Field Day 2011 Activities - Interim Report July 21

The Seneca Radio Club set up for Field Day at Miller Conservation Farm located at 5670 E TR 138 in Adams Township. This is 9 miles Northeast of Tiffin off of SR 101.

Try this link to download the farm's brochure in PDF format.

The members started setting up at Noon on Saturday. The weather was very nice.
The antennas were our first job to tackle and Mike Hayward KC8WH equipped us with a nice selection of wire antennas including a G5RV, a 40M dipole, a 10M dipole and an assortment of others to try. We decided to operate as a 3A team. Bands cover included 80-10, 6M and 2M. Mike also brought his slingshot to help us put the lines in the trees and it worked very well.

It was a nice show of teamwork with KC8WH, KD8GBZ, KD8FUY, club license trustee Gregg Flechtner WJ8Y, K8ARL, W8MAL and Dan Rinamin getting all the things in the air.

President Mike Hall KD8GBZ brought along a 40 foot fiberglass mast to assemble. He also rigged up his 2M and 6M antennas.

Denny Emerine N8PPR was not able to attend but graciously provided his 3500 watt gas generator. It was its maiden voyage and worked without a hitch during the entire weekend.

Karl Erbland K8ARL provided a nice banquet of food for the weekend.
There was a generous supply of the main grub -- chili, beef stew, oven roasted chicken wings, potato salad, macaroni salad, deli meats, chips and coffee.

Thanks to Ben Bishop KD8FUY we got a lot of the gear transported and made the food runs. He came through with a lot of the cooking gear and also kept us cool with a bunch of coolers and ice.

Mike Lacumsky W8MAL brought along his paket radio station to try out.

Dan Rinamin joined us to get his itch up to get a ham license. He has been telling me for several years that he was working on it. He made his first contacts during Field Day -- more on that later. I am pleased to report he is mastering the question pool and should soon have his Tech license.

We operated just short of the last hout on Sunday afternoon as the generator sputtered and ran out of gas.

We will have a full report in the next few days. Keep watching!

Twitter: twitter.com/w8id

First "Seneca Radio Club" President
Bob Fries W8MVE SK
Robert "Bob" Fries W8MVE of Republic, Ohio became a Silent Key
on April 22, 2011 after a brief illness. He was born Sept. 10, 1930, in Tiffin, Ohio.

He was a lifelong farmer on his family homestead, and he also repaired radios and televisions.
He was a Boy Scout with the rank of Eagle Scout. He became a pilot at the age of 16.

First "Seneca Radio Club" President
Bob was an Amateur Radio operator for almost 60 years. His callsign was W8MVE and he held
an Advanced Class license. Bob was a member of the Tiffin Amateur Radio Club when it was first
organized in the early 1950's and was elected the first president of the Seneca Radio Club when
the club changed its name.

Bob was very active in Amateur Radio and won many operating awards for himself and the radio club. His main interest
was in DXing on VHF / UHF but he operated on many frequencies.

Memorial contributions may be made to Republic Boy Scout Troop No. 442, Tiffin-Seneca Public Library or
Seneca-East Public Library.

Online condolences may be made to the family at www.lindseyoldsfh.com.

FamilyFest 2011
The Seneca Radio Club was represented at the annual FamilyFest. This year the event was held at the
Tiffin Community YMCA, it was the club's eighth year of participation.

Club members and families present included Gary Magers KD8LLS, Brenda Magers K8VZH,
Garland Fitch KD8JPB, Melissa Fitch KD8NXX, and Karl Erbland K8ARL.

January 10, 2011 - 2:20 PM EST
Seneca Radio Club Trivia Net - Premieres Thursday, January 13

The Seneca Radio Club premieres its Trivia Net on Thursday,
January 13 at 8:00 PM on the club repeater W8ID 145.450 MHz (tone 107.2).

SRC president Mike Hall KD8GBZ will be your Net Control Host.
"Our first net will cover Country Music and concentrate on the television
show "Hee Haw," said Hall. "It's sure to be a fun time and you'll probably
learn something you didn't know."

So, put down the Extra Class study guide, push aside that Vibroplex key, turn down
the HF rig and tune in to the Seneca Radio Club Trivia Net.

The SRC Trivia Net will try to maintain an every Thursday schedule.

All Amateurs and those interested in Amateur Radio are welcome to attend.
Note: Remember the repeater is lower in profile and may require you to transmit at
a higher power using your best antenna and rig. Point beams toward east Tiffin and SR 101.

January 6, 2011 - 1:20 PM EST
Alden C. Shoner K8VZG - SK

Alden Shoner K8VZG became a Silent Key on Monday, January 10, 2011 at the age of 82.
He resided in Bloomville. His daughter is Brenda Magers K8VZH who is married to Seneca
Radio Club member Gary Magers KD8LLS.

Calling hours are Friday, January 14 from noon until 2:00 PM and funeral services
at 2:00 PM at Hoffman-Gottfried-Mack Funeral Home on South Washington Street.
 
Check the Advertiser-Tribune for details.


January 6, 2011 - 1:20 PM EST
Repeater Update

The SRC 2-meter repeater has some desensing. We are working on a solution.
Stations with low power or lower profile may have some difficulty. 


December 15, 2010 - 1:20 PM EST
W8ID Repeater Back On The Air
Let's give it a workout, Test its abilities.

The Seneca Radio Club W8ID repeater -- 145.450 MHz tone 107.2 -- is
back on the air in a lower profile. It is in a temporary location on SR 101
East of Tiffin. It made its first new ID at 1:20 PM, Wednesday, December 15.

 

We would like to exercise it and see what range it is capable of producing.
You may need to increase your power to begin with and see how well others
can copy your signal.

 

Thanks to Cliff Tyree KB8PER for the use of his tower and shelter.

 

Thanks to the following folks for helping with the tower work

on Saturday, December 11. The weather was really nice that day.

 

Ray Bailey KD8OWS

Daryl Campbell WJ8T

Karl Erbland K8ARL

Garland Fitch KD8JPB

Gregg Flechtner WJ8Y

Steve Frasure KD8OWN
Mike Hayward KC8WH

Kent Nord KD8OWR

Chuck Smith KF8GD

and KF8GD's grandson, Johnny!

Cliff Tyree KB8PER

and Cliff's grandsons!

Paul Wise KD8OWO

 

A special thanks to KF8GD for antennas.

 

And, a HUGE THANKS to Daryl Campbell WJ8T our W8ID Trustee for
all of his work to prepare the enclosures, prep the antennas and feedlines,
and a lot of running.

We are in the process of securing a high profile location to move to in

the Spring of 2011.

 

As usual, continue to use the N8VWZ repeater 146.685 MHz, no tone, as

a backup and alternate.

It's nice to be back, tell your friends.

December 14, 2010 - 4:15 PM EST

November 11, 2010
2011 Officers Elected
The Seneca Radio Club elected officers at the November meeting for the 2011 year.

President:  Mike Hall KD8GBZ
Vice President:  Ed Eibling KD8OWQ
Secretary / Treasurer:  Karl Erbland K8ARL

Our current president Ben Bishop KD8FUY remains on the Executive Committee
as Past President. Our W8ID club station Trustee Daryl Campbell WJ8T also
serves on the Executive Committee.

Thanks Ben KD8FUY, Mike KD8GBZ, Karl K8ARL and Daryl WJ8T for your
service this past year.


Updated: November 11, 2010 - 9:00 PM:
2 Additional Students Qualify for Technician -- 11 Total
Don Sauber KD8OYG and Derek Weinandy KD8OYF received their new call signs.

Seneca Radio Club Instructors Nurture Students To Become Hams
9 New Licensees Are On The Way!



From left to right: VE Jim Yoder W8ERW; Ray Bailey - KD8OWS Tech; Kent Nord - KD8OWR General;
Nancy Bailey - KD8OWM Tech; Paul Wise - KD8OWO Tech; Jim Green - KD8OWP Tech;
Steven Frasure - KD8OWN Tech; Bill Paul - KD8OWW Tech; Rebecca Orians - KD8OWL Tech; Edward
Eibling - KD8OWQ General; VE Daryl Campbell WJ8T; and, VE / Instructor Mike Hayward KC8WH.
VE / Instructor Karl Erbland K8ARL provided the photo.

Seneca Radio Club instructors Mike Hayward KC8WH and Karl Erbland K8ARL are winding
down the special Technician License study course prepared for a group of about 20 members
of a local organization in Seneca County. Two representatives of the group approached the club
at our July meeting.

The eight-week course began in early August and taught the fundamentals of obtaining an
Amateur Radio license. The topics included operating procedures, good Amateur Radio practices,
propagation, station design, electrical-lightning-RF safety, satellites, digital modes, electronic
components, FCC rules and regulations and more. The instructors brought in many show-and-tell
items to illustrate the question pool. The instructors greatly demonstrated the dedication of Seneca
Radio Club members in nurturing new hams -- Karl K8ARL called on the radio from his hospital
bed the day of his major surgery during one of the class nights; and, Mike KC8WH gave of his
spare time while seeking new employment.

A scheduled exam date was set for Tuesday, October 26. On Thursday, October 7 at 7:00 PM,
nine members of the class decided to take an early exam. You could tell they were cofident
when they entered the examination room and were anxious to begin.

After two hours of testing, all nine candidates had secured a new Amateur Radio license --
7 Technician Class and 2 General Class.

"Our students always kept interested during the entire course. They asked great questions and
had fun helping each other to study," said Mike KC8WH.

"They passed with flying colors on their first try and the scores were amazing,"
beamed Karl K8ARL.

Good luck to our new hams and we hope you will help them be the best Amateur Radio
operators they can be. And, Seneca Radio Club members can be proud of carrying on our
60+ years of tradition in developing and promoting Amateur Radio in Seneca County and Ohio.

Here are our new hams (callsigns will be posted when they appear in the FCC database):
Technician -
Rebecca L. Orians KD8OWL
Raymond R. Bailey KD8OWS - New SRC Member
Nancy E. Bailey KD8OWM
Steven J. Frasure KD8OWN - New SRC Member
Paul T. Wise KD8OWO
William M. Paul KD8OWW
James J. Green Jr. KD8OWP - New SRC Member

General -
Kent D. Nord KD8OWR
Edward E. Eibling KD8OWQ - New SRC Member

Special thanks to the Seneca Radio Club Volunteer Examiners (VEs) who assisted with
the exam: Daryl Campbell WJ8T, Jim Yoder W8ERW, Mike Hayward KC8WH and
Karl Erbland K8ARL.

(Editor's Note: There are six additional students who will test on October 26.)

Heritage Bike Tour 2010

This gang took care of Heritage Bike Tour communications. Left to Right: Bud Miller KB8SHZ, Karl Erbland K8ARL, KarenSue Roth KC8WUU, Melissa Fitch KD8NXX, Garland Fitch KD8JPB and Mike Hall KD8GBZ.

It was good to hear all of the different call signs check into the
2010 Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) Simulated Emergency
Test (SET) the weekend of October 2-3.

The SET ran from 8 AM Saturday until 8 PM on Sunday. The plan
had multiple net control operators, traffic liaisons to the Ohio Single
Sideband Net (OSSBN), and several operators who brought messages,
picked up messages or relayed messages. Several of our members originated many messages
to make the SET realistic.

Seneca County ARES Emergency Coordinator Jeff Potteiger WB8REI was able to keep a
core group working throughout the weekend.

One noteworthy effort was to get Amateurs to "handle traffic" or messages using Amateur Radio.
Jeff established a criteria to claim an ARES patch. All you had to do was originate a message,
deliver a message and relay a message via Amateur Radio using only emergency power.

It was a good weekend of practice to prepare for real emergencies.

Here is a list of 2010 Seneca County ARES SET participants (If you know of anyone missing
from this list we will be glad to make the correction.: