PARA Meeting Minutes 1/8/2018

The regularly scheduled meeting of the Paducah Amateur Radio Association was held  Monday, January 8, 2018 at the WKCTC Emerging Technology Center, Room 140, in Paducah, KY.  There were 20 present, including 2 visitors.  The meeting was opened by Club President, Jeff  Wielgos (KB9BVL).  Jeff invited each attendee around the room to introduce themselves with their name and call.

Items Discussed and Passed

The business portion of the meeting was as follows:

• The  Secretary’s report was given by Ron Cowherd  (K4GYD) followed by the Treasurer’s report by Bruce Huyck (KS4V).
•  Secretary Cowherd told of an article requested by Steve Morgan (W4NHO), KY State Section Manager, regarding PARA being selected for ARRL Kentucky Section Club of the Month.  The article appears on the PARA web site:  December Happenings 2017.  The article, as it appeared on the ARRL Kentucky News page can be seen at:  www.arrl.org/sections/view/kentucky   Be sure to scroll to very, very bottom of page and click on NOV 2017 SECTION NEWS.
• It was suggested that we update the “Show Us Your Shack” page on the W4NJA web site.  Let’s build another page from scratch.  Send your old and new shack and antenna pictures, to roncowherd@aol.com.
• Ed Pflueger (AB4IQ) and President Jeff gave us  facts about the Bouvet 3Y0Z DXpedition which is expected to begin in late January.  This location ranks number 2 worldwide on the DXCC Most Wanted List.  Check QST 2018 issue, page 92 for four other January Expeditions.
• Mike Newman (WD4EFZ) gave us an update on his new antenna installation which sports a 3 band yogi (80 – 30 & 40 mtrs.)  Mike said it was huge, weighing in at almost 500 lbs.  He told us of the extra strong components that were necessary to support the size and weight of the beam, boom and and elements.
• President Wielgos commented on the ARRL Grid Contest and described a web application that will read an ADIF file and map the contacts on a Google map.  The app can be activated by clicking on www.www.levinecentral.com
• Upcoming ham fests
• Silent Keys:  Gerald Wyatt (K4UNW) Homer Gerald Wyatt, 77, of Paducah died at 9:37 a.m. Wednesday, December 20, 2017, at Lourdes hospital. Clyde Elrod (W4XCE Clyde Elrod, 93, of Kevil passed away on Thursday, December 21, 2017 at Life Care Center in LaCenter.
• The election of officers for 2018 was brought up by President Wielgos.  It was suggested that all the present club officers be nominated.  The present officers were polled and found to be agreeable.  A motion was made, seconded and voted upon.  Jeff Wielgos, pres.; Ken Wontor, v.pres.;  Ron Cowherd, Sec. and Bruce Huyck, treas. were elected for the 2018.

Net Control Operators for Late January/Early February

January 14          Dave W4WKN     12 check ins

January 21           Jay KD9HRH        13 check ins

January 28           Frank KY4LDS    11 check ins

February 4          Logan KG4VKB      5 check ins

February 11        Jeff KB9BVL          12 check ins

ARRL International Grid Contest

(Leaderboard Results shows Ky position and Total Grid count as of  2/12/2018)                                                                    

1.  N4QS Dave Perry, 1477 grids;  10. KO4XJ John Hudson, 483 grids;  11. K4GYD Ron Cowherd, 478 grids;  17. KS4V Bruce Huyck, 393 grids;  18. W4WWS  Steve Parmley, 367 grids;  20. AI4EY Fred Carter, 349 grids.

6 PARA club members make up 30% of top 20 KY entries.

Remember:

• PARA meets at Emerging Technology Center, WKCTC on 2nd Monday, 7 pm of each month except December.
• New License and upgrades are offered on meeting nights throughout the year.  See W4NJA web site at w4nja.org.  For info click at the top of the page on About Us, then VE License Testing.
• The Sunday Night Net meets each Sunday night at 9 PM. All amateur radio operators are invited to check in. 147.060 PL 179.9
•  DX Engineering Skype presentation scheduled for March 12th meeting.

The annual PARA Christmas Dinner was celebrated Monday, December 11, 2017 at Casa Mexicana Restaurant on Village Square Drive in Paducah.  The special occasion has traditionally convened in lieu of a formal December club meeting.  Snapshots of the approximately 26 members and guests in attendance enjoying excellent food and spirited conversation are shown below:  (click on image for slide show)

 

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W4NJA Selected for ARRL Kentucky Section “December Club of the Month”

In late October, Steve Morgan, ARRL Kentucky section manager, informed us that PARA had been selected “December Club of the Month.”  Steve asked us to submit an article that including text and pictures that best represented what our club is about.  The following is the article submitted to Steve, prepared by Ron Cowherd.

All About PARA (W4NJA )

The Paducah Amateur Radio Association (PARA) Paducah, Kentucky, received the ARRL Charter of Affiliation on July 10, 1953, with the call of W4NJA. The club currently meets at 7 PM on the second Monday of each month in the Emerging Technology Center Building of the West Kentucky Community and Technical College. All amateur radio operators and their guests, along with anyone interested in finding out about the exciting hobby of amateur radio are encouraged to attend.

PARA is very active, providing opportunities for club members to learn about the many facets of amateur radio. We feel that we have something to offer each and every one. Club activities include:

Meetings – Our monthly attendance averages 22. Meetings include a business segment followed by a variety of activities including discussions and live demonstrations. Recently we had a Skype conference with DX Engineering representative concerning emergency operations. We have DXCC and WAS card checking and VE testing available after each monthly meeting. 23 new licenses or upgrades were produced in 2016.

Community & Emergency Services – Our club maintains a close relationship with the Paducah/McCracken County Office of Emergency Management. PARA Members supplied 2009 Ice Storm emergency communications during several days of total electric blackout in Western Kentucky.

 

Member Communications – We sponsor and maintain the W4NJA FM repeater system at 147.060 mhz with a tone of 179.9 hz. W4NJA may be found on Echolink, node: 458276. Our Monthly online web newsletter, W4NJA.org includes past meeting minutes, discussion topics, and a calendar of club activities. PARA also sponsors a DX Cluster utilizing VE7CC software. The Cluster Address is: 207.162.164.91, Port: 7373. We advertise our local repeater with two signs on Interstate highway I-24 into Paducah. The Emergency Practice Net meets each Sunday night at 9 PM.  All amateur radio operators are invited to check in. Call W4NJA two meter repeater, 147.060 MHZ. PL 179.9.

Contesting – (local, national and world wide,): PARA sponsors a DX contest for its own members. Several members have participated in WW DXpeditions in six countries. We activated a “Trail of Tears” location for National Parks On The Air.  Our 2017 Field Day results earned W4NJA the top 3A score in KY; had the top score in KY out of 38 entries;was 18th out of 322 3A stations nationwide; was 77th out of all 2,965 stations nationwide. This is quite an accomplishment earned by our 16 operators participating.

Social – Each year the PARA Club December meeting is replaced by the Christmas Party at a local restaurant. Spouses and guests are welcome. In addition, there are two 11:00 a.m. lunch groups that meet each week. Thursdays at Michael’s, 9th and KY Avenue and Lone Oak Road Back Yard Burgers just south of I-24. When visiting in Paducah or passing through you are welcome to come to our club meeting or join us at lunch.

PARA 2016/2017 Meeting and Net Statistics

PARA 2016:17 Stats

Stats ‹ Paducah Amateur Radio Association — WordPress.com

PARA Meeting Minutes 11/13/2017

The regularly scheduled meeting of the Paducah Amateur Radio Association was held  Monday, November 13, 2017 at the WKCTC Emerging Technology Center, Room 140, in Paducah, KY.  There were 18 present.  Two came for FCC license testing.  See names and pictures below.

The meeting was opened by Club President, Jeff  Wielgos (KB9BVL).  Jeff invited each attendee around the room to introduce themselves with their name and call.

Items Discussed and Passed

The business portion of the meeting was as follows:

• The Treasurer’s report was given by Bruce Huyck (KS4V) followed by the Secretary’s report given by Ron Cowherd (K4GYD).  Both reports were approved by unanimous vote.
• Paul Smith (ND4X) gave us the good news about PARA’s Field Day results.  The data is as follows:  (1)  W4NJA had the top 3A score in KY.  (2) had the top score in KY out of 38 entries. (3)  was 18th out of 322 3A stations nationwide.  (4) was 77th out of all 2,965 station nationwide.  This is quite an accomplishment earned by our 16 operators participating.  This year’s success will be a huge goal to surpass next year.
• The December PARA Club meeting will be replaced by the Christmas Party at Casa Mexicana, Monday, December 12th, 6:00 pm.  The restaurant is located at 4793 Village Square Drive directly behind Walmart in the Strawberry Hill area.  Spouses are welcome.  No reservations needed.
• Jeff reminded us about the club DX contest which closes at the end of 2017.
• Jerry Oliver (KJ4EU) reported a new amateur radio satellite repeater will be launched Tuesday, November 14th.  Jerry was encouraged to give us a presentation of his satellite operations sometime in the future.
• Some of us are having trouble logging onto the W4NJA EchoLink.  Logan suggested that we should select “relay proxy.”
• Paul (ND4X) reported that he  worked the KY QSO Party the past weekend and worked 116 stations on 40 meters SSB only with a duration of a little bit less than than three hours in the chair.
• Jeff showed a YouTube video of FT8 with discussion following.  About half of the members present have been participating using this new mode.  Bruce made additional comments about the latest version of this popular software.

Net Control Operators for Late November/December/Early January

November 19          Jay KD9HRH          9 check-ins

November 26          Frank KY4LDS       8 check-ins

December 3             Jeff KB9BVL           8 check-ins

December 10           Ken KW4DI          11 check-ins

December 17           Steve NW9W         6 check-ins

December 24           Christmas Eve–no net

December 31           New Year’s Eve–no net

January 7                  Logan KG4VKB    10 PARA – 10 ARES

Jerry Oliver has received a very nice 10 Meter Contest Certificate.  He received a score of 1,900 points to earn first place in KY section.  Congratulations Jerry.

New License and Upgrade Success

We are happy to report that Mark Thorn and Michael Hicks have earned their Technician licenses at the close of the November meeting.  Congratulations Mark and Michael, well done.

 

Remember:

• PARA meets at Emerging Technology Center, WKCTC on 2nd Monday, 7 pm of each month except December.
• New License and upgrades are offered on meeting nights throughout the year.  See W4NJA web site at w4nja.org.  For info click at the top of the page on About Us, then VE License Testing.
• The Sunday Night Net meets each Sunday night at 9 PM. All amateur radio operators are invited to check in. 147.060 PL 179.9
• The December PARA Club meeting will be replaced by the Christmas Party at Casa Mexicana, Monday, December 11th, 6:00 pm.  The restaurant is located at 4793 Village Square Drive directly behind Walmart in the Strawberry Hill area.  Spouses are welcome.  No reservations needed.

 

PARA Meeting Minutes 10/9/2017

The regularly scheduled meeting of the Paducah Amateur Radio Association was held  Monday, October 9, 2017 at the WKCTC Emerging Technology Center, Room 140, in Paducah, KY.  There were 16 present.  No one came for FCC license testing.

The meeting was opened by Club Vice President, Ken Wontor (KW4DI).  Ken invited each attendee around the room to introduce themselves with their name, call and report of ham activities during the past month.

Items Discussed and Passed

The business portion of the meeting was as follows:

• The Treasurer’s report was given by Bruce Huyck (KS4V) followed by the Secretary’s report given by Ron Cowherd (K4GYD).  Both reports were subsequently approved by unanimous vote.
• Ed (AB4IQ) reminded us that the PARA annual Christmas Party is planned for Monday, 6:00 pm, December 12th at Casa Mexicana restaurant located at 4793 Village Square Drive directly behind Walmart in the Strawberry Hill area.  This event will replace the December meeting and testing.  No reservations required.
• Ron Cowherd announced that Jeff Wielgos had gotten a request from Bryan Pickering to come to our November meeting to give a followup on the presentation that he had given at the January 2017 meeting.  The Powerpoint presentation was on the understanding, maintenance and operation of lead acid batteries.  Bryan works at a local Paducah retail battery establishment that specializes in battery and light bulb sales.
• Bruce announced that DX Engineering is scheduled for March 2018 meeting to give another Skype presentation to the club similar to the one given August 2017.  The subject will be on lightning and grounding techniques.

Net Control Operators for Late October/Early November

Presentation

Bruce (KS4V) reviewed Reverse Beacon.net/main.php, a free website of skimmer stations around the world in all modes and frequencies.  Bruce projected the web page and explained how to use the app’s features.

Ken (KW4DI) showed his magnetic loop antenna and MFJ QRP Loop Tuner.

Contest Success

Congratulations Paul Smith ND4X:

Reminders:

PARA meets at Emerging Technology Center, WKCTC on 2nd Monday, 7 pm of each month except December.

New License and upgrades are offered on meeting nights throughout the year.  See W4NJA web site at w4nja.org.  For info click at the top of the page on About Us, then VE License Testing.

The Sunday Night Net meets each Sunday night at 9 PM. All amateur radio operators are invited to check in. 147.060 PL 179.9

Christmas Party, Monday, 6:00 pm, December 12th at Casa Mexicana restaurant located at 4793 Village Square Drive directly behind Walmart in the Strawberry Hill area.  No reservations needed.

PARA Meeting Minutes 9/11/2017

The regularly scheduled meeting of the Paducah Amateur Radio Association was held  Monday, September 11, 2017 at the WKCTC Emerging Technology Center, Room 140, in Paducah, KY.  There were 21 present.  One came for FCC license testing.  See pic. below.

The meeting was opened by Club President, Jeff Wielgos (KB9BVL).  Jeff invited each attendee around the room to introduce themselves with their name and call.

Items Discussed and Passed

The business portion of the meeting was as follows:

• The Treasurer’s report was given by Bruce Huyck (KS4V) followed by the Secretary’s report given by Ron Cowherd (K4GYD).  Both reports were subsequently approved by unanimous vote.
• Treasurer Huyck asked for a motion to reimburse Rob Larrison $16.17 which was paid to Hover.com for the yearly W4NJA web domain.  The motion was made, seconded and passed.
• Jeff announced that Bryan Pickering had asked to come back to finish a presentation on batteries that he gave February 13, 2017.  His Power Point presentation covering all the parameters of understanding, maintenance and operation of lead acid batteries was most enlightening and well received.  Jeff will try to schedule him for the November meeting.
• Paul Smith (ND4X) gave a positive health and welfare report concerning John Hudson’s (KO4XJ) recent shoulder replacement surgery.  Several have chatted with John on 2 meters while he is recuperating.
• Mike Newman (WD4EFZ) commented on the need to inventory the Force beam antenna that is stored in his garage.  Mike also gave a progress report on the new tower and beam installation soon to be erected at his location.
• Bruce Huyck passed around a thank you letter from Baptist Hospital for the memorial donation made in the name of Jerry Foland who recently became a silent key.   Bruce also spoke of a new change in the FCC Form 605 (formally Form 610).  When renewing or upgrading our license, we will now be required to check a yes or no box to indicate if we have ever been convicted of a felony by any state or federal court.  A yes indication will not prevent you from getting your license but if you don’t answer truthfully, you may forfeit your license or lose your right to hold a license.  If you check yes or fail to answer any other questions, your application may go into a holding file until the information is given.

Presentation

Bruce Huyck gave a very well prepared “show and tell” session introducing the  SDRPlay pan-adaptor ($99) and associated free SDRUNO computer software.  Bruce showed sharp and clear Powerpoint screen shots of actual software pages to show the system’s amazing capabilities.  The pan-adaptor and software require a transceiver with a USB or RS232 IF output port.  Bruce followed up the demonstration by answering many questions from the club about the new technology.  Thanks Bruce.

Net Control Operators for Late September/Early October

PARA Meeting Minutes 8/14/2017

The regularly scheduled meeting of the Paducah Amateur Radio Association was held  Monday, August 14, 2017 at the WKCTC Emerging Technology Center, Room 140, in Paducah, KY.  There were 31 present.  No one came for FCC license testing.

The meeting was opened by Club President, Jeff Wielgos.  Jeff invited each attendee around the room to introduce themselves with their name and call.  The usual order of business was altered this night due to a special Skype presentation presented by DX Engineering.

Skype Presentation

Mark Ludwick (W8BBQ) from DX Engineering, Akron Ohio, gave an overview of emergency communications as it relates to Amateur Radio.  Mark’s comprehensive Powerpoint presentation was originally created for an amateur group that was just beginning to get prepared for emergency readiness.  At the close of the prepared comments Mark took questions from our members.  Our varied questions ranged from “how to recruit new, younger amateurs,” to “what is the differences between the MFJ magnetic loop antenna and the DX Engineering model and why were they so expensive?”  Overall, the program was quite informative and very well received by our PARA members.

Items Discussed and Passed

The business portion of the meeting held after the presentation is as follows:

• The Treasurer’s report was given by Bruce Huyck (KS4V) followed by the Secretary’s report given by Ron Cowherd (K4GYD).  Both reports were subsequently approved by unanimous vote.
• Dave Perry told of his positive experience with the new FT8 digital mode.  Several others also told of their experiences.
• Logan Blewett (KG4VKB) told us that the Will Ed Winfield estate still has not disposed of his electronic equipment.  If interested contact Logan:  <jloganblewett@gmail.com>
• Treasurer Huyck asked for a motion to reimburse Secretary Cowherd $30.00 which was paid to WordPress for No Adds.  This guarantees that no adds will appear on the W4NJA web site for one year.  The motion was made, seconded and passed.

Net Control Operators for Late August/Early September

• PARA meets at Emerging Technology Center, WKCTC on 2nd Monday, 7 pm of each month except December.
• New License and upgrades are offered at end of meetings throughout the year.  See W4NJA web site at w4nja.org.  For info click at the top of the page on About Us, then VE License Testing.
• The Sunday Night Net meets each Sunday night at 9 PM. All amateur radio operators are invited to check in. 147.060 mhz. PL tone 179.9

Respectfully submitted,

Ron Cowherd (Sec. PARA) roncowherd@aol.com

PARA Meeting Minutes 7/10/2017

The regularly scheduled meeting of the Paducah Amateur Radio Association was held  Monday, July 10, 2017 at the WKCTC Emerging Technology Center, Room 140, in Paducah, KY.  There were approximately 20 present.  One came for FCC amateur license upgrade.

The meeting was opened by Treasurer Bruce Huyck (KS4V) in absence of President Jeff Wielgos (KB9BVL).  Bruce invited each attendee around the room to introduce themselves with their name and call.  The Treasurer’s report was given by Bruce.  The April 2017 meeting minutes was read by Secretary Ron Cowherd (K4GYD).  Both treasurer and secretary reports were were approved by unanimous vote.

Items Discussed and Passed

• Bruce and Paul Smith (ND4X) analyzed and pointed out interesting aspects of the Field Day 2017 Summary spreadsheet showing PARA’s total QSOs by band, mode, operator and points.  Various strengths and weaknesses were revealed:  The overall total number of QSOs surpassed numbers from years past.  The high scores were attributed to very capable operators and the beautiful weather.  However, we need more operators to be available to sit-in for all stations and particularly CW ops for overnight.  Paul Smith pointed out that those who came early to set up antennas and stations were “beat” by the time the contest began.  The addition of the VHF station offered the opportunity to “know what to do” and “what not to do” in the years to follow.  One problem was that the N1MN logging program recognized the JT65 mode as a RTTY mode.
• Ed Pflueger made a motion (later passed) that monies given PARA in honor of Jerry Foland (WA4TTL) be donated on to the Ray & Kay Eckstein Regional Cancer Care Center in Paducah.  Jerry, 76, passed away Friday, June 30.  He served in the Navy aboard the U.S.S Enterprise.  After receiving an honorable discharge from the Navy, he was hired by the Westinghouse Nuclear Division.  After retirement from Westinghouse, he and his wife moved to Paducah in 2007.  Jerry, a long time amateur radio enthusiast, will be missed by his fellow  hams.  He was a wealth of knowledge and donated his expertise and energy often to the members of the local club.  His name and call will be listed as a Silent Key in QST magazine in a future issue.
• Ed Pflueger suggested that the Icom 7200, bought for an intended club station sometime ago, was never utilized.  It was discussed, motion made and passed that the radio and several beam antennas be inventoried, priced and offered for sale. It was also decided that the radio would be priced at $600 and offered first to club members first.  The items not sold will be put on the ham market.  Bruce will put out an email to club members with info concerning the items before advertising in QST.com.  Contact:  Bruce, ks4@comcast.net or Ed, ab4iq@comcast.net.
• Bruce reminded us about the August 14, PARA meeting:  DX Engineering Skype presentation.  The program will be just for our use with two-way Skype communication.
• Frank Baumer emphasized the importance of protection from an EMP attack by showing us a $2.50 mylar EMP proof bag designed to encase a spare rig “just in case.”

Net Control Operators for Late June/Early July

Sunday night nets are at 9:00 PM on 147.060 PL 179.9

July 16       Steve NW9W         8 check-ins

July 23        Ken KW4DI          11 check-ins

July  30        Frank KY4LDS    11 check-ins

August 6      Logan KG4VKB   15 PARA, 9 ARES

August 13     Jay KD9HRH        9 check-ins

New License and Upgrade Success

We are happy to report that Chuck Culver upgraded to Extra Class license at the close of the July meeting.  He passed both the Technician and General exam the month before.  Congratulations Chuck.  You have shown us how to “git’er done.”

PARA meets at Emerging Technology Center, WKCTC on 2nd Monday, 7 pm of each month except December.

New License and upgrades are offered on odd months throughout the year.  See W4NJA web site at w4nja.org.  For info click at the top of the page on About Us, then VE License Testing.

The Sunday Night Net meets each Sunday night at 9 PM. All amateur radio operators are invited to check in. 147.060 PL 179.9

Respectfully submitted,

Ron Cowherd (Sec. PARA) roncowherd@aol.com