QST…QST…QST! The broken antenna has been replaced!!!
If you were at the September TARC meeting, then you know we had an
issue with our 145.170 repeater antenna. If you see the attached picture,
then you know something isn’t quite right. Yes, those two antennas
should NOT be touching and that was causing some static to the vertical
antenna that belongs to the 443.850 Superlink Hub repeater.
After a lively discussion about the issue, what may have caused it, what
could happen if it’s not repaired and what is needed to replace it, the club
approved one of the two bids that we received for a like for like replacement
of the broken antenna. That bid was for $3500 and was approved by
the club.
The day after the club meeting, I got in touch with Sky Tower and approved
their bid for the $3500 charge to replace, like for like, the broken
antenna.
The following Monday, we had a day and time scheduled to get the work
done. So, exactly one week and a day following the club’s approval to
replace the antenna, the work was done.
I’ve attached several pictures of the process.
With the broken antenna down and before the new antenna went up, Bob used his service monitor to check the
coax of both antennas and everything was looking good so nothing else had to be done. Just replace the old,
broken antenna with new one.
BTW…the new antenna and all the associated parts and pieces that were needed, Bob had on hand so there
was no additional expense to the club AND the new antenna is a commercial grade antenna and it seems to
cover a larger area of the Tulsa metro and surrounding areas. A HUGE thank you to Bob W5RAB for his donation
and support of the Superlink Repeater System.
On a lighter note…Will you be there on December
10th…
Tickets to TARC’s 100 Year Anniversary Celebration
are going fast!!!
The Tulsa Amateur Radio Club is celebrating 100
years as the oldest Amateur Radio club in Oklahoma
and we are celebrating with an evening of dinner and
dessert, some club history (actually, a lot of club history),
guest speakers, some awards and lots of fun and
fellowship with other hams enjoying a great evening.
The date is December 10th at Ti Amo Restaurant, 61st
and Sheridan in Tulsa. The celebration starts at 6 PM
and continues until 9 PM.
There are still some 100 Year Anniversary mugs and
pins for sale at the TARC monthly meetings. They are
very, very nice and will soon be collectors’ items
since we only had a limited number made. Those
items and more anniversary merchandise will be
available at the club meetings, but if you want
one reserved in your name, contact Robert
KI5WDD at rkerns007@gmail.com. The sale of
those items will help fund the celebration and
we’re now selling tickets on the TARC website.
Don’t miss this chance to celebrate with us…our
next celebration is 100 years away.
Don’t come alone! Spouses, kids, relatives,
friends, neighbors, anyone is invited, just not
your dog, cat or horse! You don’t need to be a
club member either!!!
Did you miss the September Tech Night???
We had a fantastic workshop all about DMR by Jeff
AE5ME. There were 10 in attendance and we spent
just about 2 hours discussing DMR, how it works,
what radios will work, hotspots and open spots, just
about everything related to DMR! You should have
been there!
Our next TARC Tech Night in November will be cancelled
since that is election day and I want everyone
to get out and vote!
Looking for a club T shirt, hat, hoodie or other
club merchandise…
We now have more apparel with the club logo
and our 100 Year Anniversary logo. Robert
KI5WDD has done a great job adding more merchandise
and he’ll have it available at the September
TARC meeting, and they can be purchased on
the spot. Come and see, bring cash or your checkbook.
Here’s some of what’s available…
Repeater Challenge…
You’ve no doubt heard me put out a challenge to get
more activity going on the repeaters…
a Repeater Challenge.
What is the Repeater Challenge, you ask?
Many hams say that there’s little to no activity on the
repeaters these days, so the challenge is that at least
once a day, turn on your radio, tune to a repeater,
throw out your callsign and have a conversation with
someone else on the repeater. If you’re just listening
and you hear someone else throw out their callsign,
answer their call and strike up a conversation! Give
them a signal report. If they’re mobile, ask where are
they are and what repeater they’re using? If they’re at
home, what radio and antenna are they using?
What’s the weather like where they are?
The idea is to get hams on the air. There are many
new hams that have recently received their
callsign and they may have some mic fright. It’s
more common than you think! It’s up to the more
experienced hams to take the challenge and get
them talking! If you consider the size of the footprint
of the Superlink System there should always
be someone, somewhere listening that you can
talk to.
Will you accept the Repeater Challenge?
Are you interested in Oklahoma weather and Skywarn?…
As we’ve seen already this year, storms, strong winds,
hail and tornados can be here in Oklahoma, yearround.
Look what it did to our antenna! When severe
weather is forecast for Northeast Oklahoma, monitor
the Superlink System for the WX5TUL Skywarn Net
and the WX5TUL Weather Net. Listen for watches,
warnings, advisories and other helpful information to
help keep you safe. Frequencies for the repeater in
your area can be found at W5IAS.com. Click on Repeaters
and scroll down to TARC: Wide-Area Link
System. We had some severe weather in the Superlink
footprint recently and the WX5TUL Skywarn Net was
on the air for several hours taking weather reports and
talking to hams checking the weather in their area.
About 65 hams checked in from all over Green Country.
Good work by the WX5TUL Skywarn Net Control
Operators! Would you like to help? Contact
Mark WA5MA and let me know if you’d like to
be a Net Control Operator, backup NCO or provide
support to the NCO’s.
There are so many opportunities to participate in
TARC activities…
Do you make a weather report to the WX5TUL
Skywarn Net during severe weather?
Do you participate in any of the ARES events or
hospital nets?
Will you operate Winter Field Day in January?
Can you be our club photographer and/or videographer?
Can you make a presentation at a club meeting or
HF University?
Are you a Volunteer Examiner?
Do you help with any of the bike rides that TARC
supports?
Do you wear your TARC apparel with pride because
you are in the top 1 percent of ham radio?
That’s just a few of the things that TARC does! What
can you do to help?
Can you do more than just listen!
Upcoming Events…
” Ham University – TBD
” Weekly TARC Net on the Superlink System,
Tuesdays at 8 PM
” Tech Night – 1st Tuesday of each month.
(November is cancelled. Election Day)
It was suggested at a recent club meeting that we
should start a “Tech Night”! So, we did! It’s just a free
and open evening to come and talk tech with other
hams. No club business, no agenda! Bring some
equipment if you want to. Bring your questions or just
join the conversation.
” October Monthly meeting – October 15th 7 PM
at Tulsa University. I’ve been asked many times about
the history of the Superlink Repeater System and how
it works. Bob W5RAB is one of the founding fathers
of the Superlink System and he’ll be speaking to the
history of the Superlink, why was it built, how it
works and answering your questions.
” Are you a YL looking for a net or other activity?
There is a YL net on Thursdays at 4 PM on the Evergreen
repeater in Bixby on 145.250 PL 141.3. Stay
tuned to YL other YL events.
TARC has 2 go boxes for club members to use…
TARC has 2 HF go boxes and they are really nice!
They have both been on display and have everything
needed to get on the air. One of the go boxes is an
ICOM IC-7200 which is more of a heavy-duty radio
and more basic. The other go box is a Yaesu FT-991A
which is a VHF/UHF/HF radio, so it’ll have the
capability to work all three bands.
The FT-991A was donated by Forrest (Frosty)
DeLunger KC0KFL. Thanks Frosty!!!
Would you like to use it for a POTA activation or
just an afternoon at a local park, contact Paul
KE5EHM at ke5ehm1@gmail.com.
Want to learn CW? We’ve started our second
CW class…
The first CW training class has already graduated
and the second class started in August. Each class
of 6 must commit to studying and practicing at
least 30 minutes a day and attending an in-person
class once a week at Tulsa University with the
goal being to get you on the air in 8 weeks, maybe
the Nervous Novice Net. There is a high level
of accountability, but if you put in the time practicing,
the instructor Mike KI5EGH will have you
on the air. You can contact Mike if you have any
questions at KI5EGH@yahoo.com.
We’re now taking applications for the next CW
class which will start early next year.
Contact Mark WA5MA at
wa5ma.mark@gmail.com.
Join the Nervous Novice CW Net! It’s going
strong and growing!
The net is going very well and band conditions
are improving so wherever you are in your CW
journey, even if you can’t even spell CW, you
need to get on this net. Mike KI5EGH and Ky
KY5VAR share the Net Control Operator duties and
will slow down to your CW speed if needed so no reason
not to join in.
The Nervous Novice CW Net is on Monday evenings
at 1900 hrs. on 7.037 MHz +/- QRM.
Not available on Mondays? Ky is operating an informal
CW net on Thursdays, same time, same frequency.
Join in and get some easy CW experience.
Looking for some one-on-one CW practice? Contact
Mark WA5MA and I’ll set you up on a schedule with
another operator that you can practice with, at your
convenience. No pressure!
Do you like the TARC badge? See Andrew
W5AWS and bring $2.00.
Of course, it’ll have your name and callsign on it.
Hihi.
The Tuesday TARC Net is going strong and growing…
Until recently there has been no net on the third Tuesday
of each month because the in-person meeting was
going on here in Tulsa. Now we can say the TARC
net is every Tuesday evening throughout the year. We
now have Dirk W4IPD in the OKC area that’ll take
over net control on meeting nights. Thanks Dirk!
We’re averaging 45 – 50 check ins between
NetLogger and over-the-air check ins. We’ve had
as many as 64 check ins!
We give signal reports, answer ham related questions,
give announcements of upcoming ham radio
events and activities and we even have time
for some trivia!
Our Net Control Operators Ian KC9THI, Grant
KC1KCE and Dirk W4IPD are doing a great job
and Andrew W5AWS, David K5TZS and Brent
N5LOL have Netlogger handled. Dirk W4IPD is
doing a fantastic job at Net Control on our meeting
night, but if you can do a once-a-month Net
Control Operator duty and give Dirk a break once
in a while, we’d appreciate it. No big formal net,
just an informal net like we do any other night.
And don’t forget about Club Spotlight…
If you have an event coming up, you need operators
for an event, you have a hamfest or just want
to talk about your club or your station, you can
have 5 – 10 minutes on the Tuesday net to reach
anyone and everyone listening on the Super Link
Repeater System. Just let us know, it’s that simple.
We also have Member Spotlight…
Member Spotlight is now a part of our monthly
meetings. Want to show and tell your station or
your love for a particular part of ham radio? Contact
Ky KY5VAR and let him know. He’ll get you
scheduled. He’s also starting a “show me your
shack” presentation, so show us your ham
shack!!!
Tulsa Amateur Radio Club and Tulsa University…
We are still working to partner with the University of
Tulsa. Our goal is to enhance their curriculum with
ham radio knowledge and help each student get their
Amateur Radio license. There is the possibility that a
ham radio station may be placed on campus as a
teaching aid for the students to use, as well as for club
members. CJ WW0CJ has been re-united with the
University club callsign, KC5TU. A remote internet
link to the station is also being discussed.
Every month is a contest month…
Go to ARRL.com, click Contest Calendar, scroll
to Contest Corral, click on the month you want to
check. Try POTA or SOTA! Call CQ! Go to a
local park, grab one of the club’s go boxes, throw
up a wire and get on the air!
Start now…Winter Field Day is not far off!
Be safe, Be a good friend, Get on the air!
Mark WA5MA
President – Tulsa Amateur Radio Club