Here is the final breakdown of SARC’s Field Day 2021 log submission, showing the modes, bands and additional bonus points accrued during Field Day 2021.
We ended up with 434 CW contacts, 31 GOTA contacts, and 357 Phone contacts!
Here’s the the initial report.
Thanks go to Danny KD9HIL, Rob N9MVO, Bob W9DXR and Matt AC9IG, together with help from Paul N1SFE at the ARRL, for submitting the logs…
…and of course to everyone else that contributed to the weekend… setup/teardown volunteers, food prep, and operators.
73, Mike K9KMV
I know that many of you have already used, tested, and successfully sent/received emails via Winlink, but for me it is a relatively recent addition to the capabilities at my station.
I first set Winlink up in March 2021, but other than sending a couple of emails to make sure it worked, I did not find much use for it other than having the knowledge that it would be available if needed.
A fellow club member, Tim KD9LAI, recently mentioned to me that there is a weekly ‘Winlink Wednesday’ net that is run by KW6GB in Virginia. The purpose of this net is for amateur radio operators to get regular practice using Winlink email so that if it is needed for an emergency, your skills are already tuned and ready for use.
So, with that information, I went to the Winlink Wednesday website and followed the net check -in instructions.
To illustrate the importance of practice, I had forgotten one of the key steps in setting up my software/radio connection, and it took me some time to figure out what I was doing wrong (I needed my 7300 to be in USB-D mode). If this had been a real emergency situation, I would have lost valuable time and may even have given up. Now, I have learnt from that experience and know what to do to make it work first time.
I have checked in to this net 3 times now, and I am glad that I now have a reason to fire up the Winlink Express software on a more regular basis. I am now familiar with the setup requirements and can get emails out in a timely manner. Learning which gateways and bands to use at different times of day is also very useful.
For me personally, with there being so many aspects of amateur radio to not only learn, but to be comfortable and proficient with, I think keeping a good level of familiarity with our radio skills is very important.
73, Mike K9KMV
RHG Editor
Board of Directors Meeting July 7, 2021
Burt Schultz AB9CV Chairman called the meeting to order at 7:05 PM.
Attendees:
Danny Kafka KD9HIL Dennis C. Calvey KD9HIK John Douglas KD9KSH
John Zietlow K9WIC Barry K9FMB Burt Schultz AB9CV
Ed Liska AC9SD Charlene K9CMZ Kent Ochs W9KAO
Cliff Sowka K9QD
Secretary’s Report:
Cliff Sowka K9QD: Approved as published in June Radio Hill Gazette. Ed AC9SD moved, John KD9KSH seconded. So moved.
Treasurer’s Report:
John Zietlow K9WIC provides the following report for July 7th:
Bank Balance 1-Jun $7,046.18
INCOME MEMO $1,740.74
28-Jun dues $ 280.00
28-Jun equipment sales $ 133.00
29-Jun dues PayPal $1,327.74
DISBURSEMENTS MEMO $ 346.16
16-Jun data line $ 115.17
27-Jun void #1252 $230.99 pizza FD $50.00
Checks Outstanding $ 230.99
Deposit not included $ 0.00
Account Balance $8,671.75
plus petty cash – special accounts $8,519.96
30-Jun Bank Statement $8,671.75
Outstanding $ 255.99
$8,415.76
Petty Cash $ 179.20
FD Donations $ 75.00
• 90 members on roster
John is working to purge the roster of those un-renewed membership entries prior to 2019 in order to provide an accurate club Roster.
Cost of our current AT&T DSL service has doubled. John has inquired to find Kent’s W9KAO suggestion of DSL Extreme has individual and corporate rates that may be a better choice for our repeater data-line.
Cliff K9QD moved to empower John to change our service as he determines appropriate. Danny KD9HIL seconded. So Moved.
Public Service:
Rob Glowacki N9MVO no report.
EMCOMM:
John Zietlow K9WIC reported SARC’s support of the Chicagoland Marathon May 23rd was recognized by Village of Schaumburg Police Chief Bill Wolf. The Village of Schaumburg Police and Fire Department communicated a letter of appreciation to our club on June 23, 2021.
Copy of the Village’s acknowledgment needs to be proximately posted on our website to celebrate this achievement.
Repeaters:
Terry Jarnholm AE9TJ and Rob Glowacki N9MVO Repeater Committee: No report.
Kent W9KAO reports hearing inconsistent static originating at the Barrington Road installation. Source of noise is not yet known but he noted our professional Station Master 2M antenna on top of the water tower is >25 years old. Cursory checks of the duplexer connections in the past to determine if they may or may not play a role have been conducted periodically but not recently. The current thought is the club may invest in professional equipment rental/service to thoroughly analyze our antenna system and even plan for the eventual heavy expense of renewing the antenna if needed. Expense will be high because the ~20-foot tall antenna is mounted on the top of the convex tank top with only menial catwalk and safety anchoring. Even a qualified installer will have difficulty swinging such a tall assembly vertically and holding in place for mounting all the while working within the limited movement of a safety harness!
Maybe a club member has a drone to help take a visual survey of the antenna’s exterior fiberglass shell to look for anything obvious before we consider renewal.
Construction Project:
Sessions are on hiatus until regularly scheduled resumption this fall.
VE Testing:
Ed Lishka AC9SD informed the VE Team hosted no candidate requests for the month.
Participating Volunteer Examiners (VEs):
Bill Davies K9WKD
Steve Karson AC9EM
Ed Lishka AC9SD
John Schofield AC9JS
Nets:
No report.
Radio Hill Gazette RHG:
Mike K9KMV No Report.
Recurring Calendar:
Formation of a Nominating Committee for November’s election cycle will be required soon because candidate names need to be published with sufficient prior notice; means our club should be communicating potential officer candidates by mid-September.
Membership:
Darryl Jenks KB9RHR no report.
Publicity:
Dennis C. Calvey KD9HIK Publicity Chair may receive high quality photographs from our members to help market SARC’s activities.
Social:
John KD9KSH. Planning a club social event at Garibaldi’s for some time in October. Holiday party in January is also on the calendar.
Education:
Leo N9NBH. No Report.
Programs:
No Report. Chairperson needed now that CRC has re-opened.
Old Business:
None.
New Business:
• Need formation of Nominating Committee for November Club Officer Candidates.
• Need Committee Chair for Programs.
• Need Committee Chair for Technical Assistance.
• Burt Schultz AB9CV is the point-man for Construction Project investment: suggestions needed for test equipment and consumables to help define budget required.
John Zietlow K9WIC moved Schaumburg Amateur Radio Club recognize Mel Luxenberg W9FRT as Member Emeritus. This honorarium provides for lifetime membership and acknowledgement of Mel’s contributions over the years. Danny KD9HIL seconded. So Moved. Plan to have Mel attend the July Business Meeting and honor him at that time.
Board of Directors has appointed Dennis C. Calvey KD9HIK to Director thusly fulfilling our current Board vacancy. Burt AB9CV moved, Kent W9KAO seconded. So Moved.
Adjourn: Adjourn 8:48PM.
Submitted July 8, 2021. Cliff Sowka K9QD Secretary
Jul 15, 2021
Danny Kafka KD9HIL Vice President called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM
Attendees:
| Burt Schultz AB9CV |
Rob Glowacki N9MVO |
Michael Musica KD9SBN |
| Bob Benwitz N9JAX |
John Douglas KD9KSH |
Barry Friedman KD9SCR |
| Ed Lishka AC9SD |
Mike Clodfelter AC9CG |
Bob Zuttermeister W9GEW |
| Dennis Calvey KD9HIK |
John Zietlow K9WIC |
Leo Ribordy N9NBH |
| Hugh PParl WB9UWM
Matt Warrington KD9EBV |
Chris Brewer AC9GN
Dave Carpenter W9VTD |
Brent Kaser WB9UXN
Bruce Warrington N9EHA |
| Danny Kafka KD9HIL |
Bill McGovern W9WEM |
Jim Hansen |
| Charlene Treve K9CMZ
David KD9CVI |
Cliff Sowka K9QD
John Scrip N9IJS |
Terry Jarnholm AE9TJ
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Special Celebration Tonight
Mel Luxenberg W9FRT is newly anointed Member Emeritus.
During a previous Board Meeting, John Zietlow K9WIC suggested our club celebrate Mel’s ~40 Year contribution to the club. John Douglas KD9KSH arranged for refreshments, Dennis C. Calvey KD9HIK brought his professional photography equipment, and our club presented Mel his Certificate of Appreciation (photograph is also planned to be posted on www.n9rjv.org website shortly). Roberto WA9E suggested we craft an appreciation certificate and also provided key support in contacting family members to arrange Mel’s travel to our meeting tonight.
Mel related his radio background to the group including responsibility for the antenna farm of O’Hare Field during his years with the FAA. Earlier, Mel’s WWII wartime service on Destroyer USS Sumpter (later on USS Calloway) was also explained briefly: Being a licensed Ham Operator before the war, Mel was now responsible for the ship’s radio shack. While not in actual battle at the time, a wayward sailor entered the highly secure area without authority, mistakenly kicked-over an open can of paint and in a fit of fury, Mel drew his 1911 sidearm to throw the man out. Mel subsequently had to stand trial at Captain’s Mast and was convicted / sentenced to shore leave denial for 10 days (they were at sea for at least 20 more days) because he did not kill the offender. Mel explained Military protocol requires any situation where arms are drawn to conclude in elimination of the threat. |
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He’s also the only person we know who climbed the WGN transmit tower to re-lamp the clearance lighting and lived to tell us about it.
Secretary’s Report:
Cliff Sowka K9QD read June’s Minutes into the record and moved for Approval. So Moved.
Treasurer’s Report:
John Zietlow K9WIC provided the following report:
| Bank Balance $6,519.44
INCOME $1,101.00 from CP Surplus Sale
DISBURSEMENTS $62.82 16-Apr data line
Petty Cash $144.20
FD Donations $75.00 included in balance
Funds Available $7,576.82
As of July 15, 99 paid members. |
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Public Service:
Rob Glowacki N9MVO informed the Hoffman Estates Fourth of July Parade and the Schaumburg Triathlon have been canceled this year.
EMCOMM:
John Zietlow K9WIC reported there is concerted effort to organize a consistent approach in supporting local governments by several local Ham organizations including Des Plaines, Lake County, Hoffman Estates, Schaumburg, and DuPage County. There is a need for a common understanding of the protocols used by local government entities who call upon the Ham Radio community for support during emergency situations.
We are currently familiarizing ourselves with the newly-installed government officials in Schaumburg for the various entities such as Village Administration, Park District, Police, Fire Department, and Township Library.
John’s organization of SARC’s 24-person support for the recent Chicagoland Marathon was acknowledged by Schaumburg Village Police Chief Bill Wolf. The Village sent written correspondence to John presenting thanks for our club’s successful contribution to the event. Thank You to our members of SARC for this valuable acknowledgment of our radio support. <attachment below>
Repeaters:
Rob N9MVO and Bruce Warrington N9EHA discussed some of the possibilities surrounding the antenna installation on top of the Schaumburg Road Water Tower: Kent W9KAO previously reported occasional static similar to wet and/or windy weather possibly originating within the Station Master antenna. Since the antenna is more than 20-years old, it’s possible there may be lightning damage to the structure or cabling. Maybe we could recruit a club member with Drone Photography capability to make a cursory survey of the tank’s top. Bruce described his experience years ago in climbing the tower for installation and related there is a flat area beyond the convex top where the welded anchoring can be accessed safely if there is need to replace the antenna. While expense of a new Station Master could be substantial (~$1K?) we may not be required to hire professional antenna installation talent. The 440 machine is currently running 20 Watts and there may be a need for a new linear; coverage seems adequate at the moment but future expenditure may be needed to beef-up our signal.
Construction Project:
Don’s KD9NJR Saturday morning CP meetings remain dormant until the fall sessions resume.
VE Exams
Ed Lishka AC9SD reports there is one candidate scheduled for August at the moment.
Participating Volunteer Examiners (VEs):
| Steve |
Karson |
AC9EM |
| Ed |
Lishka |
AC9SD |
| John |
Schofield |
AC9JS |
| Dirk |
Smith |
W0RI |
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Radio Hill Gazette RHG
Mike Griffiths K9KMV no report.
Membership:
Darryl KD9RHR not present.
Social:
John Douglas KD9KSH reports there is a plan to have a social gathering at Garibaldi’s sometime in October and then a Holiday Party sometime in January.
John reminded us about the scheduled memorial for our past Secretary, Ken Krzywicki, who was a long-time member and club secretary for SARC. Ken passed away in January 2020 while in Arizona. Due to the COVID shut down shortly thereafter, the family had to postpone his memorial service. His wife, Joanna, wanted our club members to know that the services have now been scheduled. The visitation will be Friday, July 16th from 4 to 8 PM at:
Grove Memorial Chapel
1199 South Arlington Hts Rd
Elk Grove Village
The funeral Mass will be on Saturday, July 17th at 10:00 AM at:
St. Julian Eymard
601 Biesterfield Rd.
Elk Grove Village
Education:
Leo N9NBH reports our training schedule is likely to be restarted with a target date of January 2022; also there is some consideration of instituting a Morse Code training effort sometime in the fall.
NETS:
Leo N9NBH has been receiving much-needed support from John Scrip N9IJS for the evenings he has schedule conflicts. Nets are active and well attended.
Publicity:
Dennis KD9HIK Chairman reminded purchases on Amazon can provide financial benefit for our club if smile.amazon.com is selected when entering new orders. Since SARC is a 501c3 organization, Amazon has already qualified us as a valid recipient and John Zietlow K9WIC has already enabled our banking to gain access to any funds earned.
SARC in the Park
Booked the pavilion for us until August. Rob N9MVO described typical gatherings for new members. Our Radio Hill Gazette editor Mike Griffiths K9KMV is very involved with Parks on the Air and also attends our SARC-in-the-Park often.
VE Exams
Booked in Heritage for all but March 5, 2022. March will be in Construction Project Basement.
Construction Project
STP Basement is booked for September, 2021-April, 2022
Programs:
No report. Need Chairperson. Charlene Treve K9CMZ may present a ~6 minute video of her earlier jazz vocal performances during the August meeting. John K9WIC is planning to present as well.
Old Business:
None.
New Business:
Burt Schultz AB9CV reminded the Construction Project attendees prepare a test equipment upgrade wish-list as well as renewing some of the consumables such as freeze-spray, control cleaner, and tools. Burt will be the Point-Person as the inventory requests solidify.
John K9WIC mentioned there may be a Schaumburg Public Safety Day this fall. SARC has previously sponsored a booth with a Ham Radio display. If the Village plans to hold an event, he will notify membership and recruit participation.
Ask an Elmer
Barry Friedman KD9SCR offered more assistance in programming a tri-band HT and others suggested bringing the radio to the next SARC-in-the-Park to see if we can the thing working properly.
Mike Clodfelter AC9CG discussed his experience with a Wolf River antenna and mentioned some of the methods he’s used to achieve really good results.
Motion to Adjourn:
Meeting ended 8:42 PM
Cliff Sowka K9QD Secretary
