SACRAMENTO VALLEY SECTION WEB RESOURCES
Section News: www.arrlsacvalley.org
Section Nets: http://sites.google.com/site/arrlsacvalley/nets
Sacramento Valley ARES: www.sacvalleyares.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ARRLSacramentoValley
Twitter: www.twitter.com/ARRL_SV
Thanks to Greg Kruckewitt KG6SJT for maintaining our Section ARES web page and assisting with our Facebook page and Twitter feed.
Thanks to Les Cobb W6TEE for maintaining the Section Net list.
ARRL Affiliated Club web resources are now listed on this web page
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Amateur Radio Youth Outreach at Saturday
March 2 STEM Expo in Rocklin
Posted December 31
Hundreds of curious youngsters at the Placer County STEM Expo will learn about the fascinating world of communications and electronics at the ARRL Amateur Radio Special Event Station N6S and Exhibit! Kids of all ages love hands-on activities and the opportunity to experience contacts over amateur radio, and you can participate in learning experiences that can lead to a new amateur radio license and to fulfilling careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math).
The American Radio Relay League Sacramento Valley Section will sponsor an amateur radio exhibit and Special Event Station N6S from 9 AM to 3:30 PM at the Saturday March 2Placer County STEM Expo at William Jessup University in Rocklin with literature, hands-on activities, Morse Code practice stations and an operational amateur radio station. Admission is free!
Radio amateurs who wish to join us at the STEM Expo to answer questions and share the joy of amateur radio should contact our Section Youth Coordinator, Orion Endres, AI6JB ai6jb@arrl.net now for more information!
FCC to Suspend Most Operations on January 3, if Government Shutdown Continues
from the ARRL News, December 31, 2018
If the partial lapse in federal government funding continues, the FCC will suspend most operations on Thursday, January 3, at mid-day. At that time, employees will have up to 4 hours to complete an orderly shutdown of operations. Work required for the protection of life and property will continue, however, as will any work related to spectrum auctions, which is funded by auction proceeds. In addition, the Office of the Inspector General will continue operations until further notice.
ARRL VEC Manager Maria Somma, AB1FM, said in such situations, the FCC website would go offline, including includes the Universal Licensing System (ULS) and the Commission Registration System (CORES). “This means all electronic license transactions would stop,” Somma said. “FRN registrations would be unavailable, and even the search engines would be unavailable.”
For the complete story go to ARRL News.
ARRL SV Section-Wide Net Reports Thursday December 20
The ARRL SV Section-wide nets were held on Thursday, December 20. Andy Boone KJ6IYM opened the VHF net on the WD6AXM 146.085 MHz FM repeater at 7:30 pm PDT after the Yuba-Sutter ARES net signed off.
Here is the VHF net check-in list: N6SNO, KG6SJT, AG6IP, KJ6KIZ, KK6VZD, K6CEL, KC9EI, W6BXN, N6SAC,, K6STN, W7KOZ, WB6DNL, KM6RHC, KA6FFM, KB6EMC, KM6NFE, N6PGQ, K6MGI, KK6WSO, AE6LM, W6BEN, W6WMD, AI6LZ, and WA6OHP.
At 7:45 pm, ARRL SV Section Manager Carol Milazzo, KP4MD, called the SV Section HF net on 3880 kHz LSB. Propagation was good and AE6LM, K6BAA, K6WWL, KC9EI, KF6ABC,, KF7SWC, KK6YYF, KM6NFE, KM6RHC, N6DXX, N6JKH, N6LFB, N6PGQ, N6SAC, W7KOZ, WB6OGD, and K6ROB checked into the HF net.
Thanks to all who assisted and participated in our December Section-Wide Nets!
No Section-Wide Net Scheduled for January
ARRL Sacramento Valley Section Nets are conducted only on the third Thursday of the month when announced, following the 7 pm Pacific Time Yuba-Sutter ARES net on the WD6AXM 146.085 MHz FM repeater, followed by the HF Section Net on 3880 kHz LSB +/- 3 kHz. During spring and summer months the HF net may be conducted on 5330.5 kHz USB as propagation permits.
All Sacramento Valley Section radio amateurs are welcome to check into our Section Nets. The nets carry announcements of interest to our section and test our section-wide station communication capabilities.
Don't have an antenna or HF radio? Click a link
and Listen to our HF net on a web receiver.
W6DRZ receiver at Half Moon Bay 3880 kHz No 60m W7RNA receiver in Sedona, AZ 3880 kHz 5330.5 kHz Northern Utah web receiver 3880 kHz 5330.5 kHz
Hourly Northern California NVIS Observations
This chart shows colors that represent the recommended HF frequencies for contacting stations for a particular hour. Both stations should use the SAME frequency denoted by the color at the location of the target station. The chart is in Universal Time (UTC). More information at http://www.sws.bom.gov.au/HF_Systems/6/6
ARRL Sacramento Valley SEC Greg Kruckewitt, KG6SJT, Reports on the ARES Response to the Camp Fire
In TWiT.tv's Ham Nation episode 376 on November 14, Sacramento Valley SEC Greg Kruckewitt, KG6SJT, gave a detailed question and answer report on the role that radio amateurs played in supporting communication needs during the tragic Camp Fire in Butte County. The interview begins at the 45:50 point in the program. Read more about the amateur radio response to the Camp Fire in the ARRL News and on our Section Facebookand Twitter feeds.
Andy Boone KJ6IYM on Amateur Radio Newsline
In Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2142 for Friday, November 16 2018, Yuba-Sutter EC Andy Boone described the ARES response to the Red Cross call for support in the aftermath of the devastating Camp Fire. Click to read the script.
January 12, 2019 - Sacramento County ARES Training
Posted December 2, 2018
The next Sacramento County ARES training and meeting is scheduled for Saturday January 12, 2019 from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon at the Sacramento Sheriff's Central Division, 7000 65th Street, Sacramento, CA 95823.
Vince Cracchiolo KI6NHP is the Sacramento County EC.
For more information, visit the Sacramento County ARES web site at www.saccountyares.org
Pot grow lights interfere with Ham Radio
Submitted by Rene Smythe, WB6PSY, posted March 4, 2017
I have experienced this interference for the past few years. I found the interference by swinging my 10m Yagi monobander around until the noise became over S9. I then went outside to see where the beam was physically pointed and discovered a garage where indoor pot is being grown. The lights are on a time cycle so the interference comes and goes. 40º degrees in either direction takes the noise out.
Now that marijuana is being legalized in more states, more hams are going to experience this noise.
WB6PSY
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/c1b607bfbbab459ba9e21d4c282996e4/growing-problem-pot-lights-give-ham-radio-operators-buzz
Radio Frequency Interference
posted February 3, 2018
ARRL and the FCC have a cooperative agreement in radio frequency interference matters. You may submit interference reports together with your supporting documentation to ARRL EMC Engineer Mike Gruber W1MG who then files the report with the FCC Gettysburg office.
You may also contact our Section Technical Coordinator Bob Wortman, WB6VYH, or ourSection Official Observer Coordinator Bob Hess, W1RH, for assistance. More information is posted under the "From the Section Manager" notes in the November 2016 Section News - Carol KP4MD
Our Official Observer Coordinator Bob Hess, W1RH, shares this helpful web page by NK7Z for identifying sources of Radio Frequency Interferencehttp://www.nk7z.net/rfi-snapshots
Club and Member News - January 2019
Update from River City ARCS
Posted December 31, 2018
Our January meeting date has been changed to Wednesday, January 2 at 7:30 pm due to the New Year holiday. Tom Cutter, W6BS, will give a technical presentation on HF digital voice modes. All are welcome.
Our meetings are held at the Sacramento Co. Corp Yard (SMUD) building 5026 Don Julio Blvd, Sacramento, CA 95842 (corner of Elkhorn and Don Julio Blvds). Meetings are open to the general public and visitors are always welcome.
Our club holds nets every Wednesday evening at 8:00 pm on the 145.25 MHz N6NA FM repeater, followed by an 8:30 pm 10 meter net on 28.420 MHz USB and a slow scan television net at 9 pm on the 441.300 MHz N6NA FM repeater. Our nets are open to participation by all club members and visitors. See more information at www.n6na.org/nets
We will hold no formal RCARCS nets on Wednesday January 2 due to the rescheduled general membership meeting that night.
Newsletters
SFARC Meetings - Monthly Members second Friday Monthly at Auburn City Hall, Rose Room starts at 7:30pm. Everyone is welcome.
On-air Nets - Thursday night at 7:30 on the W6EK repeater system is the weekly club net. Then every 1st and 3rd Wednesday at 7:30pm is the Elmer Net. Please join us. W6EK Repeaters: 145.430 - 162.2Hz, 223.860 - 110.9Hz, 440.575 + 162.2Hz
Winter Field Day - Brian, AI6US is planning our Winter Field Day. Sign-up to come and participate… Brian is doing Breakfast!
Hamfest 2019 -the date is set for March 16th, 2019. Location will be at the Historic Loomis Train Depot in Loomis, CA
Our Groups.io is now at 126 members. This replaced the Yahoo Group function.
Jim, WA8MPA has assembled a Member's Library that allows the membership to check out any of over a hundred ARRL and other publications on Ham Radio.
Club activities for December boil down to our Members Christmas Dinner on the 15th, and the Breakfast at Mel's Auburn on December 29th.
We will be having a Youth Ham Scholarship in 2019. Details will be announced at the January meeting.
As with any SFARC net or meeting, we love visitors, so come on down and join the membership and check out our website at: w6ek.org
Newsletter on the Homepage at w6ek.org
VE Report December 2018
VE Exams - Every 1st Saturday each month at Raley's Granite Bay. Starts at 8am. Walk ins welcome. Contact is Al, NI2U at vechair2015@w6ek.org.
Thanks again for all the VE's that were able to come to the session. We had a very successful session again. We administered 17 elements to 11 candidates. 3 earned a Technician, 6 earned General and one earned Extra Class license. Thanks Al NI2U
All the Best Wishes to everyone from the members of SFARC. Happy New Year!
Carl, WF6J, PIO Sacramento, CA
Newsletter at: http://www.w6ek.org/newsletters/SFARC202018%20newsletter.pdf
VE Report December 2018
Thanks again for all the VE's that were able to come to the session. We had a very successful session again. We administered 17 elements to 11 candidates. 3 earned a Technician, 6 earned General and one earned Extra Class license.
Thanks Al NI2U
Update from North Hills RC
Posted December 31, 2018
The next meeting for The North Hills Radio Club will take place on Tuesday evening, January 15, 2019. This month's program will be presented by former past president, vice-president and secretary-treasurer, Maynard Wright, W6PAP. Maynard will give a talk about SWR. It promises to be an interesting program. So, why not come and join us!
Club meetings are always held on the third Tuesday of every month, at the former (SMUD) building located at 5026 Don Julio Blvd, at the northeast corner of Don Julio and Elkhorn Blvds. The board meeting begins at 6:00 P.M., followed by the general membership meeting at 7:30 P.M.
See you there! From Doug Emerson, Vice-President, North Hills Radio Club. Amateur call sign N6NFF
Our next SFM ARC inperson meeting will be held at its normal time and location Dec. 6th (followed by our Jan.3rd meeting). The SFM ARC in-person meeting is held in the Howard Crowley room upstairs at the Carmichael Presbyterian Church. Directions, including a Google Map are available at the bottom of the W6SFM.com homepage.
At our December meeting, we will be discussing the recap of our Bug Roundup Event and participation level. We will also be discussing January’s North American QSO party event to be held at a member’s home QTH. As always, we will have our Tech (show and tell) portion. Members and visitors are asked to share their Ham Radio related items they find of interest. Visitors are always welcome to join us at our meetings.
On-Air Net Meeting
Each Tuesday of the week 8:00 PM on 3.545 MHz the SFM ARC enjoys getting on the air with CW for our weekly Nets. You do NOT need to be a member of the SFM ARC to check into our nets and we encourage you to invite a friend to join us as well. Although our nets usually run around 15 wpm code, we are all happy to accommodate those that are slower and need us to oblige. If you are unable to copy Morse Code or need some code practice, please feel free to visit our on-line LIVE streaming broadcast of both the Audio and a CW to Text decoding of the meeting. The “LIVE FEED” link can be found on our home page of our website. With our YouTube Live streaming system, you can watch the Live Feed on your Apple IOS or Android devices. You do not need to have a YouTube account to access the feed.. However, you will need one to subscribe to our channel.
Those visiting viewing can chat with others watching on-line as well. This of course is not mandatory, but rather just a way of making everyone feel more involved in our on-air nets.
If you like, you can “checkin” using the chat window and you will be included with our On-Air Net log. Simply announce your call letters in the chat window.
Tell A Friend
Do you know someone in need of a Ham Club to call home? Perhaps someone that wants to learn Morse Code, are interested in CW or already knows and uses it? The SFM ARC would love to be their new Club home. Our in-person meetings are held each 1st Thursday of the month at 7PM. Please use the rear parking lot and entry for best access to the meeting. A map and directions can also be found on our website.
We hope to see you at our next meeting! Thank You, Chris AI6U SFM ARC Secretary 2018
Newsletter
Ham License Testing - Wednesday, January 2, 6 PM
WPARC offers Ham radio license testing on the first Wednesday of each month at Round Table Pizza at 6 PM (see below for map and directions.) For more information please email Chuck KK6DOA
WPARC Board Meeting - Wednesday, January 2, 7:30 PM
WPARC conducts Board Member meetings on the first Wednesday of each month at Round Table Pizza at 7:30 PM (see below for map and directions.) The board welcomes members and guests who wish to observe or bring business before the board.
WPARC Meeting and Testing Location
Join us at Round Table Pizza, 1020 Pleasant Grove Blvd #170, Roseville. This location faces Roseville Parkway at the northeast corner of the complex, just around the corner from the CVS store. View map and directions
The club website, http://wparc.us/index.html, has a new look and new information. Jey KQ6DK is now club web master and is updating the the site on a regular basis. Thanks to Jey for all his work on the website.
Don’t forget about our WPARC Facebook page. It is at: https://www.facebook.com/WPARC
Want more? We now have a Twitter account! Just search for @k6pac (the club repeater call sign with the “@” symbol). We are following the ARRL, the ARRL Sacramento Valley Section, Kenwood, and Yaesu and a few others. If you think of someone we should follow, please email me. I know there are a few local clubs with Twitter accounts and I will add them.
73, Michael Buck. K6BUK
WPARC on Facebook and Twitter
Check us out on Facebook and Follow us on Twitter (@k6pac)
WPARC Nets WPARC Weekly Nets Members and guests are always welcome to check in. Share a few minutes with us and keep your net skills sharp!Day and Time Net Notes Wed 10:00 AM WPARC Day Net Members and guests welcome Thu 7:30 PM WPARC Evening Net 2M then HF net follows, see below
WPARC Thursday Evening HF Net Schedule Following the Thursday evening 2M Net we have an HF Net to keep our HF radio skills sharp. Confirm the scheduled band and frequency during the 2M net.
Day Band and Frequency Jan Feb Mar 1st Thu 10 meters (28.410 MHz) 3 7 7 2nd Thu 15 meters (21.355 MHz) 10 14 14 3rd Thu 40 meters (7.225 MHz) 17 21 21 4th Thu 75 Meters (3.855 MHz) 24 28 28 5th Thu 10 meters (28.410 MHz) 31
FROM THE PRESIDENT
This will be the last article for the year and I hope 2018 has been a good year for you.
The Amateur Radio community has been very busy in 2018. The new FT8 digital mode has created an explosion of activity in the data subbands allowing many to make DX contacts with limited stations and poor band conditions. Several specialized groups collecting contacts such as Summits on the Air (SOTA), Parks on the Air (POTA) and Grid Chasers have also increased band activity. Many have discovered the digital voice modes on 2m and 70cm bands that allow Hams to talk across continents or to large groups beyond the range of their local repeater with a simple handheld transceiver. A few DXpeditions created some DX excitement in the Fall. Finally, our ARES and RACES groups have been busy providing communications during the many disasters our country faced this year. This tells me that Amateur Radio is still relevant and growing and you are all part of it. Congratulations on doing your part to keep the hobby growing.
The club has one more activity this year, our holiday dinner on Sunday, December 9th. It looks like there might be some rain in Pollock Pines on Sunday, but we should be below the snow level. Then in January we will have our regular meeting on the 24th and the Coloma Gold Discovery Special Event Station on January 26th and 27th. More information will be provided soon for the special event station. The board has already started looking for club activity ideas for early 2019, so stay tuned in!
From my family to yours, I’m wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
73, Jay, KE6GLA
Ham Radio Exam
January 12th, 2019 at 9:00am. Held at the American Legion Post 119, 4561 Greenstone Road, Placerville CA 95667. Testing Fees $14.00. Contact Ken Vogele, W6KWV at 530-642-9523
2019 Coloma Special Event
The El Dorado County ARC will be commemorating 171st anniversary of the discovery of gold in Coloma, CA. The special event station will be on the air as AG6AU from the gold discovery site January 26th and 27th. More information to coming soon./p>
Jay, KE6GLA Newsletter
Update from Oroville ARS
Updated December 31, 2018
OARS Monthly Meeting
The OARS Christmas Dinner will take place Saturday, 11 January, 7 pm at St. Paul's Episcopal Church Hall, Bird & Pine St., Oroville, CA 95965.
Net night is every Sunday evening 8:00 pm on the 146.655 MHz W6AF FM repeater.
OARS Monthly Breakfast
This month’s OARS Breakfast will take place Saturday, 26 January, 9 am, at the Acorn Cafe (second floor) of the Gold Country Casino and Hotel, 4020 Olive Hwy, Oroville, CA 95966
The SOTARS/QCWA meeting is Wednesday, January 9. You may choose lunch or breakfast. Lunch is at eleven and Denny's serves breakfast all day.
The meeting will be called to order at noon in the restaurant's back room.
The meeting as usual is at: Denny's Restaurant on the southwest corner of Howe Ave. and College Town Drive, one block North of Highway 50. 7900 College Town Drive, Sacramento Phone (916) 383-7071
Please plan to attend. 73, Dan WA6VPJ
Update from Nevada County ARC
Updated December 31, 2018
Next Meeting: Monday January 14, 2018 7 pm-9 pm.
General Meetings 2nd Monday of Each Month 7:00 p.m. at the Salvation Army Meeting Room, 10725 Alta Street - Grass Valley. Guests are Welcome. Presentation, Coffee, Monthly Raffle. Doors open at 6:30 pm.
Nevada County Amateur Radio Club members hold impromptu meetings at the Omega Rest Area on highway 20. Elevation is around 5000 ft and the views are tremendous. Our activity always draws the interest of motorists coming through the rest stop.
73, Cal McKitrick AI6MC, NCARC President 2018 Newsletter Facebook Group
COFFEE CHAT (Ham n' Coffee)
Thursdays, 8 am at Valentina's Bistro, 841 Sutton Way, Grass Valley
Update from Yuba-Sutter ARC
Posted December 31, 2018
TECHNICIAN CLASS
Coming in January and February 2019 is the next technician class. Do you know of anyone interested in becoming a ham? Encourage them to attend and then become their Elmer. Help your hobby to grow. Classes will be held on Monday and Wednesday evenings from 6:30 to 8:30 P.M. at the American Red Cross Center in Yuba City beginning Jan. 7, 2019. They will run through Feb 27th. The Red Cross building is located at 125 E. Onstott Road, Yuba City. We will be meeting in Classroom 2.
EDITORS COMMENTS
✓YSARC’s new web page is: www.ysarc.net - click on the upper right-hand icon on the homepage to join the club’s Facebook page. Past issue’s of the VHN are available on our new website.
✓Send your ham related articles and pictures to share in your VHN. Pictures of ham shacks, antenna projects, antenna parties, etc. are appreciated KI6CSN@arrl.net orKF6FVP@arrl.net
Newsletter
