All posts by Gaston County Amateur Radio Society

GCARS Special Events

2017 Winter Field Day Results Finally!

 

 

Hey GCARS Family and Friends,

Just found out (just was posted on their site recently) that GCARS did very well in the 2017 Winter Field Day Contest.

GCARS placed 10th overall in the Outdoor category and 5th in the “2 Oscar” category, with a score of 9044! This is a great result for our first WFD and very casual contesting style! 

Great job to all those who participated in Winter Field Day 2017!

(If you were wondering about ARRL (Summer Field Day 2017), the log deadline is 7-25-17, and we should have the results in about a month and a half afterwards).

GCARS Special Events

7-22-17: 70 cm Fox hunt! (Hidden transmitter location contest)

 

 

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Malene

No, we are not really chasing foxes! We are going to try to find a hidden transmitter on the 70 cm band. NC0G, George, will be our venerable “fox” and try to out smart the participants as he hides the transmitter somewhere in Gaston County. It’s hide-and-seek on steroids! Much fun, but also with a practical use: it sharpens our radio-direction finding skills to assist with public services, such as locating lost seniors, illegal transmitters causing harmful interference, or even downed aviators.

NC0G, a.k.a., “the Fox”

The “fox hunt” will begin at 10 a.m., July 22, 2017. There will be a preliminary breakfast for the teams to meet and greet at the restaurant known as “Grits and Greens” in Lowell, NC at 8:30 a.m.

Anyone is welcome to participate: you don’t need to be a licensed ham to receive a signal (only to transmit one).  Come on out, it will be a lot of fun!

Below is an example of a directional antenna we built for the 70 cm band:

GCARS President, Annlette, KV4WB, holding a 70 cm “Moxon” antenna that she built.
ARES Activities

REMINDER: ARES/RACES Meeting Thursday, June 8 @ 7 p.m.

 

Another friendly reminder that the ARES/RACES meeting is Thursday night, 6-8-2017, at 7 p.m. held at the Gaston County Emergency Operation Center, 605 N. Highland St. Gastonia, NC. (go around to the back and ask to be let in). It is open to all licensed amateur radio operators who desire to serve the public in times of emergency and need.

We hope to discuss our new DMR repeater, 2017 Field Day,  and practice EmComm digital modes.

Hope to see you there!

73,

Bill Stevenson,

AJ4JZ,

ARES Activities

A.R.E.S Simulated Emergency Test 5-23-17

The Gaston County A.R.E.S. is going to conduct a “Simulated Emergency Test” (SET), Tuesday, May 23 at 1400 (2 p.m. local). It will begin on the 147.120 MHz (100 Hz tone) N4GAS repeater and then proceed to other frequencies as Net Control directs. It will include FM repeater work, FM simplex work, D-Star simplex work, DMR repeater work and DMR simplex work.

Headlining this test will be the debut of the ARES station that is a new installation at the City of Gastonia Police Department. We will be testing the station’s reception and capabilities.

This will be a directed formal net. If you would like to participate, please check in with Net Control at 1400 (2 p.m. local) and follow the directions.

73,

Bill Stevenson

AJ4JZ

Gaston County ARES/RACES EC

ARES Activities, GCARS Special Events

GCARS/GCARES partners with Lincoln County 4-H for Antenna Build!!!

We had a great time this afternoon building Tape Measure Yagi antennas with the Lincoln County 4-H Haywire Electric Club!

AJ4JZ, Bill Stevenson, did a fantastic job teaching the kids about ham radio and the importance of having gain when transmitting and receiving!!

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this build project for this group of young people!!

ARES Activities

Reminder: ARES/RACES Meeting Thursday 5/11/17

Another friendly reminder that the ARES/RACES meeting is Thursday night, 5-11-2017, at 7 p.m. held at the Gaston County Emergency Operation Center, 605 N. Highland St. Gastonia, NC. (go around to the back and ask to be let in). It is open to all licensed amateur radio operators who desire to serve the public in times of emergency and need.

We hope to discuss our new DMR repeater and practice EmComm digital modes.

Hope to see you there!

73,

Bill Stevenson,

AJ4JZ,

ARES/RACES Emergency Coordinator

GCARS Special Events

DMR (Digital Mobile Radio) is Coming to Spencer Mountain!

 

Here is some BIG news:

DMR (Digital Mobile Radio) is coming to Spencer Mountain.  Due to a generous gift from Gerald Rankin, AG0R, the Gaston County Amateur Radio Society is very shortly (and Lord willing), going to have a DMR amateur radio repeater on top of Spencer Mountain, North Carolina, on the 70 cm band. The DMR repeater will allow hams with a DMR radio to communicate with other radio amateurs locally, regionally, nationally, and even globally using a quality of voice communications similar to 3G cellular phones.

We have a Hytera RD622 digital repeater,

which we plan to connect to the Brandmeister network, a global amateur radio DMR system with hundreds of talk groups all over the world.

Right now, we are in the process of setting up the repeater, getting things straight with our prospective internet service provider, and testing the system. We hope to have this working before the end of May 2017.

DMR is an exceedingly affordable and robust digital mode. HT’s can be had for under $100 dollars (Like the TYT MD-380). Users are required to get a radio identifier number from DMR-MARC, which is the master group for issuing DMR identifiers so that users can work all the current internet linked DMR networks.

Go to this link here to register for a DMR id number (it’s free):

https://dmr-marc.net/cgi-bin/trbo-database/register.cgi

You do not need to have a radio to get a number. If you are thinking about doing DMR, then you should go ahead and get a number from DMR-MARC.

If you want to experience the excitement of DMR now, you can listen to any talk group you would like on the Brandmeister “Hose Line” which is a web enabled dashboard for listening to DMR traffic on the internet. It only requires a current web browser and the ability to process sound. Give it a try:

 https://hose.brandmeister.network/

More information to come about how to set up your radio “code plug” and which talk groups will be enabled from the N4GAS DMR repeater.

73,

Bill Stevenson

AJ4JZ

 

GCARS Special Events

GCARS works the Caromont Criterium at Belmont

This past Sunday, April 23, 2017, the Gaston County Amateur Radio Society provided supplemental communications, helped spectators and acted at crossing guards at the fifth annual Caromont Health Belmont Criterium bicycle races.  It was a rainy, cold day, but the hams of GCARS stepped up to the challenge, and volunteered from 11:30 a.m. until 7 p.m. The action was exciting and we got a real taste of operating in less-than-favorable conditions. Many thanks to all the hams who participated! We received thanks from and an informal invitation to help again next year from the race organizers.

The Lonely Outpost at the Criterium in Belmont

NG2M, JD, and KV4WB, Annlette, walking to the infamous Glenway Curve!
AJ4JZ, Bill and NG2M, JD pose at the dangerous Glenway curve.
Tindol Subaru pace car leads the way!
Men’s C5 Races thunder to the start/finish line.
Lady Pro-Racers storm the first corner! NC1G, Mark, watches before the rain comes!
NC1G, Mark (in the blue coat) guards the crosswalk as the male pro-racers shoot by!
Some but not all of the hams at the Criterium. Sarah (wanta be ham); AK4BX, Jeff; Chantel, KM4LWL; Annlette, KV4WB; NG2M, JD.
ARES Activities

ARES/RACES April Meeting Tomorrow 4/13!!

Another friendly reminder that the ARES/RACES meeting is tomorrow night, 4-13-2017, at 7 p.m. held at the Gaston County Emergency Operation Center, 605 N. Highland St. Gastonia, NC. (go around to the back and ask to be let in).  It is open to all licensed amateur radio operators who desire to serve the public in times of emergency and need. Hope to see you there!

73,

Bill Stevenson,

AJ4JZ,

ARES/RACES Emergency Coordinator

ARES Activities

ARES/RACES Meeting 3-9-17

Another friendly reminder that the ARES/RACES meeting is tonight, 3-9-2017, at 7 p.m. held at the Gaston County Emergency Operation Center, 605 N. Highland St. Gastonia, NC. (go around to the back and ask to be let in).  It is open to all licensed amateur radio operators who desire to serve the public in times of emergency and need. Hope to see you there!

73,

Bill Stevenson,

AJ4JZ,

ARES/RACES Emergency Coordinator