BARK News
BARK Newsletter: September 2010 Vol. 38, No. 2
The September 2010 BARK newsletter has been posted.You can view previous BARK Newsletters at:
www.barkradio.org/News/newsletters.asp 9/14/2010
The BARK Net has moved to Sunday Night
An important notice to those members that have joined us on the Tuesday night NETS in the past - As of March 21, the BARK Nets have been moved to Sunday evenings at 1930 hours. It is our hope that this change will promote participation in the net. This net will be followed by the BARK Packet net which begins at 2000 hours. For information on using packet radio, the club's website offers some great information. Hopefully you will find yourself addicted to this very useful and interesting form of Ham communication. 3/9/2010From NPR: Ham Radio Growing In The Age Of Twitter
From NPR. Click to the site to hear the story.Only a few years ago, blogs listed ham radio alongside 35 mm film and VHS tape as technologies slated to disappear.
They were wrong.
Nearly 700,000 Americans have ham radio licenses - up 60 percent from 1981, a generation ago. And the number is growing.
Ham radio will never have the sex appeal of the iPhone, but it does have a certain nerd appeal, says Allen Weiner, an analyst at the technology research firm Gartner.
"If it creates its own experience, that's really what's key here," he says. "If it just emulates an experience that you can get online, it's not going to grow."
... Even the most die-hard hams concede that amateur radio will never be a mainstream hobby. With smart phones and other devices, people are more plugged in to the Internet than before. But people are still discovering the joy of communicating with a technology that's existed for nearly a century. 4/6/2010
North Hills Radio Club of Sacramento 35th Hamfest on May 23, 2010
North Hills Radio Club of Sacramento is having their 35th Hamfest on May 23, 7AM - Noon. ARRL Sanctioned event at Natomas High School- Truxel off I-80. K6IS talk-in 145.190 - PL 162.2.View the HamFest Flyer for more infomration. 4/15/2010
Did you miss the Sunday night BARK Net? You can hear it now!
A recording of the Sunday night net is available on the web site.Go to the, Nets menu, click the date of the net you missed. You will get a recap of the net and a link to listen to the net. 4/25/2010
FCC Examination Planned for May 1st
The Yolo County VE team is planning another FCC examination on the first weekend of July, that is July, 9th at 0730 hours through 12:00 noon. The test will be held at the 850 Pioneer Ave, Woodland, at the LDS Chapel. Thats at the intersection with Gum Ave.Pre-registration is preferred but walkins will be accepted.
Contact Ken Wilson - K6WLS - phone number (530) 305-4088 or email gramps55@gmail.com
Test fee this year is $15.00, checks are accepted written to the ARRL/VEC or cash.
This is an excellent opportunity to enter into the world of Amateur radio or to upgrade your current license.
See you there. 4/25/2010
Carl Valdrow, N6KMH (SK)
Carl Franklyn Valdrow, a Davis resident since 1972, died April 28, 2010. He was 76.Born on April 29, 1933, in Bondsville, Mass., he served in the Navy and worked as a police officer at UC Riverside and UC Davis.
He enjoyed his family, playing golf, fishing and amateur radio. He was active in the Kaiser Support Group and volunteered for First Tee and Davis Bike Club events. 5/9/2010
Virgil (Skip) Chapman, Jr., KI6VWI (SK)
Virgil (Skip) Chapman died March 18, 2010, at the age of 68, in Sacramento, CA. Skip managed numerous areas of the Sacramento Medical Center, the Davis School of Medicine, and the State Attorney General's Office. He was very active in the Coast Guard Auxiliary and served as the elected Commander of Flotilla 35 Sacramento.Skip recently became a member of the American Radio Relay League and was a member of the Berryessa Amateur Radio Club. Skip is survived by his beloved wife of 46 years, Anne, KI6VWH. 5/22/2010
AL7LS's Mobile Rig
Bruce, AL7LS, drove up to Jack's, K6JAC, house for Erika's, KI6PDZ , graduation party.His mobile set up covers VHF, UHF, HF, packet, and PSK31. 6/5/2010
We Need Your Input
It has been mentioned by some of the BARK members that the night of the NET should be changed from Tuesday to Sunday night - still held at the same time - 1930 hours. It would possibly have the effect of inviting more participation in both the net and net control.Another plus is that the net could have the effect of leading into the BARK packet net and could possibly stimulate more participation in that net.
Please let us know your thoughts on this proposed change. PLEASE Take our survey. 2/19/2010
Call Sign Change: KG6GNI is now K6BIL
BARK president, Bill Gustavson, has had his call sign changed from KG6GNI to K6BIL.If you hear K6BIL on the radio, give Bill a call! 8/15/2010
FCC Test
The FCC test held on Dec 10th at the LDS Chapel on 850 Pioneer Ave was a success. There were 6 applicants, two received their Technician License and two upgraded to General.Thanks to the time and effort of the following VE's we have been able to add many new operators to the Amateur Radio field.
Greg Kruckewitt
David Towle
Bill Ragsdale
Vas Voda (from Carmichael Elks group)
Bob Jordan
Dale Dennis
The tireless effort and willingness of these VE's to participate in these test sessions make them a success, improve and add to the base of operators in Amateur Radio. You are Greatly appreciated and can be proud of the service you are providing. Thank You. 12/16/2011
BARK Annual Membership Meeting and Elections PROXY
Barks annual membership meeting is 0930 hours, Saturday, October 2, 2010, and will be held at the offices of Luhdorff and Scalmanini Consulting Engineers, 500 First Street (corner of Lincoln and First), Woodland, CA. The agenda at the meeting will include:ˇ Introduction of new members
ˇ Acknowledgement of member contributions
ˇ Discussion of repeater equipment modifications and costs
ˇ Repeater operating difficulties
ˇ Committee chairperson reports
ˇ Operating revenues and expenses
ˇ Proposed operating budget for 2011.
ˇ Elections of club Directors
ˇ Appointments by the Directors of club officers
ˇ Membership vote on Director terms
ˇ Old business
ˇ New business
Elections of three Directors will occur at the meeting. Up for re-election are:
ˇ Bill Gustavson, K6BIL, Director
ˇ Erika Refsland, KI6PDZ, Assoc Dir
ˇ The position vacated by Gary Ford, N6GF
If you or any other BARK member would like to be a Director, please add your name to the ballot. Most of the current Directors have been serving multiple terms, so if you think new blood is needed and you want to volunteer to be a part of the club that sets the club agenda for the year, please throw your name into the hat.
If you do not plan on attending the meeting, it is imperative that you fill out the proxy form and make sure it is received by the club Secretary prior to the election. 9/18/2010
BARK Repeater NEWS- an Adjacent Tower Down
UPDATE: AC power has been restored and the repeater is operational! The tower adjacent to the BARK repeater town fell down Friday night in the high wind. it took out AC power and knocked the BARK repeater off the air..
Ken- K6WLS, Jack- K6JAC, Bob- KI6BZR, and Paul- KJ6GCP, went up to the site and got it running on battery power. There was a bit of damage to some contacts, but we were lucky! 10 feet to the left and the BARK tower could have gone down.
11/13/2010
FCC Examination Planned for July 9th.
Berryessa Amateur Radio "Klub" and Yolo County ARES will conduct an FCC examination at the LDS Chapel, 850 Pioneer Ave at the intersection with Gum Ave here in Woodland. The test date is July the 9th and the times are 0730am and close down at 1200 Noon. Registration is desired but walk-ins will be accepted.The test fee is $15.00 and can be paid with a check written to the ARRL/VEC or in cash at the site.
This is an excellent opportunity to get your license into the world of Amateur Radio or to upgrade to General or make it to the top - Amateur Extra.
See you there.
Ken - K6WLS 6/24/2011
Ham Get together
HAM RADIO FRIENDS GET-TOGETHERMembers and friends of BARK radio club are invited to our farm in Dunnigan for a get acquainted
potluck on Saturday July 16, 2011. Significant others and kids are welcome. Festivities begin at
4PM until whenever. There is plenty of room for campers if you want to stay overnight.
Bring your own drinks and we値l share the potluck. Please RSVP by email to dha@pulsarco.com, or
phone us at (530) 724-0494 and state what food item you intend to bring and how many are in your
party. (cell phone is 530-219-9074)
Come and have a good time!
Our address is 1851 Alexander Hill Lane, near Dunnigan.
To get to our farm, take Interstate 5 to Dunnigan exit #556. Go east two blocks to 99W, turn left
(north) on to 99W and go about 2 miles to County Road 2. Take County Road 2 left (west) and pass
over Interstate 5. Go west on County Road 2 for 1.3 miles to Alexander Hill Lane, a graveled private
road. Go right (north) on Alexander Hill Lane for about 1000 feet to 1851. Our driveway is to the
right.
We'll listen on the BARK repeater Saturday.
Damian Appert AB6WB
Doreen Appert KE6ROR 7/5/2011
Al Lindquist, K6QDC, has donated radio equipment to BARK
Al, Lindquist, K6QDC, is moving from his home in South Davis to a new location. He has offered several pieces of equipment to the club and its members. Read more… 7/13/2011FCC Examination held on July 9th.
BARK / Yolo ARES sponsered another FCC examination on Saturday July 9th.The test was held at the Later Day Saint Chapel at 850 Pioneer Ave here in Woodland. This was an excellent facility for the test. Our appreciation and Thanks to Dale KJ6HHY and the Church for letting us use this facility. Dale was there to deal with the set up and take down of the tables and chairs needed. Thank You.There were 4 applicants tested and resulted in 2 New Technician licenses and one up grade to General. A good day.
Congratulations to Elisha KJ6QBE and Randy KJ6QBD and also to Reuben KJ6PUV who upgraded to General.
A Special thanks to our VEs.
Testing VEs were: David W6VNQ from Arbuckle, Damian AB6WB also from Arbuckle/Dunnigan area and Ken K6WLS.
Results were posted on the FCC ULS site by Tuesday evening 7/11/2011. Excellent service from the ARRL/VEC and the FCC licensing organization. 7/13/2011
BARK Annual Membership Meeting and Elections PROXY
Barkšs annual membership meeting is 0900 hours, Saturday, October 1, 2011,and will be held at the offices of Luhdorff and Scalmanini Consulting
Engineers, 500 First Street (corner of Lincoln and First), Woodland, CA. The
agenda at the meeting will include:
ˇ Introduction of new members
ˇ Acknowledgement of member contributions
ˇ Discussion of repeater equipment modifications and costs
ˇ Repeater operating difficulties
ˇ Committee chairperson reports
ˇ Operating revenues and expenses
ˇ Proposed operating budget for 2012
ˇ Elections of club Directors
ˇ Appointments by the Directors of club officers
ˇ Membership vote on Director terms
ˇ Old business
ˇ New business
Elections of two Directors will occur at the meeting. Up for re-election
are:
ˇ Director position held by Bob Jordan
ˇ Director position vacated by Ione Hendrick
ˇ
If you or any other BARK member would like to be a Director, please add your
name to the ballot. Most of the current Directors have been serving multiple
terms, so if you think new blood is needed and you want to volunteer to be a
part of the club that sets the club agenda for the year, please throw your
name into the hat.
Ione Hendrick will not be seeking reelection to her Board position.
Bob Jordan will not be seeking reelection to his Board position. The secretary position will also be open.
If you do not plan on attending the meeting, it is imperative that you fill
out the proxy form and make sure it is received by the club Secretary prior
to the election. 9/20/2011
Repeater Maintanence
After the BARK annual General meeting Bob KI6BZR and myself K6WLS made a run up to the repeater site to do some checks on the site and general maintainance. The site was found to be in good shape with some basic needs for clean up like knocking down some cobwebs and sweeping the floor. We checked the voltages on each of the batteries, and topped off the cells with distilled water and cleaned the Solar cells. We also verified that the voltages being read and listed on the BARK website were listed correctly in the TNC and Controller areas. While we were there we had been requested to change out the radio on the packet system. The existing one was showing signs of problems. It was changed and has since been checked out by Al - WB6YNM. He has reported that the problems he was hearing have been corrected and that the syetem is now working very well. This new radio is a 60 watt unit and will help to improve connections and coverages. Thanks to Al for the assciated equipment, and his countless hours of monitoring and maintaining the system. 10/2/2011Brush Removal at the Repeater Site
Bob - KI6BZR and Ken - K6WLS went to the Repeater site to remove brush around the building. The attached photos show some before and after pictures of Thursdays work 6/19/2010News Archives