October 2023
BOO! - By Michael K2SHF
Hello boys and girls. It's Halloween month. Do you enjoy everything that goes with the Halloween holiday? I was never much of a fan, personally. But I know many people really enjoy it. So get out your gords and candy. And don't forget to get a costume to wear during the Morning Brew on the 31st.
A few weeks ago, the Godfather of the East Coast Reflector (WB2JPQ) applied for a vanity callsign for the system. Just days ago, that callsign was granted to us. W2ECR, or Welcome 2 East Coast Reflector became the official callsign of the ECR. We're not sure what we're going to use it for just yet, but we might have a special event station at our meet & greets, and you might even see that callsign used on some of the entryways into the system. Check it out at http://www.qrz.com/db/w2ecr .
If you are around at 11PM ET on Saturdays, tune into the ECR and listen to the Trivia Net hosted by Alex W7FTM. Better yet, check in and answer a question. If you are not good at trivia, fret not. All of the questions asked are multiple choice with three possible answers. Alex has a good sense of humor so you are likely to crack a smile or even laugh a few times during the net.
Have you made your hotel reservations for Orlando Hamcation yet? How about airline tickets? Hamcation happens on February 9-11 in 2024, and the ECR will have a strong presence. Even the Godfather (WB2JPQ) will be joining us this year. It's a great time of the year to visit central Florida to get away from the cold weather in most of the rest of the country. Check out hamcation.org for more information.
Don't forget about the ECR Youth Net on Fridays at 7PM ET. Lucca and Aiden (KD2YHZ and KD2YFO) do a wonderful job of running this net most weeks. Give them some support by checking in. And if you have any non-ham youth in your life that would like to check in, have them check in as 3rd party on your callsign. Who knows, you might spark an interest in ham radio for those youngsters. And if you are a youth yourself, by all means check in and get involved.
Everyone have a safe and happy October and we'll catch you on the reflector.
73 de K2SHF
ECR BIRTHDAY GREETINGS
Below is the list of our August birthdays. Happy Birthday to you all!
N2OCI, Robert of Medford NY, has a birhday on October 2nd
KI5CYM, Ray of Seminole TX, has a birhday on October 3rd
KO4WNL, Jackson of Seminole FL, has a birhday on October 4th
KI7WKZ, Kelly of Oregon City OR, has a birhday on October 7th
KF9JF, David of Winter Garden FL, has a birhday on October 8th
KO4WIL, Will of Rutledge TN, has a birhday on October 9th
KN4TPC, Matthew of Titusville FL, has a birhday on October 10th
KD2RPP, Phillip of Buffalo NY, has a birhday on October 17th
W2COP, Jim of Livonia NY, has a birhday on October 18th
K3KDX, Ken of Parkton MD, has a birhday on October 21st
N2JWP, Mario of Deer Park NY, has a birhday on October 26th
KD2YFO, Aiden of Whitney Point NY, has a birhday on October 26th
W2HR, Harold of Grants Pass OR, has a birhday on October 28th
KN4LEH, Dan of Haines City FL, has a birhday on October 28th
W7RY, Jim of Ozark MO, has a birhday on October 31st
Would you like your birthday recognized in the Newsletter and on the air during the Tech Net? Just send an email to Michael, K2SHF, with your callsign and birthdate. Your birthday will then be added to our spreadsheet.
MORNING BREW QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Below are a few of the questions we asked on the Morning Brew over the past month along with the number of people that gave each answer. Only answers with a quantity of 2 or more were counted.
Q: It's time for some KFC. Do you order original or extra crispy?
A: Original 31 | Extra Crispy 29 | Both 2
Q: What is your favorite soup?
A: Split Pea 7 | Tomato 4 | Chicken Noodle 4 | Chicken Rice 3 | Broccoli Cheddar 3 | Clam Chowder 3
French Onion 3 | Chicken Dumpling 2 | Chicken Tortilla 2 | Chili (soup??) 2
Q: What is your favorite kind of tree?
A: Oak 13 | Maple 12 | Pine 5 | Magnolia 5 | Dogwood 3 | Birch 3 | Hickory 2 | Palm 2 | Fir 2 | Weeping Willow 2
Join us for the Morning Brew Monday-Friday (except holidays) at 7-9AM ET on the ECR.
NORTH CAROLINA SCHOOL CONTACTS THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION
Taken from The ARRL Letter dated September 7, 2023
On August 28, 2023, students at Bowman Middle School in Bakersville, North Carolina, talked to NASA Astronaut Stephen Bowen, KI5BKB, who as on board the International Space Station (ISS).
For months, 22 students had been preparing for a 10-minute window to ask Bowen about his time and experiences on the ISS. They were able to ask 13 questions, like, "What is it like to be in space?" and, "Is the crew doing any research on diseases that affect humans?"
Section Manager of the ARRL North Carolina Section Marv Hoffman, WA4NC, presented the Supporting, Upgrading, Growing Amateur Radio (SUGAR) Award to the school and its science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teacher, Dan Hopson, for arranging the ISS contact.
Hopson said, "The waiting and static, are suspenseful but when you hear the man's voice or that person's voice come over the air, the kids know this is really happening."
Bowen, returned to Earth with SpaceX Crew-6 on September 5.
US Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (NC-05) also attended the event. She called the experience "a stellar opportunity." In a recent letter to her constituents in North Carolina, Foxx wrote, "On Monday, I traveled to Bakersville in Mitchell County to meet with students, staff, and administrators of Bowman Middle School - as well as to view the school's International Space Station (ISS) contact project. As part of the project, students were able to ask questions in real time via ham radio to Steve Bowen, a NASA Astronaut who successfully traveled to the ISS on March 3 of this year. This impressive event was one that these students will surely remember as they continue their educational journeys. Congratulations to all who made this event, and learning opportunity, such a success."
ARISS is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the ISS. In the US, participating organizations include NASA's Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) program, the ISS National Laboratory -- Space Station Explorers, ARRL, and AMSAT.
YACHT YOUTH NETS
Everyday (except Sundays) at 8PM ET is the YACHT net. YACHT is an acronym for Young Amateurs Communications Ham Team. All nets get a bunch of youth checking in, particularly on Saturdays which is the big net of the week. These nets do not conflict with our own Youth Net on Fridays. To connect to it, you'll need to use Echolink and search for the YACHT conference on there. Everyone is welcome.
RECENT YACHT NEWS ARTICLES - By Ed KG8CX
Young Amateurs Communications Ham Team K8KDZ
Connecting Young Hams, Creating Friendships, Expanding the Voice of Youth in Ham Radio
Inspiring Youth with Enjoyment & Technology of Ham Radio
--------------------
Website https://qsl.net/yacht-arc/home.html
YACHT YOUTH UPGRADES... Congratulations to John KJ7AGQ for his General upgrade on Sunday. He did it with 100 percent score.
PEARSON BOYS & POTA ACTIVATION... from a park near Huntsville, AL KN4VKY and KN4VKW and crew https://youtu.be/dHiRGT975TQ
STUDENT LEADER... This comes from a UK ham and speaks for itself. As a YACHT ham you are one of the elite.
FUN VIDEO OF HUNTSVILLE HAMFEST... Watch the 360 degree video. Almost like being there in person. https://youtu.be/kEn88pFff5s
HAM RADIO STORY... A national resource. Nice article just written.
https://thefederalist.com/2023/08/30/part-social-media-and-part-preppers-paradise-ham-radio-is-the-perfect-hobby/
YACHT YOUTH AT SWAPFEST... This was taken at the Grand Rapids swapfest L to R: KE8TMQ, N8ARM, N8JJM, Tom K8TB (asst. S.M. for MI), WS8EMT, N8AJM, K8LJM.
YOUTH AND 1ST SATELLITE CONTACT... Cameron KD9VGV gets excited.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/v5XHha0-HdE?feature=share
JOTA/JOTI COMING UP SOON... This major Scouting event is set for the 3rd full weekend in October. Check the main link below and the related links included. YACHT will have its echolink node available and our YACHT youth net that Saturday, October 21, as well. In addition our Friday evening informal chat session will also be available for Scout contacts. We have a number of Scouts within our team of youth operators.
https://www.scouting.org/international/jota-joti/jota/
Our echolink node is #954283. We can also have possible HF frequencies to use as many of our young hams have General and Extra class privileges. We will be happy to talk to Scouts anywhere.
YACHT MEMBER ENJOYS SDR RIG... Ian KE8TMQ had an opportunity to work HF on a Flex rig at the Grand Rapids radio club radio room.
YACHT YOUTH WORKS WEEKEND CONTEST... Grace KE8RJU worked the 10 GHz and up contest this past weekend from two separate locations.
YOUTH & HAM RADIO WITH KATIE... This videocast was made on 8/31 by Anthony Luscre K8ZT who is the ARRL Youth Coordinator for Ohio. You can watch the entire show, but the latter segment shows Katie KE8LQR talking about getting youth into ham radio and her experiences. Click the link and go to time stamp 1:07:22 for Katie's comments. She does mention YACHT. https://youtu.be/R1_IaZgxV38
IAN & SISTER... First of all, congratulations to Ian for his new vanity callsign KI8AN. This photo show both Ian and his sister Kirsten who just turned 10. Perhaps she will join Ian as a young ham soon.
YACHT YOUTH SHOWS OFF NEW CARD... Simon N1URA has just received his new qsl cards
73, Ed Engleman KG8CX
http://yachthams.webstarts.com/index.html
http://w8pif.webstarts.com/index.html
http://www.qrz.com/db/k8kdz
