RATS Meeting Reminder, Winter Field Day Score, Upcoming SKYWARN Training, and more news inside

[RATS General Mailbox]

Richmond Amateur Telecommunications Society

General Announcement

In this e-mail:

• Membership meeting Friday night - 7:30 PM
• Mark your calendars for the 2024 Virginia QSO Party - March 16 & 17
• Winter Field Day 2024 - Final Score
  
• 2024 Club Election - Nominating Committee Needed
• Page Valley Amateur Radio Club Hamfest - Saturday, February 17
• SKYWARN Basic Spotter Training - Thursday, February 29 at 6:30 PM in Mechanicsville
• Listen online:  RATS repeater audio streaming is back
• RARC Spring 2024 Exam Prep Class & Skills Seminar Schedule
• Next Meetings & Club Contact Info

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Membership meeting Friday night - 7:30 PM

The monthly RATS Membership Meeting is this Friday, February 16 at 7:30 PM on Zoom.

Minutes for the last RATS meeting (January 19) have been posted to rats.net/minutes for membership review and approval at this week's meeting.

This month, we will have two special guest presentations.  Gordon Miller NQ4K of the Sterling Park Amateur Radio Club (SPARC) will be speaking briefly about the upcoming Virginia QSO Party.  Then, Kevin Behn K0KLB of Ham Radio QRP - K0KLB on YouTube will join us to talk about QRP (low-power) operation.

We currently have two new membership applications up for vote this month:

Thomas Mundy N3GTG holds an Extra class license and is currently President of another club in town, the Dominion DX Group (DDXG).

Lawrence Liu KQ4MXQ recently upgraded to Extra, after just entering the hobby as a General in early December.  He notes on his application, "Nice to meet some of you during the 2024 WFD at the Pocahontas State Park. Looking forward to meeting you all again in the near future. Thanks!"

Both of these applications are paid and will be voted on during the February 16 meeting.

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Mark your calendars for the 2024 Virginia QSO Party - March 16 & 17

The 2024 Virginia QSO Party will take place the weekend of March 16 & 17.

VAQP is designed to promote amateur radio activity in Virginia's 95 counties and 38 independent cities.  This contest offers an abundance of certificates and plaques for operators of all skill levels and capabilities.  RATS has sponsored the Single Operator VHF Only plaque for many years.

You'll find the full contest rules here.  Here's an excerpt with the key points from the rules as currently published:

• Virginia stations work all stations. Out-of-State stations work Virginia stations only.
• Work fixed stations once per band/mode.
• Work Virginia Expeditions, Rovers, and Mobiles in each Virginia County or Independent City from which they operate.
• Stations on County or Independent City lines count as one QSO and one County/Independent City multiplier.
• Mobile, Rover, and Expedition stations must use appropriate suffix in call sign.
• Satellite contacts allowed.
• No cross-mode or repeater QSO's.
• Spotting nets, DX clusters, etc., may be used to locate other stations.
• Self-spotting permitted.

This year, we plan to put a radio or two on the air at Laurel Park in Henrico County.  We're in the process of finalizing our reservation for the same shelter we use for Summer Field Day every year.  We hope you can join us on the air or at the park.

As usual we'll be looking for a few volunteers to help with equipment transport, set-up, and tear-down.

Find out more at our February and March membership meetings.

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Winter Field Day 2024 - Final Score

Rob Marshall KI4MCW reports, "We're all submitted.  Claimed score is 3292, including bonus points for outdoor setup, multiple antenna setup, and for setting up away from home.  We had 21 CW contacts and 214 phone contacts, from 47 different states and provinces and 4 different DX entities.  Bragging rights go to Mike KM4WSA, who had the most contacts (81)."

Here's a huge THANK YOU to everyone who came out to Pocahontas State Park, and especially the folks who helped lug equipment to and from storage, put antennas in the air, or donated to this event.

THANK YOU Scott Avery AD4SA, Bill Catogni N4WLC, David Kleinholtz KO4RNT, and our cash donors for your generous support of Winter Field Day 2024.  Our Treasurer says donations covered $581 of the $763 cost for cabin rental, portable toilet rental, food/beverage, and other expenses.

Dues pay the bills, donations help make the big activities happen.  If you'd like to throw a few extra bucks in the pot, go to rats.net/donate.

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2024 Club Election - Nominating Committee Needed

In accordance with the club by-laws, approximately half of the RATS Board of Directors is up for election each year.  The Board of Directors is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the club.  The Board meets monthly and works almost daily to keep the club running in service to our members and community.  Being a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation adds additional obligations and complexity.  The club's future depends on the dedicated service of well-qualified Board members.

In 2024, the positions of President, Vice President, and three Directors will be up for election.  There are no term limits at RATS, so our President Jeff Walton KN4SYE, President of Vice Judi LeHuquet N4JDI, and directors Dan Bryant N4DOB, Rob Czyzewski KB2OYI, and Rob Marshall KI4MCW may run for re-election if they'd like.  All members may compete for one of these five positions in the election.

To start the process, the club needs a Nominating Committee consisting of at least three Full members in good standing.  The Nominating Committee solicits potential candidates and collects their biographical submissions for publication to the membership in July.  This committee also designs the online ballot and oversees the official ballot count.  They basically handle most of the election process from start to finish.  We'll be looking for volunteers at the next couple of Membership meetings.  If you can serve in this role, contact bo...@rats.net.  The Nominating Committee will be installed by the Board of Directors at their May 1 meeting.

All Board positions serve two-year terms.  Board members elected this year will serve from October 2, 2024 to October 7, 2026.

Watch for more information in future meetings and e-mails.

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Page Valley Amateur Radio Club Hamfest - Saturday, February 17

The Page Valley Amateur Radio Club will be hosting a small hamfest on Saturday, February 17 at the Elkton VFW Post, 13958 Spotswood Trail in Elkton, Virginia.  That's on US 33, just across the mountains on your way to Harrisonburg, around an hour and a half northwest of Richmond.

For more information, see the flyer attached to this e-mail.

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SKYWARN Basic Spotter Training - Thursday, February 29 at 6:30 PM in Mechanicsville

The National Weather Service Wakefield WFO will offer Basic SKYWARN Spotter Training on Thursday, February 29 at 6:30 PM, at the Ashcake Volunteer Rescue Squad, 8375 New Ashcake Road in Mechanicsville.  Seats are limited and pre-registration is required.  To sign up, register here.

Spotter training is offered at various locations around the Wakefield CWA each year.  Training is good for three years and may be renewed by taking either a Basic or Advanced Spotter class.

The RATS 146.88 machine is the primary SKYWARN repeater for central Virginia.  When severe weather threatens our region, volunteers from the NWS Wakefield SKYWARN Amateur Radio Support Team (WX4AKQ) may activate a net to collect reports from spotters.  For more information on the SKYWARN program, see rats.net/skywarn.

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Listen online:  RATS repeater audio streaming is back

Traveling?  Away from a radio?  Curious what's happening on C4FM/WIRES-X or DMR but don't have the right equipment?  You can once again listen to the RATS repeaters from anywhere, 24/7/365.  Internet streaming has been restored.  The 146.88 and 442.55 repeaters are live now, and the DMR repeater will be added soon.  For information and links, visit rats.net/streaming

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RARC Spring 2024 Exam Prep Class & Skills Seminar Schedule

Reminder:  Registration for RARC's Spring 2024 educational offerings opened January 29.

RARC is offering license classes for all three levels, plus some skills seminars featuring topics like antenna modeling, D-STAR setup, radiosport and contesting, remote station setup and operation, and "Station Setup 101."

If you see something that interests you, we encourage you to sign up early!  RARC's high quality educational programs can fill up fast.

You'll find their schedule and registration links at https://rarclub.net/license/class-schedules/

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Next Meetings & Club Contact Info

Board Meeting - Wednesday, March 6 at 6:30 PM
Membership Meeting - Friday, February 16 at 7:30 PM
Weekly Club Net - Every Wednesday evening at 7 PM on the W4RAT 146.88 MHz repeater

Meetings are held via Zoom.  See rats.net/meetings for current details.

You can find video and minutes from recent meetings at rats.net/minutes.

Questions and general comments about RATS or submissions for our web site or newsletter may be directed to the club's general mailbox, in...@rats.net
Membership questions or news to share with the club?  secr...@rats.net
Questions about dues or other financial matters?  trea...@rats.net
Want to give a presentation at a RATS meeting?  prog...@rats.net
Want technical help or 1:1 mentoring from a RATS Elmer?  help...@rats.net
Outage or technical trouble with a RATS RF system?  tech...@rats.net
RATS membership as of February 10, 2024:  104 members, 2 pending applications