Jan 08

New Hams for November & December 2012

Morse Code Straight Key by Anthony CatalanoCongratulations to the newest ham radio licensees in Hawaii!

November 2012:

  • WH6EBL — Dawn C. Wilson (Hilo)
  • WH6EBM — Glen E. Morrison (Keauhou)
  • WH6EBN — Charles A. Robbins (Kailua Kona)
  • WH6EBO (now KH6KAI) — Kaimana J. Pine (Waianae)
  • WH6EBP — Kerry B. Glass (Pepeekeo)
  • WH6EBQ — Donald P. Michael (Papaikou)
  • WH6EBR — Richard C. Johnson (Papaikou)
  • WH6EBS — Thomas T. English (Volcano)
  • WH6EBT — Gregory D. Gilmore (Honolulu)

December 2012:

  • WH6EBU — Sara M. Dysinger (Kapaa)
  • WH6EBV — Tim A. Dysinger (Kapaa)
  • WH6EBW — Georgeanne P. Friend (Lihue)
  • WH6EBX — Roger W. Hall (Kalaheo)
  • WH6EBY — Marcus J. Yamaguchi (Lihue)
  • WH6EBZ — Claudio Marega (Honolulu)
  • WH6ECA — Michael A. Keller (Lahaina)
  • WH6ECB — Kelly N. Keller (Lahaina)
  • WH6ECC — Dylan J. Buck (Honolulu)
  • WH6ECD — Glorry A. Miura (Haleiwa)
  • WH6ECE — William D. Beadle (Honolulu)
  • WH6ECF — Derrick Makekau (Kihei)
  • WH6ECG — Evan H. Esaki (Kaneohe)
  • WH6ECH — Toni M. Beck (Ocean View)

Based on sequential call sign assignment by the FCC as listed in the FCC ULS.

Nov 29

SKYWARN Recognition Day is Dec. 1

SKYWARN is a volunteer program of nearly 290,000 severe weather spotters across the country, coordinated by the National Weather Service. It’s been around since the 1970s, but for the past 14 years, the NWS and the Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL) has celebrated this community with SKYWARN Recognition Day.

This year, SKYWARN Recognition Day is Dec. 1 (or, in Hawaii, 2:00 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 30 through 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 1, 2012). The Honolulu NWS office will host the local program, and NWS stations and volunteer operators will be making SKYWARN contacts.

Several frequencies and regular nets will be involved.

“In Hawaii, we will use the Allstar linked repeaters on 444.350 at Diamond Head, which will be linked to 444.325, 146.980 and the 146.76 repeaters on Oahu,” writes EARC Hawaii President Wayne Greenleaf (KH6MEI). “At 7:30pm on Nov. 30 the Honolulu Weather service SKYWARN HAM operator will make a call out on 146.880 on the EARC net for Information needed: call sign, location, SkyWarn spotter # (if you have one) and a one or two word description of the weather occurring at your site (‘sunny,’ ‘partly cloudy,’ ‘windy’).”

Additional details can be found at Ron Hashiro’s Amateur Radio Web Pages.

Over 70 NWS offices are registered for the 24 hour event. Last year, 16,325 contacts were made across all 50 states.

Links:

Nov 24

New Hams for September & October 2012

Morse Code Straight Key by Anthony CatalanoCongratulations to the newest ham radio licensees in Hawaii!

September 2012:

  • WH6EAR — Curtis D. Zimmerman (Honolulu)
  • WH6EAS — Kent J. Davis (Kapaa)
  • WH6EAT — Michal F. Stover (Kilauea)
  • WH6EAU — Peter H. Matsunaga (Aiea)
  • WH6EAV — Marvin T. Miura (Kula)
  • WH6EAW — Jason M. Kobayashi (Kaneohe)

October 2012:

  • WH6EAX — Marco Maria Cattaneo (Honolulu)
  • WH6EAY (now KH6OK) — Davide Crudo (Honolulu)
  • WH6EAZ — Rhonda J. Stone (Hilo)
  • WH6EBA — Andre R. Robert (Pahoa)
  • WH6EBB — Rebecca Hanna (Pahoa)
  • WH6EBC — Toni Freeland-Robert (Pahoa)
  • WH6EBD — Jacob P. Ellis (Hilo)
  • WH6EBE — Robert Garry (Hilo)
  • WH6EBF — Johnathan M. Koshi (Pahoa)
  • WH6EBG — Ronnie Stone (Hilo)
  • WH6EBH — Joshua Rellesiva (Honolulu)
  • WH6EBI — Travis D. Taylor (Haiku)
  • WH6EBJ — Ronald J. Gionson (Ewa Beach)
  • WH6EBK — Matthew R. Demens (Waialua)

Based on sequential call sign assignment by the FCC as listed in the FCC ULS.

Nov 24

ARRL Pacific Section Report for October 2012

Bob-Schneider (AH6J) | Photo Courtesy ARRLThe following is the ARRL Pacific Section Manager report for October and early November 2012 by Bob Schneider (AH6J).

First we are sad to report the passing of Lori Sanae Kobayashi Ty (WH7JF), the wife of Eric Ty (KH6RT), on Oct. 22. The service was at Hosoi Garden Mortuary. Thanks Warren Munro (KH6WM) for the notice.

We are still studying the aftermath of the tsunami warning Saturday Oct. 27. The earthquake was in British Colombia, Canada. This means the travel time was much less then for the Japan earthquake. It appears that there were several problems not the least of which is that it happened on Saturday when most state and county offices were closed. Why can’t Mother Nature play by the rules and only have problems during the normal work week?

There were also a couple physical problems such as sirens that didn’t work. Propagation on 40 meters was poor so the HF effort moved to 75 meters. The link on the 147.04 MHz, Mauna Loa RACES machine, didn’t work so Paul Agamata (WH6FM) reprogrammed the 146.82 MHz machine, on Mauna Loa, and used the internet to connect into Honolulu. All in all it showed why Amateur Radio is so valuable because of its ability to be flexible when problems happen. It also shows why training is so valuable. Your SM was out of position when first notified so
Harvey Motomura (AH6JA) went to Hawaii county CD.

The Honolulu effort was very extensive. To see the details go to either Ron Hashiro’s webpage or read the story he sent to ARRL in the ARRL webpages.

Your SM went to the National Convention in Santa Clara on Oct. 12 to 14. Thank you for being part of the 159,000+ ARRL members and supporting this important event. The ARRL has announced plans to hold its National Centennial Convention in Hartford, Connecticut on July 17-20, 2014. The Convention will mark 100 years of the ARRL’s founding in Hartford. ARRL President Kay Craigie (N3KN) has also announced a theme for ARRL’s Centennial year: “Advancing the Art and Science of Radio — since 1914.”

On Saturday Oct. 27 the Big Island Hamfest was held in Keaau. It was very successful. BIARC was the lead club this year. In the past the event was held in Waimea but this year we were at the Keaau Community Center. Next year the lead club will be Kona Amateur Radio Society. They have not announced the venue or date for next year’s event yet however it usually is later in October.

It’s Election time for Officers of the various clubs. It is also time to pay next year’s dues.

The Kauai ARC announced that President will again be Randy Blake (WH7ZI), VP is John Montalbano, (KH6JMM), Secretary is Richard Olsen (KH6DO) and Treasurer is Robert Anderson (KH6AS).

Big Island ARC elected President Barbara Darling (NH7FY), Vice President Doug Wilson (KH7DQ), Secretary Leigh Critchlow (WH6DZX) and Treasurer Milt Nodacker (AH6I).

EARC in Honolulu announced President Wayne Greenleaf (KH6MEI), Vice President Chris Colquhoun (NH7QH), Secretary Gloria Hall (KH6GLO), and Treasurer Steve Hall (NH7ZD).

KARC (Koolau) officers for 2012-2013 are President Kimo Chun (KH7U), Vice President Kevin Bogan (AH6QO), Treasurer Al Kaopuiki (AH6PT), and Secretary Mike Tuggle (WY3B).

MARC (Maui) officers for next year are President Diane Bryant (KH6PO), Vice President Joe Bommarito (AH6RQ), Secretary Kent Carlson (KH6CJJ) and Treasurer Steve Tenney (KH7SWT).

KARC (Kauai) will be supporting the “Turkey Trot” on Friday Nov. 23 and license exams on Nov. 24.

A number of members with an interest in the EMCOM network have asked how to get the instant messaging notifying of hurricanes, earthquakes, and/or tsunamis. These SMS and e-mail notifications are the first alert for emergency responders and are used by our Emergency Coordinators, Civil Defense, the ARES network, and most first responders.

Here are the links to access the services:

Thanks to Elaine Albertson (AH6TA) for the Kauai information and links for EMCOM.

Just a reminder the Maui RACES repeater on 147.02+ MHz now requires a sub-audible tone of 103.5 Hz for access. This was effective March 13.

Please check the December issue of QST for an interview with Laura Smith at the FCC regarding the status of Amateur Radio enforcement today on pages 59 and 60. As you know, QST is now available on line for members. To make it even better they have an app available so that members with Apple iOS mobile devices which are iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch can now download it. This free app is available to ARRL members in the Apple App Store. This is only available to ARRL members that have registered. Further instructions are in the news article.

At this time the app is only available for Apple iOS devices. It may be available using the web browser for other devices. This is a vast improvement from when before it could take over one month for QST to arrive by mail.

Now that QST is online for members, the problem of timely access to current information in QST has gone away. The best deal (especially for a younger person) is the lifetime membership. Your SM is a life member and it is one of the best investments he made. The annual dues of $39 a year may seem a little steep but it is not just for the magazine. There is a very long list of benefits beside QST.

One of the most valuable (and expensive) is the advocacy and information available in CC&R cases. Over restrictive CC&R’s are by far the most serious threat to Amateur Radio survival. Your ARRL membership helps ARRL get reasonable laws considered with a legal staff. The ARRL has already submitted a detailed and lengthy response to the FCC in answer to the congressional mandate that the FCC study things that inhibit emergency communications. The ARRL continues to be a watchdog for detrimental legislation in all 50 states. With this in mind the $39 a year membership fee is dirt cheap for the benefits received. It could also mean the survival of Amateur Radio as we know it. Please join today.

As of now there are only 159,010 members of ARRL. There are 705,512 Hams in the USA. That means only 22.5% of hams are ARRL members. With more members we could do so much more. ARRL is a 501(c)3 organization.

Below are a few websites for clubs in the Pacific Section of ARRL:

73,

Bob Schneider (AH6J)
ARRL Pacific Section Manager
ARRL – The National Association for Amateur Radio
ah6j@arrl.org

Sep 14

ARRL Simulated Emergency Test Coming Oct. 6

Simulated Emergency Test by Rob Strieby (W0FT)From Kevin Bogan (AH6QO), ARRL Section Emergency Coordinator for the Pacific region, comes news that the annual ARRL Simulated Emergency Test (SET) for 2012 in Hawaii is scheduled for Saturday, October 6, from 9:00 am to 12 noon. For more information, read the ARRL news article, “Get Set for the 2012 Simulated Emergency Test.”

Amateur radio operators in Hawaii are encouraged to check-in and participate. According to Bogan, this year’s scenario is again based on a destructive tsunami. Stations are encouraged to exchange tactical and formal ICS-213 messages.

Plan on having numerous local nets in addition to checking in to the Statewide and County RACES nets.  Local nets are encouraged and liaison stations form these nets are encouraged to exchange messages with the State and County nets.

See Ron Hashiro’s page for more information and details on the Hawaii operations, as it will be updated in the near future. Bogan says the group is still finalizing details, including the event timeline. If you have any questions, please talk with your local EC or DEC.

Sep 09

ARRL Pacific Section Report for September 2012

Bob-Schneider (AH6J) | Photo Courtesy ARRLThe following is the ARRL Pacific Section Manager report for September 2012 by Bob Schneider (AH6J).

Sam Bohol (KH6BTV) passed away at Kaiser Medical Center August 17, 2012 at age 78 from a stroke. The obituary is in Thursday Sept. 6 Star-Advertiser. Visitation is Monday September 10 at 5PM with services at 6PM at Moanalua Mortuary. He is survived by wife Beverly Braun (KH6IPQ); sons Samuel and James; sisters Connie Holladay, Frances Bantalan, Rosie Awana and Priscilla Bernald; and a grandchild. Sam was born in Honolulu and worked as a communications technician. He was a lifetime regular on the ham bands and on many local nets such as the Ohana Net and the Aloha Net (and its predecessor the Friendly Net).

We hope everyone enjoyed the Hawaii QSO Party. Results are out. We did very well. Even your SM managed to get W1AW. See the WH6CZB/KH6CE EARC Website for more details.

Friday Sept. 7 is the Big Island ARC lunch at Pizza hut Puainako at 11:30 AM.

Saturday Sept. 8 at 7:30 AM the Kauai ARC has breakfast at the Feral Pig (formerly The Tiki Room and Main Street Diner) located in Harbor Mall at Nawiliwili. Remember to get your parking ticket validated.

Saturday Sept. 8 at 9:30 AM the Koolau ARC meets at Ho’omaluhia Park in Kaneohe on Oahu.

Saturday Sept. 8 at 1:00 PM the BIARC board meets followed at 2PM by the regular meeting at the Keaau community center on Hawaii.

Sunday Sept. 9 morning there is the EARC/ARRL Swap Meet and Hamfest at the Fleet Reserve Assn, Branch 46 located at 891 Valkenburgh St. in Honolulu. Sellers may start at 7:00 AM with doors open to buyers at 8:00 AM. Closing is scheduled at 1:00 PM. (Be aware these things tend to close early so don’t wait for the last minute.) You can also enjoy the FRA’s great breakfast menu in the morning from 8 am to 12 pm; parking is free with additional parking across the street in the field next to the fire station. They will open at 7 AM for sellers to set up. Tables are first come first serve, no reservations will be taken and we are asking for a donation to help cover the cost of renting the Hall. Entrance is free. Contact Chris (NH7QH) for more info and details nh7qh@earchi.org See you there! This is an approved ARRL Hamfest so help support emergency communications and the ARRL.

Sunday Sept. 9 at 2:00 PM the Kohala-Hamakua ARC meets at Hisaoka Gym Conference Room in Kapa’au, Hawaii. Enter in the rear of the Gym Building in King Kam Park.

Monday Sept. 10 is the Kauai ARC Monthly Meeting at 7:00 PM. It is at KIUC Conference Room, 4463 Pahe’e Drive in Lihu’e, Kauai. This is because the first Monday was a holiday. There will be a report and photos about the antenna party at the Crater Hill repeater. There will be a discussion about making allocations for club equipment repair and upgrade. KARC receives a $111.00 cash donation from Kaua’i Marathon group. Michelle (WH7XA), Randy (WH7ZI), Richard (WH6DTV), and Elaine (AH6TA) got up really early on Sunday September 2nd to provide runner monitoring and course control at the half/full split at the Kaua’i Marathon. It’s figured on how many people times the number of hours spent. These are the same four persons whom have done this Marathon gig for the past four years, except that in previous years it was for the Red Cross. The Marathon management could not get Red Cross to return their calls, and so offered the chance for service to the same four folks, but under the aegis of the KARC. We’re grateful for that.

Of course, Sam’s funeral is also Monday Sept. 10 at 5PM. See the SK notice at the beginning.

Saturday Sept. 15 the Kauai ARC will have a one day License Study session from 8:00 AM to 2:45 PM followed by FCC License Exams at 3:00 PM. Exams are given every three months. The location for the session is the KIUC Conference Room at 4463 Pahee Street in Lihue, Kauai. Study material for Technician and General amateur class licenses cost is $9.00 each (please call for specific information on Extra Class materials). The FCC License Exams will be administered under the auspices of W5YI-VEC. If you have already studied, and only want to take the exam, please show up before 3:00 PM. The License Exam is open to ALL wishing to take an exam for Technician Class, General Class or Extra Class License. The License Exam will start at 3:30 PM, please show up before 3:00 PM. You MUST bring two forms of ID; one MUST be a photo ID. We prefer two photo IDs. For upgrades, you MUST also bring a copy of your current Amateur license (which we keep). The test fee is $14.00, set by FCC. (Cell phone number on test day is 808-652-0258, for proctor Elaine Albertson AH6TA). Please print and mail the completed sign-up form. Reserve your seat by noon on Friday, September 14, 2012. Please NO walk-ins. Any questions, please call John (KH6JMM) at 808-431-4821 or if no answer 570-470-0503 (cell).

On Tuesday Sept. 18 and Wednesday Sept. 19 KARC will support the school science show. This is much as it has done in years past. They had provided a VHF rig under the tents so students could see hear and touch the equipment and talk to club members. Please contact Elaine (AH6TA) if you can help. The show begins at 0800 on both days and will run to 1230 on the 18th, and perhaps shut down a little earlier on the 19th. A group of around 2,000 students is anticipated.

Sunday Sept. 16 the Kona ARS will meet from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM at the south end of Wawaloli Beach Park in the NELHA complex just south of the Kona Airport. The food theme is Mediterranean food. Last month David Dickinson (VE7SST) and family were their special visitors.

The ARRL national convention, Pacificon 2012, will be held October 12 to 14 at the Santa Clara Marriott. Your SM is planning on attending.

Saturday and Sunday Oct. 20 & 21 is the BSA 55th Jamboree on the air or JOTA for 2012.

The Big Island “International” Hamfest is set for Saturday, October 27, 2012. It will be at the Keaau Community Center instead of Waimea this year. The center is already reserved. There are two large rooms and a lanai area. Rent for the hall is $100 with a $200 deposit so donations are greatly appreciated. We expect to have VE testing in the afternoon and perhaps a couple special speakers. As in the past, entrance is free with a mandatory sign in sheet. There will be a donation jar to cover expenses and we expect to have a few door prizes and some refreshments. For more details contact Bob Schneider (AH6J) at 808-966-8146 or co-chair Doug Wilson (WH6DTD) at 808-985-7540.

Just a reminder the Maui RACES repeater on 147.02+ MHz now requires a sub-audible tone of 103.5 Hz for access. This was effective March 13. Check your operating manual for the correct procedure for your radio.

The DXCC Desk approved the 1998 XU1A DXpedition to Cambodia for DXCC credit.

QSTNow that QST is online for members, the problem of timely access to current information in QST has gone away. The best deal (especially for a younger person) is the lifetime membership. Your SM is a life member and it is one of the best investments he made. The annual dues of $39 a year may seem a little steep but it is not just for the magazine. There is a very long list of benefits beside QST.

One of the most valuable (and expensive) is the advocacy and information available in CC&R cases. Over restrictive CC&R’s are by far the most serious threat to Amateur Radio survival. Your ARRL membership helps ARRL get reasonable laws considered with a legal staff. The ARRL has already submitted a detailed and lengthy response to the FCC in answer to the congressional mandate that the FCC study things that inhibit emergency communications. The ARRL continues to be a watchdog for detrimental legislation in all 50 states. With this in mind the $39 a year membership fee is dirt cheap for the benefits received. It could also mean the survival of Amateur Radio as we know it. Please join today.

As of now there are only 159,010 members of ARRL. There are 705,512 Hams in the USA. That means only 22.5% of hams are ARRL members. This is disgraceful.

Here are a few websites for clubs in the Pacific Section of ARRL:

73,

Bob Schneider (AH6J)
ARRL Pacific Section Manager
ARRL – The National Association for Amateur Radio
ah6j@arrl.org

Sep 07

New Hawaii Hams for August 2012

Morse Code Straight Key by Anthony CatalanoCongratulations to the newest hams in Hawaii!

  • WH6EAI — Richard B. Culp (Ewa Beach)
  • WH6EAJ — Kevin Beck (Kula)
  • WH6EAK — Daniel F. Regan (Lahaina)
  • WH6EAL — Forrest Murdoch (Makawao)
  • WH6EAM — Mark B. Macanas (Makawao)
  • WH6EAN — Robert E. Hughes (Honolulu)
  • WH6EAO — Odell Chinen (Aiea)
  • WH6EAP — Jonathan M. Davison (Honolulu)
  • WH6EAQ — Carolyn L. Levy (Honolulu)

Based on sequential call sign assignment by the FCC as listed in the FCC ULS.

Aug 29

Code Keyers Featured at KARC Meeting

Morse Key 10RT without cover from gynti_46 on FlickrThe next monthly meeting of the Koolau Amateur Radio Club (KARC) will feature a “Show and Tell” for keys and keyers.

“Bring your keys, keyers, paddles, bugs, cooties, Vibroplexes and related items; old ones, new ones, tiny ones, huge ones; commercially made or home made,” writes KARC President Kimo Chun (KH7U). “Give us a short demo or tell us a story about why you like your particular key.”

There will be a space set up for people to connect their keys and demonstrate their proficiency, including a laptop with a CW decoder so people (including non-CW hams) can see what’s being sent. The key demonstrations will follow the club’s regular monthly meeting.

“It’s all for fun, so bring the oldies and favorite code senders,” Chun writes. “All radio amateurs and interested public are welcome.”

The event will take place on Saturday, Sept. 8 at the Hoomaluhia Botanical Gardens, beginning at 9:30 a.m. For more information, visit the KARC website.

Photo by gynti_46/Flickr.

Aug 07

New Hawaii Hams for July 2012

Congratulations to the newest hams in Hawaii!

  • WH6DZW — Sherilyn Siegel (Volcano)
  • WH6DZX — Leigh E. Critchlow (Mountain View)
  • WH6DZY — William C. Ahl (Pahoa)
  • WH6DZZ — Daniel P. Wela (Hilo)
  • WH6EAA — Jack V. Ehle Jr. (Waikoloa)
  • WH6EAC — Eric D. Edwards (Kealakekua)
  • WH6EAD — David A. Norcross (Kailua)
  • WH6EAE — Grant I. Hofmann (Honolulu)
  • WH6EAF — Shawn A. Stutterheim (Kaneohe)
  • WH6EAG — David P. Montague (Waianae)
  • WH6EAH — Daegyu Ryu (Honolulu)

Based on sequential call sign assignment by the FCC as listed in the FCC ULS.

Jul 06

EARC Field Day Review

Wayne Greenleaf (KH6MEI)EARC Hawaii President Wayne Greenleaf (KH6MEI) posted the following to the WH6CZB mailing list:

Aloha Members,

Field Day 2012 was an outstanding success! Thanks to many of you who made it possible to put on this event, from the 25 plus members who showed up Friday afternoon at 4 pm to help set up to the 75 plus members and hams who just came down to support us throughout the day Saturday, to the spouses who put up with us and ran around getting things for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Let us not forget the support of the University of Hawaii, Dave (WH6DSL) and Jimmy (WH7MW) for their support and assistance to make this the best in town field day in a while.

The two HF antennas provided by Fred (KH6ZX) and Randy (KH6IB) worked perfectly. Contacts were made into Europe and across the US and Canada during Field day. The site turned out to be a good HF spot. We’d like to say thank you to Eric (KH6RT) for the Icom 756 hf radio and ICOM America for the use of the ICOM 9100 hf radio for field day. Stacy (KH6OWL) brought out his Satellite antenna and radio making two satellite contacts and the guys who brought out the MESH network setup that was very interesting.

Congratulations to everyone who tested at field day and passed their tech exam or upgraded, Great Job!

Again, Thank you all of you for supporting the club and this event, I am always humbled by all of you.

Mahalo,

Wayne

Check out a video of EARC Hawaii Field Day 2012!