Author: Darrell Davis KT4WX

THE WCF PRESSER AND THE WCF EXPERIMENTER ARE BEING REBOOTED

After being out of publication for over two years, the ARRL West Central Florida Section Newsletter, “THE WCF PRESSER” has just been rebooted as a bi-monthly newsletter and starts with the May/June 2025 issue.  It is now available for download from the Section website at https://arrlwcf.org/home/the-wcf-section-presser-arrl-west-central-florida-section-news/.

THE WCF PRESSER production team is composed of Darrell Davis KT4WX, Assistant Section Manager for Technology, as editor, and Russ Delaney N4RTD Assistant Section Manager for Digital Communications, as layout coordinator.  In order to continue to publish THE WCF PRESSER, content is needed.  If your amateur radio club or group is having an activity or event, write it up and send it to Darrell Davis KT4WX via email at kt4wx@arrl.net.  The submission format does not matter and the production team can work with any format.  Pictures being included is encouraged.

THE WCF EXPERIMENTER, the ARRL West Central Florida Section Technical Newsletter, is being rebooted as well in the very near future as a quarterly newsletter, and will start with the Summer 2025 edition.  The same production team that does THE WCF PRESSER will be producing THE WCF EXPERIMENTER.  We will be going to press with that issue in the next one to two weeks, so if you have any articles that you would like to publish send it via email to Darrell Davis KT4WX via email at kt4wx@arrl.net.

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SKYWARN BECOMES “SKYWARN® WX-ALERT”

There is a new, fresh look coming to Amateur Radio severe weather operations in West Central and Southwest Florida. “SKYWARN® WX-Alert” will launch June 1st, 2025 on the NI4CE Repeater System with some significant changes and additions.

For the first time, severe weather operations will incorporate a unified Amateur Radio communications platform. Ham radio operators who are trained SKYWARN severe weather spotters will be able to share their reports on the NI4CE Analog and NXDN Digital systems whenever severe weather threatens their neighborhood. This unified radio platform will also be used to conduct a weekly SKYWARN WX-Alert Information Net each Tuesday evening at a new time, 7:30 PM ET. This new Net time will allow more people to fully participate.

“Ham Radio has always been an important part of the SKYWARN program”, according to Paul Toth-NB9X, President of the West Central Florida Group, Inc. “SKYWARN WX-Alert is all about keeping our neighbors safe. Severe weather knows no boundaries. Neither should the communications tools we use. That’s why an expanded, unified regional platform will now be used.”

The Tuesday evening Net, at its new time, will provide all Ham operators an upfront, advanced severe weather forecast for the week ahead. This will include storm timing and location information to help spotters prepare for possible activations. The new, earlier Net will also feature weather insights and training information to help spotters be more efficient and accurate.

The refreshed SKYWARN WX-Alert effort will employ an expanded team of Net Control operators. Each operator will be tethered to the National Weather Service staff in Ruskin via NWSChat, an advanced information tool the Weather Service uses to issue critical warnings and support information, which Net Controllers will use to file spotter reports in real time. During major weather events, including hurricanes, tropical storms and tornadic outbreaks, SKYWARN WX-Alert Team members will be geographically dispersed to optimize connectivity.

The Team is currently working on adding unified repeater coverage in Citrus and Levy Counties for all Nets and an Internet-accessible audio stream which anyone interested in current weather information will be able to access.

The SKYWARN WX-Alert effort is being led by Dan Noah WX4DAN, retired NWS-Ruskin Warning Coordination Meteorologist, Russ Delaney N4RTD and Paul Toth NB9X.

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25TH ANNUAL ARRL WCF SECTION FIELD DAY CARAVAN TO TAKE PLACE FOR ARRL FIELD DAY

On Saturday June 28, 2025, the 25th Annual ARRL West Central Florida Section Field Day Caravan is set to go on the road of the ARRL West Central Florida Section for ARRL Field Day once again.  As has been done in recent years it is planned to send out two teams to cover the ARRL West Central Florida Section.  The ARRL West Central Florida Section Field Day Caravan webpage has been tenatively updated for ARRL Field Day 2025.  As plans are finalized for the ARRL West Central Florida Section Field Day Caravan, the ARRL West Central Florida Section Field Day Caravan webpage will be updated.

If you wish a visit by the ARRL West Central Florida Section Field Day Caravan, be sure to enter your Field Day operation on the ARRL Field Day Locator:  https://www.arrl.org/field-day-locator.  NOTE:  You will need to be logged in on the ARRL website to complete an entry on the ARRL Field Day Locator.  We are asking everyone to have their Field Day operation entered on the ARRL Field Day Locator by no later than Saturday June 21, 2025, so our Section Manager Mike Douglas W4MDD will have the proper time to plan the Field Day Caravan routes.

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The event was not open to the public and took place in the school auditorium. It was attended by fellow students, faculty, parents, and invited guests. The Sarasota County School District did a live stream of the event on their YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@SarasotaSchools). Video of the contact can be viewed on the school’s YouTube channel.

The school now has a dozen students and one faculty member with Technician Class Amateur Radio Operator licenses from the FCC thanks to the efforts of TARC’s VE Team. During the month of February, TARC will be working with the school to install mast poles for supporting an assortment of wire antennas. Using funds received from an ARRL Club Grant, TARC will also provide the long term loan of a complete HF station with accessories for use by the newly formed school amateur radio club, call sign W4PVS!

The information used in this press release was provided courtesy of Paul Nienaber KN4BAR.

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FLORIDA QSO PARTY SCHEDULED FOR THIS WEEKEND

The Florida Contest Group is facilitating the 27th Annual Florida QSO Party this comign weekend.  27th Annual Florida QSO Party will be held on Saturday April 26, 2025 from 1600Z (Noon EDT) through 0159Z (9:59 PM EDT) and on Sunday April 27, 2025 from 1200Z (8:00 AM EDT) and 2159Z (5:59 PM EDT), which is a 20 hour total operating period.   The 40, 20, 15, and 10 Meter bands will be used.  All 67 Florida Counties will be eligible for activation.

For all the details on the Florida QSO Party, including the Florida QSO Spelling Bee, please go to their Florida QSO Party website at https://www.floridaqsoparty.org.  For the Florida QSO Party 2025 Flyer, please go to https://floridaqsoparty.org/wp-content/uploads/CQ-FL-HAMS-FQP-2025-Announcement-REV-A-1-21-25.pdf.

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NEW VIRTUAL NTS TRAINING NET

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NEW ARRL WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA SECTION ARES PLAN PUBLISHED.

Dave Rockwell W4PXE, our Section Emergency Coordinator, released this week the new  ARRL West Central Florida Section ARES Plan.  It is recommended that all ARES personnel familiarize themselves with the new plan.  The plan is now available on the Section website on the Section ARES Page at https://arrlwcf.org/download/wcfares/WCFSection_ARESPlan_040125.pdf

For any questions concerning the new Section ARES Plan, you may contact our Section Emergency Coordinator Dave Rockwell W4PXE via email at w4pxe@arrl.net.

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MONTHLY REPORTS ARE IMPORTANT

The following is an open letter to all ARES personnel in the ARRL West Central Florida Section from our Section Emergency Coordinator Dave Rockwell W4PXE:

“Dear ARES® Members,

Why report should we report our activity in providing public service radio support?

Reporting volunteer hours is crucial for several reasons. These hours are recognized by
counties, states, and federal officials, demonstrating the value of our contributions. Each
volunteer hour equates to a $34.08 (on average nationally) benefit to the organizations we
support, highlighting the economic impact of our efforts.

Additionally, public service hours are being used to support the passage of The Amateur
Radio Emergency Preparedness Act of 2025 (H.R. 1094 and S.459), aimed at eliminating
restrictions imposed by Homeowners Associations (HOAs). Your reported hours are
essential in showcasing the importance of amateur radio in emergency preparedness and
response.

Every ARES member should report their volunteer hours through their county Emergency
Coordinator. These coordinators should then report the hours and activities to the Section
Emergency Coordinator (SEC) using the ARRL Form 2 online or the WCF forms available on
the section website, https://arrlwcf.org/. As SEC, I send a summary of these reports to the
ARRL®. The League uses these reports to advocate for all amateur radio.

What we do is important. Our sponsors and supporters rely on the work we do. Many
counties have used the volunteer hours to justify purchasing radio equipment, ensuring we
are well-equipped to handle emergencies and disasters.

Every hour spent volunteering improves our abilities to respond during emergencies and
disasters. Therefore, it is imperative that your ARES® hours are reported accurately.
Please make sure your ARES® hours are reported.”

For the PDF version of this letter you may go to http://arrlwcf.org/download/wcfares/W4PXE_SEC_Letter_2025-04.pdf

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11th ANNUAL TECHCON VIDEOS AND PAPERS NOW AVAILABLE

The 11th Annual TECHCON was held on Saturday February 22, 2025 with about 30 to 35 in attendance personally.  Due to technical difficulties, we were unable to do a live stream of the primary track.

However, there is a “silver lining” in this cloud.  Russ Delaney N4RTD, Assistant Section Manager, has processed all the videos and added the speaker slides to them, and they are now available for viewing on the ARRL West Central Florida Section YouTube Channel:  https://www.youtube.com/@arrlwcf.

Darrell Davis KT4WX, Assistant Section Manager for Technology, has added the links to the slide presentations developed by all our presenters and they are available on the 11th Annual TECHCON webpage at https://arrlwcf.org/wcf-special-events/wcftechconference/.

Later in the year, the 11th Annual TECHCON webpage will be archived for historical and future reference and will always be accessbile via the TECHCON webpage.

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