The upcoming TARCFest held by the Tampa Amateur Radio Club that was scheduled for Saturday, August 21 has been cancelled.
But if you’re in the mood for a hamfest, there’s some good stuff coming…
Be sure to keep an eye out for upcoming events on the ARRL Hamfest calendar at http://www.arrl.org/hamfests-and-conventions-calendar
Note that there will be no testing at the LARC general meetingĀ this evening. If you needed to take a test this evening then it will need to be postponed until the September general meeting on the evening of the second Monday.
On Monday, August 9 the Lakeland Amateur Radio Club will have it’s regularly scheduled monthly meeting at 7:00 p.m. at the Parkview Baptist Church.
The “special treat” this month is that Fred Delany, K1DU and Jim Stewart, W4XDS will be selling some equipment from two of our recent Silent Keys. Fred will be selling a Kenwood TS-130S station that belonged to Top Smith, WB6ZEQ (SK). Included is the TS-130S with a power supply and a desk mic for $350. He will also have some Hustler mobile resonator coils. Jim will have an Astron RS-35 power supply that belonged to Chet Carruth, AB4XK (SK), along with other miscellaneous items. Cash is gladly accepted, any other payment methods or arrangements will have to be made with them.
See you at the meeting!
Historically (for at least two years), the first club meeting following Field Day consisted of going out to eat at some fair to middlin’ buffet. But not this year…
A couple of months ago the board decided to do something different this year. Since 2020 was a washout, and we haven’t done much in 2021 (although at least we’re meeting in person now), a decision was made to have a barbecue dinner, paid for by the club.
Dinner was catered by Mission Barbecue, and there was plenty to go around. We had a good turnout and everyone had a good time. We even sang Happy Birthday to a young visitor!
The August meeting (sans dinner) will be on Monday, August 9. See you there!
Remember, the July LARC meeting is on the second Monday in July, which is July 12. But wait…there’s more!
As previously announced, we’ll have a barbecue dinner Monday night catered by Mission BBQ! Dinner will begin at 6:30 p.m. and is free for all current (i.e. your dues are paid) club members. For anyone else, it’s $5 (which is a steal!).
See you there!
While it looks like Elsa (as of the 11:00 a.m. advisory on July 5) is going to provide us with a little rain but otherwise leave us alone, it is a good time, if you haven’t already done so, to review your hurricane preparedness. One thing that many folks don’t think about until it’s already raining is ensuring they have gas for their generator (if they have one). Another is a stock of non-perishable food and a water supply.
From a communications standpoint, it’s wise to make sure your HT batteries are in good shape for both your primary and (if you have one) your secondary. Also, make sure you’re familiar with repeaters in the Lakeland area that might be used in an emergency:
K4LKL (LARC Repeater) 146.685 (-600, PL 127.3)
KD4EFM (SARNET) 442.275 (+5.0, PL 82.5)
NI4CE (“The Big Stick”) 442.825 (+5.0, PL 100.0)
WC4PEM (Polk Emergency Management) 443.900 (+5.0, PL 127.3)
National Simplex Calling Frequency 146.52
Also, know how to program your radio without a computer…one day you might have to.
It would also be a good idea to familiarize yourself with the National Hurricane Center website (nhc.noaa.gov) as well as Polk Ares (polkares.org)
Hopefully we won’t have to use any of this information to deal with a widespread emergency, but as G.I. Joe says…”Knowing is half the battle!” š
While you’re enjoying your amateur radio activities, or grilling, or partaking of your beverage of choice or however you choose to celebrate, I think we can all agree…
“And I’m proud to be an American, where at least I know I’m free,
And I won’t forget the men who died that gave that right to me,
And I’ll gladly stand up next to you and defend her still today,
‘Cause there ain’t no doubt I love this land…
God Bless the U.S.A.!”
Everybody have a great holiday, and we’ll see you at the meeting July 12.
Once again the biggest amateur radio operating event of the year is upon us…it’s time for FIELD DAY!
Field Day is the last full weekend in June, which this year is June 26-27. As many clubs (including ours) have chosen not to have an official “club” station this year, much like last year everyone is “on their own”, and once again the rules are a little different. Since not everyone is completely familiar with how things work, here’s the lowdown:
Date/Time: Field Day begins at 1800 UTC Saturday, June 26 and runs until 2059 UTC Sunday, June 27.
There are 5 different stations categories:
Exchange: Field Day Class and ARRL (or RAC) section.
For further information (if you are planning on ANY kind of Field Day operation, please) go to www.arrl.org/field-day and review the full rules.
Miscellaneous Field Day bits…
Should anyone have additional questions, feel free to contact Fred Delaney, K1DU at 1980K1DU@gmail.com or by phone at 781-854-1150 (be sure to leave a voicemail and he’ll gladly call you back).
Lastly, and most importantly, have fun!
The LARC Treasurer is sitting on a large number of name badges for new (and fairly new) members who haven’t claimed their nametags. If you are a member of the club and didn’t receive your nametag, please contact us at blogmaster@lakelandarc.org
As LARC meetings are the second Monday of the month, the June LARC meeting is Monday, June 14.