Our regular meeting for September was held at The Collective Hub, 1/33 Johnsonville Rd on Tuesday 19 September 2023, from 1pm to 3pm. Malcolm ZL2UDF led a discussion on amateur radio related publications.
Emergency Communications Exercise – Special Event
On Saturday 16 September you will have the chance to practice sending messages in an Emergency Communications exercise involving Branch 50 and Branch 42 (Titahi Bay) of NZART.
Ross ZL2UAC will be net control. Operations will be on DMR repeaters (Wrights Hill Wellington and Colonial Knob, Porirua) from your home QTH.
You should have been contacted by email this week if you had earlier indicated an interest in emergency communications, were in one of our HamCrams, or a member of Branch 50 or Branch 42 NZART. Pre-registration is no longer required. AREC membership is not required.
You will be operating on VHF/UHF DMR repeaters locally and based from home. You will need to check in with Net Control at 4pm. You will need to provide a SITREP when you are called in. Please read the document “Radio Voice Procedures” attached to the email, that will explain the requirements for a SITREP.
It should be fun!
3 September Antenna Construction Workshop
We held a second construction session for dualband Flowerpot antennas on 3 September from 1pm to 4pm at The Collective Hub, 1/33 Johnsonville Rd.
Those who missed out on our Monster Workshop in June, or who had gained their callsign in the July HamCram were able to come away with a VHF/UHF antenna with a lot more gain than the typical handheld rubber ducky antenna. Seven more flowerpot antennas were completed on the day. This brings the total to around 30 flowerpots completed in 2023.
Cost was $20 for the kit of parts.
Off-radio Radio in the Akatarewa Ranges
On Sunday 27 August the Wellingon Amateur Radio Club and the Cross-Country Vehicle Club combined forces on a special Cross Country event to check out radio operation in the Akatarawa ranges. Max (ZL2MXN) organised the event. Max was a graduate of the July HamCram. A total of 9 vehicles ventured out with a number of amateurs in the group (a combination of Branch 50 NZART and 4WD members).
James ZL4JOCO reported:
“A good day out, proving that the Mount Clime 730 repeater is the easiest of the repeaters to access from all sorts of locations. I got contacts on Climie 730, Belmont 710 and Porirua ZL DMR. I even managed Mount Clime from Orange Hutt which is pretty much in the centre of the forest and down at the bottom of a valley. I also managed to get the HT to get an APRS position packet to the Ngaio digipeater. That was from a ridge line under a pylon.”
Well done Max and team!