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THE SPECTRUM September 2007 Come one, Come ALL !
! ! The VVARC Officers for 2007:
September General Meeting: Tuesday, September 11 Program: Open Forum – Club Direction and Future This meeting is very important
and we need every members’ input. Please
try and attend. Sunday Night Net: Remember
that every Sunday at 7PM the Club conducts a Net on the 146.940 repeater. Get
the latest club announcements and reminders. Also, our Club needs volunteers
to help run the Net. If you are interested, please contact us. In the event
that the repeater is down, turn to 146.5350 simplex. Club Member News
HAPPY
BIRTHDAY TO ALL
Joe Allee 9/19 Larry Kendall 9/15 Carolyn Schow 9/19 James Waggle 9/4 Richard Wilkins 9/13 If anyone is missed, let us know. Our records
probably need to be updated. Ron Covington is
recovering from surgery and news is he is doing well. Speedy
recovery, Ron.
Please
let Sandi DeWeert, sdeweert@verizon.net, know if you hear of any of our
members that may be under the weather or just need a little lift from
friends in the Club. To our new members Are you aware of the
ARRL? QST magazine? In order for our Club to
be an affiliated organization, we need to maintain 51% membership to the
ARRL. The ARRL pays our Club a commission for new and renewing memberships. If you have any
questions, feel free to contact your Board members. Name Tags Our Club is starting to
grow and we are getting some new members that don’t know everyone. We
have made up name tags for all our members, but need to know if we have
missed anyone. Try and wear your name tags during Club functions so everyone
can put a name with a face. If we have missed anyone or you need a
replacement, email Sandi (sdeweert@verizon.net
) and let her know. Distribution Roster Revision Randy and Lori
Hatfield ELMERS An Elmer is kind of like
a mentor for amateur radio operators. As new operators, we need the
experience, knowledge, and guidance passed on to us by those that have been
practicing for some time. Thank you to those
members that have stepped forward and volunteered to help members with
questions. Feel free to contact anyone on our ELMER list when you have
questions.
2007 Membership Drawing: Be sure and attend the
general meetings for your chance of winning the membership drawing. The September
drawing is $10.00. July’s winner was Eddie
Collins in the amount of $10.00 Dues for 2007 remain the
same: $18.00 for individuals, $23 for families, and $10 for youth and all new
members. Remember new HAMS get a year membership free! Volunteers Needed: It’s that time
again! Board elections! Please consider stepping
up and helping. Our club has been in existence for over 50 years and it would
be a shame to disband the Club due to support. Contact any of your
current Board members if you have any questions. If you have any ideas for
programs, activities, club projects, etc. speak up. Pass your thoughts along
to the Board members. WE are open to any suggestions. The Club Needs
YOU Have
you looked at any websites of HAM radio clubs across the nation? An interesting theme is cropping up with
most clubs. They have a membership
averaging 40-60 members. And, most
clubs are having trouble staffing the leadership positions. The result is a few people doing most of
the work and burning out. The
Victor Valley Amateur Radio Club (VVARC) is over 50 years old. It is one of the oldest clubs in The
following is a list of each VVARC club office. It includes the title, basic duties, and
the approximate time required to accomplish the tasks of each office. Amazingly, the time to do each position is
not very much if everyone does his or her part. Club President Facilitates
the operation of the Club, runs the board meetings, can lead the Club
meetings or delegate that function to another member. Time required per month including all
meetings 5 hours. Club Vice-President Assists the Club president, attends board meetings,
arrange the Club meeting speakers or programs, assist in Field Day
preparation. Time required per month
including all meetings, 5 hours. Club Secretary Attend both board and general meetings to takes
minutes. Assembles and distributes the
minutes to those requiring them. Works
with treasurer on membership matters and assists at Club general meetings
with raffles, etc. Time required per
month is 5 hours. Treasurer Accounts for funds collected and dispensed in
monthly Club operation. Work with the
Club secretary regarding ARRL annual accreditation. Time required per month is 5 hours. Additional Board Members These board members are made up of the out-going
Club President and 2 other Club members.
They assist where needed. They
provide guidance with regard to Club programming, events, and policy. Time required per month is less than 5
hours. There
is no need to cut back on Club activities and programs if Club members can
provide a few hours of support. As
a “hobby” there is a need
for mentoring (being an Elmer) to the new HAMs. There is a need for basic training in the
art of emergency communications.
It’s time to get excited about your hobby, again! VE Testing in the The first Saturday of
every odd-numbered month there is a GLAARG (Greater Los Angeles Amateur Radio
Group) test session in Hesperia. Tests are held at the Fire Station at the
corner of Olive and H. Registration starts at 8:30 AM. The cost is $4.00.
Walk-ins are welcome. Testing is available for all classes of license. All
candidates must bring a picture ID, and if you are upgrading, you need the
original and a copy of your amateur license and any CSCEs you hold. For more
information, you can contact Jim MacRay, KW6V, at 244-1396. Directions to test
site: From I-15 take Also, the Inland ARC
tests on the 4th Thursday of each month, at 5 PM at Web Site Update If you have any
suggestions on what you would like to see, feel free to let Steve know, steve.ostrander@dcma.mil. From the ARRL: Address
or phone number change??? “The
FCC requires you to maintain a valid current mailing address in their database
at all times. This is so that they can contact you by mail if needed. If you
move or even change Don’t forget if you need to renew your
membership or join the ARRL, contact Sandi DeWeert (sdeweert@verizon.net) and pay your
dues through the Club. VVARC receives a commission for each renewal or new
joining fee. Food for Thought Submitted by Jimmy James The older I get, the more I enjoy Saturday
mornings. Perhaps it's the quiet solitude that comes with being the first to
rise, or maybe it's the unbounded joy of not having to be at work.
Either way, the first few hours of a Saturday morning are most enjoyable. A
few weeks ago, I was shuffling toward the garage with a steaming cup of
coffee in one hand and the morning paper in the other. What began as a
typical Saturday morning turned into one of those lessons that life seems to
hand you from time to time. Let
me tell you about it: I turned the dial up into the phone portion of the
band on my HAM radio in order to listen to a Saturday morning swap net.
Along the way, I came across an older sounding chap with a tremendous signal
and a golden voice. You know the kind; he sounded like he should be in the
broadcasting business. He was telling whom-ever he was talking with
something about "a thousand marbles." I was intrigued and stopped
to listen to what he had to say. "Well,
Tom, it sure sounds like you're busy with your job. I'm sure they pay you
well, but it's a shame you have to be away from home and your family so
much. Hard to believe a young fellow should have to work sixty or
seventy hours a week to make ends meet. It's too bad you missed your
daughter's dance recital", he continued. "Let me tell you
something that has helped me keep my own priorities." And that's when he
began to explain his theory of a "thousand marbles." "You
see, I sat down one day and did a little arithmetic. The average person
lives about seventy-five years. I know, some live more and some live less,
but on average, folks live about seventy-five years. Now then, I
multiplied 75 times 52 and I came up with 3900, which is the number of Saturdays
that the average person has in their entire lifetime. Now, stick with
me, Tom, I'm getting to the important part.” “It
took me until I was fifty-five years old to think about all this in any
detail", he went on, "and by that time I had lived through over twenty-eight
hundred Saturdays. I got to thinking that if I lived to be seventy-five, I
only had about a thousand of them left to enjoy. So I went to a toy
store and bought every single marble they had. I ended up having to
visit three toy stores to round up 1000 marbles. I took them home and put
them inside a large, clear plastic container right here in the shack next to
my gear.” "Every
Saturday since then, I have taken one marble out and thrown it away. I found
that by watching the marbles diminish, I focused more on the really important
things in life. “ “There
is nothing like watching your time here on this earth run out to help get
your priorities straight.” "Now
let me tell you one last thing before I sign-off with you and take my lovely
wife out for breakfast. This morning, I took the very last marble out of the
container. I figure that if I make it until next Saturday then I have been
given a gift of a little extra time. And the one thing we can all use is a
little more time. “ "It
was nice to meet you Tom, I hope you spend more time with your family, and I
hope to meet you again here on the band. This is a 75-Year-old Man,
K9NZQ, clear and going QRT. Good morning!"
You could have heard a pin drop on the band when
this fellow signed off. I guess he gave us all a lot to think about. I had
planned to work on the antenna that morning, and then I was going to meet up
with a few HAMs to work on the next Club Newsletter. Instead, I went upstairs
and woke my wife up with a kiss. "C'mon honey, I'm taking you and the
kids to breakfast." "What brought this on?” she asked with a
smile. "Oh, nothing special, it's just been a long time since we spent a
Saturday together with the kids. And hey, can we stop at a toy store while
we're out? I need to buy some marbles." Why I’m “Still”
Excited Over the past year I have
had some people ask me why I’m still so excited about my hobby! Well, that’s an easy
question to answer. 1.
Thirty years
ago I was involved in providing emergency communications after Hurricane
David (165 mph winds for 18 hours) in the 2.
I remember my
Elmer inviting me to different contesting events. I learned more from participating in one
field day than I would in a year of “wild-ducking-it” on my own
at home. (That means reading books and
magazines and trying stuff out on my own.) 3.
I enjoy
learning from others. I have saved a
lot of money in this hobby by learning from the wisdom and mistakes of other HAMs. 4.
I get a kick
out of exposing new HAMs and old ones to different areas of the hobby. There is nothing like helping a new HAM
with his first A0-51 satellite contact.
Or, his first HF QSO. 5.
Along the way,
I have given and received HAM equipment from other HAMs. I have made good friends and memories with
my fellow HAMs. As my island of knowledge
increases so does my shoreline of wonder.
I’ve had more than one HAM tell me I have forgotten more than
they’ll ever know. I always tell
them, “I’m still learning, it’s a big, fun hobby.” 73, Randy
AG6RH Seeing the Space Station Here’s
the easiest way to look for the International Space Station and Space
Shuttle. The two objects are brighter
than any star in the sky. That makes
them easy to pick out. If you’ve
driven a car at night on a straight country road the reflected sun light on
the satellites looks like a car coming at you from off in the distance. http://spaceflight1.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/cities/skywatch.cgi?country=United+States Click
on the state you will be in when looking for the ISS or Space Shuttle. Then, click on the city. You will get a complete rundown on when and
where to look. Print it out! Originally,
I was using Orbitron, a free download from the internet, to find the
ISS. There was some guess-work
involved so I looked around the internet and found the above indicated
website. I
have found the NASA data to be “spot on” when it comes to where
it’s coming from, when and…how long of a viewing time. I must say that the viewing time is
conservative. It’s
one thing to see the bright ISS move across the sky. It’s even more fun to see the two
(ISS and Shuttle) “station-keeping” 40 or so miles apart the
night before the Shuttle de-orbit burn. A
tip if you are going to share this with the younger generation. Show some current NASA pictures of the ISS
and Space Shuttle before making your pilgrimage to view the night sky. Here’s
another tip. Look for these satellites
when the data sheet says the maximum elevation is above 20 degrees. Of course, you can look for them below 20
degrees but smog, desert haze, and city lights may obstruct your viewing. 73 Randy Hatfield AG6RH Route 66 on the Air The
Club is again participating in the annual Route 66 on the Air event. This event is organized by the Citrus Belt
ARC. Information on the event can be
found on their web site: www.w6jbt.org. The dates are 0000Z September 8 –
2359Z Sept16. There is information on
page 88 of the August QST.
There they give recommended frequencies. (21.366, 14.266, 7.266,
3.866) The
special event call sign for our Club will be W6D. Participating groups go from W6A through
W6Q—and you know that there will be HAMs out there wishing to reach ALL
of them. You can operate from your
home at any of the time during the event, on behalf of the Club using W6D, as
long as you operate within the frequencies that your own license
permits. You must keep a log, giving
the date, the time, their call, their report.
This log will be given to the Halls at the end of the event, so that
they can handle requests for QSL cards.
If
anyone asks you, mailing information for QST cards can be found on the web
site at the top of this story. Or, you
can tell people to mail to VVARC, We
need to have operators up on the air during part of every day of the
event. Please pass this message along
to anyone who you think might like to help out, in case I have missed
people. We will be traveling for a
while, but should be able to answer e-mails if you have any questions. We’ll be calling you around the start
of the event, too. Bob and
Virginia Hall Calendar
of Events September 3 - Board
Meeting: 6:30 p.m., September 11 - General
Meeting: 7:00 p.m. October 1 - Board
Meeting: 6:30 p.m., October 6-7 –
California QSO Party for 2007, http://www.cqp.org/ October 9 – General
Meeting: 7:00 p.m. November 5 - Board
Meeting: 6:30 p.m., November 13 –
General Meeting: 7:00 p.m. December 3 - Board
Meeting: 6:30 p.m., December 11 –
Installation Dinner |
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