Greetings, welcome to "Dale's Tales" for May, 2020.
Sadly, Michigan recently lost its Section Emergency Coordinator, John McDonough WB8RCR. Our thoughts go out to John's family in this time of great sorrow. John was a good friend of everyone involved with the ARRL Michigan Section.
2020 Field Day notes from the ARRL NEWS:
04/22/2020
This year, ARRL Field Day promises to be a unique iteration of this annual event, with many individuals and groups coming up with new and interesting ways to adjust their approach. As an event, Field Day is structured to be versatile and can be adapted for any situation.
Many groups have asked how they can adjust their Field Day planning to address social-distancing guidelines that may be in effect in many areas of the country, as gathering at their traditional Field Day site may not be feasible or safe. Instead of participating in a group event this year, consider operating as a Class B, C, D, or E station, utilizing your own call sign.
ARRL will include club names for all participating stations in the published results, so the efforts of your club’s members can be acknowledged. While we will not publish an aggregate club score, seeing the name of your club associated with various individual member’s results is certainly a way to highlight your club’s activity.
Myriad opportunities are possible in this year’s Field Day setting. These are just a couple.
Consider having an intra-club competition among members, seeing who can make the most contacts during the event. You can award prizes or distribute certificates at a club meeting. This can be a fun way to bolster the activities of individual club members, even though they cannot all gather together at the same location this year. Set up a Field Day Challenge with rival clubs in neighboring communities. See how many members of each club get on the air from their own stations and participate in the event. In addition to “bragging rights,” perhaps certificates to the top-scoring individual entries in each category can be presented as part of this inter-club camaraderie.
One club is planning to conduct its Field Day as a 4A club group, with participants spaced to comply with social distancing guidelines within the required 1,000-foot diameter circle and operating individual stations. This club also plans to set up a “Get on the Air” (GOTA) station. The club’s plan is to have the GOTA coach at the Field Day site, while GOTA operators participate via remote link.
Another club is planning to set up a remote-controlled station at its usual Field Day site, with club members taking turns controlling the station from their homes. The club is developing a schedule that outlines when each member of the club will be at the helm via the remote link.
Whatever approach you take to this year’s Field Day, keep up to date with the current guidelines issued by local and state health agencies that may impact your proposed operation.
ARRL invites your stories about the interesting and creative ways you’re planning to use to adapt your Field Day operation. Share these on the ARRL Field Day Facebook page.
For the latest news and updates, visit the Field Day webpage. —
Thanks to ARRL Contest Program Manager Paul Bourque, N1SFE
As many know, one of the key annual events associated with the Dayton Hamvention®, Contest University (CTU) has cancelled this year's regular session. Most thankfully, the hosts and sponsors of CTU are making the very best of a bad situation and are offering CTU to everyone at no cost
via Zoom video conferencing. Now, whether you are a contester or not, there is something for everyone at CTU. Take a look at their web page at https://www.contestuniversity.com/course-outline/ for a check of the material being presented. A Link for everyone will open on May 7 with all of the log-in information. The Zoom conference will be held on Thursday May 14.
TOM'S TOME, Comments from your ARRL Vice Director Tom W8WTD.
Quarantines. Cancellations. Luckily, we still have ham radio. Yes, most of our in-person activities are not going to happen any time soon, but activity on the ham bands is picking up. On several of the local nets that I participate in, check-ins have increased. I’ve heard a number of people say that they had been inactive, and are just now getting back to radio. People are trying out new—for them—modes of communications. And since most of us are at least somewhat technical, videoconferences are not beyond us. Virtual meetings are happening, and even, to some extent, just some informal chats so we can share ideas and check up on each other.
One thing I am concerned about for the near future is getting new hams.
Long before any of this pandemic, ARRL was developing education programs for continuing education, but also making sure that we continue to teach ham radio to interested people. Our model has been in-person classes.
Yes, many people have studied on their own, but we find that those who did often don’t have much of a connection to any local hams, individually or through clubs. And they often don’t last.
ARRL and other VE programs are looking at some ways of secure remote testing. We’ve got to be able to get people to get tested in order to get licenses. This effort will continue. But we may also have to re-think how we teach ham radio to beginners. Keeping “social distancing,” what combination of video, slides, and materials will work to help people, so that once we overcome the testing challenges, people are ready to get licensed? If your club is working on that, let me know.
Stay safe, and get on the radio!
--73, Tom W8WTD Vice Director, Great Lakes Division
HAMFESTING: All hamfests in the Great Lakes Division planned through the first of June, are either cancelled or postponed. If your swap is cancelled or the date is going to change, please notify ARRL HQ. We work together with the HQ staff to verify all new date selections in the hope of mitigating date conflicts.
With constant changes underway in all three Great Lakes Division states, and the lack of clarity regarding the resumption of travel, we are not posting any swaps until this situation stabilizes.
For the latest detail on cancelled hamfests, check the ARRL web page at:
http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/search/page:5/keywords:Canceled/model:Event
CANCELLED FOR MAY:
5/2/20 Cadillac Hamfest Cadillac, MI CANCELLED
5/17/20 Dayton Hamvention Xenia, OH CANCELLED
It should be noted that there has been a change in the way ARRL contributes to your ARRL sanctioned hamfest efforts. Please carefully read the e-mail from ARRL Headquarters confirming your sanctioning as IT CONTAINS IMPORTANT DETAILS REGARDING PRIZES. Be sure to invite your ARRL Officials as soon as your date is set. With 52 weeks and 70+ hamfests in the Great Lakes Division, things do requires some advanced planning.
If you plan to request ARRL Hamfest Sanctioning, please do so well in advance of your Hamfest date, as this allows adequate time for QST Listings. QST requires a 3 month lead time.
73, All the best to you and your family. Stay Safe and Ham it up!
Dale Williams WA8EFK
Director
Great Lakes Division
wa8efk@arrl.org
