The latest ARRL ARES E-Letter has been released.  You can see it on the ARRL web site.
Subjects this month include:

• Hurricane Season 2012
• Hams Active in Dexter, Michigan Tornado
• Santa Fe (New Mexico) ARES Supports SAR Mission
• Letters: NIMS and ICS Training Tailored to Area Hazards
• Illinois State Rep WV9C Visits Station at Illinois EMA Facility
• ARES Mutual Assistance Team (ARESMAT) Concept
• K1CE For a Final

All Amateur Radio Operators in Southwest and West Central Ohio, Northern Kentucky, and Southeast and East Central Indiana:

Starting May 1 you can register to volunteer for the 2012 USAF Marathon.  This year the marathon will be on September 15, 2012.  This amateur radio event requires approximately 55 operators to ensure complete coverage to provide communications for runner location, logistics, and emergencies from the Hydration Stations to the Race Officials. This world class event is a very high profile happening for amateur radio.

This event is an all day event for most operators so be prepared for a long but enjoyable and pleasurable event.  There are some locations that are not all day but they fill up quickly. You will get to meet and work with some great people and watch a world class event up close. In previous years operators have commented “this event is the most fun”!

Once training and packet pick-up dates are finalized, we will notify you via e-mail of the time and location.  We plan to have a guest speaker from the USAF Marathon staff, discuss the frequency and operations plans, open mic start procedures, general information, and we’ll be passing out the goody bags. Additionally, there will be individuals at the training session to assist you in setting up your radio with the correct frequencies.

The race officials greatly appreciate your professionalism and rely heavily on our skills as communicators.  For questions please e-mail Dave Crawford at KF4KWW@sbcglobal.net or cell (937)689-6894.

UPDATE:

USAF Marathon Volunteer registration is now open.  Please use the following
procedures: (Click here for a PDF with detailed instructions)

- Go to usafmarathon.com

- Volunteer Tab – Volunteer Registration Now Open

- Click on the “Click here to volunteer now” link

- Hit the Green “Register Now” button

- Go to “Race Day Saturday September 15th National Museum of the United States Air Force” (not hydration station)

- Select the “Race Day Amateur Radio Operator” radio button (second category from top)

- Scroll down on same page and select the “I agree to the above waiver”
button.

- Enter birthdate

- Enter digital signature (initials or type name)

- Hit the green “Agree & Continue” button

- Enter all personal information and answer questions (anything with a * red asterisk is a required field)

- Hit the Green “Continue” button

- Hit the Green “Submit” button at bottom – you will receive an email registration confirmation.

Please let me know when you have accomplished this so I can track the process better!!

_____

David A. Crawford, KF4KWW
kf4kww@sbcglobal.net

The Montgomery County ARES UHF Repeater,  444.250 (+),  PL of 123.0 Hz is now up and running. Please start monitoring and trying it so we can determine its coverage area across West Central Ohio.

Sunday June 3, 2012

Little Miami Triathlon Ft. Ancient State Memorial & Surrounding Area

8:00 AM to 4:00 PM

This is the 33rd year for the Little Miami Triathlon that is operated by Morgan’s Canoe Livery.

The race consists of a 6 mile canoe trip downstream on the Little Miami River followed by a 5.5 mile run back north to Ft. Ancient where the participants transition to bike and roll out on a 18 mile loop that extends north to the area of Caesar Creek.

Operators are needed to provide safety and logistics communication and likely assist with sag support again.

Communications for the event is run entirely on simplex so a 50w 2m mobile and decent antenna is preferred.

The first canoe will hit the water at 8:00 AM and there will be 6 teams starting every couple minutes. Due to the nature of the event and the number of participants this event will likely take till around 3:30 PM to 4:00 PM.

Anyone wishing to volunteer or to get more information can contact Rob Lunsford KB8UEY via email at kb8uey@yahoo.com or by phone at (937) 241-1861.

Saturday September 22, 2012

The Apitalis Cycle For Life (Cystic Fibrosis Greater Cincinnati)

Caesar Creek State Park & Surrounding Area

8:00 AM to 4:00 PM

This is the 3rd year for this event, the 2nd with the current primary sponsor. The ride is a fundraiser for The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

The start and finish will be at the public beach at Caesar Creek State Park just off of Ohio SR 73 east of Waynesville, OH.

There are multiple courses; those are still being worked on. The shortest runs over to Corwin, loops over toward the Caesar Creek Visitor’s Center on Clarksville Road, and back to the beach. The longest makes use of portions of the short route with the course being extended across the dam on Clarksville, back to the south of Harveysburg, over to the Wilmington Airport, and north to Spring Valley before coming back to Caesar Creek to finish.

Communications for the event will likely be on a single 2m repeater, however due to the geographical area covered a 50w 2m mobile and a good antenna is preferred.

They typically attempt to have everyone in off the course by 3:00 PM but both years so far something has come up the delayed our departure by a little bit.

Anyone wishing to volunteer or to get more information can contact Rob Lunsford KB8UEY via email at kb8uey@yahoo.com or by phone at (937) 241-1861.

Sunday October 7, 2012 Little Miami Triathlon

Ft. Ancient State Memorial & Surrounding Area

9:00 AM to 5:00 PM

This is the 33rd year for the Little Miami Triathlon that is operated by Morgan’s Canoe Livery.

The race consists of a 6 mile canoe trip downstream on the Little Miami River followed by a 5.5 mile run back north to Ft. Ancient where the participants transition to bike and roll out on a 18 mile loop that extends north to the area of Caesar Creek.

Operators are needed to provide safety and logistics communication and likely assist with sag support again.

Communications for the event is run entirely on simplex so a 50w 2m mobile and decent antenna is preferred.

The first canoe will hit the water at 9:00 AM and there will be 6 teams starting every couple minutes. Due to the nature of the event and the number of participants this event will likely take till around 4:30 PM to 5:00 PM.

Anyone wishing to volunteer or to get more information can contact Rob Lunsford KB8UEY via email at kb8uey@yahoo.com or by phone at (937) 241-1861.

EARS stands for Emergency Alert Radio System.  These are weather radios modified to activate when tones are sent through the 145.110 repeater.  Regular participants in the District 3 ARES net are familiar with these tones as they are sent during the test at the beginning of first net of every month (along with the MVPT test)

It works just as the normal NOAA weather radio does.  It monitors the 145.110 frequency with the audio muted.  When the tones are sent through the 145.110 repeater, the radio sounds a siren tone while the tones are being transmitted, then mutes the audio again.  You can also use it to monitor the 145.110 repeater.

A number of these radios were modified years ago by the then Kettering Medical Center ARA (ancestor of the current West Central Ohio ARA) and distributed to club members and throughout the ARES community.

However, as technology changed and models were discontinued, the base radios became unavailable and the club was not able to produce any more.  If you don’t have one, the only way to get one is to have one handed down to you from a previous user that’s left the area, left the hobby, or become an SK.

Recently, the club discovered a stash of the components needed to modify a specific model of weather radio to the EARS configuration.

The model they’ve been using is the Garland Model 46-219 Emergency Alert weather radio.  In the 90′s it was sold at Radio Shack and Sears stores.  It’s possible that the same radio was made with other brand name plates and model numbers.

So, if you have a working working Garland Model 46-219 Emergency Alert weather radio, and would like to have it modified as an EARS radio, you’re in luck!  The WCOARA is willing to perform the conversion for free!

If you have one and are not interested in an EARS radio, please consider donating it for conversion and distribution to the field.

If you don’t have one, keep your eyes open at flea markets and garage sales.  You never know what treasure you’ll discover.

For more information contact Keith KB8GYB

The Montgomery County ARES K8MCA Repeater, 146.640 minus offset, will implement a 123.0 Hz PL encode tone for repeater access after December 23^rd.

The PL tone access will be deactivated when the “Double Beep” is heard signifying that the Dayton Skywarn Net is in operation.

73’s

Robert M. Flory – KA5RUC

Emergency Coordinator

Montgomery County ARES

Former DEC Ron Moorefield retired effective October 1, 2011 after many years of service in this position.

Al Stone, KB8RPO, was confirmed as his replacement on 15 October 2011

Email: kb8rpo@frontier.com

More details to follow.

From the Ohio Section Notes, November 2011

Hello,

If you attended the Ohio ARES Management Meeting last spring in Mansfield, one thing rang LOUD and CLEAR, and that was training. After discussions with the Section Manager and our new ASM/Training John Frederick N8GOU, it was decided that before we establish training on a local/county level, ARES leadership will need to step up and fulfill some training minimums.

Effective December 31 2011, to be considered for appointment in the Ohio Section for the positions of District Emergency Coordinator, Assistant District Emergency Coordinator, or County Emergency Coordinator, the applicant must have taken and passed FEMA Courses IS-100, 200, 700 and 800.

Effective January 1, 2013 all holders of the positions of District Emergency Coordinator, Assistant District Emergency Coordinator, or County Emergency Coordinator the applicant must have taken and passed FEMA Courses IS-100, 200, 700 and 800. In my discussions around the Section, most of you, if not all have completed all or the majority of the above requirements, or will soon. Many DECs and ECs have mentioned that many of the County EMA offices ask IS-100, 200, 700, and 800 before they are issued credentials, or allowed into emergency facilities during an emergency. Remember these are MINIMUMS ONLY. There are many of the FEMA IS courses available on line at http://training.fema.gov/IS/ . Also remember that the ARRL offers the EMCOMM classes, and you can view that catalog at http://www.arrl.org/online-course-catalog.

So PLEASE take advantage of the educational resources available to you, and I am sure programs will become available as our new ASM John Fredrick, N8GOU talks to other ARES Leadership across the Section. If you have any questions on the topics above, please contact me.

73,

Jack Sovik, KB8WPZ

Ohio Section Emergency Coordinator

More discussion of the training requirements by John Frederick, N8GOU can be found on the Ohio Section News page