December 2023
HELLO, OREGON ARRL MEMBERS!!!
What a busy November that was. Hopefully December is a little quieter.
LOOKING FOR THINGS TO DO IN YOUR SPARE TIME? VOLUNTEER! There are many volunteer opportunities in ham radio.
The ARRL Oregon Section has many volunteer positions:
- You can provide communications for a road race.
- You can open your station to a new ham.
- You can schedule your own class. Why not?
- On a personal note, my volunteer thing is…
I’m teaching a free online Technician license class over winter break.
Contact me if you know anyone interested in taking a free class.
YOUTH LICENSING
Young folks are our future. Teach them well. Don’t be shy. Start them off with a lifetime of skills.
ARRL membership is only $25 for those 25 and under.
STATEWIDE EMCOMM IS RAMPING UP
That means meetings, planning, coordination, training, and simulated emergency tests.
We have a new Section Emergency Coordinator (AB7ZQ).
We have a cadre of Assistant ECs.
We have five of six District EC positions filled.
WE ARE LOOKING FOR A DISTRICT 2 EMERGENCY COORDINATOR.
District 2 covers from Deschutes county north to the Columbia, including Jefferson, Crook, Hood River, Deschutes, Wasco, and Sherman counties.
WE ARE LOOKING FOR LAWYERS!
The ARRL Oregon section needs Volunteer Counsel. This is a very important Division-level ARRL volunteer position. If you’re an attorney and a ham, and are recognized by the Oregon bar, your efforts are needed.
WE ARE LOOKING FOR AN AFFILIATED CLUB COORDINATOR
The ACC gets to know all of the ARRL-affiliated clubs in Oregon. Bonnie, AB7ZQ, was our ACC, but she’s now our Section Emergency Coordinator.
- Do you like to network?
- Do you like to put 2 and 2 together to make 5?
- This job involves keeping up with clubs.
- This job involves identifying radio clubs that can work together.
WAS YOUR CLUB AROUND IN 1969?
DOES IT STILL EXIST?
IS YOUR INFORMATION UP TO DATE?
ARRL-affiliated clubs are supposed to update their information periodically. This includes purpose, contact information, meeting schedules, and such. In looking through club listings, it’s been noted that some haven’t been updated since the 1960s.
If you’re reading this, PLEASE send me your latest club info.
HOST YOUR SECTION MANAGER AT A MEETING
If you’re interested in having me speak at a club meeting, either remotely or in-person, please let me know
SALEM HAMFAIR
It’s coming up in February.
That’s right around the corner.
AND NOW, A PERSONAL NOTE ABOUT TRAVELING WITH HAM RADIO
Ham radio is a great way to explore the world. If you happen to be lucky enough to travel, you will find ham radio operators (almost) everywhere, and they’ll be as happy to meet you as you’ll be to meet them. I recently went on a work trip to Finland, and had emailed folks who I knew lived in the area. I was lucky (?) enough to be shipped overseas to work during Thanksgiving, which in addition to missing turkey and football meant that I’d be in EUROPE for CQWW CW.
For those of you into contesting, you know that this is VERY exciting for a contester.
I scored an invite to the local club meeting (OH3AC), an opportunity to operate the local museum’s station (OH3R), and an invite to participate with the OH5Z Contest Group during the contest. I had never participated as part of a multi-multi contest operation before. I was told,
“We are going for the Finnish record. We are serious about this.”
The 10 and 15 meter bands were ridiculously good, and operating from a superstation in Europe was an amazing experience. I made a few hundred contacts, and apparently allowed someone to get some much needed rest.
OH5Z set the Finnish national record, and I got to play a small role in it.
Even though I had never met any of the operators before, I was treated as a friend and colleague, and even entrusted with operating a superstation and not breaking anything…and I didn’t break anything!!!
Breaking something was a group effort – an RF connector on a filter no longer wanted to carry high power.
The point, of course, is that there are hams everywhere. Don’t be shy to put yourself out there, as you never know where it will lead.
Please contact me with questions, comments, updates, requests, and the like.
73,
Scott N7JI
