HCRA Ham Radio Film Festival???

Posted on May 16, 2013 by W1MSW

I would like to throw out an idea for a possible meeting topic next year and would like to hear other members’ opinions on it.

The meeting would be a ham radio film festival and we would screen ham radio related film shorts produced by our members as well as a few from other sources. Now the first thing that might come to mind is a video tour of your QTH where technical details about the shack and antennas are documented. While making that type of movie is a GREAT idea, it would probably be better for screening at our annual show and tell meeting. What I’m thinking are short films that capture, discuss, and/or document your, another ham’s, or a group of ham’s experience in amateur radio. Maybe a SOTA activation, a portable operation, a special event, your experience at field day or some other emcomm training event. How about creating a documentary about your favorite ham friend who buys lots of kits, but rarely builds them. Or maybe you have an elmer who you would like to make a short film about. Better yet a film about your own experience in ham radio or a film that captures what you feel are the most important aspects of the hobby. And of course, there would be popcorn, hot dogs and soda available in the lobby before the show and during the intermission.

For this to be successful, we need a few brave hams to step forward and decide that making a ham radio short is something they would like to do. If there are enough 1) members interested in making a ham radio film short and 2) members interested in screening ham radio film shorts, then we’ll come up with some more specific guidelines like length restrictions and format. Whether you think it’s a good or bad idea, please share your thoughts on this idea for a meeting. And if you have any interest in making a film, please let me know as well. It won’t work if we’re just sitting there staring at a blank screen. You can post comments here or contact me directly w1msw@arrl.net

If you have other ham radio related topics or ideas for a meeting, please share those as well. We want to put together a program that our members will find interesting and engaging and we can’t do that if you don’t tell us topics that interest you!

2014 Election draws near, nominations entertained.

Posted on March 16, 2013 by KK1W

Hi folks,

The 2014 Election will be held at our June 7th meeting. As in years past many board members have once again raised their hands to help guide HCRA through another year of fun and excitement. For many of them this will be another year of many serving HCRA. Wouldn’t it be great if YOU stepped forward and offered a little bit of time every month to ensure our club is the best it can be? Not only would it provide some ‘down time’ for a present board member – more importantly it is an opportunity to bring new views, different ideas and more exciting activities to our club. Are you ready to give it a try?

Listed below is the slate as it stands right now. There’s only one position shown open but we are VERY open to nominations for all positions. As a team we are flexible, supportive and willing to move our present positions around to accommodate a new member. If it turns out we have more than one candidate for a position even better. We can hold a run off election in June, how cool is that?

It says a lot about our present board and their effectiveness that there aren’t a lot of ‘willing volunteers’ for nominations. Unfortunately that’s a double edged sword. Although things are going well, if we don’t encourage new board members we’ll eventually stagnate and then comes the ‘upheaval’. HCRA has been through these in the past and we should attempt to avoid it in the future. Enough rambling on, here’s the slate as it stands on March 16th.

HCRA Proposed Slate of Officers/Directors for 2014

Directors:
At large: John/Kx1x
Membership: Rich/N1KXR
Technical: OPEN
Program: Matt/W1MSW
Zero Beat Editor: Frandy/N1FJ

Officers:
Secretary: Dave/N1MFL
Treasurer: Dave/AA1YW
Vice President: Ed/KB1NWH
President: Jim/KK1W

Trust me, if you’re interested in making HCRA a better, stronger organization there is a place for you on the board. Contact Jim/KK1W and lets talk.

WRTC is coming in 2014 – are you ready to pitch in?

Posted on March 16, 2013 by KK1W

WRTC is just around the corner. We’re looking to field (literally) a second station this year. Who’s game to give it a go? So what exactly is WRTC and more importantly WRTC-2014? Read on.

In short you could consider it the ‘Olympics of Amateur Radio’. Read all about the competition and its history here. The big news is WRTC is coming to New England in 2014. The WRTC-2014 committee is looking for hams throughout NE to help them setup, test and manage 59 operating sites (and 6 spares) for the competition in July 2014.

Our location last year was the magnificent (?) Medfield State Hospital in Medfield, MA. It’s been said this retired mental facility was the ideal place to put the HCRA team and it they were right! We setup and operated the whole weekend and had a great time! We’re doubling our efforts this year and fielding two complete stations. We need YOUR support to make it happen! Follow this link to see a great WRTC presentation given at last year’s MTARA meeting by Dave/KM3T. Dave’s presentation is a good overview of WRTC, how much fun it is and why your help is needed.

We’re working right now building our teams for 2013. Would you like to join the fun? Contact Jim/KK1W or telephone at 413.237-4666 and he will get you started on the road to fun!

2013 Annual HCRA Show & Tell Meeting a Success

Posted on March 3, 2013 by W1MSW

Last Friday’s Show & Tell meeting was a great success. We had 9 members bring projects that were either completed or close to completion. All of the presenters did a great job explaining their projects in detail to the club and the audience had good questions for the presenters. Congratulations to Juergen – AB1SU (DK1TM) who scored the most points with the audience and chose the Raspberry Pi microcomputer for his prize. Jeff – NT1K & Dan –KB1VWQ tied for 2^nd place and duked it out over the last two prizes. After the dust settled, Dan went home with the Arduino Uno Microcontroller and Jeff took home two raffle tickets for the KX3 drawing. All of the presenters did a wonderful job with their projects and we thank you for taking the time to show your fellow club members what you’ve been working on. Thank you to everyone who was able to make the meeting, including those who were able to tune in via the live stream on the HCRA USTREAM channel. A special thank you to Jeff – NT1K who setup the live stream and manned the camera throughout the evening. It’s never too early to start thinking about that project for next year!

If you were unable to attend the meeting, you can always see what you missed here: http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/29659726

Matt – W1MSW

Shhhhh! – Something exciting is returning to the January meeting!

Posted on December 19, 2012 by KK1W

Stay tuned for more information.
Merry Christmas everyone!
Jim/KK1W

Here are the sources for antenna supports I use for portable operation. Usable height is usually less than claimed height. We have found that anything over 20 feet or so works well on a summit activation.

28′ carbon fiber pole, about $100 including shipping, strong and light and compact:

http://www.allfishingbuy.com/Fishing-Pole/Pole-A1-65-2-8615.htm

31′ Jackite fiberglass pole, $68.95 including shipping, strong and heavy and big:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/31-Fiberglass-Pole-Radio-Antenna-Jackite-/160561593904?pt=US_Radio_Comm_Antennas&hash=item2562377e30

- Frandy, N1FJ

From the Shack – September 2012

Posted on September 3, 2012 by KK1W

“Welcome back my friends…..”

Welcome to the NEW HCRA – new meeting hall, new website, new raffle and more! I hope your summer has been interesting and exciting. Now, as the leaves begin to turn and there’s a bite of crisp autumn in the air, it is time to re-energize your activity in amateur radio! The new HCRA has lots of stuff in store for you – read on.

New Meeting Location

Thanks to the efforts of John/Kx1x we have secured a new meeting hall. Starting with the September 2012 meeting our meetings will be held at the Auxiliary Conference Center at the Holyoke Medical Center. Many of you have been here before, it’s where the Western Mass VE Team has given examinations for close to a decade. We have all the details of the hall and how to get there on our website. Simply click this link!

What does the new location give us that prompted the change? Let me count the ways. First off the location is free. Your board has decided to make a donation to HMC for the use of the facility however we’re still saving over $500/year in room fees. That’s just the start of good things. Our new location is newly renovated with state of the art heating and cooling, comfortable chairs, a complete A/V setup including screen, projector, sound system and wifi. Handicap access, convenient rest rooms, vending machines and 24/7 security round out the list. I think you’ll find it a superior alternative to our old location.

If, after reading the information about the location, you have ANY questions concerning directions, parking or anything else send me an email or call and I’ll do my best to help ease the transition. All my contact information can be found on the ‘Contacts‘ page of the new HCRA website. Speaking of the website, this brings us to our next major improvement…

The NEW HCRA Website!

When we launched our first website, sometime back in the 1990′s, we were ahead of our time as amateur radio clubs go. However over the ensuing years everything around us changed and we didn’t! What was cutting edge became ‘old fashioned’ and we didn’t do anything about it. Sure, our facebook page is an example of forward thinking but we needed to get our website into the 21st Century too.

The board discussed improving the website for over a year. Unfortunately the folks with the time didn’t have the skills, and the ones with the skills didn’t have the time. One night, after the HCRA meeting and over a beer or two, Jeff/NT1K volunteered to take on the task if we wanted him to do so. Heck yeah, we had been talking about it for months and now, here’s someone that actually has the skills AND the time to ‘get er done’. You’re looking at the results of a few solid weeks (40 to 80 hours) of work – and we’re just getting started!

The new site promises to be interactive and will improve the exposure of HCRA to the amateur radio community around the world. We’re learning to use the new tools available and there’s more to come. Two things on the top of the ‘to do’ list are a swap & sell page and a page where you can actually join or renew on line. I’m thinking we’re off to a pretty good start, don’t you?

As with everything new there will be growing pains and some concern over change (aka “not doing things the old way”). If anyone feels we’ve missed the mark in a few areas please let us know. Better yet, sign up on the website and leave some constructive comments. That’s the beauty of the new site, it offers a chance for everyone to have a say in the execution.

Jeff will be presenting a website tour at the September meeting. After the presentation please take a moment to thank him for his efforts. The change involved a lot of work that easily goes unnoticed.

Back by popular demand – the KX3 Raffle!

The Elecraft KX3 continues to be the hottest transceiver to hit the market in quite some time. A few years back it would be difficult to imagine a compact, all band HF transceiver with DSP, ATU, keyer and more wrapped up in a package weighing less than two pounds. That’s the good news, the bad news is it will set you back at least a kilobuck AND there’s a 120 day waiting list – you just can’t go out and buy one and put it on the air today.

Enter the HCRA KX3 Raffle. For as little as a $10 donation you get a chance to take one of these bad boys home! Only printed 250 tickets have been printed so your chances are very good it could be YOU! (Ask Dan/KB1VWQ about that). The rig is already on order so when the drawing is made, you get to take it home – right then!

Tickets go on sale at the September meeting and are sure to sell out quickly. Be sure to grab yours now before they are all gone. Read more about the raffle here.

Renewal Time is here!

Once again it’s time to open your wallets and support your favorite radio club. Our fiscal year ended August 31st. If you haven’t renewed yet, please do so at the September meeting or by mail using our handy application form. We have worked hard over the past ten years to control our costs, provide quality events for our members and NOT raise dues. By becoming a member you will help keep dues low and fun high! See Rich/N1KXR or Dave/N1MFL at the September meeting and stay current with HCRA. If you can bring a completed application with you it will make the process quicker for everyone.

Still not convinced? OK, here’s some incentive. If you join or renew your HCRA membership by the close of the October 5th meeting you could be the winner of a TYT TH-F5 dual band HT with rechargeable batteries, desk and mobile charger. Getting the bulk of our memberships early in the season allows us plan the year ahead. Help us out by renewing early and we might help you out with a new HT. Fair enough?

Notes from the cluster:

The HCRA October meeting will feature Tom Homewood/W1TO. Tom will be showing us how to get on radio teletype (RTTY), one of many exciting digital modes. Besides a RTTY primer W1TO will talk about RTTY contesting and the Yankee Clipper Contest Club. This will be a dual meeting – it will also be a YCCC meeting and you will be able to join or renew your YCCC membership at our meeting.

The Silent Auction returns at our October meeting. We’ve secured some nice donations over the past few months and will be offering them up to our members at realistic prices.

We will be putting out annual auction ‘on hold’ for 2012 in order to concentrate on getting all the new changes under our belt. It ‘may’ return in 2013 – at this moment it is too soon to tell.

The MTARA picnic is September 9th, just two days after our meeting. HCRA members are most welcome to partake in the fun, food and drink. Purchase tickets from Diane/KB1KST. Info about this and other upcoming events is on our website under the heading of, you guessed it, events!

I think it’s time to put the closing paragraph on this month’s From the Shack. I hope everyone feels all the changes are positive and position HCRA to grow as an amateur radio club and local area resource for years to come. Please, don’t hesitate to voice your thoughts, good or bad, about the new HCRA. Most importantly continue to be the engaged and active amateur radio operator as you’ve always been. That’s the attitude the brings new folks into our fun, exciting and, when disaster strikes, necessary hobby.

’73…
Jim/KK1W

Help Wanted

Posted on August 29, 2012 by KK1W

Our club is looking for a few volunteers for the upcoming 2012/2013 season. Here’s a chance for you to give something back to your fellow club members. The pay is little (well actually none!) but the rewards are great.

KX3 Raffle Coordinator
As coordinator you would actively promote the raffle at HCRA meetings, local hamfests and flea markets. Money is turned in at the end of each meeting so there is no worry about cash accountability. Imagine the enjoyment you’ll get when the friend you sold a ticket to is the winner!

Meeting Hall Supervisor (or some other name – couldn’t think of a good one)
We need someone to arrive about 15 minutes before the meeting. Make sure it is unlocked, grab a few early arrivals and get the chairs setup. During the meeting make sure any trash is placed in the proper receptacles. After the meeting return the room to its original condition.

Holiday Party Coordinator
We have the restaurant reserved and the menu pretty much under control. We’re looking for someone to promote the tickets, get the word out and make sure we have a proper guest list for the party. If you have some ideas to ‘liven up’ the event let’s hear them too. This is a one time a year, fun job – who wants it this year?

Apply in person or via the web. Education or past work history not important, only a strong desire to make HCRA the best amateur radio club on the planet!

Thanks for making HCRA the great club it is!

Jim/KK1W

Preview our new meeting location!

Posted on August 10, 2012 by KK1W

Here’s some photographs that should get you ready for our first meeting at the Holyoke Medical Center. The auditorium is newly renovated, features seating for 100 guests, offers free wi-fi, podium with sound system, LCD projector, screen and sound system if needed, The site is fully accessible, rest room, drinking fountain and soda/juice vending machine right outside the door.

See you at our kickoff meeting, 7:30 PM, September 7th.

Jim/KK1W

Hampden County Radio Association

Welcome to our new site

Tag Archives: meetings

HCRA Ham Radio Film Festival???

2014 Election draws near, nominations entertained.

WRTC is coming in 2014 – are you ready to pitch in?

2013 Annual HCRA Show & Tell Meeting a Success

Shhhhh! – Something exciting is returning to the January meeting!

More links from the November 2nd meeting

Here are the sources for antenna supports I use for portable operation. Usable height is usually less than claimed height. We have found that anything over 20 feet or so works well on a summit activation.

- Frandy, N1FJ

Help Wanted

Preview our new meeting location!

NEWS FLASH:

Eric LaCombe KB1ZGJ General

Here are the sources for antenna supports I use for portable operation. Usable height is usually less than claimed height. We have found that anything over 20 feet or so works well on a summit activation.

- Frandy, N1FJ