by Bill Carroll, KC9CIK
WOW, what a weekend for St. Louis and Suburban Radio Club! The weekend of April 8th saw our club get together and participate in multiple activities:
- We were in support of the Egyptian Radio Club and the Extra class training sessions.
- Multiple members got together for breakfast at our monthly Ham Radio Breakfast at Denny’s.
- We got together in our old stomping grounds at the James S. McDonnell Park to have a mini Field Day. This allowed us to celebrate seventy years as a radio club.
- SLSRC took delivery of a brand new tower trailer.
- Finally, we wrapped things up using the special event station of KØA.
I want to thank Cliff Rozar (KCØSDV) and Peter Brisbine (NØMTH) on their…
work with the Egyptian Radio Club. They helped orchestrate a “crash course” for individuals seeking their Extra Class License. There were seven ham radio operators that have managed to reach the top of the Amateur Radio Classes and achieve “Extra.” Congratulations to all of them! This is no easy task.
This past Saturday, April 8th was our monthly amateur radio breakfast. This breakfast has become a time to get together and talk with other like-minded individuals about the hobby. We have opened this event up to all individuals who have an interest in amateur radio. You do not even have to have a license to join us…just show up. I know we have at least a couple of individuals who now regularly attend our SLSRC meetings because of the warm welcome they received at our ham radio breakfast.
The James S. McDonnell Park was once again the host site for a mini Field Day. This was an opportunity to get three stations up on the air while also using the time for preparing a list of what we will need for the ARRL Field Day in June. We did have multiple non-hams stop by and ask what was going on. This gave members the chance to describe the hobby that we all enjoy. This time also allowed us to celebrate seventy years as a radio club. That is not a bad record.
Did I mention we now have a new SLSRC tower trailer? John Mountain, KJØMTN, delivered the trailer to us on Saturday. We put it through its paces and got antennas in the air. Make sure you get on Facebook and look at the SLSRC Facebook page. A couple of videos were posted there. You can watch the first time the tower was cranked into position. It was cool, and the primary reason that we had visitors stop by. Keep an eye out for emails or SLSRC.org posts with links to the instructional videos we are making on how to put the tower up and take it down.
KØA was the special event station call sign we have had access to for the past week. Thanks to Rebecca Carroll, KC9CIJ, for arranging this. I managed to get on the radio for a few minutes and made a contact in New Mexico on the beam antenna on our new tower trailer. Did I mention we have a new tower trailer? I did not make the contact, but one of our hams managed to speak with Scandinavia. Great contact.
Thank you to everyone in the club for all the activities that occurred this weekend. I also want to thank all the members of the club in general. It is because of our membership that we have reached seventy years as an organization. Great job guys!
4/15/17