THE WCF PRESSER #3 – MARCH 2015

News

THE WCF PRESSER: ARRL WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA SECTION NEWS

Issue #3 – March 2015

By Darrell Davis KT4WX

ARRL West Central Florida Section Manager

 

THE FIRST ANNUAL WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA SECTION TECHNICAL CONFERENCE:

The time is drawing closer and we are only a little over a month away from The First Annual West Central Florida Section Technical Conference that will be held on Saturday April 4, 2015 from 9:00 A.M. until 5:00 P.M. at the Bert J. Harris Jr. Agri-Civic Center, 4905 George Blvd, Sebring. Welcome and last minute registration will begin at 8:15 A.M. If you are planning on attending, please go to the WCF Section Technical Conference Registration Page at http://arrlwcf.org/wcf-special-events/wcftechconference/ and fill out the online registration form. You will receive an online and email confirmation of your successful registration. There you can also download the conference flyer, and look WCF Section Technical Conference Event Page on the WCF Section Events Calendar, which has a Google Map showing the location of the Agri-Civic Center. The direct link to the Section Calendar Event Page for the WCF Section Technical Conference is at http://www.arrlwcf.org/event/first-annual-arrl-wcf-section-technical-conference/.

We are still looking for more speakers. If you have an area of expertise in any area of amateur radio or amateur radio related technology consider being on of our speakers. Having a PowerPoint slide show and or PDF handouts is a great addition but not required if you wish to speak. We will have a section on our website for PDF handouts and or PowerPoint presentations that will go live when the conference begins, so those who attend the conference will be able to view and or download these materials on their tables and or smart-phones for viewing during the presentations.

The conference schedule will be finalized in mid to late March and the conference schedule will be published on the Section website mid to late March as well. We will have hourly door prizes and several door prizes at the end of the day. You must be present to win one of the door prizes. Also we will have a guest speaker for one of the conference slots from ARRL Headquarters. Anyone from inside or outside of the Section is welcome to attend or be a speaker af the conference.

WCF SECTION 15TH BIRTHDAY QSO PARTY:

The ARRL West Central Florida Section turned 15 years old on January 15, 2015. It seemed appropriate that we celebrate the 15th birthday of the Section. The period of the WCF Section QSO Party has been revised and will begin on April 1, 2015 but will end on June 26, 2015, the day before ARRL Field Day. The full contest rules will be published on the Section website in the next week. Also we are planning to have K4WCF portable operations at least once in each of ten counties of the WCF Section. If your club or group is interested in running K4WCF for a day in your county, please fill out the Contact Form on the Section website at http://arrlwcf.org/contact-info/. All modes and frequencies, including repeaters will be allowed. This will allow many of our new hams who do not as of yet have HF privileges to get on and make contacts for the WCF Section QSO Party.

STATION APPOINTEE MONTHLY REPORTS – NOW FILE THEM ON LINE:

If you are serving in one of these appointments, please be sure to file a monthly report by the 5th day of the month following the month being reported. For example for the month of January, your report would be due by February 5th.

As promised, your Section staff have made this a lot simpler for you. You may now go to our Section website and fill out your monthly report there. Go to the section in the menu called Section Forms which is at http://arrlwcf.org/section-forms/ and select the appropriate form for your Station Appointment. Upon successful submission you will receive an on screen confirmation and almost immediately you will receive an email confirmation for your records that also goes to the Cabinet member that oversees your program. Your report is then filed and you are all done for the month. Regular reporting is an ARRL requirement to hold an ARRL Station Appointment.

STATION APPOINTEES PLEASE REAPPLY – LAST CALL:

To those of you who have re-applied for your various ARRL Station Appointments, thank you very much. If you have been serving as an ARRL Station Appointee (Emergency Coordinator, Official Relay Station, Net Manager, Official Emergency Station, Official Observer, Local Government Liaison, Technical Specialist) and have not reapplied, please go to our newly redesigned Section website and reapply on the Online Station Appointment Form at http://arrlwcf.org/section-forms/station-appointee-application-form/ to continue your appointment. This allows us to know who is interested in continuing to serve as an ARRL Station Appointee and who is no longer active. Please be sure to do so by the end of this month.

SECTION CALENDAR – CALL FOR YOUR CLUB MEETING, RADIO NETS, AND REPEATER INFORMATION:

To those who have already sent us their club meeting information, thank you for sending in that information. If you are contact for your radio club or group, please help us getting out your club meeting, radio net, and repeater information in the right places on our Section website by filling out a Contact Form at http://arrlwcf.org/contact-info/. You will receive an online and email confirmation of what you submitted. Then we can compile this information and put it on the Section website.

UPCOMING HAMFESTS IN THE SECTION-FORMS

We have the following hamfest coming up in the Section for the month of March:

  • Saturday March 7: Zephryhills Area ARC and East Pasco ARS Hamfest: Zephryhills Lions Club, Zephryhills.
  • Saturday March 28: Gulf Coast Hamfest: Lake Josephine Baptist Church, between Sebring and Lake Placid.

For more information on hamfests and events in the Section , please visit our website Section Calendar at http://www.arrlwcf.org/events for more information.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY:

February was another busy month for your Section Manager and staff as it is this time of the year. On Friday February 13th a meeting was held between two representatives from the Florida Division of Emergency Management (Phil Royce KE4PWE, Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) Communications Branch Director and Bob Little KK4OAI, FDEM Planner) and the Section Managers and Section Emergency Coordinators of all three ARRL Florida Sections. The meeting took place at the Orlando Hamcation next to the forum rooms, humorously having to pause for a forklift working next to our meeting location. Ben Henley KI4IGX (ASM and SEC), Randy Payne K4EZM (ASM and ASEC), and I had a very productive and flowing conversation with our counterparts from the Northern Florida Section, Southern Florida Section, and Florida Division of Emergency Management representatives with future meetings planned. The following Section Cabinet members were in attendance at the Orlando Hamcation one, two, or all three days: Darrell Davis KT4WX (SM), Dee Turner N4GD (ASM), Randy Payne K4EZM (ASM), Ben Henley KI4IGX (ASM and SEC), Jeff Bronsing KJ4NEO (ACC), Doug Williams N2DW (STM), and Geoff Haines N1GY (TC). On Saturday February 21st, Jeff Bronsing KJ4NEO (ACC), Geoff Haines N1GY (TC), Randy Payne K4EZM (ASM), Ben Henley KI4IGX (ASM and SEC), and I attended the Highlands County Hamfest just south of Sebring. This is a small hamfest was despite of the weather being still a little cool on the back end of an unusual cold spell for Florida. On Saturday February 28th, Randy Payne K4EZM (ASM) and I have the privilege of participating in the first Highlands County Amateur Radio Club and Highlands County ARES 2 Meter Simplex Contest. I operated portable fixed making contacts with many on 2 Meter FM Simplex from Fort Meade, Bowling Green, Wauchula, Zolfo Springs, Avon Park, and Sebring. Randy operated W4HEM, the amateur radio station at the Highlands County EOC.An enjoyable lunch after the contest was held at Hibachl’s Buffet on the north side of Sebring.

SECTION TRAFFIC MANAGERS REPORT FOR JANUARY 2015 – By Doug Williams N2DW:

Station Activity Reports (SAR):

Call Sign Originate Receive Sent Delivered TOTAL

N2DW      0              8             6      0              14

K4EEI      0              41           57     1              99

W8IM      1              20           11     0              32

Public Service Honor Roll:

N2DW 109

W8IM 82

West Central Florida Section Net Activity Reports:

Net Name Session Stations Traffic Minutes Net Manager

AIN           3           30           1         52         WA4ATF

EAGLE NET 31       1066       31       892       W4PXE

SPARC        40       580         32      1139      W4TSP

SECTION MANAGERS CONTACT INFORMATION:

Here is my contact information. Much of this is listed now on Page 16 of QST.

That is all for this issue of THE WCF PRESSER. See you all here next month. Hopefully I will get to see many of you at a meeting, hamfest, or talk to you on the air.

73 de Darrell KT4WX