We were long overdue for a picnic. The weather cooperated. The food was great, and of course the company was the best.

There are more pictures online at https://photos.app.goo.gl/QhfKwdSF6ruGrdv72

This is an especially busy time of the year. Please make note of the following club activities coming up.

Congratulations!

N4INI is now a General. Good work!. He is congratulated by Peggy N4PEG, our testing coordinator, and VE Mike Shreve N6MRS standing to the right.

Good Job!

Liam Holzer, KM4STS receives an award for outstanding participation at field day. This was his first opportunity to exercise his privileges on HF as a General on Field Day. With Liam is Peggy N4PEG left, and presenting the award, Andrew WX4AMS right.

Our Speaker

Buddy Morgan WB4OMG shared his experiences on his recent DX-pedition to the Bahamas. One of the unique aspects of this trip was the the radio spectrum targeted. 220 Mega Hertz and above! Those who know Buddy know that this is his specialty.

Great Turnout!

We had an exceptional turnout this evening. 57 by one count. Feel free to try you hand at counting yourself. 🙂

 

Attendance Sign-Ins

Some of the club members couldn’t wait for the official picture to be taken before they congratulated Michelle, now KN4FRA. There was no shortage of club members offering to help her program her new radio. It must be her yoga instructor charm.

Something Indian for a background was suggested. The Taj Mahal immediately came to mind, but we are saving that for when Michelle gets her General. Welcome to the club Michelle.

Pinch hitting for Matthew while he was away was Rich, no stranger to the microphone. Here he is introducing the main speaker, Dan WZ1P, who spoke on solar panels for amateur use, and the contents of the go kit he uses for DX-peditions.

Dan extolling the features of flexible solar panels like the one on the screen behind him. This device is rugged, and a bit pricey for the average ham. The unit shown was capable of 60 watts, 15.4 volts. Solar panels require additional hardware controllers to prevent over charging some of the exotic batteries available today. Those interested in the new science can check out nano phosphate technology. http://www.a123systems.com/lithium-iron-phosphate-battery.htm

Here Dan goes over the contents of his go kit, which includes antennas, filters, batteries, solar charger, charger controller, and of course his trusty icom 7000.

New Members
KN4FBD Dan
AC7CL Chris
W7STR Todd
KN4FRA Michelle

Congratulations!

Dave Ingram KN4DTS, a new General shakes hands with Peggy N4PEG our Testing Coordinator while John, KN4FBD to the right of Dave looks on.

 Our Speaker For The Evening, Al Sheppard Speaking on Propagation

Al is seen here delivering his presentation on propagation. Not quite over a serious chest cold, he made the extra effort to stand and deliver. His presentation can be found on the Yahoo Group site under General Meeting Presentations. Click the Menu Item above labeled LARC Website, and then the link to General Meeting Presentations.

Field Day Results
Fred gave a summary of our performance on Field Day. We did about as well as last year, except in the area of satellite contacts where we excelled. Good work Matthew.

Last evening a few close friends gathered at the Kathleen Historical Society Lodge to wish Carolyn a Happy Birthday.

The LARC Hamfest will be held Saturday September 9th at the Revolution Church of Lakeland,
7315 Kathleen Rd, Lakeland, FL 33810. The church is located at the intersection of Duff and Kathleen Roads. The hours will be from sunrise to noon. Kevin is organizing this event. Please pass any questions on to him. His phone number is 863-393-4336. More information will follow, but for now I can share with you the grand prize for the raffle. It will be a:

Yaesu FTM-3200DR Digital C4FM/FM 2-Meter Transceivers FTM-3200DR

Transceiver, Mobile, FM/144 MHz, 65W C4FM System Fusion, 220 Channels.