Minutes of the Meeting of November 4, 2008
The meeting was held in the Kanata Room at Sobey's on Terry Fox Drive in Kanata.
The following members were present:
| Name | Call Sign | Position | MH Grid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harold Hamilton | VA3UNK | FN25 | |
| Bertrand Zauhar | VE2ZAZ | FN25 | |
| Doug Leach | VE3XK | Vice President | FN15 |
| Ken Halcrow | VE3SRS | Guest | FN25 |
| Andy Hart | VE3NVK | FN25bh | |
| Steve Attfield | VA3SAX | FN25bh | |
| J.P. Gendron | VA3JPG | Guest | FN25 |
| Valentin Doroga | VA3WO | FN25ci | |
| Graham Ide | VE3BYT | FN25ch |
As is usual, prior to the meeting a few of the stalwarts gathered for dinner at the local Swiss Chalet. Dale VE3XZT joined us for chicken but could not attend the meeting because of another commitment.
Doug VE3XK chaired the meeting in the absence of the President. Doug welcomed our guests Ken and Jean Pierre. Al VO1NO President, Ken VA3KA Treasurer, Barney VA3BGB Secretary and Rick VE3CVG Webmaster were absent.
Elections will be held at the December meeting. Doug and Ken are willing to stand for reelection to the executive.
Doug noted that there are tower sections available at reasonable prices. See the WCARC web site for details.
Beacons: Doug reported that the 144 MHz beacon transmitter is on order. The transmitters for the other bands (50, 222 and 430 bands) are in the cabinet and ready to go.
Beacon frequencies are:
- 50.009MHz
- 144.297MHz
- 222.068MHz
- 432.358MHz
- 903.365MHz
Repeaters: The 144 and 440 band repeaters are generous gifts from Manfred VA3WK. They are at the tower site of Christie and Walther near Prospect. There was no access until recently. Phil VE3CIQ, Dale VE3XZT and Doug VE3XK carried out an inventory of the equipment on November 1. The Hamtronics Ider EPROM is being reprogrammed for the VE3WCC callsign. There is a 1400 watt UPS for the repeaters. This UPS may need a new battery. Doug noted that he site has not suffered a power loss since the famous Ice Storm.
The IRLP on the 440 repeater is currently running to VE3LWX near Franktown. It will be relocated to VE3IAO in Almonte in the near future. Tests have shown a strong signal at VE3IAO.
The OARDG D-STAR system is reported to be working well.
For upcoming radio events, see the WCARC web site. Are you ready for Moonbounce (50 to 1296) on November 29th?
Note that the December meeting on the 2nd will be our annual Christmas Party and Election.
Following the business part of the meeting, Ken Halcrow VE3SRS gave an extensive and extremely interesting talk on the Canadian Forces Station at Alert NWT, with many photographs. Alert is only 450 miles from the North Pole. Ken went back to visit Alert for the 50th anniversary celebration of VE8RCS/VY0. For decades, phonepatches through VE8RCS were the only way station personnel were able to communicate with their families.
There is an interesting and comprehensive web site describing the Canadian Forces Station Alert in the past and present, at http://jproc.ca/rrp/alert.html. CFS Alert is largely controlled remotely now, but is still manned to a degree, partly to continue to assert Canada's sovereignty in the far north.
Graham Ide VE3BYT, for
Barney Baker VA3BGB, Secretary WCARC