Wednesday, February 15, 2017

February Edition of the Ohio Section Journal

In this issue:

-> SKYWARN TRAINING
-> SEVERE WEATHER SYMPOSIUM
-> THE TECHNICAL COORDINATOR
-> AFFILIATED CLUB COORDINATOR REPORT
-> NATIONAL PARKS ON THE AIR
-> THE SECTION EMERGENCY COORDINATOR
-> THE PUBLIC INFORMATION COORDINATOR
-> THE SECTION TRAFFIC MANAGER
-> OUT AND ABOUT
-> FROM THE EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH ASM
-> ARES TRAINING UPDATE
-> LET'S TALK
-> THE OFFICIAL OBSERVER COORDINATOR
-> FIELD DAY
-> SPECIAL EVENT STATIONS IN OHIO
-> OHIO HAMFEST CALENDAR

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SKYWARN TRAINING – WHERE CAN I GET IT..

Hey Gang, it’s time to start thinking of either renewing, or obtaining your Skywarn training for 2017. Do you know where the training is being made available?

Here’s are links to all weather offices that cover Ohio. Depending on where you live will depend on which weather office you’ll want to look at. It’s your choice as to which area you want to go to, but just be sure to get that training in!






You can also find these links on the Ohio Section ARES webpage under Skywarn too 

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SEVERE WEATHER SYMPOSIUM
(from Michael Schulsinger, N8QHV)

The Ohio State University MetClub is hosting the 21st Severe Weather Symposium.  The symposium is free, though there is a charge for parking at the Ohio Union on OSU's main campus. 

The 2017 symposium is scheduled for Friday, March 24th.  Lunch is available in the Union, or at restaurants across High Street.

I have attended most of these and only regretted one year - the year a tornado outbreak plowed across northern Kentucky, southern Indiana and southern Ohio during the conference!  The link to RSVP is http://u.osu.edu/metclub .

Hope to see everyone there!

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THE TECHNICAL COORDINATOR
Jeff Kopcak – TC

Hey gang,

On Sunday, February 12, I connected up with the Central Ohio Radio Club located in, you guessed it, central Ohio!  They have a Tech Net most Sunday evenings at 7:30pm.  They asked me to be the featured guest on one of their nets.  Some of you might realize this causes a problem since I live in the Cleveland area.  Enter the technical side of the hobby and IRLP.  IRLP (Internet Radio Linking Project) is a service that connects amateur stations together using Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).  Different from other ham radio VoIP services, IRLP requires the Internet link be connected to an RF link, usually a repeater or simplex node.  Using the LEARA 146.880 repeater in Cleveland (a club which I’m Vice President and a bunch of other stuff) and Internet linking technology, I was able to join their net as if I were local to Columbus.

The CORC Tech Net contacted me looking for information on technical resources available in the section.  I got the chance to do an introduction about myself – we’ll quickly move past that ;)  Then I talked about how the technical resources fit into the ARRL organizational structure.  If you’re new or haven’t looked at it before, at the top are the ARRL Officers: president, first & second vice presidents, COO, etc.  The ARRL Board Committees include the Executive Committee, Administration & Finance, Programs & Services, Public Relations, DX, LoTW, etc.  Then Divisions, of which there are 15 total, with Director and Vice Director positions.  In Ohio, we’re included in the Great Lakes Division.  Finally, our section is the Ohio Section where Scott - N8SY is our fearless leader and Section Manager (SM).

Below the SM are their appointees who may or may not include (depending on the section): Section Traffic Manager (STM), Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC), Assistant Section Manager (ASM), Official Observer Coordinator (OOC), Technical Coordinator (TC), Affiliated Club Coordinator (ACC), Public Information Coordinator (PIC), State Government Liaison (SGL), Section Youth Coordinator (SYC).  If you’re reading this, the people above and below me in this Journal make up this list.  I won’t spend too much time here as details can be found on the “About ARRL” page at http://www.arrl.org/about-arrl.

As the Technical Coordinator, I’m responsible for the Technical Specialists.  The Specialists and I are here to promote technical advances and experimentation in the hobby.  We encourage amateurs in the section to share their technical achievements with others in QST, at club meetings, in club newsletters, hamfests, and conventions.  We’re available to assist program committees in finding or providing suitable programs for local club meetings, ARRL hamfests, and conventions in the section.  When called upon, serve as advisors in RFI issues and work with ARRL officials and appointees for technical advice.

The Technical Specialists really make all this happen.  In the Ohio Section, there are about 20 qualified and competent Specialists willing to help.  They meet the obligation of advancing the radio art bestowed to us by the FCC.  The TS’s support the Section in two main areas of responsibility: Radio Frequency Interference and technical information.  RFI can include harmful interference (interference that seriously degrades, obstructs, or repeatedly interrupts a radio communication service) from bad insulators on telephone poles to grow lights and poorly made transformers, RFI direction finding, or assist in locating bozo stations.  Technical information is everything else from building antennas, repeaters and controllers, digital, computers, networking, and embedded devices.

How can we help?  The knowledge and abilities of your Technical Specialists are quite impressive.  Here are some examples of the knowledge the Technical Specialists provide:
  * Documentation and training.
  * VHF/UHF portable operation.
  * Antennas (fixed, portable, and mobile).
  * Batteries and emergency power.
  * Experts in RFI from powerline and consumer devices.
  * VHF/UHF/SHF contesting.
  * Experts in test equipment.
  * Automotive electronic compatibility (EMC) and interference (EMI).
  * Repeaters.
  * Digital modes (D-STAR, DMR, Fusion, P25, APRS & IGates.  HF: MT63, JT65, Olivia, PSK).
  * Computers and networking (VoIP – AllStar link, software engineering, embedded systems – Raspberry Pi, Arduino).
  * Society of Broadcast Engineers (SBE) members knowledgeable in interference problems.

This impressive list of qualifications is available to all in the Ohio Section.  Looking for help in one of these areas?  Feel free to contact myself.  My contact info is near my picture and on the arrl-ohio.org website.  I’ll try to assist or get some more information from you and put you in touch with an appropriate Technical Specialist.  One of the Specialists might hear a plea for help and reach out to you as well.  If you would like to add your talents, check out the description at the ARRL site: http://www.arrl.org/technical-specialist and talk to Scott or myself.

Thanks again to CORC (http://corc.us/) for inviting me as the featured guest on their Tech Net and LEARA (http://www.leara.org/) for the use of the IRLP node to make this connection possible.

That’s about it for this month.  Stay tuned for next month’s article, got something good planned.  Thanks for reading and 73… de Jeff – K8JTK

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THE AFFILIATED CLUBS COORDINATOR
John Myers, KD8MQ - ACC

Hello everyone, here we are; another month closer to springtime. I’m itching to get started on outdoor projects. The winter wasn’t a friend to my tri-bander, so that is job one.

I saw last week that the Entry Level License Committee at the league is looking at recommending either changes to the existing technician license, or a new, simpler license. I know this is a subject that raises strong opinions on either side of the discussion, so please, surf over to the league website and let your voice be heard, by filling out a short survey. You can find it at http://www.arrl.org/license-1.

Next, as I was reading the January issue of CQ Magazine, one article in particular caught my eye. The article, “Growing Ham Radio: Are We Placing Emphasis On the Wrong Objective?” by K8HSY is on pg. 42.
Space prevents me from reprinting the article here, but the writer makes some excellent points. One is the importance of elmering to assist our new Hams in getting on the air, and enjoying Amateur Radio. He also points out that while we have lots of new licensees, not enough is being done to get them active, and on the air. If you have access the January issue of CQ, I recommend giving this article a look.

On the same subject, here’s something that crossed my desk the other day. It’s from the January issue of the Monday Morning Memo.

The editor, John, WA8KIW reported on several clubs who had held licensing classes recently. This resulted in many new Hams in the South Central Ohio area. Following up on that is John’s “sermon”. I’ll reprint it here.

THE SERMON--Now the challenge is for us “old timers” to help them get on the air and active. Be an Elmer.  Give them advice and assistance finding equipment that meets their needs.  Even lend extra items for them to experience.  Don’t ignore them when you hear them on the air.  Give them a call and welcome them to the airwaves.  And if they make mistakes or use CB or public service terms, don’t go off on them.  Remember, you were once new yourself!  And for you “newbies”, even if you got the license and a radio only for emergency purposes, get on the air and learn how to use the radio and the proper procedures.  It serves no purpose for you to have gone through the effort to become licensed and then not use it.  You will have nothing more than an expensive paperweight if during an emergency you try to use an improperly programed radio or the batteries are dead.  Sermons Over!

The Monday Morning Memo is a weekly newsletter, based out of Highland, Ohio. Its focus is not on any one club, but rather on Ham Radio in that region. The idea of a regional newsletter was so interesting that I copied the idea, and started something similar in NE Ohio. If you’d like to be added to the mailing list, you can contact John at highlandara@yahoo.com.

As Scott, N8SY says, let’s switch gears. Tom Gallagher’s column in the March issue of QST (pg. 11) really caught my attention. It is entitled is “Get On The air With History”. He leads off with a story about stopping at the Minute Man National historic Park, and continues onto the story of the 95th anniversary of the first shortwave reception across the Atlantic.

Obviously it isn’t real tough to figure out what these two events have to do with one another. His article reminded me of a cool club activity idea. That’s right, Special Event Stations. They are good for not only the groups who put them on, but they also help to raise awareness of the event. There’s a wealth of Special Event possibilities all around us. Just pick one and begin planning. You can register your operation on the league website at www.arrl.org/special-events-application.

So what events do we commemorate? Well, Here in Alliance, we do a special event each year commemorating the birthplace of the state flower; the Scarlet Carnation. We’ve also done events commemorating the birthplace of Taylorcraft Aviation.  When I think of Special Event Stations, The Cambridge ARA comes to mind. During their 100th Anniversary, they conducted a special event operation each month for a year.

I know there’s a lot more of you out there conducting events, and to you I say good job!

And that wraps it up for another month. See you next time.


73 DE KD8MQ

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NATIONAL PARKS ON THE AIR
John Myers, KD8MQ - ACC

This is my final NPOTA column in the Section journal. It’s been a fun year finding new NPOTA stuff to write about. I hope you have enjoyed reading it. But, with NPOTA is finished, and there’s a lot more stuff out there to enjoy.

The NPOTA website will be online for a few months yet, and you can order your chaser, activator Honor roll certificates for a while yet. The NPOTA Swag available via the ARRL Store is definitely on a “While supplies last” basis, so get your orders in today.

NPOTA wrap-up article – The NPOTA wrap-up is online as a free article at www.arrl.org/this-month-in-qst. It is also available in the March issue of QST.

Also, it has been announced that the league has no plans to dismantle the NPOTA Facebook group. So, in the words of Norm, W3IZ, “Party On”!

I’d like to congratulate Dennis, AI8P, and Eric, WD8RIF, for being the number 1 & 2 activators in Ohio. I know that they were running neck & neck right up to the end.

In the chaser column, we have Doug, KD8F, and Doug (Sorry if I butchered your name) WB8TLI for winding up as number 1 & 2 in Ohio.

And that is all I have this month. 


73,
John, KD8MQ

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THE SECTION EMERGENCY COORDINATOR
Stan Broadway, N8BHL

The 2017 ARES VHF Contest Results

The 2017 ARES VHF Simplex contest had a runaway winner!  N8WAC, Tony Everhardt from Walbridge in Wood County, just south of Toledo, racked up an impressive score of 5,258 having worked 22 counties!  This may not be a surprise to Tony, since he is a dedicated VHF DX-er (with a nice antenna system to boot.)   As you might expect, ‘iron in the sky’ makes a big difference.

But Tony wasn’t the only one with an impressive score. The next three top scorers- in Shelby, Hardin, and Medina- all placed over a thousand points on the board and two were also in double-digit county contacts.  Eight stations operated in the digital mode. Four were portable, five operated from an EOC.
Call
County
Score
Counties
Total
N8WAC
Wood
239
22
5258
N8KZL
Shelby
174
10
1740
W8VMV
Hardin
142
8
1136
W8EOC
Medina
85
13
1105
K8GDT
Medina
145
5
725
KD8FHY
Medina
161
3
483
N8MPF
Cuyahoga
55
7
385
N8DCA
Delaware
74
5
370
WO3X
Summit
58
5
290
AC8UJ
Hamilton
95
3
285
KC8PUW
Coshocton
67
4
268
AA8BN
Coshocton
81
3
243
W8VVL
Hamilton
106
2
212
AD8Y
Cuyahoga
19
5
95
N8BHL
Delaware
13
5
65
AB8SV
Coshocton
31
2
62
KC8ZQT
Coshocton
19
1
19
KD8ZLD
Hamilton
18
1
18

There were other stations operating, some making fairly good DX for 2 meters.  If I did not receive your score, I apologize… I had some email headaches during the period.

Band conditions were interesting. From Delaware I listened to two Medina stations who would be solid for five minutes, then fade, then come right back. As the county numbers showed, those conditions applied across the state.  I hope you had fun with this event, and I hope it helped you map your coverage area and potential for application in a true emergency!

And Now What?

ARES in Ohio is not a one-man show. It’s not a ten-person show either. It belongs to you! We are no better than what each individual member contributes- and your contributions were immense last year! On Sunday January 29th, all DEC’s, our ASEC’s, OHDEN and W8SGT team members sat down to plan and discuss where we stand. I can’t thank them enough- a couple drove through ice and as much as 10” of snow, several had two plus hours of driving. Their dedication shows how much they value ARES. You have some great leadership there!

A brief outline:
Issue 1: Complacency.  Our members are busy people, and since we don’t have wildfires, hurricanes and the like, we aren’t exactly busy with fulfilling emergency activity. On the other hand, we may be too busy- bicycle rides, marathons and other activities can bring burnout and schedule conflict. Whatever the reasons, our task is to figure out how to battle complacency—because that is a major enemy to success when a major event actually rears its head. The answer is simple, “Do something!”   Another great idea, for DEC’s and EC’s especially: real personal contact (imagine that!)  The telephone can be used to keep people involved. So we’re working on “do something” and “do something different”.

Issue 2: ARESMAT. This has not brought in ‘waves’ of volunteers, so Matt KD8TTE has re-structured the concept to provide positive results!  We intend to offer training and operator certification to assure that our state’s top operators can carry the “ARESMAT” credentials. It will be something worth working toward- and the results will produce a cadre of talented people we need.

Issue 3: OHDEN.  We discussed at length some of the band conditions, mode bottlenecks and other aspects of this very important service.  The bigger concern is how to reduce the lengthy check-in times for the net and still be a viable statewide service. One concept Gary and Eldon are going to work on is that of a county station login.  Just so happens it’s in keeping with OSERP, but the thinking is that ONE station per county would log into the net, after taking logins from any other stations within their own county. We also discussed a rollcall type login rather than blanket calls. Another suggestion is that each district create a digital team, able to handle and distribute local traffic, and interact with OHDEN as the state level.  Gary and Eldon will soon have an operations manual ready for distribution.

Issue 4: When the bands are no more.  Let’s face it- our HF bands stink. And they’ll get worse as the sunspot cycle continues toward bottoming out. Our state nets don’t even need to try 40, and 80 goes long before net time.  Out of state stations can hear everyone, and have helped relay, but that doesn’t give me a warm and fuzzy in case we need solid statewide comms. So what to do?  The answer- I don’t know yet.  We talked about 6 meters, but that presents a major question: SSB (horizontal antennas) or FM (vertical antennas but some infrastructure and repeaters exist.)  And is that even workable? We would have to relay and regionalize. The same could be said of two meters.  Another notion is that while higher HF bands are gone, 160 is becoming absolutely stunning- with solid copy throughout the state. So do we need to recommend you go out and buy 530’ of wire and an acre or two to hang it?  The jury is still out- and I welcome your suggestions!  In the meantime, we’re also considering digital voice modes and other possibilities including WinLink. We need some answers soon!

ARES will be facing some challenges!  While all this goes on, we each must stay prepared, stay trained (those FEMA courses are important!), and keep in touch with each other and our agencies- because our services can be requested at any minute. 

Stay ready, stay warm, stay equipped for the weather, and have some fun!

For the latest Section Emergency Coordinator’s monthly report go to:  http://arrl-ohio.org/SEC/notes.html


73, Stan, N8BHL

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THE PUBLIC INFORMATION COORDINATOR
John Ross, KD8IDJ

College Amateur Radio Clubs “All Hams on Deck”

Over the past couple of weeks I’ve talked to representatives of several college Amateur Radio clubs only find out that radio, at the university level, is not quite as popular as football, basketball, hockey and sometimes volleyball!!

I guess it’s no surprise but it does make the latest effort by the ARRL to strengthen university radio clubs all that more important.

There are two significant problems facing university Amateur Radio clubs…the first is graduation! It’s a pretty “good” problem to have though when students are actually going to college and graduating with a degree! While it takes a toll on membership turnover it speaks volumes to the dedication of the students and their determination to complete their degrees.

The second problem that college radio clubs have is visibility…real and virtual. Most campus radio clubs “shacks” are located in remote areas out of the mainstream of campus life. After all, ham radio is not quite as attractive as a multi-million dollar sports complex. The virtual reality of the campus radio clubs lies with college of discipline that is supporting the club. Colleges of Engineering are usually the biggest sponsors but often the clubs fall under a college that is light years removed from anything remotely connected to Amateur Radio.

As amateurs I think we can help on all levels by offering our expertise, our time and our knowledge to help bridge the gaps and keep the clubs running and visible. If you’re an alumni of a university that has, or had, a ham radio club…reach out…find other alumni or friends who can make a contribution. Offer to loan, find or work on equipment so the clubs are “air worthy” and their members can engage in hands-on experiences…not just talk. Invite club members to your club’s meetings so they can make new friends, share their interests and maybe latch on to some renewed inspiration. Write about the college radio clubs in your newsletters or let them write a column for your newsletter then make sure the campus student newspaper gets a copy!

We need an “all hams on deck” approach to help Amateur Radio survive and grow at the college level. We also might need to make sure area high schools are not left out of the loop. Colleges can “recruit” high school hams so they don’t get lost in the transition to higher education.

You’ll see my stories in a few weeks about the campus radio clubs. Share yours as well. Together we can use our collective power to amplify the status of Amateur Radio everywhere!!!!


The 2017 Ohio Section Newsletter Contest

Not counting what’s left of February…there are only 4 months left to submit your entry for the 2017 Ohio Section Newsletter Contest!!

I know it sounds unbelievable but time goes fast! If you send me your newsletter every month you’re in and don’t have to worry. But it takes two newsletters to qualify so make sure you get them to me by June 30th.

It takes the judges sometimes a couple of days to make their decisions and then the results are sealed in a locked repeater cavity until our meeting in early August!!!

I’ve a got a ton of newsletters already so we’re off to a great start. Keep them coming.

Here’s a link to the rules..  http://arrl-ohio.org/pic_page/pic.html


One More Digital Format To Try

Just about the time I’m getting used to programming my new DMR radio…I get an email from a friend telling me yet another digital mode…JT65-HF.

Apparently I’m in the dark about this mode so I had to do some research…and maybe our Technical Coordinator can shoot me some info.

JT65-HF is a low power digital mode invented by Joe Taylor K1JT. From what I’ve learned so far it’s usually done with 5 watts…although some hams has used as  much as 40 wants…but even when the signal is bad the message can be decoded.

It never ceases to amaze me all of the different options Amateur Radio has to offer.

That’s it for now….


73,

John, KD8IDJ

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THE SECTION TRAFFIC MANAGER
David Maynard, WA3EZN - STM

February news 2017
When it comes to traffic handling there is the right way and the wrong way to do almost everything.  When it comes to news for the Ohio Section Journal almost everything has been published in the Journal about traffic handling or is currently on the Ohio Section website www.arrl-ohio.org.  So I will list the Ohio HF traffic nets and a few tips then move on to other things.

Buckeye Net Early – CW – WB8YLO NET MANAGER – 3580 at 6:45 PM
Buckeye Net Late – CW – WB9LBI NET MANAGER – 3590 at 10:00 PM
Ohio Slow Net –         CW – W8OLO NET MANAGER – 3.53535 at 6 PM
Ohio Single Sideband Net – Phone – KC8WH NET MANAGER –
     OSSBN Frequency and times - 3972.5 at 10:30 AM, 4:15 PM and 6:45 PM

But first a few traffic handling tips:
If using push-to-talk operation when transmitting a message, un-key the microphone often so the receiving station may break in if necessary.

Remember to send your message slow enough for the receiving station to copy your message on paper. The number ZERO (0) is not the letter "O". It is pronounced as ZERO and not as OH or OWE. The letter "O" phonetically is OSCAR.

Use pro-words to identify what is coming next in a message being transmitted:
FIGURE or FIGURES identifies the next piece of information as a number or group of numbers. INITIAL (s) or LETTERS-GROUP identifies the next item as a single letter group or group of letters (e.g. an acronym such as ARES) spelled out using the Phonetic Alphabet.

I SPELL identifies the next word as having a unique spelling or is a proper name, Kristine I SPELL, Kelo Romeo India Sierra Tango India November Echo, Kristine.

Breaks in the text identified by the letter "X" are always sent as INITIAL X-RAY. The net control station's operating frequency is always the correct frequency for all members of the net, regardless if it is not the normal net frequency.  You should alway zero beat to the NCS frequency.

The net control station will always direct the station receiving traffic to call the station sending the traffic.
Enough said for now let’s move on to other things.  If you are going to participate during an emergency you need to be prepared and also have your family protected.  Here is where to get some help.

The Ohio Emergency Management Agency website is http://ema.ohio.gov/index.aspx.
There is so much useful information on this website about safety and preparedness that it is impossible to list it all here.  I suggest you use the link and see for yourself.  Also on the website is this announcement:

Notice of Funding Opportunity

Ohio Emergency Management Agency (Ohio EMA)

Security Grants for Nonprofits (H.B. No. 384)

Period of Performance: April 19, 2017 -- June 30, 2018

The Ohio EMA Security Grants for Nonprofits program provides funding to nonprofit organizations for eligible security improvements that assist the organization in preventing, preparing for, and responding to acts of terrorism. Deadline for submission: March 15, 2017. Additional details can be found at :

Moving on to this website: https://www.nasa.gov/
This is another interesting website for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration NASA.  NASA is the only federal agency responsible for its people’s safety and well-being here on Earth and in space and has a longtime commitment to safety and emergency preparedness. In 2011 NASA Administrator Charles F. Bolden, sent an email to all NASA employees encouraging them to prepare themselves for potential emergencies such as fires, floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, terrorist attacks and other unforeseen catastrophes.

This website is worth checking out.  There are many photos available plus information about some of the tests done in space. 

Moving on to this website: http://www.redcross.org
This is one of our served agencies where 90% of the Red Cross workforce are volunteers. In February  2017 the American Red Cross responded to disasters across the entire country including the tornado damage in southern Louisiana and flooding out west. More than 360 Red Cross disaster staff and volunteers are deployed to multiple response scenes, helping people impacted by these emergency situations. 

Meanwhile many areas in the Northeast were hit with heavy snowfall, and were experiencing potential blizzard conditions and power outages. Winter storm warnings have been posted by the National Weather Service for all of southern New England, eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and parts of Delaware and Maryland. Boston, Providence, Hartford, New York City and Philadelphia are also included. 

The Red Cross provides safety and survival information on its website.  Check it out.
The Official website of the Department of Homeland Security is: https://www.ready.gov/
The Department of Homeland Security offers a free 2017 National Seasonal Preparedness Messaging Calendar and the key messages provides you with content to promote preparedness all year. Stay safe by learning how to be prepared for floods, fires, tornadoes and other extreme emergencies.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has made files for the Ready Campaign's publications available to the public to download at no cost. As a result, organizations can reproduce these materials to help expand the reach with this critical information.  You can find these publications at https://www.fema.gov/.
The Emergency Management Institute (EMI) offers self-paced courses designed for people who have emergency management responsibilities and the general public. All are offered free-of-charge to those who qualify for enrollment. To get a complete listing of courses, click on Course List link above.

Independent Study Exams now require a FEMA Student Identification (SID) Number. If you do not yet have a SID, register for one today: https://cdp.dhs.gov/femasid.

FEMA courses is100.b, is200.b, is700.a and is800.b are required for involvement in any emergency event.  If you have not yet completed these free online course I urge you to do so soon.  Use this link to find the courses under Independent Study at this website: https://training.fema.gov/is/crslist.aspx

As Scott N8SY says every Ohio ARES member needs to have at least these 4 basic courses completed. Why are these courses so important? The simple answer is this - we need these courses as part of our requirement for our state credentialing system. As you know, the State of Ohio has a credentialing system that we are a big part of, and to obtain your credential when the time is needed, means that you need to have these courses completed and turned in to the database. So, without these courses being completed, you won’t be able to get credentialed!

Along the same lines is the upcoming Skywarn Weather Spotter Training sessions.  If you are not yet certified as a trained weather spotter or you need a renewal course you can find information and registration information at http://skywarn.org/local-skywarn-groups/ohio/.

That's it for now.

For the latest Section Traffic Monthly Report go to:   http://arrl-ohio.org/stm/stm.html

73
David WA3EZN
Ohio Section Traffic Manager

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OUT AND ABOUT
Lyn Alfman, N8IMW - Assistant Section Manager

I attended the Sunday Creek Amateur Radio Federation Hamfest in Nelsonville on January 15. 

Sonny and I went on a cruise, so we were out of state between January 21 and January 28.  Therefore, we were too tired to go to the TUSCO Hamfest the next morning. 

While we were gone, the Cambridge Amateur Radio Association (CARA) held nominations for 2017 officers at its January 28 meeting.  The election of officers will take place at the February meeting.

Don’t forget Mansfield’s Mid-Winter Hamfest in February 19.

Remember to be “Radio Active”!


’73 Lyn, N8IMW  

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FROM THE EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH ASM
Anthony Luscre, K8ZT
 
The ARRL has announced its 2017 Teachers Institute on Wireless Technology schedule. This summer's sessions will be held July 17-21 in Dayton, Ohio, and July 24-28 at ARRL Headquarters in Connecticut.

The deadline to apply is May 1.

These expenses-paid, intensive professional development opportunities offer educators training and resources to explore wireless technology in the classroom using Amateur Radio.

Topics covered in the TI-1 Introduction to Wireless Technology include basic electronics, radio science, microcontroller programming, and basic robotics.

Educators in the TI-1 class will also learn about Amateur Radio, take part in a hidden transmitter hunt, and see demonstrations of Amateur Radio satellite communication. Students will build and program their own simple robots. An Amateur Radio license is not required to take the TI-1 class. 
For more information, please visit-  www.arrl.org/ti    or have them contact me at k8zt@arrl.net

73, Anthony, K8ZT

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ARES TRAINING UPDATE
Jim Yoder, W8ERW/5

ARES Training Update
Ohio ARES members and participants are off to a fast start this year with FEMA training courses.  For the last three months, the training submissions have been rolling in at a surprising pace and for 2017, the numbers continue to impress.  It’s is still early in February, however, here they are as of February 14, 2017:  ARES Members Reporting Training – 628, ARES Members Completing the four FEMA Core Courses – 413 and Ohio Amateurs supporting ARES have taken 4,107 total courses.  Yes, quite impressive.  Thank you all.

You might very well be thinking that all of this push towards the FEMA training is beginning to sound like a broken record.  We certainly do speak of it often with reminders etc.  However, it is important.  More and more, our served agencies are and will be insisting that when we work alongside them as Amateurs, this FEMA training will be essential and required.  Of course, our service to the communities and agencies that desire our help as communicators is voluntary.  However, one of our strengths as Amateurs and certainly one of the important elements of our ability to justify the amount of bandwidth that we have for our use is indeed focused our capability to communicate in a disaster situation.  We can get it done “When All Else Fails”.  I do not suppose that any of us especially likes change, even when it might be for the better.  As we evolve however, change is forever a part of most everything that we do including our Amateur Radio Hobby.  The emphasis being placed on FEMA training is one of those changes.   

The best part of the FEMA training is that it is free and very relevant to what we do as ARES volunteers.  It is significant to our mission as it clearly defines the way our response will be structured and what individual responsibilities will be.  I think we all would agree that knowing the game plan before the game starts is a good thing if not absolutely essential to success.  FEMA training clearly defines how it will all be done and the organizational structure that we will be working within.  ICS or Incident Command System is a well-defined process with flexibility to meet the needs of all of us who will be an integral part of emergency response and preparedness.

By now, many of you have taken and reported your FEMA training.  I suspect there are many more that have taken the training and have not yet reported it.  I encourage you to do both.  When you do so, you add strength to our position when we ask that our frequencies and bandwidth be preserved.  Now we have real numbers to backup our public service commitment.  When ARRL advocates on our behalf, they will have a positive and verifiable position to speak from.  We won’t need to defend our capabilities as Amateurs when we have clear numbers that demonstrate our commitment by the training we have undertaken to support our ARES activities. 

I would like also to encourage you to ask those questions if you have them.  Your Emergency Coordinator is an excellent resource as are the Ohio ARRL Section Staff.  These folks are in regular contact with the organizations that we support and with ARRL in Newington.  More importantly, they are here to serve you and be available for your questions and concerns. This is true of questions concerning FEMA training or any other Amateur related activity.

SM Scott Yonally N8SY is also posting regularly on the ARRLOHIO.org website, a list of those who have completed the four FEMA core courses that are required.  You can access the website and determine right away if we have your courses recorded for completion of this training.  You may also contact me if you have questions regarding the training documentation process.  Especially for EC’s, I can provide a list of your ARES members who have submitted training including a list of the training I have on record for them. 

Training Certificates should be sent to your local EC and then to SM Scott Yonally N8SY.  The ideal format is a copy of the certificate in .pdf as these take up less space to store and are easier to manipulate when they are upside down or sideways.  Here is what the file should look like:  W8ERW-IS-00100.b.pdf.  This identifies you and the specific course number which makes looking you up at a later date much more simple.  Alternatively, a transcript from FEMA is acceptable especially if you have a lot of training to report.  You can obtain a transcript from the FEMA website and it will list all of your training with the necessary dates etc. to document the courses that you have taken.  Some of you may not have the ability to present a .pdf. Alternatively, a .jpg image can be used.  Some of you have taken the ARRL EC series courses as well as others related to your work as emergency responders etc.  These courses can also be reported.  

Please let me know if you have any questions.  Most importantly, I want to thank all of you who have taken the FEMA training and taken the time to report it so that we will have a record of it.  In doing so, you insure that we will be available to serve as communicators when we are called to do so.  You are also adding strength to our position when the league defends our use of vital spectrum. Thanks for your efforts.


Thanks and 73,


Jim W8ERW

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LET'S TALK
Scott Yonally, N8SY - Section Manager

Hey Gang,
 
Have you seen that the NEWEST “Handbook Giveaway” drawing on the website? It’s there..!! To enter the drawing all you need to do is fill in a couple of boxes on the form.. (your name and email). That’s you need to do to be entered into a drawing to win a 2016 ARRL softcover Handbook. There’s nothing else required (Oh.. You do need to be a resident of Ohio to win..)   The winner will be mailed the Handbook at my cost. This is being offered just to see how many folks are really checking in on the website. Got the idea? Best of luck to you!!

Are you getting those emails from me? If not, all you have to do is to “Opt-In” to receive them. Heck, just send me an email   n8sy@n8sy.com   I’ll get you added to the mailing list. There’s a link to do this on the Ohio Section website, it’s on the bottom left corner. For your convenience. Here’s a direct link to it:
http://arrl-ohio.org/forwarder/forwarding.html  I urge all of you to make sure that everyone, regardless of whether they are a League member or not, gets signed up for one of these options. You can always “Opt-Out” at any time if you feel this is not what you were expecting. 

Let’s talk about the Ohio Section website. You can find the Ohio Section Website at: http://arrl-ohio.org  If you don’t have this website set as your home page, I urge you to do so. It changes a lot and it’s so important for you to be kept up to date with the very latest information.

On that same subject, there’s another NEW – one question – questionnaire on the Ohio Section Website! This question is really important for me to know. It will only take about 2 seconds for you to answer it, and you can see how your answer stacks up with others instantly. If you haven’t done it yet, please do. I really want to hear from you.

Are you a member of the ARRL?? If you aren’t a League member, this is a great opportunity to become one. Want more information on how to join? Here’s the link: http://www.arrl.org/membership-levels. There’s even a 90 day FREE trial that you can apply for if you’ve never been a member.. Got questions about being a member or what the League is all about? Send me an email  n8sy@n8sy.com   I’ll be happy to call or write to you. We can even meet and have coffee if you’d like, and I’ll buy!!

I’m sure all of you have heard me say that I’m always available for you, whether you’re an ARRL member or not. It’s true, and you can feel free to write or call me anytime. If you have any questions, concerns, or would just like to sit and chat awhile over a cup of coffee or something cold to drink, feel free to call or write me
(419) 512-4445 or  n8sy@n8sy.com   

That’s going to do it for this month. I hope to see you all at your hamfests, club meetings or on the air!

73, Scott, N8SY

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THE OFFICIAL OBSERVER COORDINATOR
John Perone, W8RXX

The Official Observer (OO) program has been sponsored by the ARRL for more than 85 years to help Amateur Radio operators assist each other to operate their stations in compliance with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations.

The object of the OO program is to notify amateurs of operating and technical irregularities before they come to the attention of the FCC and to recognize good operating practices.

The OO performs his/her function by observing rather than transmitting.  They keep watch for such things as frequency instability, harmonics, hum, key clicks, broad signals, distorted audio, over deviation, out-of-band operation and other potential problems. The OO completes his/her task once the notification card is sent.

In January 2017 the Ohio OO's monitored a total of 867 hours, sent out 3 Good operator cards, and 2 OO cards for issues they observed.


73, John, W8RXX

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Field Day – It’s Not To Early To Start Planning

Yes, I know it seems very early to talk about Field Day since it’s still 4 months away, but a lot of clubs are already starting to talk about, and getting their ideas down on paper as to just how they are going to attack this event this year.  I know of one club that has been in the planning stages since early October!

As you know Field Day is always held on the 4th weekend of June. This year it will be on June 24 – 25.

The ARRL has already gotten the Field Day packets prepared.. You can find them at: http://www.arrl.org/files/file/Field-Day/2017/2017%20Field%20Day%20Packet(1)(1).pdf

For many years now the ARRL has provided a Field Day Locator for those sites submitting their location to the ARRL.. You can find the Locator at:  http://www.arrl.org/field-day-locator  and YES, there are already several locations listed on the map for Ohio already!

Bob Winston, W2THU and I will be moving forward to get a State of Ohio Proclamation signed by the governor for this very special weekend in just a short time from now. I will post it on the website when I do get it for re-printing, so that you can proudly display it at your Field Day site.

Good Luck to everyone.. I am planning on doing my traditional trips around the Field Day sites, taking in as many of them as I can in that 24 hour period. I hope to visit with you on that weekend!!

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SPECIAL EVENTS STATIONS IN OHIO

02/18/2017 | WRARC 7th Anniversary
Feb 18, 1500Z-2300Z,
W8WRC, New Springfield, OH.
Western Reserve Amateur Radio Club.
21.300 14.305 7.200.
QSL. Western Reserve Amateur Radio Club,
2050 East South Range Road,
New Springfield, OH 44443.

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OHIO HAMFEST CALENDAR

02/19/2017 | Mansfield Mid Winter Hamfest
Location: Mansfield, OH
Sponsor: Intercity Amateur Radio Club
Website: http://W8WE.ORG

03/05/2017 | WinterHamFest
Location: Elyria, OH
Sponsor: Northern Ohio Amateur Radio Society
 *Free pancake breakfast with paid admission
 *Free Vibroplex Clinic
 Website: 
http://noars.net

 03/18/2017 | MOVARC HAMFEST
 Location: Gallipolis, OH
 Sponsor: MOVARC Club
 Website:
 https://sites.google.com/site/midohiovalleyarc/

 03/19/2017 | Toledo Mobile Radio Association
 Hamfest and Computer Fair
 Location: Perrysburg, OH
 Sponsor: Toledo Mobile Radio Association
 Website: 
http://www.tmrahamradio.org

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A final – final..  Hey Everyone, Amateur Radio is a lot of FUN.. and it’s a learning experience for everyone! Share your enjoyment and learning experiences with those just coming into Amateur Radio!! 


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