Dale's Tales for April, 2015

Greetings everyone, welcome to "Dale's Tales" for April 2015.

The Michigan QSO Party arrives at 1600Z on April18.   It runs until 0400Z on April 19.   Sponsored by the Mad River Radio Club, the MiQSO party is an annual event that offers Single op, Multi op, Mobile and Portable operators a chance to compete for the honors. This year introduces a special award for working the "Michigan Cabinet Counties".  Full details are on the MiQP web page at http://www.miqp.org/index.html.

The Parma Radio Club will celebrate its 3rd annual Earth Day this April 25th with a special event station.  W8PRC, will be on SSB within 20 kHz of 7.195 and 14.245 kHz from historic Stearns Farm in the heart of the city.  Our operation will be entirely on solar power in recognition of Earth Day. A beautiful QSL card will be available.  For more information, see www.parmaradioclub.webs.com .

The Southeastern VHF Society is proud to announce the upcoming 2015 Spring Technical Conference will be held at the Space Science Center of Morehead State University in Morehead, Kentucky on April 24th and 25th.

In addition, this conference has just been upgraded to an Operating Specialty Convention by the ARRL.  Two days of various VHF-UHF-Microwave technical presentations covering weak signal work, VHF-UHF-Micro contesting, construction technique, demos, antenna testing, preamp testing, vendor displays, flea market, and a Saturday evening banquet with its history of valuable door prizes.  The SVHFS website and links to the conference registration, program, and hotel info are at http://svhfs.org/wp/.

As you are aware, HB 1301 has been introduced in the House of Representatives.  This bill is to allow ham radio operators living in areas controlled by homeowners associations and on deed-restricted properties, to reasonably install antennas; not unlike the FCC ruling that today allows those very same people living in such areas to install outdoor broadcast TV receive antennas.   Hence the name "Amateur Radio Parity Act".   This just calls for fairness.  While a person living in a deed-restricted area today can legally install a 2 foot diameter TV receive-only dish on his roof, he cannot install a 4 inch UHF ¼ wave ham radio antenna on his rain gutter.  Our bill asks that, just like the case of PRB-1, ham antennas should be reasonably accommodated. 

So today, I ask you: "Has your Congressman signed up to support HB-1301?"   Have you contacted him/her to gain support?   Please examine the ARRL Web Page http://www.arrl.org/hr-1301 for contact information and the complete text of the bill.  There you will find some excellent suggestions for formatting your letter to your congressperson, along with supporting documentation and a listing of Congressmen.  We currently have support from the following in our Division: Dan Benishek MI-01, David Joyce OH-14, and Tim Walberg MI-07.  Please take some time to thank them and be sure to implore your Congressperson to support HB 1301.

As a further opportunity to assist you, we will have a booth in the ARRL EXPO at the Dayton Hamvention to allow you to send an appropriate letter to your congressman in support of HB 1301.

Here are the monthly comments from our Great Lakes Div. Vice Director, Tom W8WTD:

One of my goals as Vice Director is to keep in touch with what's going on throughout the Division, so

I can help our Director, Dale, know what people are thinking, and look at trends, whether they relate to on-going policy decisions for the League, or are just good radio activities in general.

At the beginning of March, I traveled down to Cave City, KY, for their hamfest.  I was fortunate to talk to a number of hams around Elizabethtown who had just been through an emergency response a few days before.  All those people stranded in the snowstorm on I-65 needed help, and the hams were there to assist local responders.  Well done, everyone!

You know, we prepare and plan, and time goes on and we think all is fine.  Then, in a matter of hours, we're in the thick of things.  We can't tell the situation to hold off while we get ready.  It's just a matter of grabbing the radios and other stuff, and responding.  If we prepared well, it shows.  Even if we haven't, we can do a good job, but it could always be better with more prep.  You never know when the next disaster will happen.  Spring is almost here, and the storms will be following.  Are your batteries charged?

When we think of trends, it's usually about what a lot of individuals are doing or have discovered.  Trends or patterns with clubs are usually harder to spot.  But right now I sense that there is a trend going on with a number of clubs, and it is that they are acquiring new digital voice repeaters.  The discount offered by one manufacturer (ending this month) has attracted many clubs, and soon we'll have a lot of these repeaters on the air across the Great Lakes Division.

I look forward to hearing how things go.  It's one more step in the on-going advancement of amateur radio.  Some people don't like the trend towards digital.  Others have embraced it in its various competing forms.  Some are waiting on the sidelines for the formats to settle out.  What will happen?  How will a repeater built to handle either digital or analog input perform for its users?  Will a lot of people invest in the new digital format?  Will a particular repeater stay mostly analog, even if it's capable of digital?  Will one type prevail?

On the larger subject of digital voice modes, we hope to have a forum on that subject at our Division Convention in August.  If you've never heard of P25, DMR, D-Star, or C4FM, you can find out more from those who use those modes.  If you're really involved in any of those modes, you can meet other folks who are as well, and share knowledge.  Either way, we hope it will be a topic of much interest.

See you at Dayton!  73,

Tom W8WTD

Vice Director

Great Lakes Division

Hamfesting:  Here is the current Great Lakes Division ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest Schedule for the next few weeks.  These swaps have received their sanctioning approval from ARRL HQ at the time of this publication. 

April 4 - Lincoln Trail, Elizabethtown, KY - KY1O 

April 4 - Portsmouth, Portsmouth, OH - N8SY 

April 11 - Letcher County, Whitesburg - KY - KY1O 

April 25 - Jackson County, Jackson, OH - N8SY 

April 26 - Athens, Athens, OH - N8SY 

May 2 - Cadillac, Cadillac, MI - WB8R 

May 9 - Big Sandy, Louisa, KY - KY1O 

May 9 - CCRA-KCRA - Chassell, MI - WB8R 

May 15, 16, 17 -  Hamvention® - Dayton, OH - Everyone!!

May 30 - Ashland - Ashland, KY - KY1O

Hamfest officials:  When you receive your "Hamfest Package" from ARRL, open it immediately.  Read it over and look at all of the material you received.  There is a form included to order additional if you deem it appropriate.

Your Division and Section officials want to be at your events and we strive for insuring that the ARRL is properly represented at every ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest.  Conflicts can arise, such as hamfests which might occur on the same day.  It is always a good idea for your hamfest chair to contact the Section Manager, Vice-Director or Director early in the planning stages to insure his attendance at the activity.  This will allow time to prepare for alternate representation in the event of time conflicts.

The ARRL Director, Vice Director and Section Managers are available to visit local radio clubs and give presentations about ARRL and what is happening in the Section or Division.  Please feel free to invite any of us for an "ARRL Night" at your club.  Most of the talks are prepared in a video presentation format and can include a Q&A session as well.

Advance scheduling really helps and gives you an opportunity to publicize the event.  See pages 15 & 16 of a recent QST for contact information.

73, see you on the bands.

Dale Williams WA8EFK

Director

Great Lakes Division

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Dale's Tales for March..

>> Greetings everyone, welcome to "Dale's Tales" for March 2015<<

I recently had the pleasure of making a surprise visit to the Marion Amateur Radio Club with the specific mission of presenting one of their members with one of ARRL's most prestigious awards. Mr. Bill Finnegan, NR8I was chosen by the ARRL Board of Directors to be the recipient of the Herb S. Brier Award. This award is named in memory of Herb S. Brier, W9AD, long-time CQ Novice Editor, who represented the spirit of effective, caring Amateur Radio instruction. The ARRL sponsors this award in conjunction with the Lake County Indiana Amateur Radio Club, in Herb's memory to recognize the very best in Amateur Radio instruction and recruitment. Bill Finnegan's contribution to the recruitment of new amateurs and the subsequent follow-on to insure they continue in the hobby, epitomizes the ideals of W9AD. The Great Lakes Division is indeed proud to recognize Bill's contributions to amateur radio. Congratulations NR8I.

Next month on April 1 (!) to be exact, our Kentucky Section will greet a new Section Manager. I want to personally take this opportunity to welcome Alan Morgan, KY1O into his new position. He will be replacing Jim Brooks, KY4Z who has served as KY SM for the past eight years. Alan is an ARRL Life Member and has held the positions of DEC, EC and NM as well as the presidency of his local radio club. Our best wishes go to Alan and of course to Jim, as he moves on to enjoy some of the other facets of ham radio.

The Great Lakes Division's largest ham radio bash is coming up soon. Well, OK it is the world's largest ham radio bash and we are fortunate to have it all happen in our Division. Of course, it's the Dayton HamVention®.  If you have never attended, you must. If you have not made your plans yet, you must. The dates are May 15, 16 & 17, 2015. Of course we will have the ARRL Expo in place again this year, with all of the League's key people and resources ready to visit with you. Your Division and Section officials plan to be circulating at the Expo. Please plan to stop by for an "eye ball QSO". Check out the HamVention web site at http://hamvention.org/.

ARRL members are going to be polled for their opinions on the recently proposed HF band changes.

The ARRL is asking members to comment by April 19 on possible changes to the League’s HF Band Plans suggested by the HF Band Planning Committee. The survey is part of the committee’s efforts to tweak the band plans for the RTTY/data/CW portions of 80 through 10 meters with the exception of 60 meters. 400 members commented in response to a March 2014 solicitation that sought suggestions for using the spectrum more efficiently so that data modes may coexist compatibly. This is an important survey and you are encouraged to use this opportunity to provide input on the suggestions the committee has posted. First, review the proposal which will appear in your April 2015 QST. Then go to http://www.arrl.org/bandplan to file your comments.

Here are the monthly comments from our Great Lakes Division Vice Director, Tom, W8WTD:

Snow, snow and more snow. I haven't heard many good words about it recently, as we are all looking forward to spring. And there was plenty of snow for the Mansfield Mid-Winter Hamfest a few weeks ago. Nice to see many of you there.

Like everyone else, I'm looking forward to spring, but those thoughts are always accompanied, for me, by thoughts of preparation. I look around to check on radios, batteries, jump kits (go kits), etc. I guess it's the many years of preparing for and responding to disasters with the Red Cross that set my thinking. And while the specifics of emergency communications in a particular area are best left to the ARES leadership, I'm sure the EC's, DEC's and SEC's don't mind my giving the reminder for all of us to be prepared. Spring is, even on a snowy morning, just around the corner, and with it, the bad weather and storms along with the gentle breezes and flowers.

Along those lines, my home club, the Queen City Emergency Net, had a program on solar power at our February meeting. Thanks to Jerry, W1SCR, for providing the good information. Whether you're looking for a power source for QRP, Field Day, or keeping a station on the air during an extended power failure, solar might be a good way to go. It fits right in to disaster planning. Speaking of disaster planning, Ohio ARES is planning a NVIS antenna day in April. What else is going on in the Division? Any additional things we can share and test? Let us know.

Maybe I can find out more about activities in Kentucky when I visit the Cave City Hamfest this coming weekend. I look forward to meeting some friends, and making new ones. I always like to share ideas and listen to members' concerns as I get around. That's part of what I can do for the Great Lakes Division. I'll make sure that Director Williams knows about new programs and activities that I get a chance to hear about.

Whether it's that hamfest, or any of the others ones I get to attend during this new season, if you see me, stop by and say hello. I look forward to meeting you.

73,

Tom, W8WTD

Vice Director

Great Lakes Division

Hamfesting: Here is the current Great Lakes Division ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest Schedule for the

next few weeks. These swaps have received their sanctioning approval from ARRL HQ at the time of this publication.

Mar 7 - Cave City, in Cave City, KY - KY4Z - W8WTD

Mar 14 - Crossroads, Kalamazoo, MI - WB8R - WA8EFK

Mar 15 - TMRA, Toledo, N8SY - WA8EFK

Mar 21 - West MI Youth Hamfest, Lowell, MI

Mar 28 - MOVARC, Gallipolis, OH - N8SY

April 4 - Lincoln Trail, Elizabethtown, KY - KY1O

April 4 - Portsmouth, Portsmouth, OH - N8SY

April 11 - Letcher County, Whitesburg - KY - KY1O

April 25 - Jackson County, Jackson, OH - N8SY

April 26 - Athens, Athens, OH - N8SY

Hamfest officials: When you receive your "Hamfest Package" from ARRL, open it immediately. Read it over and look at all of the material you received. There is a form included to order additional if you deem it appropriate.

Your Division and Section officials want to be at your events and we strive for insuring that the ARRL is properly represented at every ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest. Conflicts can arise, such as hamfests which might occur on the same day. It is always a good idea for your hamfest chair to contact the Section Manager, Vice-Director or Director early in the planning stages to insure his attendance at the activity. This will allow time to prepare for alternate representation in the event of time conflicts.

The ARRL Director, Vice Director and Section Managers are available to visit local radio clubs and give presentations about ARRL and what is happening in the Section or Division. Please feel free to invite any of us for an "ARRL Night" at your club. Most of the talks are prepared in a video presentation format and can include a Q&A session as well.

Advance scheduling really helps and gives you an opportunity to publicize the event. See pages 15 & 16 of a recent QST for contact information.

73, see you on the bands.

Dale Williams, WA8EFK

Director

Great Lakes Division

Latest Edition of Dale's Tales for you..

Greetings everyone,

I trust that everyone is now over the "withdrawal" from the final contacts of the Centennial QSO

Party, and solidly into the normal routine for a new year. Welcome to this February 2015 edition of "Dale's Tales".

The recent January ARRL Board meeting went well and I am sure most of you have now read some of the meeting highlights in various bulletins and the ARRL Letter©. The Headquarters staff is reasonably close to having their routines back to normal after the Centennial Year, and they are looking forward to the time when all of the various Centennial awards are complete. I think we all are anxious to see the "Final Results" of 2014's great ham radio events.

As your Great Lakes Division Director, I believe it important for me to report on several of the events from the ARRL Annual Board Meeting.

Some of the more interesting actions at the meeting related to selecting new members to the CEO Search Committee that is working on guidelines for choosing a new CEO to replace Dave Sumner K1ZZ when he eventually elects to retire. Much is going into this advance planning to insure the best interests of Amateur Radio are served in selecting this new individual when that time eventually comes. The Board also held an extensive discussion of IT projects underway at Headquarters and improving the tracking and prioritization of those projects. There is currently a large demand on the IT staff for a number of innovative projects. We made some minor changes to the Articles of Association to refine some qualifications and clarify the definitions of conflicts of interest.

Other items included a change to allow all DXCC Card Checkers to check cards for 160 meters with new guidelines which will be developed and made available to them. Some DXCC rules were revised to improve some definitions and provide new guidelines about remote station operation.

The Board created a committee to examine the prospects of revitalizing VHF/UHF contesting and updated some of the VHF/UHF contesting rules.

The HF Band Planning Committee was instructed to add RTTY and data privileges for Technicians and Novices to the proposed new band plan and send the potential changes out to the ARRL membership for comment.

Several worthy amateurs were selected to receive some of Amateur Radio's highest honors and lastly, the new ARRL 2015 committee members were appointed by President Craigie.

Full Board Minutes are available for your review at: http://www.arrl.org/board-meetings.

Congratulations to Michigan Section Manager Larry Camp WB8R and his team for their successful passage of MI Public Act 556, codifying "PRB-1" onto Michigan law. Michigan Governor Snyder signed PA556 on January 15. The Act also calls for the establishment of an advisory group to assist in resolving issues. The legislative process involved overcoming objections proffered by some community associations who eventually became full supporters of the bill.

Here are the monthly comments from our Great Lakes Div. Vice Director, Tom W8WTD:

Before the Board Meeting in Connecticut in January, I got to visit the ARRL Lab at HQ, and while

there, saw their historical display of a spark-gap transmitter. It was amazing to think about how that came about, and what it took for experimenters to come up with something like that. Ham radio has always been about experimenting, and taking something known and doing something different with it.

And that's what is still exciting about ham radio today. As I travel around the Division, I hear of all kinds of new projects and people trying new things, all to do more with radio. I have my own favorites, like DMR and remote control. There are many others, including APRS, Mesh networks, etc. I love to hear what people are doing and I try to share stories to encourage others who are thinking about those things.

In the radio room at QCEN (the Queen City Emergency Net,) where I am a member, is a display of a home-made radio from the 1950s. It's a six-meter AM transceiver, along the lines of what would later be the Gonset "Gooney Box" or the "Benton Harbor Lunchbox." It came about because the club wanted its members to be on six meters for local communication, and the only rigs available were pretty high priced, even for the day. So, they designed a simple circuit, using off-the-shelf components, and made a "kit" of sorts, so that many club members could participate. Those radios provided the club with good, inexpensive communications for many years.

It's still the same. Arduino technology is providing hams with new ways to control things. Individual hams still sit down to design circuits to do just what they need in a particular installation, something custom-made just for their own project. Many hams take existing products and combine them with other products to make what they need. No sense designing radios, since the precision manufacturing techniques make far more sophisticated radios than we could make at home. But what you do with it --that's key. A low-cost Chinese-built radio that is combined with an old cell phone, tying in to its GPS, makes a great APRS tracker. And there are many others you could add to the list.

The hamfests are just starting for the year, and I look forward to meeting many more of you in 2015. I'm anxious to discover and share news of the many technical innovations that hams in this Division are working on.


73,

Tom W8WTD
Vice Director
Great Lakes Division

Hamfesting: Here is the current Great Lakes Division ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest Schedule for the

next few weeks. These swaps have received their sanctioning approval from ARRL HQ at the time of this publication.

Feb 7 - HARA, in Negaunee, MI - WB8R

Feb 14 - Cherryland, in Traverse City, MI - WB8R 

Feb 15 - Mansfield, in Mansfield, OH - N8SY - WA8EFK 

Feb 15 - Livonia, in Livonia, MI - WB8R 

Mar 7 - Cave City, in Cave City, KY - KY4Z 

Mar 14 - Crossroads, Kalamazoo, MI - WB8R - WA8EFK 

Mar 15 - TMRA, Toledo, N8SY - WA8EFK 

Mar 28 - MOVARC, Gallipolice, OH - N8SY

A note about hamfest attendance by your ARRL elected officials. We want to be at your events and we strive for insuring that the ARRL is properly represented at every ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest. Conflicts can arise, such as hamfests which might occur on the same day. It is always a good idea for your hamfest chairman to contact the Section Manager, Vice-Director or Director early in the planning stages to insure his attendance at the activity. This will allow time to prepare for alternate representation in the event of time conflicts.

Recent Club Visits: Thanks to the Garden City ARC for hosting a Director visit at their January Club meeting. Your Director, Vice Director and Section Managers are available to visit local radio clubs and give presentations about ARRL and what is happening in the Section or Division. Please feel free to invite any of us for an ARRL Night at your club. Most of the talks are prepared in a video presentation format and can include a Q&A session as well. Advance scheduling really helps and gives you an opportunity to publicize the event. See pages 15 & 16 of a recent QST for contact information.



73, see you on the bands.

Dale Williams WA8EFK
Director
Great Lakes Division


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Dale's Tale's for January 2015

Happy New Year Everyone! 

And, it was a Happy Old Year as well.   2014 brought the 100th Anniversary of the ARRRL and along with it THE outstanding operating event of the past century.  Now the individual logs are uploading to Logbook of the World and scores will all be recalculated for the Centennial QSO Party.  Remember, the log deadline is January 15 at 2359 Z.

There were several key events that bear mentioning from our historic 2014:

We experienced a change in the guard at the Division level in July as long time Director, Jim Weaver, K8JE retired and Vice Director Dale Williams assumed that role.  Tom Delaney W8WTD moved up to fill Dale's unexpired term.   Tom was then elected to the Vice Director position in the fall election cycle. 

Michigan secured the passage through the State House and Senate of PRB-1 that includes establishment of an advisory committee to provide accurate information concerning amateur antenna needs to local governmental regulating bodies as required. It now awaits the Governor's signature.

2014 also saw the Ohio PRB-1 Law standing its own ground and winning an appeal at the 6th Appellate District Court.  The town of Swanton once again loses its case.

Michigan also created a five-person Technical Specialist HF Digital team from around the state to collectively create a common PowerPoint® program to provide programs and instruction for club meetings, hamfests, and other activities to encourage the use of HF sound card modes for pleasure and EmComm purposes.

2014 also marked the return of the Greater Louisville Hamfest as the Kentucky State Convention (Sept. 6, 2014).  The convention featured a visit by Great Lakes Division Vice Director Tom Delaney, W8WTD, and an awards luncheon after the hamfest. Kudos to the hamfest organization for their hard work to make the return of the ARRL state convention a reality!

In Ohio, Section Manager Frank Piper retired and Scott Yonally N8SY became the new SM.   A new Affiliated Clubs Coordinator, Sandy Mackey, N8YS and a new Official Observer Coordinator, John Perone, W8RXX stepped in as well.  Complimenting these changes was a course change in the Ohio ARES program with the appointment of a new Section Emergency Coordinator, Stan Broadway N8BHL.

Michigan SM Larry Camp WB8R appointed Gordon Baldwin, W8CT as the Section Youth Coordinator.

Kentucky has also shown continued support for the ARRL, with a seven percent increase in League membership from April 2007 to Nov. 2014.  Thanks to all the many volunteers who donate their time and talents, for they are the reason for the continued success of ARRL programs in the Kentucky section.

Ohio also said hello to a newly appointed Affiliated Clubs Coordinator - John Myers, KD8MQ

Michigan hams conducted another very successful annual Section Family Outing in the woods of northern Michigan.

Kentucky Hamfest attendance in 2014 stayed steady, with several section hamfests seeing an uptick in attendance. In 2014, we welcomed a brand-new hamfest -- the Letcher County Amateur Radio Club in Whitesburg held their first hamfest.

After a multi-year experiment with one individual serving as SEC and STM, Michigan returned to a conventional format with the appointment of Mark Shaw, K8ED as STM.

In August, the Ohio Section had its conference along with the always-successful Columbus Hamfest where the top newsletters in Ohio were acknowledged in the ARRL Ohio Section Newsletter Contest. They also celebrated the newest inductee of the Allan Severson Award Frank Piper, KI8GW.  Jackie Piper, KC8ESO received the Section Manager’s "Special Appreciation" award.

Much work has been done on building a D-Star repeater network with grant funding in the SW corner of Michigan.

Ohio got to cheer as one of its own, Jay Slough, K4ZLE was the winner of the April QST® Cover Plaque award for his article "A 10 Meter Moxon Antenna."

Vice Director Tom Delaney W8WTD and your Director were able to attend a number of the Division's hamfests throughout the past year.  Our sincere thanks to all of these hamfest teams who extended such warm hospitality to us during our visits.  We hope to include visits to even more swaps in 2015.

Adrian, MI

Bowling Green, KY

Chelsea, MI

Cleveland, OH

Columbus, OH

Dayton, OH

Elyria, OH

Findlay, OH

Grand Rapids, MI

Hazel Park, MI

Louisville, KY

Mansfield, OH

MI Crossroads, MI

Monroe, MI

OKYIN, OH

Portage, OH

Richmond, KY

Toledo, OH

Now as we move into 2015, Vice Director Delaney and I prepare for the Annual ARRL Board meeting in mid January.   Our visits to club meetings and conversations with many of you at hamfests around the Division have provided us with suggestions for consideration at committee meetings and the Board itself.  It is always a pleasure to hear from you with your thoughts and ideas to improve all that we do in Amateur Radio.

To all: Thanks for your contribution to ARRL and ham radio during 2014.

Now let us go on and make this New Year even better and strive to show the great works of ham radio to the world.

73,

Dale Williams WA8EFK

Director

Great Lakes Division

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Dale's Tales for December 2014

Greetings everyone,

As 2014 comes to a close, we must look back at this year as having been one of the most significant in ham radio.  Among the outstanding events, we recognize the ARRL's 100th Anniversary as the lead item.  It brought with it a wonderful National Convention with renowned speakers on timely subjects.  It brought us the W1AW Portable Operating Events, allowing the average ham across the USA and possessions to operate "our club station" from their own home QTH as W1AW/x.   Each state and territory took to the air and we all reached out to work them on multiple bands and modes.

It brought us the ARRL Centennial Challenge QSO Party sparking thousands of hams into getting active and working towards achieving Challenge Points. 

We also hosted the 2014 IARU Radiosport Championship and 2014 also brought a matching fund Challenge to us all to offer further financial support to our ARRL, insuring its future. 

Combine this Anniversary Year with new product introductions by several manufacturers, new developments in software designed radios, advances in weak signal programs, and we have experienced a truly great 2014.

We must also offer our special thanks to the ARRL HQ staff for hosting the 100th Anniversary National Convention and for developing and managing the scoring systems for this year's operating events all intertwined with the rest of their routine and daily duties.  Great Job, well done.

From a purely personal note, this year has allowed me to meet thousands of different hams on the air in operating the Challenge.  My log has filled with wonderful QSOs and along with that, many new friendships have formed.  Everyone has been polite, courteous and understanding, all typical of what we inspire to be as Radio Amateurs.  I also thank all for being so very tolerant of me as I stumbled through getting all the call signs and signal reports accurately recorded.  There is still plenty of time left to rack up a lot more Qs, so keep at it.  Things will close with another "Red Badge Day" on December 31.

HB 4969 Progress Report:  I currently count 67 Co-sponsors for our House Bill 4979, the Amateur Radio Parity Act.   This bipartisan effort would direct the FCC to extend the "reasonable accommodation" provisions for Amateur Radio antennas to include all types of land-use regulation, including deed restrictions and restrictive covenants, not just those covered by PRB-1.  Details and updates are posted at http://www.arrl.org/hr-4969.  Time is now very short, please write to your Congressperson and encourage his/her support, or offer your thanks if he/she has already signed on to co-sponsorship.

Vice Director, Tom Delaney W8WTD offers these comments:  Early December, being between major holidays, is a time when we normally don't focus as much on ham radio, with all the busy rush of other things.  And in spite of the old saw about antennas working better when they are installed in bad weather, I really don't like working on antennas in cold weather.

But there's still the interest in the Centennial QSO party, with many people vying to get more contacts for that high score they hope to achieve.  What a great motivation to get on the air.  It turned out far better than anyone probably imagined when they came up with the idea. Now we have to find something else like it to generate an equal amount of interest.

As I was thinking about the Centennial effort, I realized how important the Logbook of the World has been in this effort.  And so my thoughts turned to the internet and how much it has affected ham radio.  In some ways, writing about the internet is so obvious.  Of course it has affected just about every aspect of life.  What's new about that? 

However, the story here is how amateur radio has adapted the internet. In some ways, it could have been like the predictions in the early fifties of how that new thing called television was going to do away with the movies.  We learned how good a prediction that was.  And it's logical that a new form of communications would do away with old forms of communication--except that didn't happen either.  Some aspects of ham radio aren't what they were.  But because hams are resourceful, they saw the possibilities in making use of the internet to enhance ham radio, and that's what we have today.  Logbook of the World is a simple adaptation of the paper QSL cards, but it has made awards and contests so much better--and provides the "leader board" for the Centennial QSO Party.  Spotting DX was not possible to the extent it is today without the internet.  And so many of our interconnections for Echolink, IRLP, D-Star and DMR depend on the internet.  New forms of communications, hybrid, maybe, but still offering some of the magic of a ham radio contact.

Operating a radio still requires skill.  These new operating aids are always nice to have.  So keep operating, make those contacts, whether you're going for a standard award, or that higher place on the leader board.  See you on the air.

73,

Tom W8WTD

Vice Director

Great Lakes Division

Hamfesting:  Here is the current Great Lakes Division ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest Schedule for the next few weeks.  These swaps have received their sanctioning approval from ARRL HQ at the time of this publication. 

Dec 6 - Fulton County Winterfest, Delta, OH 

Dec 7 - Lanse Creuse, Harrison Twp, MI - WB8R 

Jan 11 - Hazel Park, MI - WB8R - WA8EFK 

Jan 18 - SCARF, Nelsonville, OH 

Feb 1 - NOARS, Elyria - N8SY 

Feb 7 - HARA, Negaunee, MI - WB8R 

Feb 14 - Cherryland, Traverse City, MI - WB8R 

Feb 15 - Mansfield, Mansfield, OH - N8SY - WA8EFK 

Feb 15 - Livonia, Livonia, MI - WB8R 

Mar 7 - Cave City, Cave City, KY - KY4Z

A note about hamfest attendance by your ARRL elected officials.  We want to be at your events and we strive for insuring that the ARRL is properly represented at every ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest.  Conflicts can arise, such as hamfests which might occur on the same day.  It is always a good idea for your hamfest chairman to contact the Section Manager, Vice-Director or Director early in the planning stages to insure his attendance at the activity.  This will allow time to prepare for alternate representation in the event of time conflicts.

Club Visits: Thanks to the Arrow Comm. Assn., CRES ARC, and the Branch County ARC, for recently hosting your Director at their club meetings.  My next outing is to the Livingston County ARC on December 11.   Your Director, Vice Director and Section Managers are available to visit local radio clubs and give presentations about ARRL and what is happening in the Section or Division.  Please feel free to invite any of us for an ARRL Night at your club.  Most of the talks are prepared in a video presentation format and can include a Q&A session as well. Advance scheduling really helps and gives you an opportunity to publicize the event.  See pages 15 & 16 of a recent QST for contact information.

And, from Judy and me, the very best wishes to you and your family as we celebrate this Holiday Season. 

73, see you on the bands.

Dale Williams WA8EFK

Director

Great Lakes Division

Dale's Tales for November, 2014

Greetings everyone,

THE Operating Event:  We have but a couple of months left before the ARRL Centennial QSO Party comes to a close.  There is plenty of opportunity to enjoy contacting fellow ARRL members and collecting points.  The Award Certificates have been announced and will be presented in the following categories:  First Level, 1000 Points; Second Level, 3000 Points; Third Level, 7500 Points and Top Level 15,000 Points.  These levels are really placed well to insure that most of us will be able to hang a certificate on the wall commemorating a great operating event.  

You will still find ample time to get on the air and qualify for an award, even if you have not actively participated in the Centennial QSO Party.  If you are currently a user of Logbook of the World, your uploaded contacts( and there for scores) are already recorded and can be found through a link on the LoTW Home page called "Leader Board".

From this web page, you can log in using your LoTW ID and password.

Check it out, you may find that you are already well on your way to a Centennial QSO Party Award.  Actually as few as 4 well placed contacts can bring you 1000 points.  Just listen for ARRL President Craigie, a couple of Directors and a VP, contact them, and you'll be there!  It can be that simple to log some great contacts.  Self-spotting has been permitted, so watch the DX clusters to see who is on.

HB 4969 Progress Report:  The number of Bill co-sponsors continues to climb, thanks in large part to your support.  Our original plan was to reach 30 Congressmen for co-sponsorship and we now have already reached 60 who have already co-sponsored or agreed to support HB 4969, the Amateur Radio Parity Act.  This bill is aimed at directing the PRB-1 style "reasonable accommodation" provisions for Amateur Radio antennas to include all types of land-use regulation.  This includes areas with deed restrictions and restrictive covenants, hence the term "parity".

"CC&Rs" (covenants, conditions and restrictions) are the prohibitions and limitations placed on properties by builders or home-owner associations (HOAs) which prevent licensed Amateurs from erecting even modest antennas.  Details and updates are posted at http://www.arrl.org/hr-4969. 

Vice Director, Tom W8WTD offers his monthly commentary:

One of the things I like about this position is the opportunity to share information with other hams.  I've mentioned that before.  The various forums are always a good way to pick up new information, or to share something with some hams who are looking for new ways to do things.  We've talked about the future of amateur radio, and things like the MESH networks.

This month, I want to share an experience.  Taken in itself, it's just another ham doing communications.  But just maybe you'll find in it something that will help you and your group with something you like to do.  October is the month for the SET (Simulated Emergency Test.)  Many of us in the Division were out doing something, testing equipment, practicing our skills.  It was the same for my home club, the Queen City Emergency Net.  We decided to do an exercise in which we tested our direct and indirect communications with outlying areas in the large area that our Red Cross Chapter serves.

A side note here--those of you in ARES who count the Red Cross among your served agencies--be sure to talk with them about their recent reorganization.  Many smaller chapters have been closed, and the larger ones are responsible for more territory.  Which is why we did our exercise.  The Cincinnati Chapter, or whatever it will soon be called, now has primary responsibility for at least a third of Ohio.  With our immediate metro area encompassing three states as well, the Chapter's area stretches 170 miles north to south, and well over 100 miles east to west.  One club can't cover all that, so with the help of partners and some club members who were willing to travel, we wanted to see how much area we could cover without commercial communications, meaning, directly, through linked repeaters, or by relay. 

I was in some of our northern counties.  With my new DMR radio, I was able to get on the Ohio talk group and communicate directly with Cincinnati.  There are some great possibilities in this technology for covering large areas.  Yes, it depends on the internet, and could go down easily, but likely only in one area, meaning that the larger ham resources of a state could still be coordinated that way.  It's only one channel statewide, but we hams know the discipline of net procedures, and the new mode could be a big help to all of us, no matter which of the states we live in throughout the Great Lakes Division.  (We didn't use it, but I'm sure D-Star could be of similar use.)

Then there was direct communication.  We have a high-profile UHF repeater located a little to the north of Cincinnati.  Using a ten-element beam, I was able to get into it with clear communication about 60 miles away.  We all need to think about extended range.

Finally, and this reminds me of the original ARRL --there's relay.  We work closely with the hams in the Dayton Red Cross, and they were on the air with us.  As I was driving around north of them, I could get into a Dayton repeater and they were relaying information down to Cincinnati.  We didn't try simplex, but I'm sure in an emergency, we could find a way to do that too.  Nothing here that most of you don't already know.  But it's what we do with what we know that makes all the difference.  What challenge face you in your area?  And which of these methods would be most helpful to you the next time a disaster comes around?  If any of this stirs some thoughts that you'd like to share, please get in touch!

73,

Tom W8WTD

Vice Director

Great Lakes Division

Club Visits: Your Director, Vice Director and Section Managers are available to visit local radio clubs and give presentations about ARRL and what is happening in the Section or Division.  Please feel free to invite any of us for an ARRL Night at your club.  Most of the talks are prepared in a video presentation format and can include a Q&A session as well.  Advance scheduling really helps and gives you an opportunity to publicize the event.  See pages 15 & 16 of a recent QST for contact information.

Hamfesting:  Here is the current Great Lakes Division ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest Schedule for the next few weeks.  These swaps have received their sanctioning approval from ARRL HQ at the time of this publication: A note about hamfest attendance by your ARRL elected officials.  We want to be at your events and we strive for insuring that the ARRL is properly represented at every ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest.

Conflicts can arise, such as hamfests which might occur on the same day.  It is always a good idea for your hamfest chairman to contact the Section Manager, Vice-Director or Director early in the planning stages to insure his attendance at the activity.  This will allow time to prepare for alternate representation in the event of time conflicts.

Nov 1 - Grant County - Georgetown, OH

Nov 2 - Massillon ARC Hamfest, Massillon, OH -- QSL Checking - N8SY 

Dec 6 - Fulton County Winterfest, Delta, OH 

Dec 7 - Lanse Creuse, Harrison Twp, MI - WB8R 

Jan 11 - Hazel Park, MI - WB8R - WA8EFK 

Jan 18 - SCARF, Nelsonville, OH - N8SY 

Feb 1 - NOARS, Elyria - N8SY 

Feb 14 - Cherryland, Traverse City, MI - WB8R 

Feb 15 - Mansfield, Mansfield, OH - N8SY 

Feb 15 - Livonia, Livonia, MI - WB8R

73, see you on the bands.

Dale Williams WA8EFK

Director, Great Lakes Division

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ARRL Great Lakes Division

Director: Dale R Williams, WA8EFK

wa8efk@arrl.org

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Dale's Tales for October 2014..

Greetings everyone,

HB 4969 Progress Report:   At the last writing of this column, ARRL and our supporters had garnered 28 Congressmen to co-sign the legislation.

At that time, congress was in recess, so no one could sign the bill.  Upon return from recess, ARRL continued to work for additional co-sponsors and now we have more that 55 who have signed on or agreed to do so. 

To the members of the Great Lakes Division, I sincerely want to thank all of you for your continued effort to contact your congressman and ask for his support in passing HB 4969, the Amateur Radio Parity Act.

As you are aware this bill is aimed at directing the PRB-1 style "reasonable accommodation" provisions for Amateur Radio antennas to include all types of land-use regulation, including areas with deed restrictions and restrictive covenants, hence the term "parity".

"CC&Rs" (covenants, conditions and restrictions) are the prohibitions and limitations placed on properties by builders or home-owner associations (HOAs) which prevent licensed Amateurs from erecting even modest antennas.  Details and updates are posted at http://www.arrl.org/hr-4969. 

Great Lakes Division Vice Director, Tom Delaney W8WTD offers his monthly commentary:

A common theme I've heard at some of the ARRL forums I've attended this past month at hamfests is: what about the future of ham radio?  Some think we're doing fine, since the number of hams is at an all-time high.  Others worry on more practical terms --who's going to do what we are doing?  And some of that is quite practical.  Who will maintain the club repeaters, the club gear, and help instruct the next generation of hams?  In fact, what about the clubs?  How do we get more active members?

Food for thought, but there is also a lot being done.  Every time these questions come up, there are also people there with some answers.  Maybe not one big answer that covers everything, but simple solutions they are taking in their communities to help recruit and train and mentor new hams.

For instance, in Cleveland, there were several answers to the question of how to interest young people who already have so many distractions, and who are tied to their cell phones and would never imagine themselves talking on radios.  One team is working with the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) programs in their local schools.  But other people suggested that the interest in Robotics is another way to generate interest.  And yet another person suggested that MESH could interest students who already know about WiFi, because it would open up their possibilities for using a common technology they already know about.

Some of the other questions are not so easily answered.  But if we keep talking about it, and sharing ideas, on the air, in print, and in person, maybe we'll find some good solutions.

Ham radio is still vital.  The activities of the Centennial year are certainly showing that.  Lots of great participation in the W1AW portable operations, and all the other things going on.  And a lot of thought being given to how to interest the next generation.  Each one of us has something we can do.  Take a few minutes, and figure out what your contribution will be!

73, Tom W8WTD, Vice Director, Great Lakes Division

Tom's observations should be considered by all of us, as we look to Amateur Radio's future.  Thirty years ago, for example, autopatches played an important part of ham radio emergency preparedness.  We all counted on them and we all used them.  Today, it is rare to hear someone using a patch because technology has moved us to the use of cell phones. 

Time and technology have brought change and in many ways ham radio ops have played a vital part in advancing that technology.  We move ahead.

We must continue that effort and we need to see that our youth are offered the opportunity to know what ham radio can offer as they will soon be leading the technology push.  How do we do this?  How do we reach our youngsters?  Admittedly, the most successful ham programs seem to be in our public schools and those flourish where an instructor who holds a ham license is directly involved with the students.  From a practical sense, that is not always possible and in many cases a licensed ham from the community serves as a counselor and mentor to the school's program.  Other truly viable programs are those dedicated to ham radio youth, again with a truly dedicated sponsoring ham.  Either way, serious commitment is required and it appears few of us are prepared to take those steps.

So what is the solution?  We talk about it - a great deal.  We have heard our young hams tell us what needs to happen.  We really know what we need to do.

The application period for ARRL Foundation scholarships opened October 1st.  Here is an opportunity to assist students that could use help in paying for their college education.  Please pass the word that the ARRL Foundation scholarship program is available to help out and encourage students to apply.  Details at:  http://www.arrl.org/news/the-arrl-foundation-invites-scholarship-applications-for-2015-16-academic-year

Here is the current ARRL Hamfest Schedule for the Great Lakes Division:

Oct  4 - 'Vette City Hamfest, Bowling Green, KY -- QSL Checking -- WA8EFK, KY4Z

Oct 18 - Muskegon Color Tour Hamfest, Muskegon, MI -- WB8R

Oct 19 - Conneaut ARC Hamfest, Conneaut, OH - N8SY

Oct 19 - Kalamazoo Hamfest, Kalamazoo, MI -- QSL Checking - WB8R

Oct 25 - Hazard KY Hamfest - Hazard, KY -- KY4Z

Oct 26 - USECA Hamfest - Madison Heights, MI -- WB8R

Nov  1 - Grant ARC - Georgetown, OH

Nov  2 - Massillon ARC Hamfest, Massillon, OH -- QSL Checking - N8SY

Dec  6 - Fulton County Winterfest, Delta, OH

Dec 12 - Lanse Creuse, Harrison Twp, MI - WB8R

A note about hamfest attendance by your ARRL elected officials.   We strive for insuring that the ARRL is properly represented at every ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest.  Conflicts can arise, such as hamfests which might occur on the same day.  It is always a good idea for your hamfest chairman to contact the Section Manager, Vice-Director or Director early in the planning stages to insure his attendance at the activity. This will allow time to prepare for alternate representation in the event of time conflicts

73 all, see you on the bands.

Dale Williams, WA8EFK

Director, Great Lakes Div.

291 Outer Drive

Dundee, MI 48131

734-529-3232; e-mail wa8efk@arrl.org