PICTURES FROM AUGUST PICNIC
WARC held a picnic August 5 at Julian Price Park on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Over 25 members and guests attended, and a good time was had by all.
WA4J PARTICIPATES IN 2024 NC QSO PARTY!
On Sunday, February 23, 2025, WARC participated (for the third time ever) in the North Carolina QSO party. A Group of enthusiastic Contesters assembled at the QTH of W4MW, and operated from 10 am till 8 pm. We used two stations in the Low-Power1 (100W) & Mixed (Cw/SSB) mode.
Operators included Rich – K1HE, Eric – NI4E, Roger – W4MW,, Corey – WB0RXQ and , Mark – K4CK, and Justin – KO4VOX.
BAND QSOs last year (2024)
80 113 116
40 297 407
20 407 265
15 34 32
10 13 6
2 35 0
TOT 899 830
AS SOON AS THE FINAL SCORES ARE PUBLISHED, WE WILL UPDATE THIS SECTION. STAY TUNED.
CALL COUNTY SCORE QSOs
K4MN CUMB 337,835 1053
W4MR JOH 289,375 907
WA4J WAT 253,160 829
GREETINGS FROM THE HIGH COUNTRY
Despite a dusting of snow yesterday and a 6 am overnight low of 30 degrees, there are hints that Spring may
not be too far away. Today, Tuesday, in the afternoon, the high temperature here (near Tweetsie Railroad) was
66 degrees.
However, the weather at this time of year can be fickle and unpredictable. Weather forecasts on the TV call for
1-3 inches of snow in and around Boone-Banner Elk on this coming Friday.
People up here know that early-Spring and late-Winter storms can involve some surprising and, at times, brutal
weather.
In 1993 a Superstorm and Blizzard on March 13 dumped 50 inches of snow up on Mt. Mitchell and there were
three foot high snow drifts around here in the High Country. I watched NC Forest Service and National Guard
helicopters land in the Boone Mall parking lot where they picked up prescription drugs to be taken to isolated
persons in western Watauga.
Up here, blossoms don’t start popping out without the risk of being subject to freezing unit very late into April.
NWS offices in Blacksburg VA and Morristown TN earlier today posted messages about a high danger of
wildfires through Thursday evening due to dry conditions coupled with wind and very low (15-25%) humidity.
ARRL Matters
DREAM SWEEPSTAKES
The ARRL and ICOM have announced the Dream Station Sweepstakes in which some lucky person will win a top
of the line ICOM station that includes an ICOM 7769 200 watt HF plus 6 meter transceiver, an ICOM 1KW
amplifier, a desk mike and a SEIKO commemorative watch. I have been told that the station is valued at around
$17,000.
Persons who join ARRL or renew their League membership, donate to the ARRL Diamond Club or set up
automatic membership renewals earn varying numbers of chances towards winning the station. Sweepstake
rule and information can be found at https://www.arrl.org/arrl-
sweepstakes?utm_source=Informz&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=ARRL&_zs=Nnrwl&_zl=wNmG3&fbcli
d=IwY2xjawJByEZleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHSmSkwkpAgmYXfWLAJDF77mBif3g-
yUmCm8gto4b8XXb1gE64_LE_e5fDw_aem_VsxzZ8Km6RMv-kQyJ5Q0Bw . No purchase is necessary and the
sweepstakes run until December 31, 2025.
RADIO OPEN HOUSE
ARRL has invited hams to participate in a Radio Open House on April 18 that is part of a worldwide celebration
on World Amateur Radio Day. ARRL hopes that clubs will participate and use the event to publicize ham radio
and highlight ham radio as a pathway to careers involving Science, Engineering, Engineering and Mathematics.
Information can be found at https://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-ham-radio-open-house-site-locator-live-pr-
workshop-registration. ARRL has posted a map on which groups can post the location of their Open House so
the club can invite the public to participate.
ARRL CLUB NEWS
ARRL recently started producing its Club News which contains information that highlights activities undertaken
by various clubs and offers suggestions about how to keep a club vital and active. In order to receive the
monthly issue of Club News ARRL members may subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing their Member
Data Page at www.arrl.org/opt-in-out . Archived issues can be found at www.arrl.org/club-news .
ARRL has just published an updated manual for club leaders that can be downloaded at the club page at the
arrl.org webpage.
NC Section Traffic Report
Dave Roy (W4DNA) prepares a report each month that documents the activities on the various traffic nets that
operate within the NC Section. Set out below is an abbreviated version of his report. However, his complete
report can be found at https://www.ncarrl.org/documents/TrafficReports/2025-02_NC_STM_Report.pdf .
Thanks go out to each of the traffic handlers as well as the various net managers and, of course, to W4DNA.
W4DNA – NC Section Net Report – FEBRUARY 2025
NET NMGR QNI LISTED PASSED TIME SESSIONS TFC %
SECTION NETS
CN AA4MP 333 120 115 544 58 95.83%
CSN KI4KZS 107 25 25 746 28 100.00%
NCEN WK4WC 351 84 82 352 28 97.62%
NCMN W3OJO 320 155 154 491 28 99.35%
THEN N3TLV 510 0 0 571 28 N/A
LOCAL TRAFFIC NETS
CWTN N4CNX 353 124 124 552 28 100.00%
ENCTN W4DNA 117 11 11 214 24 100.00%
PCTN W4TTO 178 54 54 246 28 100.00%
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP NETS
C-MNN KI4FAQ 391 0 0 333 28 N/A
TOTAL 2660 573 565 4049 278 98.60%
FIELD DAY PLANNING
Field Day is coming up on June 28-29. The event is always held on the fourth weekend in June each
year. Hundreds of clubs across the country set up stations in parks and other public facilities to practice
their emergency operating skills while competing over how many contacts they can make during the 24
hour period involved in Field Day.
I travelled almost 4000 miles during my Field Day visits in the 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 Field Day
weekend. I am looking forward to additional across the state this year with hopes of visiting new and
additional clubs.
Clubs should begin their plans for Field Day and begin a publicity campaign that advises the public about
the opportunity to learn first-hand about and to talk over ham radio. Information about Field Day can
be found at https://www.arrl.org/field-day . Remember to publicize your Field Day operation and be
sure to list your location on the ARRL Field Day locator map.
FCC CHAIRPERSON SEEKS TO CUT RED TAPE
The recently appointed FCC Chairperson has publicly spoken about his desire to the increase the
efficiency of the FCC and plans to lead a concerted effort to repeal outdated and unnecessary FCC rules.
The public and groups affected by FCC rules are invited to submit by April 18 their suggestions for rules
to be repealed. Insiders expect that the FCC will receive an avalanche of comments and many groups
expect that the FCC will abolish numerous rules.
Opinions vary as to how likely there will be significant changes in rules. ARRL HQ has advised the
Section Managers that the ARRL FCC attorney and the CE0 are closely monitoring this topic and will
advise members when, how and where to offer comments.
Information on Chairperson Brendan Carr’s initiative can be found at
https://www.yahoo.com/news/trumps-fcc-chair-wants-know-211515186.html
DMR INFORMATION
Useful information about the PRN SYSTEM
There have been intermittent issues with the PRN “Last Heard” display. System
operators are aware that the computer that processes data from the CBridge (server)
occasionally shuts down and displays “502 Bad Gateway” instead of displaying
information about transmissions over the PRN system.
Rembert that very brief PTT kerchunks (less than one second in duration) do not show
up on the last heard. You should either give a lest count along with your call letters or
use the Echotest talkgroup and hear how your signal sounds.
Up here even with massive amounts of fiber and bandwidth, internet speed drop during
major sporting events like the Final Four. How much bandwidth can 21,000 students
and other use. Apparently quite a lot.
a.
Some users continue to be frustration by attempts to communicate over the PRN
system while using incorrect talkgroups or incorrect timeslots. System operators have
access to a nonpublic portal on the CBridge and we can see that attempts to use
talkgroups which are not included in the listing for each PRN repeater that can be found
at https://ncprn.net/?page_id=12). Such attempts are automatically dropped by the
CBridge, for example, when someone attempts to activate all 60 PRN repeaters but
they are using talkgroup 2 on timeslot 1. Another example would be someone using
Brandmeister Worldwide 91 on the PRN system; this is also rejected by the CBridge.
If you are using the PRN system, use the talkgroups on the timeslots listed on the
repeater page (ncprn.net).
b. Updated information about Brandmeister
Brandmeister DMR Network will stop supporting some DMR radioid’s, according to a
posting on the Brandmeister page (https://brandmeister.network/. For example,
beginning this summer, the Brandmeister DMR network will no longer support certain
devices with DMR IDs that begin with the number 1. Hams utilizing the Brandmeister
network with affected DMR IDs are encouraged to request a new ID from RadioID.
Brandmeister is requiring their users to obtain DMR IDs that adhere to a Mobile Country
Code (MMC) standard to help facilitate automated process that make up the
Brandmeister network. 5-digit CAP+ IDs will stop working June 1st. 7-digit personal
radio IDs starting with 1 will stop working January 1, 2026. Repeaters with 6-digit radio
IDs starting with 1 will continue to work indefinitely.
`UPCOMING EVENTS
A. RARSFEST April 5
We are only a couple of weeks away from the Raleigh Amateur Radio Society’s RARSFEST which
is held annually in the Jim Graham Building at the NC State Fairgrounds in Raleigh. Competing
public events, including food and music events, have driven up the cost of motel rooms in and
near Raleigh. Information on the forums, license exams, demonstrations and dealers can be
found at https://www.rarsfest.org/
B. Dayton Hamvention May 16,17 and 18
Preparations are underway for the Dayton Hamvention which is the largest gathering of
amateur radio operators in North America. Hamvention began in 1952 and offers an
opportunity to meet with equipment manufacturers, major dealers, and League officials. There
are numerous presentations and forums. If you are looking for a part or piece of equipment, the
saying is that if you can’t find it at Dayton, it probably cannot be found anywhere. Motels space
gets booked up as far as 50 miles away from the Greene County Fairground, site of the
Hamvention. Information can be found at https://hamvention.org/
C. UNFEST May 3
Goldsboro will be the site of Unfest which will be held at 1st PH Church, 1100 The First Church
Rd., Goldsboro, NC 27530. This is a tailgating event running from 8 am to noon in the Church
parking lot and is organized by the Wayne County Amateur Radio Club.
D. Monster Mash May 15-18
NCEM will hold a communications exercise called the Monster Mash at the Dupont State Forest
Landing Strip near Brevard NC in Transylvania County. This is an opportunity for persons with
open Task Books to have portions of their books signed off. Information and registration can be
found at https://terms.ncem.gov/TRS/courseDesc.do?sourcePage=courseSearch&cofId=167388
E. Regional Communications Exercise June 17
The Eastern Healthcare Preparedness Coalition (Greensville NC) will hold a full scale
communications exercise using a variety of modes including Winlink, DMR, VIPER as well as
amateur radio. Participation is limited to groups affiliated with an emergency management
agency or amateur radio group. Prior training requirements are identified at.
https://terms.ncem.gov/TRS/courseDesc.do?sourcePage=courseSearch&cofId=167388 as is the
opportunity to register for the exercise.
F. Firecracker Hamfest July 12
Put on by the Rowan Amateur Radio Club in Salisbury, this event is held at the Salisbury Civic
Center 315 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave S, Salisbury, NC . Information can be found at
https://rowanars.org/ .
G. WCARS HAMFEST, JULY 26
The Western Carolina Amateur Radio Society will hold its hamfest at the Smokey Mountain
Event Center • 758 Crabtree Road • Waynesville, NC. When you want to escape the summer
heat in the Piedmont or Downeast, this is a great hamfest to attend. Information can be found.
HELP WANTED
Opportunities exist for interested persons to help with the NC Section’s operations. If you want to be
part of the team that keeps ham radio vital within this state, you may want to look over the Field
Organization job descriptions that are posted at https://www.arrl.org/field-organization .
Talented persons are urged to particularly look over these Field Organization positions:
Affiliated Club Coordinator
Public Information Coordinator
Technical Coordinator
CLOSING COMMENT
Listed above is a discussion about an initiative by the FCC Chairperson to delete hundreds of FCC rules
which are deemed to be obsolete, unnecessary, or too costly relative to the benefit derived from their
application. impact.
There can be no doubt that many rules could be done away with and would cause little
However, we should all remember that a rule we don’t like or think is unnecessary has some interest
group that has fought hard to get it adopted and derive benefits from its enforcement. Broadcasters,
cell companies, satellite system operators, ham radio operators, medical researchers, chemical
companies, and others all have rules they would like to see repealed and would like the enforcement
agencies to be reduced in size or be abolished.
My father always told me to be careful what you wish for.
Remember that doing away with rules may leave the field open for the biggest and strongest interest
groups to do what their economic resources permit while others with far fewer resources may wake up
to find that they actually are far worse off than they were under the repealed rules or abolished agency.
A simple phrase like cutting red tape sounds attractive but may lead us into completely uncharted
territory.
Marv Hoffman, WA4NC
NC Section Manager
Boone