This month’s meeting will be in person at Warner Pacific University, SE 68th Ave and SE Division St – a new location for us as our usual meeting space at Portland Community College SE is not available. I will send a detailed map next week.
Adam and Jeff with be presenting an overview of the 3 ultra marathons that we provided communications for this summer. We will also have instructions and a demonstration of using acoustic coupling for SSTV (slow scan TV) using your cell phone and radio.
Fall is in the air! We will be moving to online Zoom meetings for at least January and February, and possibly November.
A reminder: The new 2023 Regional Template has been posted to the website. There are several important changes to the Multnomah County frequencies and we hope you will get your radios programmed soon. The County and Cities EOCs are all updated as well as all the MCARES go kits. If you need help programming your radio, contact your team leader.
This month’s meeting/BBQ/raffle will be in person at Wilshire Park at NE 33rd Ave and NE Skidmore St. Grill master Bob KG1BOB will be serving up the best burgers and dogs in town. We will have chips, watermelon and cold drinks. Feel free to bring family to enjoy an evening in the very shady and forested Wilshire Park. If you feel inspired, bring a side dish to share. There is plenty of parking on Skidmore Street.
The new 2023 Regional Template has just been posted to the website. There are several important changes to the Multnomah County frequencies and we hope you will get your radios programmed soon.
We have completed the third and final ultra marathon communications event at Mount St. Helens. We really appreciate all of you who have helped out!
There are more opportunities to volunteer with our friends at Go Beyond racing as they do a few races that are out of our area. The sign-up sites are:
Oregon 200
Mountain Lakes 100
I look forward to seeing you all at Wilshire Wilshire Park. This event is one of my favorite gatherings each year!
This month’s meeting will be in person at the Community Hall at the Portland Community College SE campus. I will send more details next week for those who may not have been there yet. Our annual BBQ meeting will be on August 24 at Wilshire Park on NE 33rd Avenue and NE Skidmore Street in picnic area “A”.
We have just completed the second Ultra marathon communications event at Mt. Hood. We have one more coming up on August 5 and 6 near Mt. St. Helens. These are so much fun, as well as rewarding and such great training for our members. If you have not yet volunteered for one, we encourage you to give it a try! We will partner you with an experienced operator. The race directors really appreciate our help keeping the runners safe, and being in touch with the aid station staff is paramount. We really appreciate all of those who have helped out!
The new MCARES Starlink satellite antenna went on its first outing last weekend! Deep in the woods of Mt. Hood national forest it found its buddies up in the sky and performed flawlessly. It was a valuable resource for an internet connection and internet phone service. One use case example was an injured runner’s wife wanted to inform other family members of his status and we were able to let her connect to our Starlink to make that call. This is another awesome communications tool for the MCARES trailer!
The 2023 Regional Template has just been released by Kent Powloski. There are several important changes to the Multnomah County frequencies, and our template master, Joe WA7FWC, is working on our local template. He should have his work completed very soon and we will let you know when it is available on our website. Thanks, Joe, for all your hard work!
Thanks to everyone who participated in the February 26 Winlink from Home exercise! We had 43 members participate. Team leaders reported mixed results in the success rate so we will schedule a redo of this exercise in April. Stay tuned for that date.
The March 23 meeting will be at our new meeting location at Portland Community College, Southeast campus (SE Division and 82nd Ave). We will send building details and parking instruction prior to the March meeting.
The Ultra Marathon planning team has set a target date of March 31 to send out a Signup Genius for all three summer marathons. Take a look at the dates and try to save a few to your calendar.
- June 24: Wy’East Wander Mt. Hood near Parkdale
- July 15-16: Mt. Hood Trail Run
- Aug 5-6: Volcanic near Mt St. Helens
We will need your help to staff the various needed positions! Thanks!
For those who may not already know, the USS Blueback submarine is part of the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, located on the east side of the Willamette River just below the I-5 bridge here in Portland. The submarine is moored in the river right in front of the museum. The Blueback was decommissioned in 1990 and brought to the Museum in 1994.
The radio room on board the sub has been inactive for the past several years primarily due to the pandemic. The person in charge of the radio room (called the “CHOP” in the Navy) has decided to step back from that role. OMSI has been looking for new leadership to reactivate the station and carry on operations. Several MCARES members who have been working as volunteers at OMSI – Bob Cady W7JNM, Ken Cone K7BXI, and Steve Hall W7SRH – learned of the desire to reactivate the station and have decided to take this on.
Bob, Ken, and Steve recently met with the OMSI submarine staff and the outgoing “CHOP” (station manager). They were able to reactivate the station which included testing the antennas to ensure they were functioning properly, bringing power back to the radio equipment, and locating station documentation. They are also learning about how radio room operations might fit into or conflict with submarine tours.
The new radio team is in the process of developing an operations schedule to include several special events and some form of educational opportunities for those interested in amateur radio. If appropriate, the team will seek authorization for other MCARES members to visit the station and participate in these events. An update will be provided when the station operating schedule is finalized.
Photo credit: Steve Hall W7SRH
Winter Field Day was at Scouters Mountain on January 28 and it was great fun. We braved the chilly weather and set up two stations. Joe had his awesome Yaesu FT DX 10 for voice, and Bob and Ken brought their Elecraft stations for CW. Propagation was very good and we were able to make contacts as far away as Nova Scotia and southern Florida, and many places in between. We appreciate all who visited and helped out. A special thanks to Joe for submitting our logs to the WFD organization. The chili dogs were consumed at a very high rate!
We are super excited to have a new meeting location at Portland Community College’s Southeast campus (SE Division and 82nd Ave). Our March 23 meeting will be there as will all other in-person meetings. We will send building details and parking instructions prior to the March meeting.
We are planning a Winlink exercise from home for Sunday, February 26 at 10:00am. Please save the date. The drill guide will be sent via email soon. Time to dust off the equipment and practice, practice, and practice!
The early planning has begun for the three Ultra Marathons this summer. Take a look at the dates and try to save a few to your calendar.
- June 24: Wy’East Wander Mt. Hood near Parkdale
- July 15-16: Mt. Hood Trail Run
- Aug 5-6: Volcanic near Mt St. Helens
We will need your help to staff the various needed positions.
We have a few new and exciting changes for 2023!
We are looking for a new meeting location – somewhere closer in town – and hope to have that nailed down soon. We will keep you posted on the progress.
Multnomah County Emergency Management just announced their new EOC will be located on the 2nd floor of the Multnomah building. We hear a new radio room will be a priority.
We have been contacted by Todd Janssen from Go Beyond Racing and asked if we can volunteer for a couple more of their ultra-marathon events this summer. Leadership has agreed to add the following races:
- June 24: Wy’East Wander Mt. Hood near Parkdale
- July 15-16: Mt. Hood Trail Run
- Aug 5-6: Volcanic near Mt St. Helens
Please save the dates as we will need as many members as possible to support these events.
Multnomah County Emergency Management is in the planning stages of a statewide Cascadia Subduction Zone Earthquake Exercise in June. This is a large, full-scale, multi-agency event. Jeff KI7TVE is representing MCARES in the planning process. The last Cascadia exercise was in 2016 and we are looking forward to providing emergency communications on June 13 and possibly June 14.
The January 26 MCARES meeting will be online via Zoom. Bruce AA7PB and I will be presenting on the new MCARES Power Kits. We will talk about uses, safety, how to start the generator, and a video presentation.
The November 17 MCARES meeting will be in-person at Portland Fire & Rescue Station 2 at 4800 NE 122nd Ave. Jeff WX7OR will be presenting “Winlink Beyond the Basics.” The parking lot gate closes at 7PM sharp so plan to arrive a little early.
I am pleased to announce that Phyllis W7ZM has been chosen to be our new net manager. We are looking forward to working with Phyllis to keep our weekly nets running smoothly.
Carrie K7CAC has resigned as Charlie team Leader and AEC. The Charlie team is our largest team and Carrie has done a great job and will be missed. We are looking for a new team leader and will keep you posted on the search.
We have been asked by the Portland office of the National Weather Service to participate in their Skywarn Recognition Day on December 3. Steve W7SRH and Adam KF7LJH are working on the details. This is a great opportunity for the ARES trailer, and our members will have an opportunity to participate. Stay tuned for more details coming soon.
Multnomah County Emergency Management is in the planning stages of a statewide Cascadia Subduction Zone Earthquake Exercise in June of 2023. This is a large full-scale multi-agency event. Jeff KI7TVE is representing MCARES in the planning process. The last Cascadia exercise was in 2016 and we are looking forward to providing emergency communications again next year.
Please note there will not be a December membership meeting. The leadership team will be holding its annual planning session. If you have ideas or input for 2023 please send them to leadership [at] multnomahares [dot] org.
The October 27 MCARES meeting will be online using Zoom. We will send the link for the meeting a few days before the meeting. Non-members can contact Leadership [at] MultnomahARES [dot] org to receive a link to the meeting. Dylan N4LYD will be presenting “Forms and Logging”.
A reminder that the November MCARES meeting will be one week earlier because of the Thanksgiving holiday – that means November 17. This meeting will likely be in person at PF&R Station #2. Jeff WX7OR will be presenting “Winlink – Beyond the basics”.
The fall statewide ARES SET is coming soon on Saturday, October 29. The guidance from the state ARES folks was rather late so our county plan is still being worked on. We hope to have the drill guide out to you later this week. Stay tuned.
We are sad to announce that Rachel KI7NMB is stepping down as our net manager. She has done a fantastic job and she will be missed for sure! Our sincere thanks to Rachel for her many years of service.
We are very pleased to announce that our September 22 membership meeting/training will be in person at Portland Fire & Rescue Training Center (4800 NE 122nd Ave). After over two years it will be great to meet again live! John KI7LYP will be demonstrating how to assemble Anderson Power Pole connectors and SO239/PL259 coax connectors, a needed skill for every ham radio operator. We hope you can join us. We encourage you to wear a mask if it makes you feel more comfortable however there are no mask requirements at this time.
It was great to see so many of you at the August go-kit BBQ at Sellwood Park. The raffle was a huge success and added about $1200 to our bank account. The funds raised every year help us pay for insurance and license fees for both of our trailers, food and drinks for the BBQ, swag for our annual GPS Food Drive and equipment and propane for both trailers and go-kits. This year the red “Beast Trailer” is undergoing a complete overhaul to be turned into an operating station for our west side radio operations. The added funds will help purchase equipment for the Beast.
Stay tuned for news about the ARES Fall Statewide SET (simulated emergency test). The plan is still being worked on and I hear it will be in late October.
