Field Day 2017:  Final Update June 19

 On Saturday, June 10 a crew of 10 members gathered at the CSCC to do a dry run setup of the Antenna trailer and its antennas: a 3 element beam for 20, 15 and 10 meters and a fan dipole for 80 and 40 meters.

As expected, Murphy showed up and threw a couple of curve balls. The crew managed to handle these with a bit of ham ingenuity and bits and pieces from the club’s Junk Box. Scheduling the practice session was brilliant; otherwise, the surprises we encountered would have interfered with getting on the air at 12:00 sharp when the event begins on Saturday. Thanks Jim, Ameer and Jerry for organizing the practice and to the rest who took part.

The Beam tuning was bang on, thanks to previous crews having marked all the element pieces with black electrical tape to make it easy to re-install them correctly. The fan dipole was too long (by design) so it took a couple of adjustments to get both of them resonant where they need to be. Four sections of surplus 42” military mast were used to provide the two end supports for the Fan Dipole. This gets the 40-meter dipole up near a half wavelength so it should be a good performer. The 80 will still be a cloud warmer but we will not have to worry about its orientation.

Five of the crew managed to set up the 2-man tent in about 10 minutes. Not a spectacular time but it was entertaining and I have pictures. Hopefully, “practice does make perfect“ or at least better. This structure houses the operators and radios for the antenna trailer station as well as the logging network for the entire site.

The 8-KW generator was hauled out of the basement of the CSCC and returned as practice to determine the amount of manpower it takes to load and unload it from the transporting vehicle; another item off the checklist.

The Communications Trailer has been used at all Field Days since 2012 so it is already to go. It will just need to have its antennas deployed once it is on site.

The third station, if we have sufficient operators to man it, will be erected on Friday evening when we do our set up at the Flanders and Crowchild site of Calgary’s Military Musems.

So, we are pretty much ready to go. Having only missed one CARA Field day in the last 10 years, I think this one is the best prepared. All that is needed is good participation from our 190 odd club members to make it one of the most memorable. It would be especially appreciated if many of us could attend just for the fun of it and to socialize with fellow members. You do not have to sign up for the full 24 hours of the event, we have some die-hards who will keep the station(s) on the air and remember we are providing barbeques for a potluck dinner, 6ish, on Saturday.  Just bring your own protein to cook and a side dish to share. It would be helpful to know how many to expect for the potluck so please register on the CARA Website if you plan to come.

Tnx es 73 de VE6TI

Gordon Hungerford

Today, May 10^th already. Is it just me or is the passage of time actually accelerating? Looking at the trees and flowering shrubs, spring appears to have finally arrived.

In reading my amateur radio email this morning I am reminded that once again we are in the most demanding and competitive time period for our radio communications services.

Case in point, the Rocky Mountain Rally is just 17 days away and we currently need 12 more members to commit to supporting this event. Granted, this is one of the most onerous events in terms of time committed in our annual cycle of public event support. It consumes the entire weekend and evolves 500 plus kilometres of driving.

In recognition of the associated travel costs, The Calgary Sports Car Club and the Calgary Amateur Radio Association are offsetting a significant portion of the out of pocket expense. Shared accommodation costs are provided by CSCC for the radio operators as well as lunches while in action and event related dinners. These volunteers will receive reimbursement for fuel costs up to $100.00 from CARA upon submission and processing of a mileage expense form after the event.

With current membership just over 200, this event needs about 12% participation. If you are one of the members who enjoy the amateur radio experience and the benefits/opportunities of club membership, be it fellowship, knowledge acquisition, and its sharing or just personal satisfaction, this is one to consider.

Next item, the May General Meeting-its import and challenge. As above, much of our activity and planning for the next club year happens in the spring.

Field Day goes the last weekend of June. Its is one of the most appealing club events in that it brings together and draws upon the myriad of experiences and skills in the amateur radio community to work as a team.  The event’s duration is just 24 hours but the preparation takes much planning and effort to make it work. This year’s leaders, Jim Leslie, VE6JL and Ameer Shaikh, VE6QAS are well off the mark. They will provide progress to plan and outline items yet to be accomplished.  Keep checking the CARA website for needs and opportunities to be part of the process.

This meeting is also significant to the club as a whole. Over the last eight months the CARA Executive has considered the need and planned for the revitalization of the participation of its current members and in actively attracting new members. We have a sense of traction and movement towards that goal. We have the first stage of next steps to outline and a desire to implement before the end of June. We will propose and discuss an action plan focusing on the future of the two main facilities the club has built up over the last several years an how to further leverage them to meet the needs of members to have fun and serve our community.

Stand by for the location of the May meeting.  It will be communicated by this time next week.

Towards getting the Field Day word out, Jim has nailed it. Please read on.

As you may have heard by now, Field Day 2017 will be held June 24/25. This year CARA will hold the ARRL annual event at the Military Museums located at 4520 Crowchild Trail SW in Calgary. Many thanks to Ameer, VA6QAS for his initiative in suggesting the use of the site during the May general meeting, and for making the request to the museum on behalf of CARA. 

On April 20th a meeting was held at the musuem with Jerry - VE6TL, Ameer - VA6QAS, myself - VE6JF and Gordon - VE6TI. Gordon signed all the necessary paperwork on CARA's behalf, giving us permission to proceed. Following the meeting, we had a lengthly  tour of the grounds including the roof, with an eye to locating a few stations and antennas. They also have a military tent we are welcome to use and will move it for us to wherever we choose. The initial plan is to have it in the center courtyard. This tent opens on the sides giving good viewing access to the public. 

This site will be a terrific location not only from the standpoint of having plenty of space for antennas and room between the operating positions, but also upwards of 1000 or more visitors are expected. The museum told us they are promoting the event as well. More news will follow on their events in the coming weeks.

What do we do next? Last Saturday afternoon April 29th Dana, VA6DJH and Ameer, VA6QAS visited the club station and investigated the state of the antenna trailer. The objective was to evaluate what is required to prepare it for Field Day use. To to do list includes a brief written procedure in order to do it safely and efficiently as it can be challenging to raise the first time. 

We should also have an additional practice sesionion to build experience, confidence and increase the membership pool in its continued use. Some addition TLC could be applied to sustain this club asset as well.

Other Field Day tasks that we are looking for help with now is:

1) Someone to fill in the ARRL locator on their web site to mark the CARA Field Day location. 

2) Another is to have someone assist/take charge of with th GOTA station. We intend to score as many bonus points as possible. There are many opportunities within  this area to explore. 

3) Bonus points are issued for satellite contacts. We need someone with this capability to steer this one.

There is a lot to do and the Field Day Team needs your help to make this event a success. If you would like to contribute in any way, from operating to raising antennas or only to be present wearing your CARA badge and be an ambassador of amateur radio and explain to the public what ham radio is, please join us that weekend!

That's all for now, but I will have much more to add in a few days. Please contact me if you can help with any of the above items, or if you have any questions, comments or can help in any way. Suggestions are welcome!! 

You can reach me here: galoot @shaw.ca

73 

Jim 

VE6JF

The business portion of the tonight’s General Meeting will focus on upcoming project objectives for spring and summer execution with our Club Station and the Club’s Repeater facilities. The program portion of the meeting will follow and will be titled Field Days, Past and Present.  Start time 7:00 PM, location; CARA Club station, 4215 80^th Ave NE.

As of 2:00 Friday April 20 we officially committed to holding Field Day at the Military Museums, just East of Crowchild trial at Flanders Avenue. Jim Leslie, VE6JL, Ameer Shaikh, VE6QAS, Jerry Spring, VE6TL and I met with Sargent Major Jody to discuss how things could/would work and then walked the grounds and rooftops to get the lay of the land for our 2017 Field Day Event.

The area is well set up for Field Day. The site offers the opportunity to run up to three separate stations with separate antennas. The Military Museum has its own event on Saturday that will draw a significant public attendance and provide additional exposure to Amateur radio in Calgary. Food service trucks will be on site during the day. A large army tent will house our public interactions and provide a gathering area for station operators when not pounding brass or running a string of SSB contacts.

This year’s Field day will be one of the largest such undertakings in recent club history. Given its location it will be one of the easiest to attend. With 8 weeks to complete the planning and organizing of the teams we can be well prepared to have Fun and Serve our Community. All members are invited to participate in the balance of the planning and the operation of the club’s 2017 Field Day Event. Looking forward to seeing you tonight.

73 de VE6TI

Gordon Hungerford

Last Saturday, 20 or more club members made the trek to the site of the Calgary Sports Car Club’s Winter Rally, NW of Cochrane. Given the driving conditions on Highway 40 and the Hunter Valley road this required a 1½  to  2 hour cautious drive from Calgary. The in-position target was 07:00.  When combined with the “spring ahead” time change it made for an early rise. As our Australian hams would say, “Good on you mates”!

Murphy’s law: “whatever can go wrong will go wrong “ applied to the early stages of setup and resulted in moving Net Control to simplex when both the primary repeater and the backup repeater proved unreliable. Undaunted, but prepared for the unexpected, Net Control persevered and moved to 146.52 and carried on. With the passage of time and more daylight the original repeaters were then used to coordinate efforts for the subsequent stages. “Kudos to all,” for their adaptability and persevere in the face of uncontrollable circumstances. Amateur radio at its best, when  as Robbie Burns wrote; “ The best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry”.

Racing conditions proved equally challenging to the rally teams. A number of unintended off-road outcomes occurred. While there were no serious injuries Robin Greig, VE6RBN, in the ambulance role of radio operator experienced first hand the importance of good organizational planning and the commitment of volunteer’s expertise, time, and efforts to ensure the safety of all involved.

 Next up on the scheduled events is the Spring Flea Market.  It is Saturday, April 8^th at the East side Church. Seller, buyer and learning Conference information is available on the Upcoming Events section of the CARA Home page.

This year’s flea market has the usual offering of amateur radio treasures for redistribution. So if you are relatively new to the hobby the flea market is a place to get started on building your first station and connecting with others to enhance your amateur radio journey. For the not so new there will be old boat anchors to rummage through and reminisce about as well as an endless variety of parts for the current project or the ones on the drawing board.

 The Calgary Amateur Radio Association is again offering attendance incentives. A 50/50 draw will be available under Alberta Gaming license # 460298 for which we have 500 tickets available @ $2 per ticket.  There are two transceiver prizes with 300 tickets @ $5 and 900 tickets @3 for $10 available under License 460305. 

 Radio World Central http://radioworldcentral.ca has graciously donated a Yaesu FT-891 radio. This 1.8 to 54 MHz mobile transceiver is valued @$950.  CARA is providing the second radio, a Yaesu FTM-100DR for the 2 meters and up attendees interested in both the digital and analogue modes. It is valued @ $450.

 Personal attendance of the winning ticket drawn at the draw location, East Side Church in SE Calgary at approximately noon is required for awarding of prizes.

 At our last Board Meeting we discussed some ideas for this year’s ARRL Field Day the last weekend in June. The last 2 years we went out to High River and joined the FARS club at a location on the south side of town. On the 3 previous years we chose rural locations. This year we thought we should look at setting up for the 24-hour operational period within the city to make it easier for members to attend and to enhance the awareness for this facet of amateur radio. In the past we used the parking lot on the East side of the Sunridge Mall one year and Glenmore park for another.

 If you are new to the Field Day event just go to: ARRL Field Day 2017 and find out all about it. If you are a past participant and want to get in on the organization part we are now in the process of setting that opportunity up. A member is needed to take on the role of Field Day Director. This role coordinates the place, process and people to enable a whole lot of fun while building operational experience to be of assistance when mother nature or some other event calling on us for assistance. Look to the CARA Site in a couple of weeks for more information and details as they take shape.

The last item for this time concerns progress towards further linking of CARA’s VHF repeater facilities. An initiative is underway to determine which site(s) are candidates for linking in the upcoming spring through fall window for site access. More detail will be provided in the next President’s Message.

That’s it for now; see you at the Flea Market next month.

Gordon, VE6TI

At this month’s GM we will be honouring the long and extensive service to CARA of Mike Ross, VE6TC. Mike will be presented with a Lifetime Membership award in appreciation of his dedication and endless efforts to envision, plan, and build and support the Club station. For the many of you that have been involved along the way in Mike’s quest please attend and contribute your interesting observations and reflections on the journey. Other regional Ham organizations have been invited too; it will be an opportunity to reconnect with others as well. I am off to visit my daughter in those Excited States of America and will miss this meeting. So, I take this opportunity to personally thank Mike for his commitment to and support of the amateur radio community in Calgary and to our hobby. Well-done Mike.

Spring is nearly in sight. Time to start thinking about what we need to do to take advantage of the good outdoor weather. The folks at the club station recently completed their review and priorities to address maintenance needs for the CARA antenna farm. The budget and work plans for the four towers and antenna systems was presented to the Board and approved this month. A similar plan and process is anticipated to be completed in the next two months to cover off VHF facility needs in order to implement in the summer.

This is also the time of year when CARA’s support needs for its various annual events are identified, quantified and scheduled. The first CSCC car rally goes March 12^th in the Wiaprous valley area north west of Cochrane. Garry Spicer, VE6GDS, is coordinating CARA’s communication operators with the Calgary Sports Car Club.

This event is particularly suited to club members with 2-meter mobile equipment, an interest in VHF operation and in participation in a service opportunity with one of our communities. From the enjoyment and satisfaction perspective there is no better spot to observe the thrills and spills of high speed rally car racing than at one of the numerous Blocker positions along the course.

Gary said at last count we have about 75% of the operator needs covered. There is still a need and opportunity for more to participate. If you are new to this but unsure you may be able to accompany and experienced operator once the required positions are covered. Rally detail and volunteer participation registration can be found at: Cochrane Rally. Scroll to page bottom for registration sheet. Contact Garry <spicergarry@gmail.com> if you would like further information. I look forward to seeing many of you at this event.

Next up is the CARA Spring Flea market, April 8^th at the East Side Church. Peter Barry, VA6PJB and the CARA Secretary heads up the organization. Watch the website for further details as they unfold.

A bit farther out is the Annual ARRL Field Day Event.  CARA has fielded a team for this event for as long as I can remember. For the last two years we joined with the Foothills Amateur Radio Society (FARS) group in High River and had good WX and a good time. We may want to host the event this year and ask other regional amateur radio groups to join or we may just go it alone.

While the event is still a ways off we need to get the planning effort kicked off in March. The definition of planning and fun will be left up to those members who can and will participate. Please contact: VE6PJB, Peter Barry and express your interest in the organization of this event. 

Still lots going on here.

The Welcoming of New Hams

A special thanks to all the members that came out to the January GM to welcome the most recent graduates of the fall Basic Class. More than 30 existing members gathered at the club station and engaged the newest members in an informal exchange of information about the amazing amateur radio journey awaiting them.

Rob, VE6CCL, had name tags ready for the recently qualified hams and an operational 40-meter transceiver at the east end of the main floor. This drew considerable attention but was essentially wiped out by the QRM generated by the chatter of the 40 plus members in the room. 

About 7:30, round tables, each with an existing member discussion leader, were established to get down to specific inquires from the new members.  The new, not so new and the old exchanged information, experiences and initiated the time-honoured tradition of Elmering. The club station was opened up about 8:45 and was still humming with interest when I left just before 10:00.

To all, a big “well done”!

Moving On

As an individual, Amateur Radio has served me well. It has enabled the pursuit of technical knowledge and experience from which I benefitted personally and professionally.

I have been communicating here and at the interest group meetings over the past couple of months about the fun part of our, “Have Fun and Serve Our Community” directional statement.  I think the “Have Fun” part boils down to participation in an activity that is personally enjoyable and as a bonus, experiencing a sense of personal satisfaction from that participation.

At first glance, the “Serve Our Community” part sounds a bit like an obligation. But is it that or is it an opportunity to have fun?  

The “Serve” part is self-explanatory. It’s the “Our Community” piece that could benefit from further definition. As a club we have both internal and external communities.

At the centre of the internal community is the existing membership. Sustaining and growing the membership base is fundamental to organizational survival and continuity. Probably the most important service opportunity for existing members is to contribute to the attraction and development of radio communications knowledge and skills in new members.

Another set of communities within CARA includes various interest groups. These are centred upon the opportunities various spectrum and communications modes offer to have fun and provide service. Providing learning opportunities for new members to acquire experience and confidence in the functional aspects of these interest groups is perhaps the most important service opportunity existing members can undertake to sustain their interest areas. Last month, the DX group took the time and invested the effort to examine and present to the CARA Board a first cut at the group’s alignment to the Fun and Service direction and the organization's goals. At the next Board meeting the group’s operational budget requests will be undertaken. Other interest areas are encouraged to do likewise.

Our External Communities are of two types as well. The first includes public organizations in need of real time communications in geographic locations where the public information infrastructure is unable to meet their specific communications needs for specific events or circumstances. For these communities, CARA’s service opportunity is to utilize its existing infrastructure or that of other clubs and individual amateurs to enable the served organization’s safe execution of a specific event. This is very much in keeping with amateur radio’s long history of facilitating communications in places or times of need when the existing communications structure is unavailable or overloaded. It is very much fundamental to existence of pieces of the radio spectrum that are exclusively, or upon a secondary basis, available to us for our hobby and service pursuits.

An example: the next scheduled service opportunity is the provision of radio operators for the Calgary Sports Car Club Rally, March 12^th in the Waiparous Valley region northwest of Cochrane. A number of CARA members participate in this event as well as other rallies throughout the year. This is very much appreciated by the event sponsors and provides a meaningful opportunity for CARA members to provide service and get up close to the action. Sports car enthusiasts have fun through demonstration of the capabilities of their cars and personal skills in completing a defined course in the least amount of time. Mother Nature is always the wild card in these events and course conditions are utterly dependent on the cards she has dealt on any particular day.

This season, Gary Spicer, VE6GDS, has stepped up to the Rally Coordination role. This entails the recruiting and preparation of CARA operators to provide the radio communication needs required to conduct The Calgary Sports Car Clubs event in an efficient and safe manner.  Dave Cason, VE6DED, is continuing to assist with these events. Please check our events calendar for further details and redirection to the Rally events website.

The second external community includes other organized amateur radio groups in Calgary and region. These groups also have internal and external communities to serve. It is important for CARA to consider how it can work with these groups to meet mutual objectives.

CARA is a club with a long history (some say it goes back to 1924) and in order to make that history accessible to current members, the club Historian role is being undertaken by Ken Olke, VE6AFO. Knowing where you came from helps to understand how you got to where you are now.  That, in turn, may offer guidance to where you want to go next. Dale Olson, VE6QDO, has scanned most of the published Key Klix issues to make them readily available. Ken has access to similar materials from various local and provincial level publications available for reference and further examination; another service opportunity benefitting internal and external communities.

In the end, an organization’s journey is sustained by the energy contributions of its membership. Perhaps serving our communities is the part of the fuel that enables the fun.

73 de VE6TI

Gordon

Best of Xmas and Holliday Greetings to all. No GM this month; enough going on in our family lives to focus on at this time of year.

At our November Board meeting we discussed the need for the Board to maintain focus on club objectives and outcomes in order to remain sustainable and meaningful for present and future members. Towards that end we intend to establish some operational roles to take on the responsibility of ongoing management of the club's facilities and delivery of reoccurring service offerings. 

We believe and trust that within our membership the skills necessary to do this are already present. As conceived the roles will be filled by members at large. In addition it provides opportunity for greater member participation in the processes of formation, management and delivery of CARA offerings. The Board will continue to provide directional input and guidance to the members who undertake these management roles. 

At the January Board meeting the roles will be defined.  Membership input is invited/requested. So when you sit down after Xmas and begin writing your New Year's resolutions add in one to contribute your thoughts and ideas on these definitions.

See you again in 2017. Canada's 150 anniversary. Now there is something to think about too. 

   

President’s Message, November 17, 2016

Upcoming General Meeting

‪Next Tuesday, November 22, the fun part of the November GM will be about HF operation via a remote station.  This topic was one of the high interest areas expressed at our GM in September.

Unlike VHF operation where the size of an efficient antenna is modest, HF antennas of comparable efficiency are "high, wide and handsome".  Even on 20 meters a half wave dipole is 33 feet long and prefers to be 30 or more feet above ground to perform well. Yes, size matters; it's a physics thing.  So, if you have enough real estate, a mature tree or two, permission from your partner and reasonable neighbours you can have a go at putting up a simple wire antenna and have some fun on HF - maybe.

Another challenge all us city dwellers are facing is the increasing level and amount of electromagnetic noise produced by all the other radiators in the neighbourhood. Getting away from the noise is rapidly becoming a major impediment to the enjoyment of HF operation.

So, if having your own effective HF antennas is challenging for your situation then consider participation in remote station operation. It turns out CARA has one. It can be operated from the comfort of your own dwelling via the Internet and a computer equipped with the remote station operation software. This methodology will be illustrated and demonstrated as part of the presentation.

Recent Board activity

Enjoy Amateur Radio - Serve our Community

The previous CARA Executive adopted the above statement of mission for our club. The current CARA Executive thinks they got it right. In a simple statement the two sides of the coin illustrate the benefit and cost sides of any volunteer based organization.

Enjoy Amateur Radio; that's the fun part. It brought us to the hobby; it keeps us active in its various pursuits and in contact with people of similar interests. It is the benefit side of membership. It's not a thing, thing; it's a feeling thing.

Serve our Community is the cost side. Time, talent and treasure are the three currencies required of members to meet the cost side. Of the three, time and talent are of most value. CARA is in the most fortunate situation to have access to treasure that does not come directly from its members' pocketbooks but does require investment of members' time. CARA is most in need of the participation of its members.Time is currency of high value and its investment benefit is not a thing, thing, it's a feeling thing.

The cost benefit situation in the world of retail commerce is a different challenge involving the same three currencies but in the reverse order. Its objective is to maximize the perceived benefit to extract the most treasure from its customer base while minimizing the effort and time to make the investment in their goods or services. It is cost driven and relies heavily on the perception of the need for the latest thing, thing. 

In talking to other leaders of amateur radio club's in our region we learn that we are all facing membership participation challenges. In implementing the past Board's mission the current Board recognizes the need to refocus leadership and organizational infrastructure as well as membership time and talent to realize the benefit of membership enjoyment. We understand that a members’ participation is a large component of the member's enjoyment. Hence we need to involve more members in the doing of the building and operating of the infrastructure rather than just using it. In short we need to build communities of doers" willing to share their time and talents at the point where it matters to achieve membership enjoyment for themselves and their fellow members. 

Over the next quarter, the focus of the Board will be to establish a number of important functional roles with defined responsibilities to coordinate club operations. How that is to be approached will comprise the business portion of next week's GM. It won't be as much fun as the Remote Station presentation but it will be important to meaningful engagement of those members willing and able to contribute their time and talent towards this objective.

Looking forward to lively and interesting conversation. See you there, ‪next Tuesday at the club station ‪at 7:00 PM.

73 de VE6TI

Gordon Hungerford

The leaves are falling, temperatures are falling and the days continue to shorten. Winter is coming. The allusion in the "Game of Thrones" books and TV series references the need to prepare for what is coming. A bit lame, I admit. I needed a segue and there it is.

With the election of a completely new CARA Board the need for preparation for the future of the club was clear from the start. Since the end of June we have had several face-to-face meetings, Go To Meeting sessions, and exchanged dozens and dozens of emails to get to know each other's interests, skills and form as group. Keeping HMCS CARA on its established course at the same time provided opportunity to understand how the current ship functions.

So, what has been accomplished so far? 

I think the most significant outcome is agreement at the Board that CARA needs to be less about things and stuff and more about being relevant to current members and attractive to future members of the club. 

With that focus we have set four directional goals:

•    Have fun while learning about and participating in the vast array of endeavours in the world of Amateur Radio.

•    Attract and retain members, young and old, just learning or experienced, in school, working or enjoying retirement.

•    Manage the club's tangible and human assets to sustain the Club's future, sustain the hobby and support public events in need of the radio-based communications that our skills and facilities can provide.

•    Seek opportunities to collaborate and participate in the efforts of other amateur radio club's in the region as they pursue similar goals.

September's General Meeting format, where we mixed the Fun and Business parts of the meeting, will be followed again in October. The Fun Part is a primer on the CARA Net initiative started a couple of years ago. Robin Greig, VE6RBN and our current Vice President will take us through the what, why, current status and next steps in this strategy to link club repeaters. He promises the presentation to be more about the utility, flexibility and benefits of this approach rather than the magic that goes on in the boxes. A progress update will be provided as well.

For the business part we will report on our first steps to improve communications with the membership. At our last GM this was the most discussed topic at the round table sessions. Last week's Board meeting re-examined the Communications Proposal commissioned by the previous Board and passed a motion to further implement more of its recommendations.  We will again set up the round tables to examine our current communications vehicles and opportunities for further improvements.

So please attend the meeting ‪Tuesday October 25. Club station, ‪7: 00 PM and add your voice to the conversations that shape CARA's future.