP and QRP operators who
   usually did a "part-time", semi-serious operation, will devote more time
   to seriously compete with other LP or QRP stations.  More stations will
   be on the air longer.

Thank you, in advance, for contacting your CAC representative about this important issue.

If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it?

ARES NEWS

SET--- From my narrow viewpoint, operating with the Gwinnett ARES, this year's SET, held on October 4th, was a big success. I haven't gotten any official word on the number of counties participating this year, or how they fared, but it sounded like things were operating smoothly on HF and also on the linked repeater system from GEMA. A great big THANKS to STEVE REYNOLDS, W4CNG, for the work he put into planning this year's exercise, and to BOB BUTLER, W4RBB, mastermind of the "Four Corners Drill", which he developed for training for Cobb county ARES, and which was successfully taken state-wide by Steve for the SET. And a great big "Thank you" to all of you who participated.

>From Gwinnett county, I re-learned a lesson in the SET that I never should have forgotten in the first place, shame on me. I was serving as alternate net control station. The NCS left the net early on in the drill and I took over until he returned to the net three minutes later. No problem. He turned the net over to me again shortly thereafter, and things were going swimmingly until we got a phone call from CARL PLOTZ, WB9JSW, who informed my better half that the NCS.... (uh-oh! That was me!)... was to go off the air as part of the drill. (Let me tell you, Mike seemed to take entirely too much pleasure in shutting me off mid-sentence!) It was immediately clear to me that I had failed to name an alternate net control. Lesson learned. Or should I say re-learned.

CHEROKEE County ARES members participated in the SET, and worked hand-in-hand with members of PICKENS county ARES, using VHF, UHF, HF, APRS, and packet, and conducting part of their work at the annual "Marble Fest" in downtown Jasper. The "Marble Fest" drew quite a large crowd, providing these fine folks the opportunity to demonstrate amateur radio capabilities to the public, while participating in the drill. While everyone participating in the SET had a great time, Cherokee County ARES was honored by a statement from Cherokee EMA Director, J. ROBBY WESTBROOK, that subsequently was posted on the County's website, http://www.cherokeega-ema.org/. The following article was posted:

LOCAL AMATEUR EMERGENCY RADIO SERVICE TAKE PART IN NATIONWIDE DRILL
by: Lisa Musgrove
The Cherokee County Amateur Emergency Radio Service is participating in the ARRL Simulated Emergency Radio Test (SET) today from the Emergency Operations Center in Canton, Georgia. This is a nationwide exercise in emergency communications, administered by ARRL Emergency Coordinators and Net Managers. Both The Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) and the National Traffic System (NTS) are involved. The (SET) weekend gives communicators the opportunity to focus on the emergency communications capability within their community while interacting with NTS net. (SET) weekend is held in October of each year. The purpose of (SET) is to:

Determine the strengths and weaknesses of the Amateur Emergency Radio Service.

Provide a public demonstration to served agencies such as Red Cross, Local Emergency managers, and through the news media, the value to the public that Amateur Emergency Radio Service provides on a daily basis.

And, to help amateurs gain experience in communications using standard procedures and a variety of modes under simulated emergency conditions.

"The Cherokee County Amateur Emergency Radio Service provides a valuable service to our agency and the citizens of Cherokee County" said Robby Westbrook, Director of the Cherokee County Office of Emergency Management. Westbrook went on to say, "Over 100 volunteers make up this very important part of the emergency management program in Cherokee County providing communications in times of emergency and disaster as well as providing valuable weather information so that the public can be warned of life threatening situations".

This Emergency Radio Test is being conducted in the Cherokee County Emergency Operations Center while at the same time; local emergency managers are coordinating the PGA event.

Congratulations! To members of Cherokee ARES for this fine recognition from your EMA director.

COBB--- After taking an all-day class, eighteen members were trained and certified by the Red Cross in Basic First Aid and in the proper use of a defibrillator, greatly magnifying their usefulness in the event of an emergency. Members are continuing to evaluate various digital modes and software with the goal of establishing a local digital network to most efficiently handle tactical, and health and welfare traffic.

COWETA--- Coweta ARES members, along with members of the Bill Gremillion ARC, provided communications for the Lewis Grizzard and Catfish Memorial Bike Ride on October 5th. The event drew nearly 200 bicyclists, and amateur radio was used to provide communications between the rest stops, the event organizers, and the support vehicle. APRS proved to be a valuable asset in successfully tracking the support vehicle. EC SAM SMITH, KD4SHK, received a nice letter of appreciation from Coweta county's administrative assistant BRENDA WASHINGTON, in which she said, "Coordinating a ride of this size would not be possible without proper communications. The Amateur Radio Emergency Services played an essential role in providing a safe ride for everyone."

>From FELTON FLOYD, AF4DN, DEC for the Northwest district, comes this information on another self-paced course offered by GEMA, entitled "Effective Communications". It provide instructions on

• Basic communications skills

• How to communicate in an emergency

• How to identify community-specific communications issues

• Using technology as a communications tool

• Effective oral communications

• How to prepare an oral presentation

This course is IS-242 and can be found at http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/is242.asp

Have you noticed it? There seems to be renewed interest in packet radio these days, particularly among ARES members. From Gwinnett EC's STAN EDWARDS, WA4DYD, who's been working to develop a packet program specifically geared for ARES, to the exploratory work done by members of Cobb ARES, to the new nodes springing up here and there around the state. For example:

• Gwinnettt ARES: at the Gwinnett Medical Center, on 145.03, alias LVL

• Down Jekyll Island way, GARY HARLEY, KD4NUD, has been working and developing a packet node and BBS on 145.070. identified as JEKYIS. CLARK MANOR, KG4JZU, says that it's been up and running quite a bit lately, and has sparked interest in local hams.

• GREG THOMPSON, KC7GNM, has a packet gateway up and running on Robins AFB on VHF and HF, using 145.770.

• And ERNIE ZINGLEMAN, KS4Q, has a SEDAN node KS4Q-7, alias CDX, up on Sawnee Mountain in Forsyth county.

All of these new nodes are up and running with the intent of serving the community, particularly in the event of emergency, when digital modes can often be far superior to other modes of communications.

Talking about "superior modes of communications", it seems that APRS is starting to prove itself in a big way. JOHN KRAUS, KC4ZGQ, our DEC for digital communications, recently shared the following message on a number of ARES reflectors about how APRS was used in the aftermath of Hurricane Isabel. The writer of this piece, ERIC CHRISTENSEN, KF4OTN, of North Carolina, gave me permission to share it with all of you. As John said, "Maps are only a small part of what APRS can provide to Emergency Operations Center Staff."

The Washington County EOC activated approx 48 hours prior to the storm making landfall. Our Emergency Response SOGs stated that once the winds hit 50 mph fire, EMS, and law enforcement would not be responding to calls. Because we only have access to a weather station at the extreme western side of the county, we used APRS to monitor a weather station just east of our county (KB4TOH-11... Thanks Mike and Dave).  When it was determined that the winds were over the limit, we stopped all emergency responses until speeds subsided to a safe speed.

The FireNet data helped a lot as well. Besides providing more weather stations to confirm wind speed and direction, rainfall from these stations helped determine flooding. Curt was able to modify his program that parses the River gauging stations so that we would get updates every 5 minutes.  This kept me inside the office instead of walking out to the Roanoke River to check the manual gauge we have...  (Can someone please petition to put a shiny new river gauge back there so I don't have to go out there at all?!?)

I'm looking at putting together some small trackers that can be thrown in emergency vehicles that are going out during the storm so we can determine their location... exactly.  At one point, we had three people trapped out in the storm that couldn't get back due to trees blocking the way and we couldn't determine exactly where they were to be able to get them out...They now vow to never go out in another storm...  :)

We did send some test messages to the Dare Co EOC that were asked but never responded to...  They were busy.  But we did have comms with them and other users in the area so that was really good.  Hope this makes APRS shine!  It definitely worked for us!

73s,
Eric KF4OTN

The ARES FORUM at the Lawrenceville Hamfest will be at 11 AM. Among other things, Gwinnett EC STAN EDWARDS, WA4DYD, will be demonstrating his packet program, which he's designed specifically for use by ARES.

ROBERT BURTON, KD4YDC, DEC for the NWS at Peachtree City, WX4PTC, has announced that their web pages have relocated. The WX4PTC page is now at http://www.georgiaskywarn.com/wx4ptc and the Georgia Skywarn page is at http://www.georgiaskywarn.com You can also find the Georgia Skywarn frequencies on this page.

Experience is the worst teacher when it gives the test before presenting the lesson.

ARES REPORT FROM MIKE BOATRIGHT, KO4WX

 1 Jurisdictions Reporting 26
 2 Total # of ARES Members 1093
 3 Change since last month 6
 4 Total Net Sessions 200
 5 Number of drills, tests and training sessions this month 95
 6 Man hours 1256
 7 Number of public service events this month 16
 8 Man hours 108
 9 Number of emergency operations this month 4
 10 Man hours 64
 11 Total number of ARES operations this month 152
 12 Man hours 1289.25

NOTE: Up to 26 reports this month!! Good job!! And this month's report is representative of 1093 members, as compared to 705 last month.

A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

NET REPORT FROM JIM HANNA, AF4NS, STM

NET ACTIVITY:

NOTE: Now that our clocks have rolled back an hour, the weekly ARES net is held at 5PM local, and the GA SSB Net will be at 6:30PM daily.

PUBLIC SERVICE HONOR ROLL:

STATION ACTIVITY REPORTS:

Traffic handled (QTC):

"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

SECTION NOTABLES

CONGRATULATIONS to BECKY ROBERTS, KF4SLZ, who will be performing her doctoral recital for her Doctor of Musical Arts at the University of Georgia on November 3rd at 8PM. This wonderful bassist will be playing selections by Telemann, Gliere, Bottesini, Villa-Lobos, and Berio. Looking forward to it.

JAMES BAIR, W4PFC, is a member of the Albany ARC and a retired Marine, who served proudly from 1962 until 1987, including two tours of duty in Vietnam. His last assignment was in Quantico, Virginia, where he was on the All Marine Corps Shooting Team. His W4PFC callsign originally belonged to the Marine Barracks at Quantico, from the early 1930's until recently. James is currently compiling a history of that station and the Marine operators who staffed it. This proud Marine (once a Marine, always, a Marine) feels privileged to have been granted this special callsign, the first individual to ever have it, and he humbly carries on this little piece of Marine history. He has two QSL cards that were sent out from the Barracks 55+ years ago, and would be appreciative if any of you who might happen to have one of their cards would be so kind as to share a copy of it with him. On his bio on QRZ, he signs off by saying, "Not as lean, not as mean, but still a Marine." (told ya!) Isn't that a great story? That's a vanity callsign with real meaning.

BILL BARR, N4NX, is one of Georgia's two DXCC card checkers, and he's often been spotted diligently hunched over a stack of cards at numerous hamfests around the metro Atlanta area. Now, Bill has recently been appointed as an HF awards manager for the SE DX Club, too, giving him the added responsibility for validating WAS and 5-Band WAS. Congratulations, Bill, and thanks for taking on this added responsibility. The work you do is a tremendous service to your fellow hams.

JAMES OLSON, W4JO, is the only one from Georgia who's filed a report with the ARRL on his experiences with JOTA this year, and his dedication deserves our special recognition. In this, his third year of doing this as a single operator, he worked with 48 Boy Scouts, 1 Girl Scout, and 33 visitors at a Boy Scout camp at Kennesaw Mountain Battlefield Park. He used an FT897, a 12 volt marine battery, and a Hex-Pac portable beam, and had maps, Morse code practice sets, and phonetic alphabetic training set up under a canopy. Contacts were made with many other stations, both US and DX, and he said that one highlight was a one-hour QSO with the Girl Scouts & Guides at GX0SCR on 15 Meters. He concluded his report by saying, "If only JOTA was twice a year!" You've gotta love that kind of spirit. And it just goes to show you what one ham can do.

And in that same vein, regarding what one ham can do: those letters I've been bugging you to write, on BPL, on the Spectrum Protection Act, and other important matters? Well, sometimes all it may take is just that one letter from one person to make a difference. This is from our friend from down Savannah way, who took the time to write about BPL. PHIL NEIDLINGER, KA4KOE, wrote:

Dear friends and colleagues with the League, GA Section, and local hams:

Letters to Congress do get read occasionally. Here is the text of Jack Kingston's (R-GA, House) letter to me I received today in response to a letter I sent a couple weeks ago:
 
 "Dear Mr. Neidlinger:
 
Thank you for contacting my office regarding your concern with a FCC Notice of Inquiry. I regret to learn of this matter. I certainly want to make sure that your concerns are reviewed. In this regard, I am pleased to contact the appropriate officials at the FCC. Just as soon as I have received a response, I will be back in touch with you again.
 
Sincerely,

Jack Kingston
 Member of Congress"
 
If you haven't already written your senators and representatives for your state, I urge you to do so NOW if you value our precious HF spectrum.
I have yet to hear from our senators, Zell Miller and Saxby Chamblis.
 
Sincerely,
 
Philip Neidlinger, KA4KOE

PAUL GARGIULLO, KI4CBT, has a high school daughter in the Girl Scouts, Troop 4715 out of Dekalb county, and he wanted help introducing her, and the other girls in her troop, to the fun and excitement of amateur radio. So, on Saturday, October 25, DOUG FOOS, KT4XF, DAVID TOMASCHIK, KF4MDV, FRED PETERS, N3FP, and BRIAN TOMASCHIK, KG4JEL, met with Paul and the girls at the STARS station, W4WOW, at SciTrek, and showed them a wonderful time. These terrific guys took the time to explain amateur radio, and the equipment there at the station, let them listen to some DX stations on the CQ Worldwide contest, and then let them call CQ and make their own contacts on 17 Meters. One of their contacts was with an operator on the Battleship New Jersey, who took the time to tell them about the ship and its history, and told them that some Girl Scouts had been onboard the week before for the JOTA event. Fred gave the girls a demonstration of making CW contacts, and the girls were fascinated. Paul said the girls chattered about the experience all the way home, and were most impressed with CW. (How about that?) So, kudos to all of these guys who took the time out of a busy Saturday to spend with some impressionable young ladies. And, believe me, the impression that you made was TERRIFIC. Thank you.

You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.

PIGLETS (AKA YOUNG HAMS)

Don't forget, all of you guys and gals who are under 16 years of age, you can get into the Lawrenceville Hamfest, November 1-2, for FREE. This is a Hamfest that has lots of activities scheduled with YOU in mind. A lounge will be set up for young people, where you can help run a special event station, and where you can all enjoy lunch together at eleven AM. (you can place an order for a tasty $4 box lunch before 9:30 AM, or provide your own) There will even be a special Youth Forum there, led by ANDREA HARTLAGE, KG4IUM, at noon. And Scouts, there will be a class held from 2 until 5 PM, so you can earn your Radio Merit Badge, too, with HF stations set up just so you can make the necessary contacts to complete the requirements for that badge. All Scouts (and Scouts leaders) in uniform also get FREE admission. And at 1PM, MARK SPENCER, WA8SME, the ARRL's head of the Big Project, will be addressing an ARRL forum about this project, which is getting amateur radio into our schools all across the country. Check out the www.totr-radio.org website for more details on this kid-friendly Hamfest.

At the end of September, a new interactive video game designed to give teenagers some driving lessons debuted on the Internet. While it won't actually teach you to drive, it'll reinforce some important lessons that every driver should know, is entertaining, and requires quick reflexes. Check it out at http://www.roadreadyteens.org This site is FREE for teens and their parents. The game itself is dubbed StreetWise, and that's certainly what we want all of you to be, so you can be safe out there on the roads, and prepared.

HEADS UP!!! It's time to apply for these scholarships NOW!!! ARRL Foundation Scholarships available for application starting October 1: The window opens October 1 to apply for ARRL Foundation scholarships for the 2004-2005 academic year. The full listing of available scholarships is available on the ARRL Foundation Scholarship Programs Web page http://www.arrl.org/arrlf/scholgen.html. Use one application to apply for the main pool of scholarships. Applicants must fill out a separate application to apply for The William R. Goldfarb Memorial Scholarship http://www.arrl.org/arrlf/goldfarb.html. The application, transcript, Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and Student Aid Report (SAR) package must be received at ARRL Headquarters by February 1, 2004.

The sole purpose of a child's middle name is so he can tell when he's in trouble.

TECH TIPS

Here's another helpful piece (minus the references to an accompanying drawing, which obviously, I can't include here) from that prolific writer CHUCK TEETERS, W4MEW, as written in the ARC of Augusta newsletter. He's entitled it "Tall Pines and VHF Antennas"

"Club interest in getting 2 meter antennas up high by using that big pine tree in the back yard is great. The higher the antenna is, the greater the VHF range. The loss of a repeater during emergencies is not a problem if fixed home stations have good coverage. However, there are two problems. First, pulling a VHF antenna up to the top of the tree by rope requires an antenna with no protuberances, hence no radials or tuning stubs, and second, a transmission line possibly over 100' long results in very high loss, transmitting and receiving.

These problems can be avoided by constructing the antenna and feed line from 300 ohm TV ribbon line. This cost is far less than coax and commercial antennas. By housing the antennas in 3/4" PVC, installation is easy and cheap. The simplest ribbon antenna is a half wave vertical dipole fed with quarter wave matching section, commonly called a J pole.

The hoisting rope is attached below the antenna top end so it can, hopefully, be pulled above he tree top, but well above the center of gravity, so the antenna will remain vertical while being hoisted. The lightweight rope from the bottom of the PVC is used to help keep the antenna vertical while it is going up, and is then wrapped around the tree by walking around it to keep the bottom tight to the tree. The feed line should be twisted about 3 to 5 turns per foot and supported by stand off insulators, where possible.

The 300 ohm ribbon is connected to your radio by using a coax balun. This lowers the impedance and changes the line from balanced to unbalanced to work with your radio."

Some more good sites from that Internet surfer and ham guru HOWIE GOULD, W9HG:

+Lots of Ramsey kits, for beginners, as well as the more experienced builder to put that soldering gun to some good (and fun) use: http://www.ramseyelectronics.com/hk/default/asp?page=Amateur%20Radio%20Gear 

+Looking to rev up your speed on CW? Flex those fingers and get ready to go at  http://www.darc.de/referate/dx/fedtrg.htm 

+Wonder what other hams might live right around the corner from you? Here, you can enter your zip code and find out: http://www.wm7d.net/ 

+And, in Howie's own words: "If you have a hankering to read some interesting facts about the history of If you have time this weekend, go to this URL which is the site of the Radio Club Of America and visit the History part.

This is by far one of the most oldest and interesting clubs being the first Amateur Radio Society club in America starting in the year 1907 as the Junior Aero Club, and in 1909 as The Junior Wireless Club Limited, and finally into the Radio Club Of America in 1910.

Some of the members were Edwin Armstrong, David Sarnoff, Lewis Hazeltine, John Hogan, Paul Godley and the last Allen B. Dumont who was the father of the picture tube as we know it today and all the others mentioned were top notch experimenters and famous for their Radio circuits and inventions especially Armstrong.

A you tour the history of the club you will go through the years with them and suddenly realize how important these pioneers were to be able to fight the politics in those days against experimenters of Radio and how fragile it was in the beginning.

You will see pictures of ancient Radio equipment, and read tales about the early transmissions, and you will wonder how it ever worked and how much room it required, and you will wind up in 1933 with the latest technology then, and you will then realize how Amateur Radio started and grew and how we became part of it. If you ever wondered how it all got started you will be amazed after you look back into time at this site."

 Check it out at http://www.radio-club-of-america.org/index.htm

And if you're looking for a site that promises to offer real-time shortwave propagation predictions, this one, sponsored by SERGE STROOBANDT, ON4BAA, may just fill the bill: http://www.salsawaves.com/propagation

While at the Shelby Hamfest this year, we picked up a flyer on a radio museum that's located in Ashville, NC. Maybe you did, too. Just recently, I received an email from one of the hams connected with that museum, pointing me to a website where I could see more about this relatively new museum. There is a brief article on the Southern Appalachian Radio Museum at www.amfone.net and you can actually take a look at some of the terrific gear that's on display at http://www.saradiomuseum.org As of now, the museum is only open on Wednesdays, but this sure does look like a place that I'd like to visit. How about you?

Here's a site just for fun: http://www.lastres.com/ajhuddle/hamband.html Turn up your sound and prepare to hear some songs, all with a common theme: amateur radio

You only need two tools: WD-40 and duct tape. If it doesn't move and should, use WD040. If it moves and shouldn't, use the tape.

UPCOMING EVENTS

November 1-2--- Stone Mountain Hamfest, sponsored by the Alford Memorial ARC, AKA the "Lawrenceville Hamfest". WHATEVER you call it, this is one Hamfest you won't want to miss! Held at the Gwinnett county fairgrounds on Sugarloaf Parkway in Lawrenceville, this year's Hamfest promises to be even bigger and better than ever, with a huge tailgate area, as well as lots of indoor flea market and commercial sites. Lots of forums, and lots of activities geared for our youth, including a class and radios set up for Scouts to earn their Radio Merit Badge. VE sessions both days. For more info, see http://www.totr-radio.org

November Sweepstakes--- CW: 2100Z November 1- 0300Z November 3; PHONE: 2100Z November 15- 0300Z November 17

November 8--- Montgomery, AL Hamfest. There's a big interservice MARS meeting planned for this fest that should be very interesting.

November 8--- Myrtle Beach, SC Hamfest. The beach is hard to beat at any time of the year, but throw in a Hamfest? Doesn't get much better than that.

November 8--- Thomasville ARC annual fish fry and club meeting, to be held at the Pavo Civic Club. That's where Mike and I will be, with bells on. (or is that "bibs"...)

November 11--- VETERANS DAY  Those of us who never served owe a debt of gratitude and appreciation to all of you who did. Thank you. You guys and gals are the ones who have paid the highest dues. "To Those who died, honor and eternal rest; to those still in bondage, remembrance and hope; to those who returned, gratitude and peace." (From a Vietnam Memorial in Illinois)

November 27--- THANKSGIVING Wishing you all a day stuffed with blessings

December 6--- 5th annual Skywarn Recognition Day  From 000Z to 2400Z, hams will be operating from National Weather Service offices all over the country. For more info, see http://hamradio.noaa.gov 

December 6-7--- Palmetto, FL Hamfest (Tampa) Looks like the last shot at a Hamfest before the end of the year

SILENT KEYS

MIKE BRANCA, W3IRZ
ROY HILLIS, N4VSN

Sincere condolences to the families and friends of both of these fine men. They'll both be missed.

"Man must not allow the clock and the calendar to blind him to the fact that each moment of his life
is a miracle and a mystery."
H.G. WELLES

In honor of our veterans, I'll run the following piece again, for those of you who may have missed it in the April 2002 newsletter. You guys are the backbone of our country. Of all the things that I've included in these newsletters, interestingly enough, this one piece generated the most comments, with lots of you proudly claiming to be........ one of the

"GEEZERS"

"Geezers" (slang for an old man) are easy to spot at sporting events.   During the playing of the national anthem, Old Geezers hold their caps over their hearts and sing without embarrassment.  They know the words,  and believe in them.  Old Geezers remember World War I,  the Depression,  WWII,  Pearl Harbor, Guadalcanal,  Normandy,  and Hitler.  They remember the Atomic Age,  the Korean War,  the Cold War,  the Jet Age,  and the moon landing,  not to mention Vietnam.  If you bump into an Old Geezer on the sidewalk,  he will apologize.  If you pass an Old Geezer on the street,  he will nod or tip his hat to a lady.  Old Geezers trust strangers and are courtly to women.  Old Geezers hold the door for the next person and always, when walking,  make certain the lady is on the inside for protection.  Old Geezers get embarrassed if someone curses in front of women and children,  and they don't like filth in TV or in movies.  Old Geezers have moral courage.  They seldom brag,  unless it's about their grandchildren.  It's the Old Geezers who know our great country is protected,  not by politicians or police,  but by the young men and women in the military serving their country.  This country needs Old Geezers with their decent values.  We need them now more than ever.  Thank God for Old Geezers.

Well, that's about it for now, folks. I truly appreciate all of your comments and input, and kind words. Until next time, this is AF4FO, signing clear. Take care of yourselves. And each other.  Happy Thanksgiving.

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