Muscatine Amateur Radio Club
Meeting Minutes

2010

January 11

Meeting called to order at 7:25pm by club president N2AM.
MARC members present: KBØVVK, NØPYG, WBØTSG, KDØDTD, WAØAUQ, NØLOH & N2AM

Minutes from December meeting read and approved.
Treasurer's report read and approved.

Old Business:

Club Rig - WBØTSG brought the newly purchase club rig back to send in for repair or replacement. The rig blew out his old power supply and would not operate on his new power supply either. NØLOH will ship it back to the dealer.

VE Testing Location - NØLOH reported that he noticed on the club website that VE Testing will be held at the Musser Public Library. The next session is scheduled for Sunday, February 14th at 1:30pm.

Weather Spotting - The club has yet to receive word from the National Weather Service regarding when we could host a weather spotting class this year.

WalMart Safety Day - WAØAUQ offered the use of the Pine Creek Grist Mill tables and EZ-up tents for use. KBØVVK is to contact the Walmart manager for the date of the event. The club plans to have a station set up with voice and digital capabilities to demonstrate.

New Business:

Wiener Roast - NØLOH reported that he has arranged for West Liberty Boy Scout Troop 141 to provide us with the wiener roast at the 2010 hamfest. This will free club members from the responsibility and will provide the scouts with a fund-raising opportunity. Tom plans on having an HF Station setup up for the scouts to check out, too. They'll be inviting their family and friends to attend, so this will be a chance to recruit some new hams.

AR Newsline - The club received an appeal to consider making a donation to Amateur Radio Newsline. They provide new about amateur radio from around the world via their website www.arnewsline.org. NØLOH made a motion that the club make a donation of $100. Motion approved.

County Hunter Award - The club received an inquiry as to if the club would be interested in sponsoring a county hunter award for the state of Iowa as no such award exists. After discussion about the work involved it was decided that further investigation into how this could be accomplished with a minimal workload, utilizing ARRL's Logbook of the World and/or eQSL.

No further business.  Meeting adjourned at 8:05pm

February 8

Meeting canceled on account of inclement weather.

March 8

Meeting called to order at 7:14pm by club president N2AM.
MARC members present: KV1E, KBØVVK, NØPYG, WBØTSG, KDØDTD, WAØAUQ, NØLOH & N2AM

Minutes from January meeting read and approved.
Treasurer's report read and approved.

Old Business:

Club Rig - NØLOH brought the new club rig back from repairs at Icom. A diode had to be replaced. WBØTSG took possession of the new rig for use on the Sunday night net.

Walmart Safety Day - KBØVVK reported that Wal-Mart will not be conducting a safety day this year. NØLOH said he would check with the Muscatine Fire Department to see if they would be holding a similar event.

Melon City Crtierion - NØLOH reported that plans are still in the works for the club to provide communications during the races which will take place in Weed Park on Sunday, May 30th and that further details will be forthcoming.

Weather Spotting - NØLOH reported that he did not arrange for the weather spotting classes to be held at MCC on March the 23rd, but that everyone would be welcome to attend.

County Hunters Award - NØLOH reported that he has put out an announcement to clubs in the state to see if any of them were interested in coordinating an Iowa Worked All Counties Award, but has yet to receive a response. Also he knows that utilizing ARRL Logbook of the World to facilitate the award would not be possible at this time as counties are not included in the QSO information.

New Business:

Sunday Night Net - WBØTSG reported that check-ins to the Sunday night net have decreased in recent weeks and encourages everyone to check in.

Antenna Party - KV1E said he is planning to erect several antennas at his QTH and hopes that club members will come to assist him. He will let everyone know when.

Field Day - N2AM asked about Field Day plans for 2010. NØLOH said he didn't think the club would do Field Day this year unless someone comes forth to coordinate the effort. NØLOH said he will not be able to help this year as he plans to travel throughout the state, visiting other Field Day operations. He suggested the club join together with the Washington Area Amateur Radio Club or the Iowa City Club.

No further business. Meeting adjourned at 7:46pm

April 12

Meeting called to order at 7:07pm by club president N2AM.
MARC members present: KV1E, KBØVVK, NØPYG, WBØTSG, KCØWWV, WAØAUQ, NØLOH & N2AM

Minutes from March meeting read and approved.
Treasurer's report read and approved.

Old Business:

Club Rig - WBØTSG brought the old club 2m rig.
NØLOH took possession of the rig for bulletin use.

Club Rig - NØLOH asked of those in attendance who would be able to help with this event. When the count was low it was decided that club will not participate in the event. Since the club had not actually been asked to help, the impact would be negligible. A discussion about possible events where the club could have an information table to recruit new hams ensue. Suggestions included the May Boat Show, 4th of July, Great River Days and the Muscatine County Fair. New Business:

Field Day - N2AM passed a sign-up sheet for those able to help out with Field Day. He proposed the club look into setting up at the QTH of N3JNZ in Riverside, but wanted to know how many he could count on before approaching N3JNX with the idea. If N3JNZ is receptive, then the club would invite Washington club members to participate. Discussion about field day ensued.

No further business. Meeting adjourned at 8:16pm.

May 10

Meeting called to order at 7:20pm by club president N2AM.
MARC members present: KDØCSX, KBØVVK, N2AM, NØLOH, WBØTSG, KV1E, WBØGAG

Minutes from April meeting read and approved.
Treasurer's report read and approved.

Old Business:

Field Day -N2AM reported that N3JNZ will be helping out the Washington club at their field day. However, Casey Jones, KØBDU has offered to use of his QTH in Stockton for Field Day. The club will rent a tent and port-a-potty. The club will use N2AM for the callsign and the designator will be 2A IA / Two Alpha Iowa. More details will be discussed at the June meeting.

New Business:

Hamfest - NØLOH reported that the 2010 Southeast Iowa Hamfest will host the Iowa Section/State Convention. This means the ARRL Midwest Director, Cliff Ahrens KØCA will be in attendance and Norm Fusaro W3IZ from ARRL HQ will give a seminar and demonstration of Logbook of the World.

No further business.  Meeting adjourned at 8:10pm

Reminder - The Muscatine Amateur Radio Club supports the weekly training and preparedness net on the KCØAQS 146.910 repeater each Sunday at 8:30 PM local time. Everyone is invited to check-in.

June 14

Meeting called to order at 7:05pm by club president N2AM.
MARC members present: NØLOH, KØBDU, KØMTT, NØPYG, WBØGAG, KCØWWV, KBØVVK, N2AM, KDØDTD, & KV1E

Minutes from May meeting read and approved.
Treasurer's report read and approved.

Old Business:

Field Day - Here is the duty roster and schedule:

Who brings what

Kevin N2AM - TenTec for station 2, TS2000, power supply, mic, paddles, headset, 6m beam, tri-bander, anchor screws, fence posts, fence post driver, tripod, rotor, UPS for PC's and coax.

Dave WAØAUQ - TenTec for station 1, power supply, ground rod, mic, key, paddles, headset, headphone boxes, tuner,  dipole, 3 tables and 9 chairs.

Tom NØLOH -  field day sign, table lights, work light, PCs, pencils, club 2m rig, power supply, pens, paper, clip board, table, rope, ARRL materials, coffee maker, coffee, cream, sugar and cups

Bruce WBØGAG - a/c power cords, call-sign and FD designator signs for each station

Jerry KCØWWV - club rig

Brad WBØTSG - tower (Kevin & Casey to get)

Jon KBØVVK - Kenwood 570,

Jack KV1E - 10m antenna or vertical, key, keyer, AR22 rotor  

Casey KØBDU - citronella candles, bug spray, generators, gas, gas can and extra oil.

Doug KØMTT - tuner

Charlie NØPYG - tuner

Everyone else - bring whatever you want to bring: rigs to show or use, tools, supplies, food drink, chairs, soldering guns, coax, electrical and duct tape, family, friends, and most especially, an upbeat attitude with a genuine willingness to help out and have fun!

Directions from Muscatine:

• Turn on N Highway 61 (US-61 N) - go 9.8 mi
• Turn Left on Pleasant Prairie RD - go 0.3 mi
• Turn Right on 150th ST - go 0.5 mi
• Turn Left on Vine Ave - go 1.7 mi
• Arrive at 1344 Vine Ave, Stockton, on the Left

Directions from Blue Grass:

• Turn on Highway 61 (US-61 S) - go 2.6 mi
• Turn Right on Western Ave(CR-Y30) - go 2.0 mi
• Turn Left on 135th ST - go 1.0 mi
• Turn Right on Vine Ave - go 0.1 mi
• Arrive at 1344 Vine Ave, Stockton, on the Left

Schedule:

Friday, June 25th @ 5:00pm - everyone to show up at FD site with the supplies they're assigned to bring and begin setting up the antennas. Monitor 146.910- for ease of communications. Bring your hand-held! (We may order chicken and pop from Jeff's.)

Saturday, June 26th @ 10:00am - everyone show up to make sure all is in running order.

Saturday, June 26th @ 1:00pm - field day begins!

Saturday, June 26th @ 5:00pm - If there are enough interested, we'll order chicken and pop from Jeff's.

Sunday, June 27th @  12:00pm - everyone meet to begin taking down everything

Repeater - Jerry, KCØWWV said that he will be taking the repeater off-air sometime after Field Day for bench testing, adjustments if necessary and installation of the tone board. When he is ready he will send an email to NØLOH to relay to club members and other hams in the area. When complete your radio will need to generate a pl tone of 192.8 to access and also 192.8 will be on the output if you want to selectively receive KCØAQS/R at 146.910 MHz.

New Business:

New Business! - Jerry, KCØWWV has begun his own electronics repair business. Find out more at his website: http://www.JLSElectronics.com. 
Best of luck for much success, Jerry!

No further business. Meeting adjourned at 8:05pm - SEE YOU AT FIELD DAY!

July 12

Meeting called to order at 7:15pm by club president N2AM.
MARC members present: N2AM, KV1E, WAØAUQ, KBØVVK, WBØTSG, WBØGAG, KCØWWV & NØLOH
We also had a guest, Ken, who is interested in becoming an amateur radio operator.

Minutes from June meeting read and approved.
Treasurer's report read and approved.

Old Business:

Here are the results from Field Day 2010.

Call Used: N2AM     GOTA Station Call: KØBDU     ARRL/RAC Section: 
IA     Class: 2A
Participants: 17     Club/Group Name: Muscatine Amateur Radio Club
Power Source(s): Generator
Power Multiplier: 2X
Bonus Points:
   100% Emergency power                            200
   NTS message to ARRL SM/SEC                      100
   Youth participation                              20
     Youth operators=1
     Youth participants=1
   GOTA Bonus                                      120
   Submitted via the Web                            50
Total Bonus Points                                490
Score Summary:
                   CW  Digital  Phone  Total
    Total QSOs    339      0     298
  Total Points    678      0     298    976   Claimed Score = 1,952
Here is the list of participants:
Paul Startweather KAØRIU    Kevin Kramer N2AM    Lowell Tennyson KBØBA
Tom Brehmer NØLOH        Brad Soule WBØTSG    Jon Ericson KBØVVK
Charle Egert NØPYG        Jack Richardson KV1E    Casey Jones KØBDU - 
GOTA Coach
Brock Jones - no call (Casey's 6-year-old son. He made several QSO's!)
Russel Kramer - no call (Kevin's Father - brought food)
Rozella Kramer - no call (Kevin's Mother - brought food)
Donald Blake KDØDTD        Doug Knight KØMTT    George Barbour KCØVJH
Jerry Schroder, Jr. KCØWWV    Bruce Dagel WBØGAG
Band/Mode QSO Breakdown:
                CW          Digital      Phone
             QSOs Pwr(W)  QSOs Pwr(W)  QSOs Pwr(W)
        80m                             35    100
        40m                             10    100
        20m  327    100                 72    100
        15m   12    100                 16    100
        10m                             24    100
         6m                             59    100
       GOTA                             82    100
      TOTAL  339            0          298
GOTA Bonus: GOTA Coach - Double Bonus Points
Name/Call                   QSOs  Bonus Points
Paul Startkweather, KAØRIU   57        80
Donald Blake, KDØDTD         23        40
Kevin Kramer, N2AM            1         0
Tom Brehmer, NØLOH            1         0
Ideas for Field Day 2011: Might skip setting up 2m and 70cm stations. 
New computers are needed. Might add an additional HF antenna and rig to 
run as a 3A. More publicity needed to get public and area hams to attend.
Anyone with photos from this year's event is asked to email them to 
WBØGAG and he'll put them on the club website.

Repeater - KCØWWV & WAØAUQ plan to take repeater off air to adjust and add tone. Just waiting to get time to accomplish the task.

Sunday Night Net - WBØTSG asked again for increased participation in the net.

Hamfest - NØLOH reported planning is still underway for the 26th Annual Southeast Iowa Hamfest / Iowa State ARRL Convention. He will be contacting Liberty Communications to get internet connections for the VE Testing Area, Main Hall and Floral Hall.

New Business:

VE Testing - The Muscatine Area Volunteer Examiners will be testing for all classes of amateur radio operator licenses on Sunday, August 8th, at 1:30 PM in the upper-level meeting room at the Musser Public Library, 304 Iowa Avenue, in Muscatine. For more information, visit our licensing page.

No further business.  Meeting adjourned at 8:10pm

WAØAUQ had a great presentation featuring many examples of crystals.

N2AM shared photos he had taken at the 2010 Dayton Hamvention.

Last updated June 21, 2010