The hams at WA2HOM, the ham radio station at Ann Arbor’s Hands-On Museum, will be hosting their next One-Day Tech Class at the museum (220 E. Ann St. in downtown Ann Arbor) on Saturday, September 18, 2010. Please pass this information along to anyone you know who might be interested in taking the class or publish it in your next newsletter. The class begins at 9 am and will last until 3 pm. Immediately after the class, students will take the Technician Class license exam.
There is a suggested donation of $10 for the class (all proceeds help pay for our club station at the museum), and the license exam fee is $15.
GET A HEAD START!
To get a head start, prospective students should download the free study guide. By reading through the study guide and taking the online tests, students may even find that they can pass the test without taking the class.
GET ON THE LIST!
If you know someone who would like more information about the class, or to get on the mailing list to be notified by e-mail about the next class, have them contact me, Dan Romanchik, KB6NU: phone 734-930-6564, e-mail cwgeek@kb6nu.com.
73, Dan KB6NU
Greetings Michigan Amateurs:
THE QMN: A Celebration of the First Traffic Net.
The year 2010 will mark an important anniversary in the History of Amateur Radio: The birth of the first public service net and it happened here in Michigan.
Before the implementation of a net concept, radiogram traffic and emergency communications activity was conducted on a system of schedules and random contacts. Radiogram traffic moved across the country on “Trunk Line” networks staffed on a daily basis by “iron man” traffic handlers. From these key stations, traffic was routed to its destination via individual schedules, directional “CQ” requests, and similar techniques. The ARRL “Amateur Radio Emergency Corps,” “National Traffic System,” and similar programs had not yet emerged.
This all changed during the autumn of 1935 when members of the Detroit Amateur Radio Association (DARA) formed the Michigan Net and adopted the net call “QMN.” The plan was simple and elegant in concept. Using the relatively new technology of crystal control, radio amateurs from throughout the State of Michigan would gather on a single “spot frequency” to exchange radiogram traffic and coordinate emergency communications response to disasters. A QMN Committee standardized the procedures and created the familiar “QN-Signals” so familiar to generations of traffic handlers. With the creation of QMN, the modern traffic net was born.
This year, QMN will celebrate its Diamond Anniversary with a very special event! A 75th Anniversary Banquet will be held at Owosso, Michigan on Saturday, October 23, 2010. Activities include:
- A special event station on 7055 KHz and 3563 KHz using the call K8QMN. This special event station will use vintage equipment from the 1930s and ‘40s. Visitors will have an opportunity to sit down at the key and experience QSOs using 1930s era receivers.
- A presentation entitled “An Early History of Radio” will be featured along with a talk on the history of QMN.
- Long-time members will reminisce about their experiences in Amateur Radio.
- Vintage radio equipment will be on display for all to enjoy.
- A working Morse Telegraph Circuit will be available on site for those who would like to see land-line telegraphy and American Morse Code in use.
- A special commemorative booklet will be provided to each attendee. This commemorative booklet will include an excellent history of QMN written by the Don Devendorf, W8EGI (SK), along with an introduction covering the early history of Amateur Radio.
QMN members both past and present are invited to attend, as are all radio amateurs with an interest in the history of Amateur Radio and the history of public service communications. Those wishing to attend this event should request a registration form from James Wades, WB8SIW at the following e-mail: jameswades@gmail.com You don’t want to miss this celebration to be held on October 23, 2010 at the Comstock Inn, Owosso, Michigan.
10 GHz AND UP CONTEST COMING SOON:
News from James W8ISS. The weekend of August 21 and 22 will be the first weekend of the “10GHz and Up” contest which covers the 3 cm (10386 MHz) and above bands including Laser.
10 GHz is probably THE easiest microwave band to get on the air for equipment as there is plenty of surplus gear that can be modified along with a few commercial vendors that offer transverters to get on. Equipment can range from a simple Gunnplexer, 10m receiver, and a discarded DISH TV dish, to a transverter that handles all the proper sequencing from receive to transmit and switching relay so that you can power the 50 watt amp and pre-amps. Usually low power gets you were you want to go.
Any of the systems that are currently in use right now can make DX contacts across the Great Lakes easily. My personal best is 259 miles from Pointe Betsie Lighthouse to Rockford, IL with a two watt loaner system. The system was an FT-817 (being used as a 2m IF radio), a 60cm spun aluminum dish, Downeast Microwave transverter with preamp and a two watt amplifier.
The Michigan contingent of Microwavers are planning to be operational across the state along Lake Michigan and Lake Erie making contacts with stations in Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and into Canada.
For more current input about times and where we will probably be located, check out my blog at http://w8iss.wordpress.com . I try to keep it as up to date as possible with the last update the Friday night before the contest weekend.
If you see someone out there with a dish along our lake shores or on top of a hill, stop and ask! We’ll even let you make your first microwave contact. If you have some questions, I can be contacted at w8iss@amsat.org.
MICHIGAN HAMFEST CALENDAR:
- Aug 21 Owosso
- Sept 11 Grand Rapids
- Sept 19 Adrian
- Oct 16 Holland
- Oct 17 Kalamazoo
PRB-1 UPDATE: Please check the PRB1 web page http://www.prb1michigan.org for the latest updates and details. We are asking all Michigan hams to write their local Representative to encourage support for HB5556. We have sample letters posted on the web pages; you can download a letter and add your own comments to personalize it for your representative. We also have a sample letter for clubs to use.
REPORTS: Here are ARPSC stats for July: Total number of ARES members: 1966, Number of EC/ROs reporting: 33, Drills, nets, tests and training sessions: 169, Public Service Events: 49, Emergencies: 82. Total Operator Hours: 5026, contributed dollar value: $91,026. ARES members should look at http://www.mi-arpsc.org/.
NETS: Michigan nets reporting for July: (in order of traffic count): QMN, MiTN, MACS, SEMTN, UPN, TMMTN, WSSBN, GLETN, Dist. 3 ARPSC, MIVHF, MiARPSC, Chelsea ARC. The Michigan NTS reported 3819 Operator hours worth $69,162 in July.
Station Activity Reports (SARs) for July, 2010: WB8WKQ 674, WB9JSR 621, KB8GT 312, K8LJG 235, K8RDN 206, K8KV 146, NX8A 98, KD8LZB 91, K8DD 86, K8VFZ 66, KD8CYK 61, WB8RCR 57, K8OLY 47, W8QZ 37, WD8BCS 4, N8UN 3.
Public Service Honor Roll Reports (PSHRs) for July, 2010: WB8RCR 296, K8OLY 226, KB8GT 215, WB9JSR 205, WD8BCS 196, K8RDN 165, K8DD 145, WB8WKQ 115, NX8A 90, KD8CYK 80, K8VFZ 80, K8KV 80, KD8LZB 80, KJ8O 79, W8QZ 57.
73 until next month,
Dale WA8EFK
Greetings Michigan Amateurs:
NEW MICHIGAN ASM for YOUTH: Simon Boehme KC8ZYD our Assistant Section Manager for Youth Activities leaves this post to pursue studies at the U of M this fall. We wish Simon well as he moves on to this new adventure, and thank him for his excellent service as ASM for Youth. Stepping into this position is Corey Bulock KD8BOQ. Corey has been very active in the Lansing area and brings his enthusiasm to the Michigan Youth program. Clubs can expect to hear news from Corey and begin to share in those facets of ham radio that attract younger individuals to this hobby. Our sincere congratulations go out to Simon and Corey.
QMN DIAMOND ANNIVERSARY: You will hear more about this event as time draws closer, as it is an important acknowledgement of a Michigan “First” and a celebration to honor one of the most successful traffic nets in the nation. The Michigan Net QMN celebrates its 75th anniversary on October 23. This is significant because the QMN was the first net in the nation to operate on a single spot frequency to handle radio traffic. “What a concept” and we will all learn more about the net’s history in next month’s Section News. In the meantime, plan now to join with us to celebrate the QMN’s Diamond Anniversary in Owosso on Oct 23.
CAMPOUT: The Michigan Summer Campout was an outstanding success. Attendance has improved over last year and through the efforts of Jay WB8TKL we enjoyed several excellent programs and a fox hunt. Both campers and “hotel-ers” enjoyed the hospitality, eats, fun and camaraderie at this year’s event. Plan ahead for next year, we hold the Michigan Summer Campout on the second weekend of July each year, it is open to all Michigan hams and their families.
MAKER FAIRE: The Maker Faire is on target and scheduled for July 31st and August 1st at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn. Amateur radio’s effort is spearheaded by James French W8ISS. Maker Faire is a two-day, family-friendly event that celebrates the Do-It-Yourself mindset. It is for creative, resourceful people of all ages and backgrounds who like to tinker and love to make things. Additional details can be found at http://makerfaire.com/. James has arranged with several area radio clubs to host interesting sessions for those visiting the event. Garden City Amateur Radio Club/Wayne County ARPSC – a vehicle with equipment installed and live demo of said equipment plus Grab and go kits; FARL (Tin Lizzy) – Satellite and a kit build; ARROW – an HF radio with a computer for Digital mode. Several other interesting activities remain to be confirmed at this writing.
MICHIGAN HAMFEST CALENDAR:
- Aug 7 Escanaba/UP
- Aug 8 Port Huron
- Aug 15 Lapeer
- Aug 21 Owosso
- Sept 11 Grand Rapids
- Sept 19 Adrian
- Oct 16 Holland
- Oct 17 Kalamazoo
PRB-1 UPDATE: Your PRB-1 Committee reports that we have a Senator who is going to sponsor our legislation in the State Senate. More details will follow as soon as the bill is presented. Please check the PRB1 web page http://www.prb1michigan.org for the latest updates and details. We are asking all Michigan hams to write their local Representative to encourage support for HB5556. We have sample letters posted on the web pages; you can download a letter and add your own comments to personalize it for your representative. We also have a sample letter for clubs to use.
REPORTS: Here are ARPSC stats for June: Total number of ARES members: 2029, Number of EC/ROs reporting: 27, Drills, nets, tests and training sessions: 176, Public Service Events: 75, Emergencies: 41. Total Operator Hours: 5285, contributed dollar value: $95,717. ARES members should look at http://www.mi-arpsc.org/. Just a brief reminder to ECs who are behind in monthly reports: here is a chance to play catch-up so you can still take advantage of the opportunity to have your group’s efforts reported in the annual EC Honor Roll at year’s end. The Honor Roll is comprised of those ARES Groups that had 100% monthly reporting during the calendar year. These FSD212 reports included with our Section Emergency Coordinator’s monthly report to the Michigan State Homeland Security/Emergency Management Division.
NETS: Michigan nets reporting for June: (in order of traffic count): QMN, MiTN, SEMTN, MIVHF, MACS, UPN, GLETN, MiDTN, WSSBN, TMMTN, MiARPSC, Red Cross Net of Greater Grand Rapids. The Michigan NTS reported 3835 Operator hours worth $69,452 in June.
Station Activity Reports (SARs) for for June, 2010: WB8WKQ 763, WB9JSR 624, KB8GT 375, K8LJG 237, K8RDN 205, KD8AAD 126, KD8LZB 112, K8KV 71, N8OLY 48, K8DD 44, WB8RCR 28, WD8USA 27, KD8ATI 6, WD8BCS 1.
Public Service Honor Roll Reports (PSHRs) for June, 2010: WB8RCR 239, K8RDN 235, WB9JSR 200, WD8USA 177, WD8BCS 155, N8OLY 151, WB8WKQ 110, K8VFZ 100, KB8GT 90, KJ8O 82, KD8LZB 80, K8KV 80, K8DD 78, W8QZ 66, KD8AAD 63, KC8PMX 18.
73 until next month,
Dale WA8EFK
Greetings Michigan Amateurs:
First, a special note from James French W8ISS:
Hello everyone.
The Maker Faire is scheduled for July 31st and August 1st at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn. I am sending this out to see if I can generate interest in SE Michigan radio clubs for helping out and manning a booth at one of this year’s biggest opportunities to publicize Amateur Radio and the hobby in the great State of Michigan.
To quote a comment from the main Maker Faire web page and to sum up what the Maker Faire is: “Maker Faire is a two-day, family-friendly event that celebrates the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) mindset. It is for creative, resourceful people of all ages and backgrounds who like to tinker and love to make things. There is so much to see, you will need 2 days to see it all!” Additional details can be found at http://makerfaire.com/.
I am looking to have strong presence for the event at the Henry Ford Museum that I hope will include the following:
- Fast-Scan ATV
- Microwave transverters
- Hands-on usage of the HF and 2m/70cm equipment
- A mini-fox hunt, pending approval
- Any QRP type kits that can be supplied to show that you don’t have to invest in a Commercial transceiver
- Antenna building – 2m and HF depending on interest
- Hand out of flyers and QSL cards made on site
- A kit building demonstration with hands on soldering technique
If you or your club is interested in helping man this booth, can supply material or equipment, or give some ideas on something that may have been missed, PLEASE contact W8ISS directly at the following Home phone – (313)386-0251
Primary email address – w8iss@wideopenwest.com
Secondary email address – w8iss@amsat.org
Thanks and 73, James French W8ISS
Field Day: It is getting close! Do not forget to make use of the Michigan Governor’s proclamation of the week of June 20 as Amateur Radio Awareness Week. Section Public Information Coordinator, Pat Mullet KC8RTW has Adobe PDF copies of the proclamation and can forward one to you for display at FD or for use with your local news media. You can reach Pat at kc8rtw@arrl.net.
HAMFEST Listings in Michigan for the next few months – Your ARRL Michigan Section staff plans to represent the League at these upcoming functions and we hope to see you there:
- June 19 Midland
- Jun 20 Monroe
- Aug 7 Escanaba/UP
- Aug 15 Lapeer
- Sept 11 Grand Rapids
- Sept 19 Adrian
- Oct 17 Kalamazoo
PRB-1 UPDATE. The effort continues with a slight revision to the bill offered by Rep Steven Lindberg. This will make the bill more palatable to municipal officials without diluting the intent. Please check the PRB1 web page http://www.prb1michigan.org for the latest updates and details. We are asking all Michigan hams to write their local Representative to encourage support for HB5556. We have sample letters posted on the web pages; you can download a letter and add your own comments to personalize it for your representative. We also have a sample letter for clubs to use.
REPORTS: Here are ARPSC stats for April: Total number of ARES members: 2044, Number of EC/ROs reporting: 37, Drills, nets, tests and training sessions: 226, Public Service Events: 81, Emergencies: 26. Total Operator Hours: 4481, contributed dollar value: $81,149. ARES members should look at http://www.mi-arpsc.org/.
NETS: Michigan nets reporting for April (in order of traffic count): MiTN, QMN, SEMTN, MACS, GLETN, UPN, MiDTN, WSSBN, TMMTN, Motor City, MiARPSC, Hiawatha, Red Cross Net of Greater Grand Rapids, Chelsea. The Michigan NTS reported 2600 Operator hours worth $47,086 in May.
Station Activity Reports (SARs) for May, 2010: WB8WKQ 833, WB9JSR 600, KB8GT 242, K8RDN 155, KD8LZB 128, K8DD 92, NX8A 71, KD8CYK 51, K8KV 40, KD8NJB 34, K8VFZ 32, WB8RCR 32, W8RNQ 19, WD8USA 18, KD8ATI 7.
Public Service Honor Roll Reports (PSHRs) for May, 2010: WB8RCR 397, K8RDN 280, WB9JSR 245, WD8USA 158, NX8A 130, WB8WKQ 110, KB8GT 110, K8DD 85, KD8CYK 80, K8KV 80, KD8LZB 80, K8VFZ 72, KD8NJB 64.
On a personal note, we send our thanks to everyone who inquired about our safety following an F2 tornado that hit Dundee on June 6. We were fortunate and only lost part of one tree and I was able to spend several hours working with the Monroe County ARPSC providing EMCOMM for the Red Cross and Salvation Army. Moving along its 10 mile path, the funnel passed through the northern part of the village about 1000 feet from of us. The community received severe damage to about 15 homes, minor to about 160 and slight damage to 1700. There were two individuals with serious injuries. A tornado also struck the eastern part of Monroe County along the Lake Erie shoreline, damaging homes and businesses and damaged electrical transmission lines connecting with the Fermi Nuclear plant.
73 until next month,
Dale WA8EFK
For Immediate Release:
(Lansing, MI, June 9, 2010) — Governor Jennifer Granholm has issued a proclamation recognizing the public service contributions of Michigan’s Amateur Radio Operators, as they prepare for their annual emergency communications exercise.
Amateur Radio (or “ham radio”) operators from throughout Michigan will be joining Hams across the nation, attempting to talk to people around the world using an amazing variety of differing methods. These range from the tried and true Morse code to voice and digital communications, even to using amateur satellites as they demonstrate their unique dedication to public service during Amateur Radio Week, June 20 – 27. Michigan’s local ham radio clubs will be active in their communities to raise awareness about Amateur Radio in preparation for the week’s culminating event, an annual emergency preparedness exercise called “Field Day.” Field Day is a 24-hour marathon event where the object is to contact as many other stations as possible during the contest, which will occur over the weekend of June 26 and 27. Field Day is sponsored by the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the national association for Amateur Radio.
Field Day is designed to test operators’ abilities to set up and operate portable stations under emergency conditions such as the loss of commercial electricity and normal avenues of communication. Most participants will set up their Field Day stations in city parks, on village greens or even in shopping mall parking lots. The event is a serious test of skill, and a contest for fun, too. During the weekend, the radio operators try to contact as many other Field Day stations as possible, simulating the on-air skills needed to assist state, regional and local officials as well as agencies such as the Salvation Army and the American Red Cross during an emergency. More than 37,000 Amateur Radio operators across the country participated in last year’s event, a far cry from the handful of hams that participated in the first Field Day back in 1933.
The public is invited to stop by and watch the proceedings, ask questions and will often get a chance to join in, making a few contacts themselves under the watchful eye of a friendly ham operator. Anyone interested in visiting a Field Day site may locate the site nearest you by using the online locator on the ARRL website at http://www.arrl.org/field-day-locator
With more than 650,000 Amateur Radio operators in the United States and more than 2.5 million worldwide, the Amateur Radio hobby is alive and well. And best of all, anyone can become a ham. Information on how to become involved in Amateur Radio is available from the American Radio Relay League, 225 Main Street, Newington, CT 06111 or by calling 1-800-32-NEW HAM. The URL for the ARRL’s home page on the World Wide Web is www.arrl.org.
###
Proclamation Text
Certificate of Proclamation
On behalf of the citizens of Michigan, I, Governor Jennifer M. Granholm, do hereby proclaim the week of June 20, 2010, Amateur Radio Awareness Week.
Whereas, Amateur radio provides a bridge between people, societies and countries through the sharing of ideas; and,
Whereas, Throughout its history, amateur radio operators have provided countless hours of community service without compensation; and,
Whereas, There are over 20,000 amateur radio operators in the state of Michigan and approximately 85 amateur radio clubs that have demonstrated their value in public assistance by providing, at their own expense, emergency radio communications; and,
Whereas, Amateur radio operators provide services to many of the state’s emergency response organizations such as FEMA, the Michigan department of Human Services, and the Office of Emergency Management, and also serve as weather spotters for the Skywarn program, which is part of the National Weather Service; and,
Whereas, This year’s Amateur radio Field Day will be a 24-hour emergency encampment exercise and demonstration of the skills of amateur radio and readiness to provide communications;
Now, Therefore, be it Resolved, That I, Jennifer M. Granholm, governor of the state of Michigan, do hereby proclaim the week of June 20, 2010, Amateur Radio Awareness Week in Michigan. I encourage the residents of this state to listen up and to turn on their radios in observance of this week and its activities.
[signed]
Jennifer M. Granholm
Governor
Greetings Michigan Amateurs:
Field Day: As we approach one of ham radio’s biggest events, we all should look at the wonderful Public Relations opportunity that is before us. This is a time to make contact with the local media, both print and broadcast to let them know how ham radio is involved in your community. Ask your public officials to visit, alert the media that they will be there and of course, let the public officials know the media will attend. A display for visitors to view and perhaps a chance to “talk on the radio”, might afford a chance to enlist some more into the ranks of amateur radio. Your clubs Public Information Officer (PIO) should be well entrenched in the PR aspect right now. There is enough lead time to make the press contacts and meet with the reporters in advance of FD and clue them in on the outstanding aspects of what they will see on their visit to your FD site. If you do not have a club PIO, now is the time to have one appointed. PIO information and training are available from ARRL HQ. You may contact our Michigan Section Public Information Coordinator, Pat Mullet KC8RTW and get the ball rolling. kc8trw@arrl.net Pat can get your PIO started with some excellent guidelines and information. Do not forget to make use of the Michigan Governor’s proclamation of the week of June 20 as Amateur Radio Awareness Week. Pat has Adobe PDF copies of the proclamation and can forward one to you for display at FD.
Personal updates: With the rollout of the new ARRL Web Pages, I would like to suggest this is the time for all ARRL Members to verify that their personal information is on file correctly. You may verify your e-mail forwarding address is correct and insure other select information is accurate. Here is a link: http://www.arrl.org/myarrl-account-management.
Club Presidents: Please verify that your club’s information is correctly on file at ARRL HQ. On a recent club emailing to clubs we found that almost 20% of those emails bounced because the key contact person had not updated his/her e-mail address. Failing to do this may mean you club can be missing important information and announcements. Please take a few minutes to make sure your Club’s information is up to date by going to the club search page, then click on your Club Name, and submitting an update to HQ.
Fox Hunting: If you or your club members has an interest in transmitter hunting, check out the website Michigan Fox Hunter. This new web site was created to help Michigan area Fox Hunters share information about their events and it opens opportunities for local club hunts to expand by including visiting teams to participate in Fox Hunts across the state. Transmitter hunting is always a fun event and it tests our skills in technical details, planning, strategy, endurance and a host of other areas. It can be an event pitting individuals against each other or teams against teams. Ideas and suggestions for forming Fox Hunts are posted.
PRB-1 UPDATE. Please check the PRB1 web page http://www.prb1michigan.org for the latest updates and details. We are asking all Michigan hams to write their local Representative to encourage support for HB5556. We have sample letters posted there, you can download a letter and add your own comments to personalize it for your representative. We also have a sample letter for clubs to use.
- June 5 Hudsonville
- June 6 Chelsea
- June 19 Midland
- Jun 20 Monroe
- Aug 7 Escanaba/UP
- Aug 15 Lapeer
- Sept 11 Grand Rapids
- Sept 19 Adrian
- Oct 17 Kalamazoo
REPORTS: Here are ARPSC stats for April: Total number of ARES members: 1976, Number of EC/ROs reporting: 37, Drills, nets, tests and training sessions: 208, Public Service Events: 53. Total Operator Hours: 4028, contributed dollar value: $72,943. ARES members should look at http://www.mi-arpsc.org/. Here you can see what your county is doing simply by clicking on your county’s name. The report details each month’s activity, the type of events, a line graph displays historical values and pie charts then display your group’s effort by category. This is some great work by our SEC WB8RCR.
NETS: Michigan nets reporting for April (in order of traffic count): MiTN, SEMTN, MIVHF, MACS, UPN, TMMTN, GLETN, WSSBN, MiDTN, Motor City, Hiawatha, Red Cross Net of Greater Grand Rapids, MiARPSC, Chelsea. The Michigan NTS reported 2565 Operator hours worth $46,452 in April.
Station Activity Reports (SARs) for April, 2010: WB8WKQ 774, WB9JSR 723, K8LJG 255, K8RDN 247, KB8GT 185, K8DD 149, KD8LZB 106, K8VFZ 62, KD8CYK 43, NX8A 39, KD8HPF 30, WB8RCR 29, WD8USA 29, KD8ATI 10, WD8BCS 9.
73 until next month,
Dale WA8EFK
Greetings Michigan Amateurs:
As a member of the ARRL Michigan Section, you have the opportunity to give ham radio a boost. Michigan is the 5th largest ARRL Section in terms of members and one of the most active. That is because of people such as you who take an active roll in securing ham radio’s future. Whether it is because of your technical or operating skills and habits, participating with clubs, helping get new hams licensed or serving on a ham radio board, working group or committee or any of a gazillion other attributes. Your skills can be a valuable asset to all of us. You can look at the new ARRL web pages http://www.arrl.org/field-organization to see what areas may be of interest to you. In particular, we are in need of Public Information Officers (PIO)– every club and ARES organization should have some appointed to this position. Your PIO is often the key to insuring that your organization gets fair and honest publicity when you are supporting local events or holding Field Day. Local Government Liaison (LGL)is another appointment that should be assigned within every local radio club. Your LGL can be a person affiliated with your community government who can monitor local ordinances that may affect ham radio and/or otherwise insure that ham radio is viewed as a valuable community asset. If you have an interest, let us know. Training is available to further assist in each of the available categories. Please look them all over and click on the “On line applications form” if you want more information.
The Auto State Young Ladies, TASYLS have elected officers for the coming year: Grace Switzer N8NJT is the President, Linda Nordstrand W1LMN is Vice President and Sylvia Hutchinson, K8SYL, is Secretary/Treasurer. YLs: Contact Sylvia K8SYL@K8CH.net if you are interested in participating in TASYLS – a radio club for YLs! You can check out their web page at http://www.tasyl.net/.
PRB-1 UPDATE. Please check the PRB1 web page http://www.prb1michigan.org for the latest updates and details. We are asking all Michigan hams to write their local Representative to encourage support for HB5556. We have sample letters posted there, you can download a letter and add your own comments to personalize it for your representative. We also have a sample letter for clubs to use. I find over my travels visiting clubs and hamfests across the state, that most have already stepped up to sending a letter to several of their representatives all signed by the club membership. Has your club done this? Thanks to all who have!!
HAMFEST Listings in Michigan for the next few months – Your ARRL Michigan Section staff plans to represent the League at these upcoming functions and we hope to see you there:
- Apr 17 Milford
- May 1 Cadillac
- June 5 Hudsonville
- June 6 Chelsea
- June 19 Midland
- Jun 20 Monroe
- Aug 7 Escanaba/UP
- Sept 19 Adrian
- Oct 17 Kalamazoo
REPORTS: Here are ARPSC stats for March: Total number of ARES members: 1986, Number of EC/ROs reporting: 37, Drills, nets, tests and training sessions: 248, Public Service Events: 60, Emergency Operations: 17, Total number of ARES operations: 325. Total Operator Hours: 4101, contributed dollar value: $74,265. ARES members should look at http://www.mi-arpsc.org/. Here you can see what your county is doing simply by clicking on your county’s name. The report details each month’s activity, the type of events, a line graph displays historical values and pie charts then display your group’s effort by category. This is some great work by our SEC WB8RCR.
NETS: Michigan nets reporting for March (in order of traffic count): QMN, MiTN, MACS, SEMTN, UPN, MiDTN, WSSBN, TMMTN, GLETN, Motor City, MiARPSC, Hiawatha, Red Cross Net of Greater Grand Rapids. The Michigan NTS reported 2379 Operator hours worth $43,084 in March.
Station Activity Reports (SARs) for March, 2010: K8DD 12441, WB9JSR 645, WB8WKQ 633, KB8GT 285, K8LJG 237, K8RDN 223, K8VFZ 62, W8QZ 52, WB8RCR 45, KD8CYK 36, WD8USA 27, KD8HPF 26, KD8LZB 21, WD8BCS 16.
Public Service Honor Roll Reports (PSHRs) for March, 2010: NX8A 310, WB8RCR 285, WD8USA 212, WB9JSR 200, K8RDN 190, WD8BCS 146, KB8GT 130, K8VFZ 110, WB8WKQ 100, K8DD 86, KD8CYK 76, W8QZ 73, KD8HPF 30.
73 until next month and remember Hank, this is still April.
Dale WA8EFK
