Category: BandBits

President’s Report

It’s been quite a year for our club, and despite the challenges, we’re doing very well.

Again this year we had to relocate Superfest due to weather, but it was s success. We generated enough revenue to meet our expenses for the year. I can’t thank our volunteers and Board members enough for their guidance and hard work.  Most of all, thanks to the vendors and the flea market tailgaters for making this a great event.

The best is yet to come! We are looking forward to next year’s event at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe.

This fall things will be busy and exciting. We hope you will join us for our Special Event Station activation, N9S, where we will be promoting the history of Spoon River Valley Scenic Drive. We will be operating from the Fulton County Fair on the first and second Saturday and Sunday of October from 9 am to 5 pm. Stop by and say hello!

Later this month, we will be providing communications support for the annual PAWS run Saturday, October 22 at Junction City. We hope to see you there.

We’re hoping to have another POTA (Parks on the Air) event in the near future. It will be in the area, but at a different location than Jubilee College. I’m still hopeful that the weather will hold out a bit longer. It would be a one day weekend event. Send me suggestions for dates, times and locations: n9wx.ares@gmail.com.

Also on October 15 we will hold a license exam session at the Morton Knights of Columbus hall. Here is your chance to earn a new or upgraded license. All newly licensed hams will be given a complimentary one year membership in the club!

As we approach the end of the year, it’s time to think about election of club officers. Here is your opportunity to get involved in the direction of the Club. Let me know if you have any questions and if you are interested. After all, this is YOUR club!

A lot has been happening lately. That’s what our club is all about. The key to making good things happen is PARTICIPATION. Participation in events and activities, on the Sunday net, and of course renewing your membership.

Thanks for being an active member!

Justin, N9WX

____________________________________________________

Meeting Minutes:

Board of Directors , September 8:

6:18 p.m. call to order

Bandbits approval? Tom motions, John seconds…. all are in favor.

TREASURER’S REPORT:
Savings = $235.34
Checking = $2,582.20 (Three Sisters has not yet cashed their check;
also waiting on refund from East Peoria)
Money market = $8,396.78
$100 left in PayPal ($222.07 just transferred from it)

Grand total = $11,214.32

Pending expenses:
Darren getting signs at $22 a sign (x8), so $176 + $300 for banner
$150-200 ($15 each or so) for volunteer T-shirts

Deb makes motion, Darren seconds. All are in favor.

REPEATER COMMITTEE: Nothing new to share.
– Tom and Justin have been hearing a Windows tone going out over
repeater… need to investigate.
– Still need to maybe have the transmission line inspected and our UHF
D-Star antenna removed (before snow flies.) Scott has volunteered to
host UHF at his place on a 40ft tower.

OTHER BUSINESS:
– Need to find out more about annual JOTA with Scouts… October 22
and 23. Is it a club event? If so, we need to be more involved.

SUPERFEST:
– Dwight was able to overprint tickets that haven’t been mailed yet…
will have new raffle stickers for tickets that have already been
issued.
– New map and revised info are live on w9uvi.org
– Will we need cones for parking, asks John? Deb says we’ll use them
for the flea market area and will probably need people to help direct
parking.
– John will bring 50 cones on Thursday… if we need more, he can
bring additional ones on Friday.
– Will we do golf carts, asks Justin? Deb is looking into getting two
of them from the fine residents of Hopedale.
– Justin won’t be able to be there Thursday, but will be there Friday-Sunday.
– Justin is bringing a camper with AC, Darren is bringing a trailer to
transport golf carts.
– For security, Justin will be there Friday and Saturday night… but
will need more volunteers so Justin isn’t alone.
– There is no football game at Richwoods Superfest weekend, so we’ll
have the place alone.

OLD BUSINESS: None.

Motion to adjourn… Tom makes motion, Deb seconds. 6:49 p.m. and we are done!

Membership, September 8:

7:05pm call to order

Motion to approve Bandbits? Mark makes motion, Scott seconds… all
are in favor.

Adam will set up a feature on our website so people can be alerted by
email when there’s a new post like Bandbits.

TREASURER’S REPORT:
Checking = $2,582.20
Savings = $235.34
Checking = $2,582.20 (Three Sisters has not yet cashed their check;
also waiting on refund from East Peoria)
About $700 in expenses still out for Superfest ($176 for signs, $300
for banner, $200 for volunteer T-shirts)
Dumpster is $300-350 additional

$11,214.33 total

Scott makes a motion, Darren seconds. All are in favor.

_____

SUPERFEST:
– We need volunteers!!!
– Deb will turn on signup sheets on site tonight. (gates, flea market,
Thursday setup, Friday afternoon, security, someone in EP in case
people go to the wrong place, etc.)
– John volunteers to make a sign for the original East Peoria
location. Darren will work on it as well.
– For on-site simplex, 146.43 MHz. W9UVI will be talk-in repeater.
– Rich has a projector and screen for classes; Scott will bring a
wireless mic and powered speakers
– Will have to go with Expo food instead of originally-planned food trucks.
– Peoria Fire Department is having training the week of SuperFest at
Expo Gardens, so supposed to get in to site at noon Friday.
– Banquet tables will be $4.50.. cheaper than other places we’ve
gotten in the past at least.
– We have 10×10 portable awning, 10×20 as well. Scott also has
another. Bring extra awnings if you have one!
– For security, Justin would like one other person with him as well.
John says he can help with one of the nights.
– Only Deb is allowed to sell flea market spots… 7 a.m. gate opens.
No selling from general parking spots!
– Justin will be running testing this year… Bob won’t be there. If
you have VE credentials, bring them so we make sure we’re official.
– If someone shows up at the gate and is only there to test, they can
be escorted for free. Scott may bring wristbands to designate. If they
pass their exam, we write on band so they will get full free
admission. They also get a membership to the club (will make sure we
have membership forms on site.)

Tabling rest of business for Scott’s Echolink presentation… 7:49 p.m.

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SuperFest

THANK YOU TO ALL WHO HELPED WITH SUPERFEST!!!

Midwest Superfest 2022 is over, still getting some of the bills so don’t have the final totals, but the club did make money.

Planning and work for Midwest Superfest 2023 has already begun, if you were not able to attend the September Superfest meeting but want to be included on the Superfest committee, please contact Deb, WD9EB

The next Midwest Superfest meeting will be at 7pm on Thursday Oct. 27th via Zoom. Please use the link on the club meetings page.

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Peoria County ARES

Oct 5, ARES Net @ 7:00 PM CDT on the W9UVI (147.075) repeater

Oct 12, ARES Net @ 7:00 PM CDT on the W9UVI (147.075) repeater

Oct 19, ARES On-line Conference @ 7:00 PM CST (Watch your email for Zoom conference info)

Call or email Rich if you are not on the ARES Roster and desire to join the Zoom Conference.

On-Line Conference Agenda includes: Infrastructure Activities, PAWS Event on 10/22, Training Documentation, Very Economical Windows Computers for Digital Modes, Using GPS Position Reports in Winlink, and more.

Please submit your Training Documentation form.

ARES website: http://www.peoriacountyares.org/

Rich Holtman, KD9ANU, Emergency Coordinator for Peoria County ARES

email: kd9anu@arrl.net

Winlink: kd9anu@winli

September Net Logs

9/4
W9WGN KD9ANU WD9EB K9XJT KC9IH KD9IBC N9GUE KB9ATO K9TNT W8NWG N9NDF KD9PXZ KD9JXR KD9IVV WF9E KD9SZZ NM0O KD9AER N9WFT WW9DLM KB9TNZ KD9STL K9QZ Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

9/11
WD9EB KD9ANU N9WX K9XJT KD9ERS WF9E KB9TNZ KC9IH KD9QQU W9JDP WD9EGV N9GUE KD9SZZ K9RCS KB9OGS N9SJZ W9WGN NM0O KD9PXZ KD9JXR NP2WJ KD9AER KD9NYE KD9VSJ KD9IVV W9WTF KB8ATO N9NDF W8NWG KD9STL KD9RYH KD9MPI WW9DLM KT9TB K9HJZ Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

9/18
W9WTF WD9EB KD9ANU KC9IH KD9IBC W9JDP N9GUE KD9LIE K9RCS KD9HZZ N9SJZ N9NDF KD9IVV NM0O KD9PXZ W9WGN KB9ATO KD9NYE KD9JXR WW9DLM N9WFT WF9E KD9QQU WD9EGV NP2WJ KB9SF KC9PZQ KD9ERS KD9STL K9CEW KB9OGS KD9AER W8NWG KD9VSJ K9HJZ KD9RYH KD9SZZ KD9TEG K9XJT Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

9/25
KD9ANU WF9E W9WTF KC9IH W8NWG K9HJZ N9GUE K9TNT N9NDF KD9JXR KD9AER KD9QQU KD9PXZ KD9VSJ VP2WJ WD9EGV KD9STL N9SJZ KD9IVV W9WGN NM0O KD9RJH W9JDP KB9ATO K9XJT KT9TB KD9ERS KD9MPI WW9DLM KB9TNZ KD9RYH WD9EB KD9ERT Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

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October Club Events

October 5 – 7:00 pm – ARES Net – 147.075 Repeater

October 6 – 7:00 pm – Board of Directors Meeting – Zoom

October 8 – 9 9:00 am to 5:00 pm – N9S Spoon River Valley Scenic Drive Special Event Station activation. Fulton County Fairgrounds, Lewistown, IL. All are welcome!

October 12 – 7:00 pm – ARES Net on the W9UVI (147.075) repeater

October 13 – 7:00 p.m. – Membership Meeting: Ham Radio Mesh Net, American Legion, Bartonville

October 15 – FCC License Testing: Morton Knights of Columbus, 616 W. David Street, Morton, IL. FRN Required. Bring two forms of identification and a copy of your license (if upgrading). Testing Fee: $15.

October 18 (TUESDAY) – 7:00 pm – ARES Zoom Meeting – Watch your email for Zoom login information.

October 27-7:00 pm – Superfest Meeting – Zoom

President’s Report

As we all know, Midwest Superfest is just a short time away! We desperately need your help to pull this off. We have had some setbacks, but I know that we will succeed! We had to change our location due to weather damage at the East Peoria Event Center, so Midwest Superfest 2022 is going to be held at Expo Gardens in Peoria, IL.

Again, I am asking for your help and support. Volunteers are needed from Thursday the 15th through Sunday the 18th. I will be working Security overnight on Friday and Saturday, but I would like to have at least one more person dedicated to this position. We need help with marking the flea market spots on Thursday. We need help at the front gate checking and selling tickets. We will have the logo stickers and magnets for sale at the Club Table and will need someone for that. These are just a few of the positions available. If you (or know anyone who) are willing and able to help in any position… Please contact Deb Suhs at WD9EB@ARRL.net ASAP!

I want to thank all of you who have supported the club and Superfest. Without you, we would not exist.

Justin Flick, N9WX President, PAARC

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Meeting Minutes: Membership

7:09 p.m.: meeting begins

Welcome to new member Adam (KD9SBI). Introductions all around.

Deb makes a motion to approve Bandbits, Jim seconds. Unanimous approval.

TREASURER’S REPORT:

Savings: 235.32
Checking: 1423.85
Money market: 8395.91
PayPal: 280.37
470 in checks that deb has for Superfest tickets

Dion makes motion to approve, Jim seconds. It’s approved.

SUPERFEST UPDATE FROM DEB (Note that this report was made to the membership prior to the storm damage that forced us to move Superfest):

• All club members should have 10 tickets to buy or sell.
• Need to talk to Aaron about what’s going on at the Superfest site…
  will make sure things are ready.
• Justin says that air conditioning looks to be working because
  condensation is gone from windows. Deb also noticed that the roof has
  been redone.
• Our contract with Three Sisters Park has been signed. Half of the
  deposit has been sent to them (why our checking account is so flush.)
  $750. Guaranteed price from 2023-2028. Then, the price will be
  renegotiated for the next five years after that. As long as we want
  Three Sisters on the third weekend of September, it’s ours.
• Will use every building out there except the barn. If we need it, we
  can add it as well.
  Flea market will be in the campground area, which means some spots
  will have guaranteed electric hookups. Will have room to expand, even.
  Chapel will be used for forums. Meeting rooms for testing.
• 50 amp service by the museum is for big vendor RVs
• Susan at Three Sisters has been real good to us, with nice breaks:
  Only paying $3,500 for the weekend. And vendors won’t have to rush
  out… they can even leave the next day. She’ll be at this year’s
  event in East Peoria to check out how we have it set up.
• Deb is getting pictures of Three Sisters in advance so we can have
  flyers available THIS year for next year’s first event out there.
• Deb has signup sheets on our website… Deb will work with Adam on
  activating. Everything info-wise on Superfest is live and active (flea
  market map, vendor letter, tickets, etc.)
• We’ll have a simplex frequency for people there, so bring your HTs.
• Tables will be coming from just Pekin instead of two places. Rich
  has a trailer lined up.
• We have two food trucks reserved.
• If anybody is volunteering, they get a bright yellow shirt so people
  know you’re there to help. Send Justin email ASAP with size
  (n9wx.ares@gmail.com)
• 2019 was 60 years of Superfest at Expo, so at least that old.
  Jobs needed for SuperFest:
• Talk-on for people who are lost.
• Ticket sales at the gate.
• Helping people to flea market spots
• Making announcements
• Meet Jim or Todd at Expo to get sound equipment we need

Two weeks from tonight, Superfest meeting is at the Red Cross.

REPEATER UPDATE FROM TOM:

• Echolink is up and running. It turns out that the router just needed rebooted.
• Suggests that Scott may want to train again on Echolink for membership.
• UHF D-STAR repeater is now shut down.
• We were hoping to move the 075 repeater to a taller tower, but
  prices came in much higher and tower climbers were in short supply…
  so postponing that move for now.
• So now, Midwest is only charging for antennas in use instead of
  what’s actually on the old tower.
• Midwest is having another tower climber out for another client, so
  we’re going to try to piggyback to have things checked on our setup
  (we have some remaining issues with noise on the repeater.)
• 075 is at 180ft and VHF DSTAR is at 160.
• Next job is getting out to Timber Hollis repeater and getting Fusion
  back up (was an bad internet connection that has allegedly been
  fixed.) Need to get there before the current fire chief is gone.
• Moving things to the Proctor repeater site is probably dead.
• 61 is leased to the end of the year.
• Tower rent is $1,130 for six months for two antennas.

Any old business? No.

ARES from Rich:

• Has been slow because of no severe weather.
• Second WinLink set up at the bunker. Good opportunity to practice
  sending from one radio to another.
• Going through training.
• Will have a monthly meeting on Wednesday night at the bunker for a
  tour. (Kickapoo)

Jim makes a motion to end meeting, Mark seconds. We
adjourn to Scott’s presentation on satellite work.

Additional item….

• Rich wants to start planning for a spring balloon launch in honor of
  Fritz. If interested in planning, let him know. Unfortunately, very
  little equipment survived the last few balloon launches. Got a bunch
  of records from Fritz’s wife Susan but can’t even figure out what
  model of balloon we were using. (NWS in Lincoln may know
  manufacturers, though.)

____________________________________________________

SuperFest

By now you know that we have had to move Midwest Superfest 2022 from the East Peoria Event Center to Exposition Gardens in Peoria due to storm damage to the front of the EP Event Center where our indoor vendors would be setting up. As Justin talked about in his President’s Message there are several jobs we need help with. Please keep an eye on the website, we will soon have a Midwest Superfest Jobs page that we are asking everyone to please help with. We will be discussing Midwest Superfest, what still needs to be done before hand and what we have to do during it at the monthly club meeting. If you have any questions before hand, please contact Deb WD9EB@ARRL.NET.

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Peoria County ARES

Sept 7, ARES Net @ 7:00 PM CDT on the W9UVI (147.075) repeater 

Sept 14, ARES Net @ 7:00 PM CDT on the W9UVI (147.075) repeater 

Sept 21, ARES On-line Conference @ 7:00 PM CST (Watch your email for Zoom conference info)

Call or email Rich if you are not on the ARES Roster and desire to join the Zoom Conference.

On-Line Conference Agenda includes: Infrastructure Activities, PAWS Event on 10/22, Training Documentation, How to reply to Winlink ICS 213 messages, and more.

Please submit your Training Documentation form.

ARES website: http://www.peoriacountyares.org/

____________________________________________________

August Net Logs

8/7
WD9EB KD9ANU N9WX NM0O N9GUE KC9IH KD9IBC K9HJZ W9JDP K9HJZ W9JDP N9SJZ KB9ATO K9TNT KD9PXZ KD9JXR W8NWG KD9AER W9WGN KD9ERS K9RCS WD9EGV WF9E KD9RYH N9WFT NP2WJ W9TTX N9NDF KD9HZZ KD9NYE WW9DLM KD9RJH NA9LE KB9TNZ KD9STL KD9SZZ Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

8/14
KD9ANU K9XJT W9WGN W8NWG WF9E K8HJZ KC9IH N9GUE W9JDP KD9ERS K9RCS KB9ATO N9NDF KD9PXZ KD9VAM NM0O KD9SPI KD9AER K9TNT KD9VLQ KB9TNZ KD9RYH KD9IVV N9WFT KD9JXR KD9STL KD9QQU KB9SF KD9MPI Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

8/21
WD9EB K9XJT N9WX KD9ANU KC9IH W8NWG WD9EGV N9GUE KD9ERS KD9IVV KB9OGS KD9PXZ W9JDP KD9TAE NM0O
W9WGN K9TNT K9RCS KD9AER WW9DLM N9WFT KD9RJH KD9QQU K9UQF WF9E KD9RYH KD9QQT KD9JXR KD9STL KB9TNZ N9NDF KB9ATO KD9TEG KT9TB KD8NYE KB9SF KD9SPI Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

8/28
KC9IH K9HJZ WD9EGV KD9IVC N9GUE W8NWG W9JDP N9WX K9RCS KB9OGS KB9ASO NM0O KD9PXZ K9TNT KD9ERS K9XJT KD9NYE N9NDF K9MOA KD9AER KD9JXR K9TLZ KD9RHY WW9DLM
KD9STL W9NDG Submitted by KD9QQU 73

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September Club Events

September 1 – 7:00 pm – Board of Directors Meeting – Zoom

September 7 – 7:00 pm – ARES Net – 146.075 Repeater

September 8 – 7:00 pm -Membership Meeting – Bartonville American Legion: Setting up and using EchoLink. Please install EchoLink on your laptop and/or phone before the meeting. Click here for information on how to install EchoLink.

September 15 – 7:00 pm – ARES Meeting

September 17 – 18, 2022  MIDWEST SUPERFEST – NEW LOCATION: EXPO GARDENS, 1601 W Northmoor Rd. Peoria – All (pink) tickets issued for the East Peoria location will be honored. Flea Market, Indoor Vendors, License Testing, Learn about DMR, Satellite Demo, Learn about Winlink, DXCC Card checking and more. –  Purchase Tickets

September 29 – 7:00 pm -Superfest Meeting

President’s Report

Hello, and welcome to Tornado Season! Five years ago this month a tornado hit Chillicothe, IL. It is time to be Weather Aware. The National Weather Service has several online classes coming up for those interested in becoming weather spotters. If you’re interested in weather spotting, or have further questions, join the Peoria County ARES Team headed by Rich Holtman – KD9ANU.

With the weather becoming warmer soon, the hope is to get out into the field more. The plan is to move our meetings outside to be able to enjoy our surroundings. Does anyone have suggestions for locations? Bradley Park? Red Cross parking lot? I feel if we get out into the public eye more, we might just grow interest and our club.

I still need to contact a couple of surrounding clubs to see if there is any interest in joint projects. That being said, planning is in the works to have a Fox Hunt in the summer. If you know anyone who is interested in joining us, please inform them that more information will be coming.

Also, as a reminder, our Starved Rock POTA expedition is coming up! Mark your calendars for May 6-8th, 2022. I am really getting excited about this trip. I have already started getting stuff together. The hope is to have a grill set up for all to use. Please bring what you want to grill. Hope to see you there!

If anyone has any information about public/private events that are coming up and may need communications support, please contact Justin Flick N9WX at n9wx.ares@gmail.com

____________________________________________________

Meeting Minutes: Board of Directors

7:07 pm call to order

Minutes from last board of directors meeting were approved unanimously.

Justin: Glad we had good turnout for Winter Field Day. Very glad Bradley radio club came by to help out. We’ve invited them to join us for events throughout the year. Connor made 35 CW QSOs in a short amount of time…. doubled our contacts! 92 total.

Lift rental really helped. Put another 20m antenna up on Sunday. Rob said W9UVI didn’t appear on spot clusters… but Field Day rules say we’re not supposed to spot.

Nothing new from repeater committee. Justin talked to Bill about Midwest repeater situation… he’s still up in the air about buying the antenna and feed line from us. Unless we can find someone to take it or buy it, we’ll need to take it down. Will check back in March.

Scott says that riggers at the Civic Center might be able to do it for less money. But need to make sure that they’re licensed and insured for such work. Antenna is up 120 feet. Bill did say he has a guy who does tower work for him.

Have not done anything with the .85 repeater at the fire station yet. Still need Matt and Tom to set up WIRES-X. Internet is set up, but uncertain about configuration.

Super Fest meeting update: Deb says we got an invitation from the ARRL to host the Central division convention at Super Fest this year. Deb suggests saying no, but instead tell them we’ll do it in 2023 at Three Sisters Park. Need to confirm with the park if we need to give them money now for our reservation. ARRL will do advertising for us for three states if we host.

This year, no big speaker – Scott will do satellite demo, Jerod/Nick/Tim? will hopefully do DMR demo. All in-house for Super Fest this year.

Treasurer report from John:
$235.25 in savings
$8,392.46 in money market
$2,773.89 checking (includes monthly withdrawal for Noiz Communications for internet at repeater site)
$330 for Morton rentals for Field Day lift
$212 for P.O. Box
two deposits from Amazon marketplace $156.70, $10.86 (returning of solar panel and connectors for trailer)

Deb will pay $113 for her share of the lift.

10 payments in January, 1 in February via PayPal for member dues

$443.30 in PayPal since December

Unfinished business:
Scott will make a couple of extra sets of keys for the trailer hitch.

Still haven’t replaced tires on the trailer. Rethinking the idea of the trailer… moving away from idea of a portable communication center. Will still be moving it around events, so still need tires (and possibly also exterior lights.)

New business:

For upcoming POTA camping trip, reserving a shelter is an extra $50, so will just plan to use someone’s camping site (so far have 033 and 032 reserved.)
Checkin is 3 p.m. Saturday, checkout 3 p.m. Sunday.
Up to four people and two vehicles for site.

Old boy scout cabins are close by with dog friendly cabins that are cheaper than Starved Rock. (Kishauwau)

It’s also Mother’s Day weekend!

Deb needs headshots of new club officers.

Will also put up more details on POTA event on website.

Meeting Minutes: Membership

7:06pm: meeting commences.

SuperFest meeting on Feb. 24th at 7 p.m. For those with ideas or can’t make it, email Deb.
Minutes published in Band Bits from last club meeting approved by membership.

Treasury report from Justin, N9WX:$235.36 savings$2,773.89 in checking$8,392.46 in money marketPayPal has almost $600 in itScott moves to present it, Jim Polson seconds. Membership approves.

Scott Tranchitella, K9XJT did a presentation on EchoLink.

Unsure why EchoLink not active on our repeater… but Scott giving presentation on how to use it with N9NWI-R as stand-in. Matt says that he needs to install an adapter at the repeater site, then W9UVI will be up.

____________________________________________________

Peoria County ARES

Note time change for the ARES Net, no longer at 8:00 PM, going forward to be at 7:00 PM.

Mar 2, ARES Net @ 7:00 PM CST on the 075 repeater
Mar 9, ARES Net @ 7:00 PM CST on the 075 repeater
Mar 16, ARES On-line Conference @ 7:00 PM CST (Watch your email for Zoom conference info)

Call or email Rich if you are not on the ARES Roster and desire to join the Zoom Conference.

On-Line Conference Agenda includes: ARES Local Parks On The Air, Training, Winlink News, Antenna of the Month, Upcoming RATPAC Sessions, Help Wanted, Volunteer Opportunities, & more!

ARES website: http://www.peoriacountyares.org/

Rich Holtman, KD9ANU, Assistant Emergency Coordinator for Peoria County ARES
email: kd9anu@arrl.net
Winlink: kd9anu@winlink.org
Cell: 309-256-4272

____________________________________________________

EchoLink

In late February EchoLink was installed on the W9UVI/o75 repeater. EchoLink allows users to get on the air from any location with internet using a smart phone, tablet or computer.

Learn more.

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SuperFest

The March Superfest meeting will be held on Thursday 24th at 7:00pm, please use the link on the Club meeting page to join.

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February Net Logs

2/6
W9JDP KD9HZZ N9SJZ NM0O W8NWG K9TNT KD9JXR KD9IVV KD9PXZ K9RCS K9FIT KD9RYH N9GUE K9XJT KD9STL WF9E KD9ANU KB9TNZ N9NDF KD8SZZ KB9ATO K9UQF W9WTF WW9DLM KD9NYI KD9IBC W9SEB W9WGN Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

2/13
KD9IVV N9NDF W9JDP K9XJT N9GUE W8NWG KD9PXZ KB9ATO K9FIT KD9JXR KD9QQU KD9ERS WF9E WW9DLM KD9STL K9TNT KD9LSV Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

2/20
W9JDP K9TNT KD9PXZ W9WGN KB9ATO N9NDF W8NWG KD9JXR NM0O N9WFT K9FIT KD9IVV KD9AER KD9QQU WW9DLM N9GUE KD9ANU WD9EGV K9RCS W9SEB NP2WJ KD9LSV N9WX KD9NYE K9UQF KD9SZZ KD9IBC WF9E KD9RYH KT9TB KD9SPJ KD9STL K9XJT WD9EB KD9ERS Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

2/27
W9WGN N9GUE KD9ERS KD9ANU KD9SZZ KD9IBC K9HJZ K9TNT W9JDP KD9QQU KD9JXR NM0O KD9PXZ KD9IVV W8NWG KD9AER K9XJT KD9NYE KD9UIM KD9RYH W9SEB N9NDF KB9ATO K9UQF NA9LE K9CEW WD9EGV KD9NYI WW9DLM K9FIT N9WFT Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

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March Club Events

March 3 – 7:00 pm: Board of Directors Meeting via Zoom.

March 10 – 7:00 p.m.:  Club Meeting via Zoom – openSPOT3 demonstration. openSPOT3 is a battery powered, portable, stand alone digital radio internet gateway (hotspot) designed mainly for amateur radio. Zoom login information available here.

March 31 – Superfest Meeting via ZOOM

President’s Report

Winter Field Day 2022 was a great event. Good food, good fellowship and good weather made it a fun weekend. We had lots of help setting up and tearing down. We used a bucket lift to get the feed point of a 40 meter inverted V nearly 50 feet in the air, and that made a big difference!

Again, thank you to all who came out. Also, a big thank you to the Bradley University Amateur Radio Club. Several of their members came out on Sunday and helped us tear down. They helped Deb and Mark with a tower project as well.

I hope everyone had a good time. Justin – N9WX

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Meeting Minutes: Board of Directors

January 6, 2022 – 7:10p call to order

(No meeting notes available from December BOD.)

Winter Field Day 2022 coming up January 29th/30th at Hopedale Community Center. Have already started advertising on Facebook, but need to do more.

Deb says she’ll get the address, map it and put up on website. Recommends chili soup cookoff on Saturday night. KD9HZZ says he’ll make some. Deb will do breakfast on Sunday as usual.

Set up for Field Day around 2 to 3 p.m., get on air around 4 to 5 p.m. Then overnight, breakfast and see how many people are still around. If nobody there, can tear down and go home. (Make sure to contact Justin before coming out on Sunday!)

Discussion of antennas that we can bring – there may be a few nearby trees that can be used. There’s also a nearby park and parking lot.

No updates on Superfest. Last year, we’d talked about making a deposit but didn’t do it. Because of last year’s issues, we got $1K off. A door was supposed to go in, but KD9HZZ doesn’t think it has happened yet. Also unsure if HVAC system issues have been resolved.

Tom sent Darrin an email a while back about new signs being made for Superfest. Darrin went down to talk to Plumber Signs about 2 ft X 3 ft signs – but he warned that the signs start to fold at that size. Suggested 18″ X 24″ instead. About 15 inches out of the ground. Maybe we get metal frames that can be used for several different events? All will be single-sided for on-site signs. Arrows will be double sided. $22/each, but some may be $16/each after learning we are poor as a club. Also asked about a 3ft x 8ft banner with logo of Illinois and W9UVI welcome text. $288 for a banner that size – but will do them for $240 for us. Sign vendor says that red or black stands out the best. Will talk about final signs needed at next Superfest meeting, then ask for mockups of designs.

Treasurer report:
Have been getting people using PayPal for dues. Deb has a few membership forms that she’ll forward to Adam. (Need to separate back out treasurer and secretary roles.)
Savings: $235.25
Checking: $3,193.28 (still need to pay $200 for mailbox)
Money market: $8,391.88
PayPal: $291.98 (usually keep $100 in there – $198 in dues for past month) Eight or nine people have paid online.

Will make announcement on the Sunday night net about memberships.

Justin would like to get more stickers of the new design. Sold all of them at Superfest. Can hand out for POTA, sell at events, etc. If we sign up for new account with vendor, can get 50 stickers for $29. Otherwise, 50 for $68 with existing account. 100 stickers is $94. 200 stickers for $133. Could we get discount as not-for-profit club? Maybe, maybe not. Deb will make account on Stickermule for the club. Justin asks for $150 allocated for stickers; Tom and Darrin second, yes from board members present.

Repeaters:
Taking the UHF D-Star repeater offline at end of June at the latest. Giving Bill a month decide what he wants to do with antenna, coax, etc. At end of July, rent ends.
$2100 is new cost for a year (saving $1000.)
D-STAR usage was better on VHF, very little on UHF. Not worth maintaining.
Justin asks if we want to get rid of the VHF D-STAR to save even more money? A few board members say no, but maybe we need to pull stats and bring in front of membership.

How many repeaters are under our responsibility? Four. One in Glasford doesn’t cost us anything. W9UVI is $1100. Two current D-STARS are $1000/each.
PIA .85 machine in Glasford is Fusion-only. Costs $1/year.
Going to tap into Glasford Fire Department for internet to enable Wires-X. Time to follow-up on this. May take Fusion off .075 repeater eventually to make only analog.

New Business:
Finding shirt guy (Chris) for club. Need design. Deb wants new logo on one side with “PAARC 100+ years of making waves.” (We have second-oldest club in United States, after all.) Two sides is usually more expensive, but may not be in this case. Deb would like to also put his biz info on the website.

8:15 p.m. Motion to adjourn. Seconded by many and approved.

Submitted by Adam Gerik, KD9NYE

Meeting Minutes: Membership

January 13 – 7:05p call to order

Winter Field Day on 29th and 30th of January at Hopedale Event Center. Setup at 2:30 p.m. on 29th. Chili/soup cookoff for bragging rights on Saturday night. Sunday morning, will be breakfast by Deb. Justin is renting a 50ft tall boom lift – trees that are on Google Maps are no longer there. Will also have trailer out there, although not a whole lot there other than coax and a few antennas.

Exit 119, turn right at Caseys. Veer left keeping on main road. At 101 SE Main, pass it and turn left. Sign out front saying “Hopedale Police Department.” Community center is in back.

Winter Heat competition going on for the rest of the month on VHF/UHF, if interested.

Superfest meeting is on January 27th via Zoom link on website.

Tonight’s presentation by Scott, K9XJT, on WIRES-X.

Meeting adjourned at 8pm.

Submitted by Adam Gerik, KD9NYE

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Peoria County ARES

Feb 2, ARES Net @ 8:00 PM CST on the 075 repeater
Feb 9, ARES Net @ 8:00 PM CST on the 075 repeater
Feb 16, ARES On-line Conference @ 7:00 PM CST (Watch your email for Zoom conference info)

Call or email Rich if you are not on the ARES Roster and desire to join the Zoom Conference.

On-Line Conference Agenda includes: ARES Local Parks On The Air, Winter Training, Winlink News, Upcoming RATPAC Sessions, Help Wanted, Volunteer Opportunities, & more!

ARES website: http://www.peoriacountyares.org/

Rich Holtman, KD9ANU, Assistant Emergency Coordinator for Peoria County ARES
email: kd9anu@arrl.net
Winlink: kd9anu@winlink.org
Cell: 309-256-4272

Winterheat 2022

The third annual edition of Winterheat has come and gone! The very successful, month long amateur radio simplex event was aimed at getting folks on the air making voice contacts on 2 meter, 70 centimeter, 6 meter, 1.25 meter, 33 cm, DMR Simplex, D-Star Simplex, and Fusion Simplex. Over 134,000 contacts were made by 1070 participants. Roughly a dozen or so hams from the Greater Peoria Area participated. The majority of the contacts were made on 2 meter and 70 centimeter, but every designated band did have event traffic. This event was conceived and executed by some hams in the Springfield area and supported by others from around the state. Some excellent computer programming made it quick, fun, and easy to see the statistics, who was on the air, and even maps of all your contacts’ location. You can see the Winterheat site at https://hamactive.com/WH22/index.php.

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SuperFest

The Midwest Superfest 2022 meeting for February will be Thursday the 24th at 7:00pm using the link on the club meeting page.

We have a lot of members with great ideas and we strongly encourage you to share them, remember Superfest is for the entire club and allows us to stay on the air by subsidizing our tower rent. If you are unable to participate in the scheduled meeting but have ideas you would like to share please send them to WD9EB@arrl.net or W9UVI@arrl.net.

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January Net Logs

1/2
KC9TCM KD9SZZ KD9IBC K9TNT NM0O KD9PXZ KD9JXR W8NWG W9JDP W9WGN KD9ATO N0XOH K9XJT KD9NYI KD9QQU K9HJZ KB9TNZ KD9STL KD9IVV N9NDF K9RCS W9SEB KD9ANU WW9DLM K9CEW WF9E KD9RYH N9GUE NA9LE KD9SPJ Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

1/9
K9RCS W9SEB KD9JXR W8NWG KB9TNZ KD9PXZ NM0O KD9RJH KD9IVV KD9RYH KD9ANU K9HJZ KD9STL KT9TB KD9IBC N9GUE K9XJT W9WGN KD9ERS KB9ATO N9NDF WW9DLM KC9YTT K9TNT KD9NYE KD9AER WF9E N9WFT NA9LE KD9NYI NP2WJ Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

1/16
N9NDF KD9IBC W9WGN KD9NYE KD9JXR W8NWG KD9PXZ KD9AER K9XJT KD9STL K9HJZ NA9LE KB9ATO KB9TNZ NM0O KD9RJH WW9DLM KD9ERS KD9ANU WF9E N9GUE KD9QQU K9TNT N9WX KD9SZZ K9CEW KD9RYH KD9SPJ WD9EB Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

1/23
W9JDP K9XJT W9WGN KD9PXZ WD9EB KD9NYE NA9LE K9TNT KD9JXR NP2WJ KD9STL N9SJZ KB9ATO NM0O N9NDF KD9RJH KD9IBC KC9WRK W9SEB KD9DBQ KC9YTT KD9SZZ KD9RYH N9GUE N0XOH KD9QQU Submitted by W8NWG 73

1/30
W9JDP K9TNT N9SJZ W9WGN KD9JXR W8NWG KD9PXZ K9RCS K9XJT KD9SZZ KD9IVV KD9NYE KD9ERS KD9STL KD9QQU KD9LSV KD9ANU W9SEB WW9DLM KT9TB W9FYR KB9TNZ N9GUE KB9ATO KD9MPI K9HJZ K9UQF WF9E N9NDF KD9SZZ K9CEW WD9EB KC9YTT KD9IBC Submitted by KD9DBQ 7

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February Club Events

February 3 – 7:00 pm: Board of Directors Meeting via Zoom.

February 10 – 7:00 p.m.:  Club Meeting – Learn how to use the EchoLink app that lets you use your phone or tablet to communicate – with Scott Tranchitella, K9XJT. Via Zoom. 

February 19 – Noon: License Testing, Morton Knights of Columbus Hall. Click here for details.

February 24 – Superfest Meeting via Zoom.

President’s Report

Hopefully this message finds you in good spirits and ready for the New Year. I know that the past several years have been tough on everyone, including the club. I truly hope that we can grow back to what we once were. I want to continue to grow this club. New Hams, Old Hams, Non-Hams…. WE WANT YOU!

This is a fun and exciting hobby. Not only is it fun and exciting, but it is also extremely useful. Just the other night I used my HT to contact another ham for police assistance. There was a semi who had jackknifed on the interstate right in front of me and several other vehicles. We all slammed on our brakes and luckily missed being involved. But, in the process, my phone slid down to where I could not reach it. My HT somehow had stayed on the seat. I was able to call out on the local repeater for emergency assistance. Luckily, I was in a high use area. The person on the other end of the repeater was a newer operator. Although he was new, he did an amazing job at helping to relay the information needed to 911. Never sell yourself and your experience level short.

As I said, we have a great hobby. Unfortunately, this hobby can be expensive, and Club Dues are due again. These dues help us as a club have several repeaters in the area (Approx. $3,200 a year with rent and internet). They help us to be able to have fun and interesting club meetings. Superfest is our big money maker yes, but we still need the help of members. Membership Dues can be made via PayPal on the Club Website www.w9uvi.org under the MEMBERSHIP tab or by check/cash. Dues for PAARC membership are payable anytime between January 1 and March 1 of a calendar year. Following March 1, members who have not renewed will be removed from the roster.

Any persons interested in joining PAARC may obtain a membership application form at a club meeting, by contacting the club secretary or by downloading the PDF form. This PDF form is a fillable form so you can fill it out, save it and email it to the club by sending it to w9uvi@arrl.net

MembershipRenewal:

VP Scott T. and I are working on a wonderful list of programs for this coming year. A few of these are Satellite and Digital Communications, POTA (hopefully an overnight camping trip), APRS and Winlink fun, high altitude balloon launch, FOX HUNT (and antenna making if needed).

One more thing; I am going to be reaching out to the surrounding clubs in the area to see about merging. If not merging, working together to have fun and interesting meetings for all members involved. The Bradley Ham Club has already reached out to me for doing Fox Hunts and Public Events!

As a reminder, Board and Club Meeting are open to ALL MEMBERS. If you have suggestions for club meetings and know of any public events that may need communications support, please contact either myself or the club. N9WX.ARES@gmail.com or W9UVI@arrl.net
We also have a Technician Class going on. See the website or contact Deb Suhs WD9EB@arrl.net for more information.

Happy New Year Everyone!

Justin Flick – N9WX
President PAARC

Peoria County ARES

Jan 5, ARES Net @ 8:00 PM CST on the 075 repeater
Jan 12, ARES Net @ 8:00 PM CST on the 075 repeater
Jan 19, ARES On-line Conference @ 7:00 PM CST (Watch your email for Zoom conference info)

Call or email Rich if you are not on the ARES Roster and desire to join the Zoom Conference. On-Line Conference Agenda includes: ARES LPOTA, Winter Training, Winlink News, Upcoming RATPAC Sessions, Help Wanted, Volunteer Opportunities, & more!

ARES website: http://www.peoriacountyares.org/

Rich Holtman, KD9ANU, Assistant Emergency Coordinator for Peoria County ARES
email: kd9anu@arrl.net
Winlink: kd9anu@winlink.org
Cell: 309-256-4272

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SuperFest

Our next meeting is Thursday January 27th at 7pm using the Zoom link on the Club Meetings page. September will be here before we know it and a lot of work is needed before then. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend the meeting and share your ideas for making Superfest better.

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December Net Logs

12/5
N9WX KC9TCM KD9SZZ W9JDP K9TNT W9WGN W9TTX W8NWG KD9JXR K9QJ KD9AER N9WFT K9RCS KB9TNZ KD9QQU KD9PXZ K9HJZ KB9SF KD9ERS WW9DLM K9XJT KD9IVV KB9ATO N9NDF KNGUE KD9RYH N0XOH KD9STL KC9YTT W9SEB Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

12/12
KD9HZZ W9WTF N9NDF W9JDP NM0O W8NWG KD9JXR W9WGN KD9PXZ W9SEB KD9AER KD9IVV W9TTX K9XJT N9GUE KB9TNZ KD9RYH N9SJZ K9HJZ K9TNT KD9STL WF9E KB9ATO KD9QQU WW9DLM KD9ANU K9FIT NA9LE KD9ERS N9WFT KD9NYE Submitted by KD9DBQ 73

12/19
KD9HZZ KD9SZZ K9RCS K9TNT N9JDP KD9JXR KD9PXZ KD9AER N9SJZ KD9IVV N9WFT KD9NYI W9WGN K8ROY N9NDF K9QZ KB9ATO W8NWG WF9E K9FIT KD9STL WW9DLM NA9LE KD9RYH KD9ANU KC9YTT Submitted by KD9DBQ 73 & Merry Christmas all!

12/26
KD9SZZ W9JDP KD9JXR N9GUE K9RCS W9SED W9WGN KD9NYE KD9PXZ KD9AER KD9IVV N9WFT K9TNT KD9STL KD9ANU KB9ATO KB9TNZ K9XJT WF9E KD9IBC N9NDF K9FIT KD9ERS KD9FEI KD9RYH KD9DBQ K9QZ Submitted by K9CEW

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January Club Events

January 6 – 7:00 pm: Board of Directors Meeting via Zoom.

January 13 – 7:00 p.m.:  Club Meeting – TBA

January 17, 2022 – 7:00 pm – Technician license classes begin on Zoom. Email w9uvi@arrl.net to register. More information

January 27 – 7:00 p.m. – Superfest Meeting via Zoom. Meeting link on the Club Meetings page

January 29-30 – Winter Field Day: Hopedale Community Center, 101 SE Main St. Hopedale, Illinois