Club News  Newest items are posted at the top of this page. We are going to try to keep this page fresh. Check here for new info! News items will be deleted when they become outdated.

As previously posted, the July 19 fox hunt was cancelled. It has been rescheduled for Saturday, Aug 2, and a breakfast has been added to the schedule on that date. The breakfast will also be a chance for late planning for the FCARC support of the Greenfield Triathlon on the following day.

The breakfast is at 8 a.m. Many club members were pleased with the choice of Denny's Pantry as the July breakfast site, and the August breakfast is also expected to be there. Check here for updates. The fox hunt will begin at 10 p.m., after the breakfast.

Tom Foxwell, N1OTS, wrote:
I am looking for ham radio support for the 25th Annual Greenfield Lightlife Triathlon Sunday, August 3, 2008. The need is for 18 to 25 operators, the more we have the easer it is for all. I would like it if we had one or more folk working from their homes if we needed phone calls made and this would be for emergency only. We run back up radio support for the local Police dept, Ambulance, road Marshalls and Event staff. The event start at 8.00 am and runs till 1.00 pm I would need all ham radio operators to be on site before 7.00 am. This is so you can be briefed on the event and have the time you need to arrive at you post. Some of the roads will be closed by 7.30 am to incoming traffic to the park.

Net control will be in the park by the river. Talk-in will be on the KB1BSS repeater 146.986 - off set with a PL of 135.6. The event will be on simplex 147.435 or 146.550 and we also plan to have a WinLink station set up. Yes, you will be able to work from you car or bring a chair to sit on. You should also have paper and something to write with if needed. I would also bring something to snack on and drink. They have lunch after the race.

I will give you the web site for the directions and maps and so on. Please note the maps we have are different then the ones on the web site, http://www.greenfield-triathlon.com/.

As you read the directions and they tell you to turn on to Nash's Mill Rd, please go past the park and turn in to the parking lot down the road. This is for event workers and you will need to walk in to the park to the tent where net control is set up. The event staff does not wish any one to park on the road as they use this for setup for the race. Again we have to play by their rules ok.

From Route 91 South:
From I-91, take exit 26, and go 3/4 way around the rotary to Route 2 West. At first light turn RIGHT (before Gas Station) onto Colrain Rd. Follow Colrain Rd. about 1.5 miles. Turn RIGHT onto Nash's Mill Rd. Park & Swim area are on left. Proceed slowly to parking lot.

From Route 91 North:
Take exit 27 onto Route 2 toward Boston. Take first exit off Route 2 into Greenfield. Bear RIGHT at end of exit ramp onto Routes 5&10 South (Bernardston Rd.). At first traffic light, take RIGHT onto Silver Street, go 1 mile to end. At "T" at end of Silver St., take RIGHT onto Conway Street. Go over Route 91 overpass and take first LEFT onto Nash's Mill Rd. The Greenfield Swimming Area is on the right side of the road. Proceed slowly to parking lot.

ALTERNATE Route 91 North:
From I-91, take exit 26. Take first RIGHT off of the rotary to Route 2 West. At first light turn RIGHT (before Gas Station) onto Colrain Rd. Follow Colrain Rd. about 1.5 miles. Turn RIGHT onto Nash's Mill Rd. Park & Swim area are on left. Proceed slowly to parking lot.

From Route 2 West:
From Route 2 West: to Greenfield, down hill, pass Staples/Big Y plaza on left, McDonald's on right to the traffic lights. At traffic lights turn LEFT (Gas Station) onto Colrain Rd. Follow Colrain Rd. about 1.5 miles. Turn RIGHT onto Nash's Mill Rd. Park & Swim area are on left. Proceed slowly to parking lot.

From Route 2 East:
Take Route 5 & 10 (Bernardston Rd.) exit just before I-91 North/South connector. At end of exit ramp take LEFT onto Route 5 & 10 (Bernardston Rd.). At first traffic light, take RIGHT onto Silver Street, go 1 mile to end. At "T" at end of Silver St., take RIGHT onto Conway Street. Go over Route 91 overpass and take first LEFT onto Nash's Mill Rd. The Greenfield Swimming Area is on the right side of the road. Proceed slowly to parking lot.

For further informatio contact:
Tom Foxwell N1OTS / DEC
H 413-774-2874
W 413 557-2130
H e-mail n1ots@yahoo.com
W e-mail thomas.foxwell.ctr@westover.af.mil

ALL radio enthusiasts are invited to attend the ARRL New England Division Convention at the Holiday Inn Boxboro Woods in Boxborough, Massachusetts.

There's a lot to do at Boxboro! In addition to the many educational Forums, Seminars and meetings, outdoor Flea Market, VE Exams and Special Events Station W1A there will be many Commercial Exhibitors and vendors offering the latest in radio equipment, books, accessories and who knows what else? You never know what treasures, old and new, you will find at Boxborough! Meet and greet your friends at the Friday night Patriot DX Dinner. Hear ARRL 1st Vice President Kay Cragie, N3KN, at the Saturday night Banquet! Take part in the Wouff Hong Ceremony! Hourly Prizes! Big-Time Major Prizes (visit the website for details) Saturday night and Sunday afternoon!

Don't miss Boxboro! 2008 - www.boxboro.org.

[Boxboro-W1A.jpg] [Boxboro-Flea.jpg] See the website for special Friday evening events. Flea Market opens Saturday 0900 sharp for buyers and tailgaters. Admission: $15 per person (good for all days). Flea market $10 per space. DX Dinner $35 (specify fish or chicken). Saturday Night Banquet $40. Ample free parking is available. Purchase advance tickets and banquet tickets online at www.boxboro.org (PayPal accepted), at area hamfests, and by mail. Mail orders go to Ed Anderson/FEMARA, 104 Gould Hill Road Greenfield, NH 03047.

[from e-mail forwarded by Hyrum, KB1KRS]

Scott passed on a preliminary estimate of our score. We had 334 contacts, 910 bonus points, and a total claimed score of 2026 points. This is very close to last year's result.

For details and a comparison with 2007, go to the new Field Day Results page.

Bill, N1EWK, posted pictures he took on the Flickr site. You can see them at http://www.flickr.com/photos/50505234@N00/sets/72157605890641039/

There are pictures of past FCARC Field Days in the FCARC Photo Gallery. You can find more information about past Field Days in the FCARC Communicator archives (look for the Summer 2006 and 2007 issues).

(N1AW is on vacation, more Field Day info will be posted when he returns)

Did you know that the Western Massachusetts ARRL Section has its own website at http://wma.arrl.org? Several articles that may be of general interest are currently posted, including:

• Information about Public Service Volunteer Opportunities in the New England Division, listing public events at which Amateur Radio communications is providing a public service and for which additional volunteers from the Amateur Community are needed and welcome.
• A description of recent organizational changes of the American Red Cross in Western Massachusetts, and effects upon the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES).
• A preliminary announcement and pointer to more information about the ARRL New England Division Convention at Boxboro, coming up August 22 through August 24 this year.

At the FCARC Annual Meeting on June 9th, ballots were counted for the three offices up for election this year.

Elected were:

• President: Chet Chin, N1XPT
• Secretary: Barbara Berrigan, KB1NOI
• Director: John Berrigan, KB1NOH

Our website hosting service has moved the FCARC pages to a new server. There ought not to be any changes in access to the site, but some automatic editing of pages may have occurred. Also, the interface for maintenance of the site is different, and your webmasters are wary that this could make things difficult (some attempted updates did not appear on-line last week, for instance).

So ..., your help is requested. If you have any problems with the web pages or it looks like a page has been mangled in any way, please report this to the webmasters so we can try to fix it. Thanks! Mail us here: webmaster@fcarc.org

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has released its decision on the ARRL's Petition for Review of the FCC's Orders adopting rules governing broadband over power line (BPL) systems. The Court agreed with the ARRL on two major points and remanded the rules to the Commission.

The full story is on the ARRL website

The ARRL web site now has a page which members of the public (including hams, of course) can use to find Field Day sites. Hyrum has registered FCARC's site.

Click here to see the ARRL web article.

To check this out, go to this link and enter either "AC1L" or "Greenfield, MA" -- you will see a Google map showing our Poet's Seat site. You can zoom in or out, change to satellite view, etc.

To see other nearby sites you can zoom out, or you can enter a city or state name (hint: if you use a state 2-letter abbreviation by itself, you will see strange results, "MA" gets you a map of Morocco).

Maps are now available showing the theoretical coverage of the KB1BSS 2 meter and 440 Mhz repeaters, as well as the 10 meter link to the 440 Mhz machine. Click here for more information.

At the March E-Board meeting the board adopted a new club calendar for July 2008 through June 2009. By having fewer formal program meetings it is hoped that better programs can be lined up. More information is posted here.

Here is some news from Mark, WB1ARZ, of the Worcester Emergency Communications Team:

First, here is current wording of Massachusetts General Law:
Chapter 90: Section 13. Safety precautions for proper operation and parking of vehicles and buses.
Section 13. No person, when operating a motor vehicle, shall permit to be on or in the vehicle or on or about his person anything which may interfere with or impede the proper operation of the vehicle or any equipment by which the vehicle is operated or controlled, except that a person may operate a motor vehicle while using a citizens band radio or mobile telephone as long as one hand remains on the steering wheel at all times.

After final amendment the House bill passed on Jan 24 reads:
Chapter 90: Section 13. Safety precautions for proper operation and parking of vehicles and buses.
Section 13. No person, when operating a motor vehicle, shall permit to be on or in the vehicle or on or about his person anything which may interfere with or impede the proper operation of the vehicle or any equipment by which the vehicle is operated or controlled, except that a person may operate a motor vehicle while using a citizens band radio or amateur radio as long as one hand remains on the steering wheel at all times.

What it means and what happens next:
If this were all there were to it, hams might consider it positive -- the pressure from amateurs has raised our status to that of Citizens Band operators, and presumably some of our legislators now know there is a difference. However, another part of the bill is the penalties, and the fact that this would be a surchargeable offense. That means that in addition to a fine (a first offense fine is $100, increasing to $500 for a third offense), you could be billed an additional $140/year for six years by your insurance company.

Final passage is not a given; the bill could be held back by the Senate President, and not even considered by the full Senate. There could also be additional amendments when and if it is considered by the full Senate.

There is a lot of opposition being voiced on talk radio in Eastern Massachusetts. Many oppose this bill as poorly written and a gift to the state insurance lobby. One argument reportedly presented on the Howie Carr show (680 AM in Boston) was that the State loses money every time someone appeals a fine due to the surcharge for something like this. It is reported that it costs a Clerk Magistrate's office approximately $500 to prepare all of the hearing and appeal papers and the State Police must send a State Trooper to represent the officer (not necessarily the specific officer himself,) and there is a 4 hour travel minimum requirement for the State Police Officer. By the time you add up all the costs, the only one making money is the Insurance Company.

Relevant links:
The best sources of information seem to be the web pages of the Worcester Emergency Communications Team and the ARRL Western Massachusetts Section. If you feel moved to call your state senator, you can find contact information on the Massachusetts State Senate members web page. It is suggested that a call to President of the Senate Therese Murray is also a good idea. Her number can also be found on the above-linked page.

Posted by N1AW

The Vintage Radio and Communications Museum of Connecticut is located at 115 Pierson Lane in Windsor, CT. It is dedicated to the preservation of old time communications equipment and to educating the public. The museum displays radios, televisions, motion picture and telephone equipment, as well as vintage advertising and memorabilia. Audio, video and paper libraries, along with an extensive collection of schematics, are also available for research.

The Museum has now obtained its Certificate of Occupancy. The museum is tentatively open Thursdays & Fridays 11a-4p, Saturdays 10a-5p. Sundays are coming. The grand opening celebrations are taking place the weekend of October 26 and 27.

More info is available at the Museum website.

A couple of new items have been posted on the For-Sale page.

To make the For-Sale pages easier to use, links to categories in which nothing is currently listed will be hidden in the future.

An amusing 10 minute film about ham radio produced 68 years ago can be seen on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBGIdf0VjQ4. Look up the film credits at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031834 and note the part of the ship's radio operator was played by Clayton Moore, who later was the Lone Ranger.

Info from ARRL Propagation Bulletin, October 12, 2007.

It's approaching 9 p.m. on a Tuesday night and it's your turn to be net control for the first time? Are you nervous about the procedure? A copy of the preamble and procedure document for the Western Massachusetts – Franklin County Emergency Net has now been posted on this website. Click here!

The collapse of the Minneapolis bridge brought media comments about Amateur Radio. This time the stories were in reaction to the inability of cell phones in the area to handle all the critical messages. ... [M]ost cell systems can actually carry fewer than 5% of their customers in voice messages at any one tme. Some systems were found to be a lot less robust. MSNBC noted this on August 2 in their story by Alan Boyle who interviewed ARRL Section Manager Skip Jackson, KS0J. While emergency communications worked well, civilian communications were called "inadequate." John Biachtal of Wired News (USA) also wrote about the cell phones being overwhelmed. His advice to the readers was blunt and to the point - "Get (ham radio) licensed and join an emergency communications group."

from "Media Hits", October 2007 QST

(Thanks to Eric Tuller N1QKO, Assistant SKYWARN Coordinator for Western MA, for posting this to Western Mass Amateur Radio Yahoo Group)

Two items have been added to the Links page that we would like to call to your attention. At the top is a link to a new page titled Links to Other Ham Clubs for your convenience in seeing what is happening in other clubs in areas near Franklin County. Further down we have posted a link to the New England Area Ham-Electronic Flea Markets Calendar, an excellent resource, updated twice a month, if you would like to go to a hamfest every weekend. Some other links that may be of interest to amateur radio operators have also been added -- take a look.

WXSpots, a new tool in the tool chest for SkyWarn operations and weather enthusiasts is now available! WXSpots is a free, Internet based system designed to quickly disseminate observed reports of severe weather.

WXSpots is not intended to replace Amateur Radio. By it's vary nature of dependence on the Internet, WXSpots can't provide data from a severely affected area. On the other hand, WXSpots can quickly communicate data from those observers just outside it. It also provides the means to help monitor local severe weather as it unfolds with many more observers able to communicate what they are seeing.

For more info see the website www.wxspots.com.

(From the Western Mass Amateur Radio newsgroup,
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WesternMassAmateurRadio/)

Al Woodhull, N1AW, and Chris Myers, KB1NEK, are the new webmasters. E-mail sent to webmaster@fcarc.org will reach both of them. Please report anything that needs correction and submit any information you think is worthy of being posted here.