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September Club Meeting Information

The next regular club meeting is Thursday, September 20, 2018 (always the third Thursday) at the East County Sheriff’s Station’s Community Room 2101 E. Olsen Road, Thousand Oaks at 7:30 pm.

Talk-in coordination is on the Bozo repeater, 147.885 ( – 127.3).

Topic/Guest Speaker:  What’s New With the ARRL? John Kitchens-NS6X, the new Santa Barbara Section Manager for the American Radio Relay League will talk about the activities of the only association representing amateur radio operators at the federal level.  There are 1100 hams in the Santa Barbara section which consists of San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura Counties. John will welcome your questions about the many activities and services of the national organization.

Raffle Prizes: TUBE coax line isolator choke, Nagoya NA-771  1.6 inch whip antenna, Dr. Meter 48-watt soldering station

Pre-Meeting Dinner: Join fellow club members for a pre-meeting dinner, at 5:00 pm, at Szechuan Garden, 484 E. Los Angeles Avenue in Moorpark, 805-517-1930.

Upcoming CVARC Programs

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August Meeting Summary

About a dozen members met at Don Cuco’s in Moorpark for the pre-meeting dinner.

Stu Forman-KK6VYS

The meeting began at 7:30 with the Pledge of Allegiance.  First time visitors were welcomed, and newly license hams and those who upgraded their licenses were acknowledged.  Thanks given to Mike Felio-KM6EII for bringing the coffee, and to Joe Sprissler-AI6MW for bringing the cookies.

New Website – New content will be added throughout the month; @CVARC.com email addresses are available to members who are interested; There are sections that allow comments.  Just like the newsletter, please send us anything you’d like included on the website. Continue reading “August Meeting Summary”

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License Training Classes Return in September

CVARC is offering free classes to help you prepare for the Amateur Radio License exams.  We are currently offering classes for the TECHNICIAN (Entry Level) and GENERAL (Intermediate Level) Licenses.

All classes will be at the East County Sheriff’s Station Community Room, 2101 E. Olsen Road, in Thousand Oaks.

TECHNICIAN LICENSE CLASSES

Classes are held over four Saturdays, September 22, 29, October 6* and 13, from 1:00 – 5:00 PM

GENERAL LICENSE CLASSES

Classes are held over five Saturdays, September 15, 22, 29, October 6* and 13, from 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM Continue reading “License Training Classes Return in September”

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Personalities of HF Bands

By Norm Campbell-AB6ET

Each band has its own personality and characteristics.  The sun and ionosphere, as well as other factors, cause the HF bands to be different during the day or at night and also at different times of the year.  Getting on the air is the best way to find out what works and what doesn’t.  Pick a band, get on it, stay with it for a while.  Tune around, move up and down across the band.  Try different times of day.

HF bands are not quiet and solid copy like VHF/UHF FM simplex or repeaters.  It takes a good ear to successfully hear HF signals.  SSB has its own sound.  CW has its own sound.  Mix in QSB, noise, interference, other band conditions, and you have some listening to do to gain skill on HF. Continue reading “Personalities of HF Bands”

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Amateur Radio and Mt. Washington: The Highest, Coldest Point in New England

By Ben Kuo, AI6YR

“CQ CQ CQ… CQ Summits on the Air, Summits on the Air… This is Alpha India Six Yankee Romeo, calling Summits on The Air…”

There I was, standing on the peak of the highest point in New England, Mt. Washington, known for some of the worst weather in the world, braving at least a 40 mph wind in forty degree weather and not making any contacts. The peak, the most prominent mountain east of the Mississippi River, sits at 6,288 feet, and is known for one of the fastest wind speeds ever recorded on the surface of the Earth, 231 miles per hour, recorded in April 12, 1934. The peak is also well known for being on the Appalachian Trail. Continue reading “Amateur Radio and Mt. Washington: The Highest, Coldest Point in New England”

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President’s Message

Hello!  …and welcome to the new CVARC website!  Take a few minutes to explore it.  Click around.  I’ll wait…  But then come back, ok?

Yes, we’ve moved into a new era.  Instead of publishing a monthly newsletter, we’ve decided to make our website a little more dynamic, by blending most of the information that was part of our previous website with the features that were typically part of our monthly newsletters.  Hopefully this new approach will make it easier for people to find the information they’re seeking. This redesign will also give the website more of a magazine-feel, with new content being adding throughout the month. Continue reading “President’s Message”

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July Meeting Summary

9 members met for the pre-meeting dinner at Junkyard Café in Simi Valley.

Stu Forman-KK6VYS

The meeting began at 7:30 with the Pledge of Allegiance.  First time visitors were welcomed, and newly licensed hams and those who recently upgraded their licenses were acknowledged.

Thanks to Steve Gillis-KZ6H for bringing the coffee, and Stu Forman-KK6VYS brought the cookies.

It’s been great seeing so many new faces, these last few months.  If you have questions, there are a lot of Elmers in this room, and many Continue reading “July Meeting Summary”

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Programming a Baofeng UV-5R

By Andy Ludlum-K6AGL

Many hams have found the low-priced radios from China like the Baofeng UV-5R hard to resist.  Seriously, who doesn’t have room for one more HT if it costs less than $30?

The delight of having a new radio to play with quickly turns to despair when you take a look at what passes as an owner’s manual.  Programming a frequency into one of the memories is not easy, because the procedure is not described in the manual.

Continue reading “Programming a Baofeng UV-5R”
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Mini Field Day & Picnic – October 6th

Save the date!  Saturday, October 6th will be the next CVARC Mini Field Day & Picnic.  NEW LOCATION: Dos Vientos Community Park, 4801 Borchard Rd., Newbury Park).

This is a great opportunity to enjoy some operating, as well as food and socializing. This is the time to try a new mode or play with a new antenna configuration.  For new hams, this is also a great opportunity to check out other people’s equipment and ask questions.

Band conditions permitting, there should be some activity on the air, as October 6 begins the 53rd annual California QSO Party.  Come on out.  All are welcome!