[Ccarc] ARRL CLUB NEWS

[Tom Murray]

ARRL Club Newsletter
October 13, 2007
____________________________________________________________________

Norm Fusaro, W3IZ, Editor

IN THIS ISSUE:
+ Meet The Enemy
+ Elmer's Corner
+ The School Club Roundup
+ JOTA
+ Get Ready For November Sweeps
____________________________________________________________________

Allen G Pitts, W1AGP
ARRL Media & PR Manager

During the month of September 2007, there were many positive articles
in the media about Amateur Radio.  But, there were also a few which
did major damage to the public perception of our Service.
Unfortunately they were in large metropolitan newspapers and, by the
time an ARRL PIO learned about them, it was too late to change
things.  These articles were proclaiming the "death of Amateur
Radio", that it was antique and an anachronism to the 21st century,
full of ancient grumpy men and that the hams themselves were not
friendly nor welcoming.  The real tragedy of this is that the
reporters were quoting their community's own local hams!

None of the articles had numbers or empirical data to show the true
trends underlying the present state of amateur radio.  None looked
beyond the personal opinions voiced by their local club or they might
see the recent gains following February 2007.  None of them saw the
larger picture around the country or the work being done in schools,
scouting, ARISS, digital work, ARES and other EmComm actions.  But
they had their quotes, and that was enough to hurt us.

While not all areas of the country are motivated by the same
approaches, there really is a lot of new growth in important areas.
In some places, emergency operations and EmComm is indeed a BIG deal.
We are gaining many new hams entering the field because they want to
be part of a response operation. That is part of this year's PR push
on EmComm.  In other areas, it may not be EmComm that is the big
draw.  It could be the hobby side of the Service.  For them, the
"Hello!" materials are still available and timely.  If that fits your
area, then use them there.   In some other places or situations, it
will be the technical side of Amateur Radio that is of interest.  The
ARRL is working on a coordinated program for that to come out in
2008.  It will be the hardest of the three to create, but plans are
already well along.

These three, Hobby, EmComm and Technical activities are the
motivational keystones of the Service.	No one thing is going to
attract "the general population."  We encourage you to look at your
own local situation.  Which type of motivator works best in your
area?	Use that one.  In the meantime, our importance in EmComm is a
motivator in antenna issues, spectrum defense and other political
situations.

Are we "dying" out?  Not really.  Amateur Radio never was, nor will
be, a "mainstream" activity.  But recent numbers are up and, just as
important, the percentage of hams who actually get on the air or go
on to higher class licenses is up.  With the 10 year license-lag,
most who are dropping out seem never to have been active to begin
with.  We also see trends which follow the solar cycles -- currently
at a low.

To quote Pogo, "We have met the enemy and he is us."  Over the past
two months the national PR Committee has seen far too many articles
quoting their local hams saying we are all dying out!  With attitudes
like that, is it any wonder the reporters print it?  It's a
self-fulfilling prophecy.

This is why we need informed, active PIOs and hams need to defer
media responses to them.  Anytime you or a ham in your area is
contacted by the media, steer them to your local PIO. If you don't
have one nearby, steer them to your section's PIC.  These
professionals are trained in showing the best that amateur radio has
to offer to the public and to prospective licensees. Fifteen minutes
of individual fame is not worth the damage your personal opinions
could cause to us all.

____________________________________________________________________

Elmer's Corner

Antenna building parties have been used by many clubs as a way to
demonstrate proper construction techniques and teaching antenna
fundamentals for simple antennas like dipoles for HF or the J-pole
design for VHF or UHF.	Clubs that have had success with these type
of events offer a few tips to help your party be a winner.

1.	Assemble the materials ahead of time in kit form.  Be sure to
include a diagram of the antenna design.  It is a good idea to have
club members sign up for this type of project so you may prepare
enough kits.

2.	Teamwork works best.  Having builders work with a buddy makes
the project fun and particpants can double check each other's work.

3.	Have plenty of coaches on hand to offer advice when
necessary.

4.	Safety.  People will be working with sharp tools and hot
soldering irons.  Emphasise safe practices.  In addition to safety
equipment such as eye protection be sure to have a first aid kit
handy.

Antenna parties are a great way to have fun with friends while
learning something about Amateur Radio.
____________________________________________________________________

The School Club Roundup
By Lew Malchick, N2RQ

School Club Roundup (SCR) is sponsored by the Council for the
Advancement of Amateur Radio in the New York City Schools
(CAAR/NYCS), the ARRL and its Hudson Division Education Task Force to
foster contacts with and among school radio clubs.
The SCR is a great way to get young operators on the air. Very often
a new operator will be intimidated by the fear of not knowing what to
say to the stranger on the other side of the radio. The exchange info
helps to overcome this fear in a low pressure contest format.
Operators are encouraged to take some time to chat beyond the contest
exchange.
Award certificates will be issued for separate Elementary,
Middle/Intermediate/Junior High School, High School and
College/University levels for USA and DX entries.
Next contests:	October 15-19, 2007 and February 11-15, 2008.  The
contest starts on Monday at 1300 UTC and ends on Friday at 2400 UTC.
Rules and suggested frequencies are available on the web at:
http://www.arrl.org/SCR/

____________________________________________________________________

JOTA

Since 1958 Scouts from all over the world have gathered on the air to
make contacts through Amateur Radio during the annual Jamboree On The
Air (JOTA).
JOTA is held the third weekend in October of each year. JOTA takes
place starting Saturday at 0000 hours local time (12:00 AM) to
Sunday, 23.59 hours local time (12:00 PM), though some activity
continues over from Friday to Monday to take advantage of long
distance (DX) time differences.
Many clubs assist scouting groups with this event.

Complete JOTA details are on the web at:
http://www.arrl.org/scouts/jota/

____________________________________________________________________

November Speepstakes

Want a good reason to get on the air for some fun?  Then give
November Sweepsatkes a try.  Sweeps, as it is commonly known, is a
great opportunity to get on the air and work US and Canadian
stations.  Whether operating individually or as part of a multi
operator team, sweepstakes can be a lot of fun for both new and
not-so-new hams.

The contest exchange is fairly substancial and involves more than the
standard five-nine signal report and your location.  To qualify as a
complete contact operators must  exchange a serial number, callsigns,
operating precedence, the last two digits of the year that they were
first licensed and their ARRL or RAC section.  This makes for some
good fun and great practice for message handling.

The dates for Novemebr Sweepsatkes are CW: First full weekend in
November (November 3-5, 2007), phone: Third full weekend in November
(November 17-19, 2007).

Complete details and rules can be found on the web at:
http://www.arrl.org/contests/rules/2007/novss.html

____________________________________________________________________

ARRL Affiliation Milestones for October 2007

	10 Years

*W1
VT	Addison County Amateur Radio Association	N1FS

*W4
SFL	Jupiter Tequesta Repeater Group, Inc.	W4JUP

*W6
ORG	CALNET Repeater Group
SD	Northern Hills Amateur Radio Club	KC0BXH
SJV	Disaster Communications Repeater Association	KF6ODU

*W7
NV	Carson Valley Radio Club	W7DI

*W0
CO	Chaffee-Lake Amateur Repeater Association	W0LSD
KS	Valley Center Amateur Radio Club


	60 Years

*W1
CT	CQ Radio Club	K1BCI
EMA	Southeastern MA Amateur Radio Association, Inc. W1AEC

*W3
EPA	Harrisburg Radio Amateur Club	W3UU

*W4
GA	Albany Amateur Radio Club	W4MM

*W6
EB	North Bay Amateur Radio Association	K6LI
SJV	Stockton-Delta Amateur Radio Club	W6SF

*KH6
PAC	Honolulu Amateur Radio Club	KH6WO

*W7
OR	Klamath Basin Amateur Radio Association W7VW
WWA	West Seattle Amateur Radio Club W7AW

*W8
MI	Grand Rapids Amateur Radio Association	W8DC

*W0
MN	Mesabi Wireless Association. Inc.	NT0B
NE	Midway Amateur Radio Club	W0KY

======================================================================
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Radio--225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax
860-594-0259; www.arrl.org. Joel Harrison, W5ZN, President.

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