Thanks for your attention tonight.
Here is a link to a copy of my slides: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OuNMIXaW8Q77r7HQeCz27D2uSn5nFY1k/view?usp=sharing.
For more information about the program go to: https://cwops.org/cw-academy/.
If you ever have any questions about CW Academy, please don’t hesitate to ask.
Thanks again.
73 de John AJ1DM
The CTRI Group will hold its monthly meeting via Zoom on Wednesday, November 11 at 7:00 PM Eastern Time. Meeting details were emailed to the entire membership this morning.
All licensed radio amateurs are welcome, but please do not post the Zoom information to a publicly visible place.
CTRI Meeting via zoom on 10/17/20 Minutes
The meeting was called to order at 9 AM by Charlie K1ECU. The following members were in attendance:
John W1XX (host); Charlie K1ECU; Dean K1HSY; John AJ1DM; Bill W1WBB; Doc K1DM; John W1AN;
Mike NW1M; Don KW2G; Jim KS1J; Kevin NZ1I; John K1JSM; Lars KE1J; Andy AB1BX; Rick K1PAD
This was the annual election of officers meeting. After discussion John W1XX moved that the current slate of officers with the exception of Secretary and Contest Manager be reelected. The motion was seconded by Jim KS1J and was unanimously adopted.
Charlie nominated Rick K1PAD for Secretary which was seconded by Mike NG1M. Rick was elected.
After discussion on the Contest Manager position and since Dave K1SX was not in attendance, John W1XX nominated Andy AB1BX. Andy declined to accept the nomination. After further discussion John W1XX nominated K1SJ (in absentia) for Contest Manager which was seconded by Bill W1WBB and unanimously accepted. Upon conclusion of the 2020 elections, the executive board for the 2020-2021 consists of the following:
President: Charlie, K1ECU
Vice-President: Bill, W1BBB
Treasurer: Mike, NG1M
Secretary: Rick, K1PAD
Immediate Past-President: John, W1XX
With officers in place the discussion turned to when the next meeting will be. Given the situation with COVID-19 it was concluded that it would be via zoom. With the busy contest season underway it was decided that the next meeting would be Wed. Nov.11 at 7PM via zoom. Lars KE1J volunteered to host the meeting.
Rick K1PAD offered a copy of the 2019 ARRL Periodicals on DVD as a potential auction item with the proceeds going to the club. Given that we are meeting via zoom Charlie K1ECU asked for a summary of what is on the DVD and the Executive Committee will decide how to handle this.
Rick K1PAD moved that the club send a letter of congratulations to Bob W1YRC (RI Section Manager) for the distinguished service award which was bestowed on him recently by the ARRL Board of Directors. The motion was seconded and unanimously passed.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:50 AM.
Respectfully Submitted
Rick K1PAD, Secretary
The monthly meeting of the CTRI Contest Group was held at the North Kingstown Free Library in idyllic Wickford, RI on Saturday, 9 November 2019. Club president Charlie, K1ECU, called the meeting to order at approximately 0915. NOTE: The Secretary neglected to type up these minutes immediately after the meeting, and with the holidays he forgot about them until just before the January meeting. As a result, these minutes depend on the Secretary’s ability to read his notes without benefit of recollection.
In attendance were:
Pat, NG1G; Rick, K1PAD; Lars, KE1J; Tim, KC1AYQ;
Mike, NG1M; Ken, K3IU; Dean, K1HSY; John, W1XX;
Matt, WE1H; Chris, WB2VVV; Charlie, K1ECU; Andy, AB1BX;
John, W1AN; John, K1JSM; Jim, KS1J; Jim, K1IR
Donuts and coffee were provided by NG1G. K1ECU volunteered to bring them to the next meeting. Remember that New Year’s resolution you made about losing those extra pounds? You can start up again on Sunday.
Club President Charlie, K1ECU opened the meeting with an appeal for contributions. While the club’s bank account has a significant balance, as Treasurer Mike, NG1M has shown, it won’t last long given our spend rate.
K1ECU also talked about having a few breakfast meetings, and some locations were thrown around. More to come.
Some members experienced an Error 500 on the club’s web site, which, according to John, K1JSM, indicates a server error. To the Secretary’s best recollection, the issue has either been resolved or we need to wait to see if it happens again.
Club Secretary Pat, NG1G read the minutes from the 19 October meeting.
NG1M reported that the club’s bank account balance is $8,475.00. He presented a budget plan, which and discussion focused on the club’s liability insurance through the ARRL and if we still need it. Tim, KC1AYQ recommended that we review the coverage. NG1M reported that the annual premium is $200, which the Secretary recalls is paid by Mike, K1DM and reimbursed by the club. K1ECU recommended putting the information on the web site for members to ignore. K1DM agreed to send the policy info to K1ECU, who will post it. NG1M will send K1ECU the budget spreadsheet for posting to the web site as well. As of the writing of these minutes, those do not appear to have happened yet.
The Secretary notes that there are numerous excellent posts on the web site regarding recent contests, and several posts by Chris, WB2VVV, including details of a 160M antenna that is worth studying. He even included a drawing!
Jim, KS1J attempted to begin a discussion of income planning, but was immediately shot down (in a gentlemanly manner) by K1ECU, as Jim, K1IR was ready to give his presentation.
K1IR gave an excellent presentation on tower safety, something none of us should take for granted. His analytical approach is very difficult to argue with, especially since his assumptions are fairly conservative. KC1AYQ recommended that the club have a safety officer, who can provide a safety checklist and proper training for those of us involved in tower activities. KS1J asked K1IR about sources for safety harnesses, and K1IR said they are tough to find. NG1G volunteered to be the club’s safety POC should we decide to get more involved (the Secretary would like to point out that this is NOT the same thing as a safety officer, which no doubt includes responsibilities NG1G would refuse to have levied upon him). K1IR said that RI Section Manager Bob, W1YRC, is in the loop on this safety initiative.
K1ECU tabled further financial discussions until next meeting, and said we would be reviewing the club’s constitution as well. He advised all members to read it, and noted that it is posted on the web site.
We finally had the raffle for the 24th edition of the ARRL Antenna Book graciously donated by Rick, K1PAD. John, W1XX, who may very well have written the first edition in 1939, won the book. Congratulations, John!
The meeting was adjourned, but at what time is lost to the Secretary’s spotty memory. Respectfully submitted,
Pat, NG1G
CTRI CG secretary
The monthly meeting of the CTRI Contest Group was held at the North Kingstown Free Library in idyllic Wickford, RI on Saturday, 19 October 2019, on a fall day that was far too nice to be indoors. Club president Charlie, K1ECU, called the meeting to order at approximately 0915.
In attendance were: Pat, NG1G
Chris, WB2VVV Andy, AB1BX John, W1XX
Mike, NG1M Rick, K1PAD John, K1JSM Kevin, NZ1I
Matt, WE1H Dean, K1HSY Charlie, K1ECU John, W1AN
Chuck, NA1CN Lars, KE1J Bill, WB1WBB
Donuts and coffee were provided by W1XX. Thanks, John! NG1G volunteered to bring them to the next meeting, despite the fact that he isn’t supposed to even sniff donuts, never mind purchase them.
K1ECU opened the meeting by announcing that the club had received a request from club member Andy, KA1VMG to have someone climb his tower to orient his tribander to the NE and remove his Butternut antenna.
K1ECU informed the members that we do not have a location for the 11 January, or 1 February meetings. NG1M said he would look into reserving the room at the Peace Dale library for the January meeting. NG1M, W1WBB, and NA1CN all said they would seek a venue for the other two, which means we might have to split our membership among three locations for those meetings.
K1ECU asked if, due to recent spam issues on the web site (the hijacking of, and unauthorized posting from, a member’s account, not the tasty canned meat adored by all), we should be disabling or deleting inactive users. At the time, the secretary did not think to mention that disabling users would likely violate the Americans with Disabilities Act, but deleting them almost certainly wouldn’t, leaving the latter as the best course of action. At any rate, K1JSM stated that he “deactivated” the member’s offending account, leaving the secretary to wonder how many verbs could be used to describe what we are willing to do to our members. After discussion, it was decided that K1JSM will warn all members that any accounts that have been inactive for 2 years will be deactivated within 60 days of the notice. This discussion led WE1H to inquire later about his member status, as the time elapsed since his last meeting attendance can be measured in geologic time. NG1G took the opportunity to point out that we do not enforce the club’s Bylaws with regard to membership (or anything else, for that matter). It seemed to be the sense of the membership that WE1H remains a member, despite having lived in Canada (ok, in the Burlington, VT area, which is close enough to Canada as to make no difference) for far too many years and may in fact not even be a US citizen at this point. Inquiries to ICE are forthcoming.
K1ECU asked what the ARRL’s Eligibility List is, and how it is being managed. W1WBB and NG1G, knowing the answers to both questions but being cagey about it, politely obliged each other to respond. To summarize what W1WBB said, the Eligibility List is a list (duh) of an ARRL-affiliated club’s members who are eligible (also duh) to enter League-sponsored contests and have their scores counted for their club. As such, it does not apply to CQ-sponsored contests, or anyone else’s for that matter. The two times it should be updated is either right before an ARRL-sponsored contest, or when there has been a change in membership, such as a member being added, or disabled, deleted, or deactivated (or any other “d” verb with negative connotations we might inflict upon a member). W1WBB edits the list from within an application on the ARRL’s web site, and then NG1G receives an email in which he clicks on a link to validate the list.
W1WBB then gave an excellent presentation on the half-square antenna, which led to many interesting questions and discussion, and to the secretary wishing he’d spent more time paying attention in geometry class. (“Isn’t half a square a rectangle?”)
K1ECU invited the membership to think about presenting topics at future meetings. W1XX mentioned that Richard, K1MD, will soon be presenting on a topic (that the secretary neglected to write down, but which no doubt will entertain and inform the members). NG1G volunteered to present something at a future meeting, but he has no idea what it will be about or if he will actually do it.
At this point, the secretary recommended to the president that at future meetings he (the secretary, not the president) should read the minutes from the last meeting, and warned members that he (again, the secretary, not the president) would be employing humor in the minutes (in order to direct the members’ attention away from the fact that the secretary doesn’t pay enough attention during meetings to accurately record what was said). K1ECU agreed that reading the minutes would be a good thing, apparently not realizing that one should never give the secretary an opportunity to read anything he has written. The secretary also reminded the members of the last meeting’s election results: K1ECU, president; W1WBB, vice president; NG1M, treasurer; K1SX, contest manager, and NG1G, secretary. W1XX is the immediate (and future) past president.
NG1M gave the treasurer’s report, in which he stated the club has $8,475 in its account, and that due to the recent change in the Bylaws, he can no longer afford to take a vacation to the Cayman Islands. As a reminder, the club is donating $1,000 per year to the ARRL’s scholarship foundation in memory of Chris, KA1GEU.
Due to K1SX’s absence, K1ECU gave the contest manager’s report. CQWW Phone is next weekend, and the ARRL Sweepstakes CW contest is 2-4 November. W1AN will have his station open if anyone wants to join in a multi-op effort, in which W1WBB expressed an interest. Anyone else?
Moving on to the proposed changes to the Bylaws, NG1G, a member of the committee appointed by then-president W1XX to look into adding to the Bylaws a section on disbanding the club, and not beating a dead horse while going about it, read the proposed changes for the membership’s consideration and approval. After some discussion that not at all resembled beating a dead horse as we are prone to do on matters of significance or insignificance, minor changes were made live on NG1G’s laptop. W1XX made a motion to accept the sum total of the changes made without anyone actually seeing what was on NG1G’s computer screen, and was seconded by K1PAD, also a member of the committee. The motion passed and the new Bylaws will be posted to the web site for all to see what they actually voted on.
K1PAD has graciously donated to the club a copy of the 24th edition of the ARRL Antenna Book. The members discussed raffling off the book to make money for the club. Various prices per raffle ticket were bandied about, with no settled amount. Canadian member WE1H recommended that rather than raffling off the book at the current meeting, we should notify the membership that we will do so at the next meeting. The secretary is unsure if anyone agreed to post that notice, because the secretary doesn’t pay enough attention during meetings to accurately record what was said. K1ECU put out a call for more donations. NA1CN, whose magnificent beard commands respect when he speaks, recommended that we hold a 50/50 raffle at each meeting as a way of generating more revenue. No doubt NG1M saw this as another opportunity to fund his vacation in the Caymans. NG1G volunteered to bring the club’s raffle tickets and fancy commemorative donation can to the meetings from now on, leaving members to wonder why we have a fancy commemorative donations can and what other CTRI club property NG1G has stashed at his house. K1PAD left the meeting with his book. Apparently, one can’t even give books away any more.
K1ECU asked to get a sense of the members’ feelings toward our now-usual Field Day site, and if we wanted to continue clearing the back 40 so that the Skyscrapers could eventually subdivide their land or perhaps go into farming. K1ECU pointed out that with our spider beam antenna and a couple of dipoles, we could do just as poorly at FD as we have in the past, but without all the heavy breathing and Lyme disease. It seemed to the secretary that the members agreed that this was not an enjoyable use of their time, perhaps reflecting the fact that the average age of our members is somewhere north of retirement age and they’re all set with yard work unless it’s officially on their “honey do” list.
At around this time, NG1G made a motion to adjourn the meeting. His motion was seconded by NG1M and K1ECU almost simultaneously (because K1ECU had another activity to attend and was anxious to be relieved of his duty) and approved by vote at 1105, proving that a meeting can be efficiently run despite hams’ proclivity for endless banter.
Respectfully submitted, Pat, NG1G
CTRI CG secretary
Click on the links below to see the Radio Satellite presentation by Bob Beaty, WB4SON.
Summary Minutes of Feb 2, 2019 Meeting
The experiment to hold a meeting in “East Bay” was a tremendous success. The Aquidneck Island Transmitting Team (AI1TT) hosted the meeting at a first class venue – the Portsmouth Library. Attending (from memory): NG1G, K3IU, W1WBB, AB1BX, NA1CN, W1MBF, K1SX, KC1AYQ, W1XX (in the chair), and first time attendees AC1AC and WA1BXY who were subsequently voted into membership. (If I forgot anyone please correct in “comments”)
W1XX reported on KE1J returning to SM-land re his Dad’s illness. Our thoughts are with Lars.
NG1G reported on the Field Day thank you letter from Skyscrapers.
NG1G reported out the “Challenge Committee” report with visual presentation. Upshot: IX-NAY.
W1XX presented the Treasurer’s report.
W1WBB raised the question of CTRI participation in YOTA (Youngsters on the Air) which was well received. W1XX appointed a committee of W1WBB (chair), W1MBF, and K1ECU to explore and report back at a subsequent meeting with recommendations.
An informal round of “contest tips” was presented. This could be continued at a later date.
NG1G gave an impassioned plea for more topics to be presented at meetings. This so hit the mark that the following volunteered to present the following topics at upcoming meetings:
Fox Hunting 101 by NA1CN
Portable Antennas by W1MBF
FT8 by K1SX
Operating in 6W by AA1AC
Already scheduled is WB4SON on Satellites for the Apr 20 meeting in N. Kingstown. Also on hold is a KE1J presentation on computer tools to maximize your score.
NG1G then gave an entertaining visual presentation on Samuel (Fine Business) Morse – a famous painter artist and why he invented the Code we so utilize. Applause.
Next meeting is March 9. See calendar for venue details.
Most then retired to “Foodworks” for breakfast/luncheon and ragchewing.
Respectfully submitted.
John Lindholm, W1XX
President: John Lindholm, W1XX, w1xx @ cox.net
Vice President: Bill Bliss, W1WBB, wbliss1 @ cox.net
Secy/Treasurer: Mike Visich, NG1M, visich4zoo @ gmail.com
Contest Manager: Charlie Estabrooks, K1ECU, k1ecu @ arrl.net
Recording Secy: Jim Bowman, KS1J, ks1j @ arrl.net
CTRI August 11, 2018 Meeting
Arriving for the August 11 CTRI meeting at W1XX QTH proved rather daunting due to inclement weather. An Uber shuttled arrivals up the hill amidst downpours scuttling any attempt to do planned antenna work. A separate posting will address “what’s next” regarding the Lazarus-like 160 vertical.
Attending: KS1J, K1DM, W1AN, NG1M, K3IU, K1ECU, KE1J, K1PAD, K1HSY, and W1XX (in the chair).
Treasurer NG1Mike reported we are still “flush” with cash in spite of the beau coup expenditure for K-cups on Field Day. Contest Manager K1ECU indicated we are in a bit of a lull on the contest calendar but about to pick up in September with the CQ WW RTTY Contest. Keep your powder dry.
Charlie, K1ECU, reported on his recent participation in the 4-day Teacher Institute on Wireless Technology at ARRL in Newington. This included a neat “show-and-tell” of a 2-meter radio operated “buoy” launched for reporting air and water temperatures. I can’t do justice in describing this excellent youth oriented program that Charlie will be incorporating into his environmental studies classroom. TNX Charlie!
Field Day Chairman W1XX reported on his mathematical analysis of the Field Day logs this is posted in the website where one can see conclusions. A lengthy discussion ensued that became mired “in the weeds” somewhere in the Great Swamp in South Kingstown. One result was that KE1J was tasked to research the merits, cost etc. of using a triplexer.
The September 8 meeting will be held at a luncheon table in Boxboro. W1AN will rent a club flea market space for which you are encouraged to bring your saleable boat anchors and other goodies. Be prepared to spend some time behind the counter.
Respectfully submitted,
John, W1XX
Abbreviated Minutes: CTRI Meeting April 14, 2018
By John Lindholm, W1XX
Meeting called to order at about 9:15 at the South Kingstown (Peace Dale) Library. Present: W1XX (in the chair), KB1RFJ, K1ECU, W1YRC, K1MO, AB1BX, W1AN, KS1J, K1HSY, K1DM, KC1FUU with introductions all around.
Treasurer’s report by KB1RFJ included a synopsis the $500 CTRI scholarship funded thru the ARRL.
The upcoming NEQP, May 5 – 6, was hyped to encourage CTRI participation. KS1J displayed the 2017 club plaque won again by CTRI with a total score of 596,912 with 11 entries.
W1XX gave a brief Field Day update: (1) “Folding Antenna” hexbeam arrived from DL-land awaiting being put together with K1DM and K3IU volunteering to assist; (2) Jim Crawford was contacted re availability of the Seagrave Observatory venue…awaiting meeting of Trustees; (3) K1DM will renew our insurance certificate; 4) more updates to come as we get closer to Field Day date of June 23 – 24.
In a surprise but welcome move, as Charlie K1ECU, began to express his willingness to give the vacant Contest Manager’s job a shot, a quick motion was passed to so elect Charlie. Congratulations!
Welcome to two newly elected members: Dave, K1MO from Cumberland and Andy, AB1BX from Warren. It was pointed out that Warren is in rare Bristol County for NEQP purposes. K1JSM will send them website access info.
Next meeting: May 12 at time and venue TBD. As a further prep for FD and for gaining familiarity with N1MM+ logging program, a video by Larry, K8UT on YouTube will be shown (TNX K3IU for info). K1JSM: Please bring projector. Donuts/coffee will be picked up by K1HSY.
The formal part of the meeting was adjourned for our Section Manager Bob, W1YRC, who did the commentary on the historic 1S1A 1973 video of the first credited DX-pedition to the Spratly Islands. It was most entertaining as Bob had a connection to the operation serving as its QSL Manager.
73.
A presentation by Lars Mohlin, KE1J at Jan 13, 2018 CTRI Contest Group meeting.
The meeting on July 8th was attended by W1XX, K1DM, NG1G, K3IU, KB1RFJ, KE1J, KS1J, K1PAD, K1HSY, N1EYE, KC1FUU.
After a brief discussion of remote operation and it related ethics, remote operating aficionado KE1J Lars said that he would work on providing a demo. A few pesky details need to be worked out especially with the remote site providers. But Lars thinks this can be done. He will keep us all posted.
K1SD wasn’t available for a formal contesting report but John W1XX provided some final info on our Field Day 2017 efforts. First, one of the goals of Field Day is to expose the public to the capabilities of ham radio. This goal was more than achieved as visitors from our gracious hosts (the Skyscrapers) once again dropped by to see how the FD effort was proceeding. Also we had neighborhood visitors stop in and one young lady engaged in an extensive conversation with Molly KC1FTO. Hopefully her interest will be sustained and she catches the ham radio bug! According to John, we did well on two other fronts. Another goal of FD is to have fun and get members of the club to gather and renew their CTRI interests. Well last year we had a good turnout with 13 visitors but this year we had 26 club members either operating, listening in or just stopping by to rag chew. These were: W1AN, K1DM, W1XX, KB1RFJ, NG1G, KW2G, W1WBB, K3IU, KC1FTO, KC1FUU, WB2VVV, KE1J, KA1CQR (NOW NA1CN – Congrats on the new call Chuck), K1KI, W1YRC, KS1J, NR1H, W1HI, K1HSY, K1SD, K1SX, K1ECU, WF1B, K1FUG, K1JSM. On the second front, we broke last years record despite the crumby rain on Saturday morning. We landed 2062 points compared to last year’s 1954. Bonus points – Public Location (100); Public Info (Banner) – 100; SCM Message (100); K3IU copied Bulleting (100); Alt Power (Solar) – (100); Education- (100); Web – (50); Youth Participation – (40); Social Media (Lars) – (100) and Safety Officer (Bill W1WBB) – 100.
KE1J asked for FD photos so that he might post them on the clubs Facebook page.
K3IU – Ken moved to send $100 to Skyscrapers. This motion passed unanimously. We all greatly appreciate the hospitality the Skyscrapers have extended to us these past two years.
KB1RFJ Mike reported that the balance of the club treasury was $8,855.81. FD expenses were $129.06. KS1J extended thanks to Mike on behalf of the entire club for his commissary work and overall FD participation. Great Job Mike!
It was announced that Jule Knappik KB1YTT was the first recipient of the ARRL Memorial Scholarship sponsored by CTRI in memory of Chris. A thank you note was received.
K1JSM John is updating the website as time permits. When it is ready, he will let all know.
We had a good extemporaneous EME discussion. EME is possible with good yagi and 200 watts. Jon offered to bring his gear to a location to demo and would be willing to go to member’s homes as well. . This would be another great club project.
Kind of along the same subject, KS1J asked about JT65 and CTRI members who might be using for other than EME purposes. Pat NG1G said that he would exhume an old presentation that he had on meteor scatter propagation in which JT65 was used. Mike K1DM said a demo could also be setup using two laptops .
Mike K1DM reminded everyone that the upcoming Solar Eclipse will be the basis for a ham radio QSO party designed to generate data on the eclipse’s impact on propagation and the ionosphere. This will be on August 21. More details will be in the August QST.
The next meeting (August 12) will be at John W1XX QTH. Actually it is an antenna party disguised as a club meeting. We will be asked to resurrect John’s 160 antenna!
Finally the subject of the upcoming Boxboro Hamvention was raised. KS1J asked if the club would be interested in setting up a Flea Market table. It has been a while since this was done and I am sure there could be enough in our junk piles to populate a table. Further the table always served as a meeting point for members. However, it is a pain since it has to be manned all time. We will decide at the next meeting.
Next meeting is August 12
Downscope and 73
Jim KS1J
We had a most excellent meeting here on April 15th. In attendance were: K1SD, K1FUG,W1AN, W1XX, K1DM, KE1J, KS1J and new member K1PAM (ROB). Present in spirit were KB1RFJ and Pat NG1G. K1PAM was introduced around and immediately granted membership by unanimous vote.
