SARC Bi-weekly Bulletin: March 19, 2025

 

This bulletin, issued during the first and third week of each month, provides a quick reference for SARC member activities, resources and links.  If you have relevant information that you would like included in the next bulletin, please respond to membership@ve7sar.net.   

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

VB7MAN Special Event Station – Operation Manna 80

BC hams will join other amateur organizations in Canada, the Netherlands, England, Poland and Australia in honouring the memory of those who participated in Operation Manna, a humanitarian mission carried out near the end of WWII by the RAF and Allies who dropped food supplies to the starving population of the German-occupied Netherlands.  BC hams, by pre-arrangement, may book use of the callsign VB7MAN, which will be available only between April 1st and May 10th, 2025.  The full story of Manna 80 can be found at https://manna80.radio/ .  Also check Callsign Database - QRZ.com for updates on VB7MAN, including a Google Calendar link to reserve your operating spot.

Comprehensive Index to Communicator Articles Now Available

Thanks to the tremendous efforts of Blake VA7BWG and Reg VA7ZEB, a database index of Communicator articles back to 2007 is now available at Search the Communicator. Try it out by entering a topic, author or anything in the search box.  Then if you click on author, topic or chronological index in PDF DOWNLOAD, it will bring up and index where you can find the page number of interest for your selection.  Scroll way down to the relevant page number until you find the article, which you can open and/or download as a pdf.  You will be amazed at the speed and flexibility of this search. 

RAC Presents Canadian Amateur Radio Hall-of-Fame Commendation to John Schouten VE7TI

In the photo are recipient, John Schouten VE7TI with Hiroshi Takahashi VA7LET, RAC Director for BC Yukon Region.  Keith Whitney, past RAC Director, was also present.  As a SARC director, editor of the SARC Communicator and long-time ham class instructor, John’s contributions to the entire Amateur community have been and continue to be extensive.

Parks-on-the-Air (POTA) Brochure Available

Members who do POTA are frequently approached by passers-by enquiring what we are doing. For this purpose, John VE7TI has created a SARC POTA brochure that can be handed out. The .pdf file is available for download at https://bit.ly/POTAbrochure.

 
SARC’s 6m Beacon is Back on the Air

The 6m beacon, disabled in February by RF from a nearby HF antenna, has been generously repaired by Les VA7OM, who replaced the damaged amplifier and installed bandpass filters on the output.  The beacon is again in operation as VE7SAR/B on 50.070 MHz transmitting 2w from SARC’s Operations Centre near King George Blvd and 142 St.  Hats off to Dino VE7NX and Les VA7OM for this excellent project. Let us know if you are hearing the beacon from your location.

 

New Incoming QSL Card Service

See details under “POTPOURRI” at the end of this bulletin. 

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

Burnaby ARC Swap Meet (March 22)

To be held at the Salvation Army Cariboo Temple, 7195 Cariboo Rd, Burnaby. Doors open for sellers at 8 am, buyers at 9 am until noon.  SARC has reserved 2 tables for sale of club surplus items, and members are welcome to bring their own ham items to sell.  For more information: Swap Meet – BARC.

 
Get-On-The-Air (GOTA) Workshop (March 29)

This workshop is to familiarize newly certified hams with amateur radio resources, technical issues and especially how to use their radios.  It will be held at the OTC at 5756 142 St. on March 29 from 9:30 to noon.   If you are a beginner who wants to learn more, you can register for the workshop at: course@ve7sar.net.  Note: seats are limited to 12 persons so register early. 

Tsunami Exercise (March 29)
Contributed by Horace VA7XHB.  This is a collaboration of ARES LAX Northeast, San Diego ARES , Hawaii ARES, San Joaquin Valley Section, Whatcom County (WA) ACS/ARES, Snohomish County (WA) ACS , WLNET-OE, Winlink Treff and the Emcomm Training Organization.  For more information see:  2025 Tsunami Exercise Website: https://myvsc.com/tsunami and 2025 Tsunami Exercise Instructions: https://myvsc.com/tei.

Members with Winlink capability are encouraged to participate.  Use SEPAR as your Winlink tactical callsign, include SEPAR in the “Send To” address field and provide SEPAR as your group affiliation.  More on Winlink below.

 

SARC General Meeting (April 9)
Les VA7OM will present on foxhunting, in preparation for our annual foxhunt in May. 

 

World Amateur Radio Day (April 18)

World Amateur Radio Day is not a contest, rather it is an opportunity to promote the value of amateur radio to the public and our amateur colleagues as a lead-up to ARRL Field Day.  See World Amateur Radio Day for further information.

 

More Contests …

·         Mar. 22-23       Africa All Mode International DX Contest

·         Mar. 29-30       CQ WW WPX Contest SSB

·         April 13            ARRL Rookie Roundup SSB

·         April 19-20      CQMM DX Contest CW

If you wish to participate as an SARC team or individually in any of these contests, please let me know by return email.  

 

SARC Annual Foxhunt (May 10) – Bring Your Mother!

Mark your calendars… SARC’s foxhunt and BBQ held annually at Crescent Park in South Surrey on Mothers’ Day weekend is open to members, family members and others.  You do not have to be a ham to participate.  Use your own 80m ARDF receiver or we have loaners available – or you can purchase one.  Further details, including sign-up information, will be provided in a later bulletin.   Also, note that Search & Rescue has a training event on Saturday, May 10^th and also because this is the day of our annual foxhunt, the OTC will not be available for our use.

 

Winlink

SARC has two Winlink Gateways, one at Surrey Firehall 1 using callsign VE7HME-10 on 145.710 MHz and a second on Concord tower at 100th Ave and King George Blvd using callsign VE7ADQ-10 on 145.770 MHz, packet 1200 Baud and VARA FM Wide capable.

Horace VA7XHB has started a Winlink net. Every 1st and 3rd Monday, participants will get a Winlink message that includes: 1) a question or request for action; 2) a tip; 3) results of previous week's question/action.  You have until the following Sunday to reply using any Winlink mode including Telnet.  To participate, send a Winlink message to VE7ADF.

 

Every Saturday Morning (except when other scheduled events conflict)

Members, spouses and prospective members are invited to join the SARC Breakfast social every Saturday morning from 7 to 9:30 am at Denny's Restaurant 6850 King George Blvd, followed by Operations & Training Centre ("OTC") activation from 9:30 am to noon at 5756 142 St. Surrey.  At the OTC you may get help with your radio issues, operate the station radios including satellite station, participate in contests, write the exam, or join in workshops and training.  Or just engage in friendly discussion with your fellow hams. 

SARC Official Calendar

Your official reference for dates and times of events is the SARC Google Calendar, which is updated as details change, so please check the homepage on the SARC website: www.ve7sar.net.

 

NETS & REPEATERS

Tuesday Nets

Join the SEPAR net every Tuesday at 7:30 pm and the SARC net at 8 pm on either of the repeaters: North repeater is on 147.360 MHz tone 110.9 Hz and South repeater is on 147.360 MHz tone 103.5 Hz. You can also join via IRLP (node 1736) and Echolink (node 496228), which are available only on the North repeater.

 

Sunday Monthly 220 MHz Net (next one is March 30)
Join the 220 MHz net taking place at 7:30 pm on the last Sunday of every month on VE7RSC repeater 223.960 MHz -1.6MHz tone 110.9 Hz, with net control, Shawn VE7BD.  This is not a "chat" net – just check in, exchange signal reports, and get on with your evening.

 
Yaesu System Fusion (YSF) repeater 443.775 MHz+ tone 110.9Hz

This repeater is connected full-time to CQ-Canada (VE1AO) room 40678 – home to the Cross Canada C4FM Weekly Net on Wednesday 6 pm PST or 0200 UTC. Located on the Concord high-rise in Surrey, it is one of the few System Fusion repeaters in BC that is WIRES-X capable (i.e. it connects to the Internet). Using your Yaesu C4FM radio, you can use this repeater to talk to the world.  It is connected to the highly fault-tolerant BC WARN Internet system, which is designed to remain operational during most internet outages. Familiarity with WIRES-X on our YSF repeater can play a crucial role in emergency preparedness.

 
Net Control Operators

From Reg VA7ZEB, Net Coordinator: You can find the full NCO Schedule here. If you are a Net Control Operator (NCO), we encourage you to review the schedule regularly to ensure you're satisfied with your shifts. If you'd like to be an NCO send a note to Reg:  reg@natarajan.ca.   "Net reminders" for those running or participating in various nets are automatically sent out by AdvancedAmateur.ca.  If you are forgetful like me, you may want to receive reminders by signing up at Net Reminders.

 
PROJECTS AND AD-HOC GROUPS

Satellite Station Project

Dino VE7NX is available to coach those who wish to learn how to make contacts via satellite using SARC's new satellite station.  Contact him at dimtchog@gmail.com or reply to this email if you would like to learn more.

 

IC-7300/IC-9700 Special Interest Group
This group is hosted by John Schouten VE7TI, with the most recent update on page 31 of the March-April 2025 Communicator.

 

Contesting Group

To participate in scheduled contests, or if you wish to operate the club station radios on your own time, please reply to membership@ve7sar.net.  Coaching is available as needed.

See WA7BNM Contest Calendar: Home for a complete list of available contests.

POTPOURRI

Do You Want to Learn CW?

Check out the Long Island CW Club, which has a comprehensive and highly-regarded on-line program for learning and mastering Morse Code: https://longislandcwclub.org/#. 

 

Advanced Amateur Group
Hosted by Reg VA7ZEB, this is for those who want to take amateur radio beyond the basics: advancedamateur.ca.  Among other things, here you can find a Vancouver Area Frequency List of useful frequencies across several services including Amateur, EmComm, Broadcast, Weather, LADD, Regional Road, FRS/GMRS, Railway, Airband and Marine. It can be easily downloaded in Generic CSV, Chirp and RT Systems format, or you can download it in PDF format for printing.

Free VE7DXE Advanced Certification Course:

ve7dxe@hamshack.ca

 

Controlling Power Line Transients

In his recent SARC presentation, Shawn VE7BD reviewed the more-common-than-you-might-think problem of power line transients, which can damage electronic equipment.  Shawn recommends the use of well-designed devices which can control these high voltage spikes, such as the ISOBAR6ULTRA available from Amazon.ca.   There will be an article on his presentation in the next Communicator.

See: Tripp Lite ISOBAR8ULTRA 8-Outlet ISOBAR Surge Protector, 3840 Joules : Amazon.ca: Electronics

 

Incoming QSL Bureau
Any member wishing to receive in-coming QSL cards should send Ken VE7BC an email at ve7bc27@gmail.com or call/text him at 604-816-5775 and the cards will be collected for local distribution by Shawn VE7BD.  Or, if you are simply wondering if Ken has any cards for you, please contact him.  Also…

 

New BC Incoming QSL Bureau Feature

Ken Clarke VE7BC and John Schouten VE7TI have created a new site which can tell you if you have QSL cards waiting at the bureau (although it is not yet complete for all callsigns but will be gradually updated) at BC Incoming QSL Bureau.   Also included is a detailed procedure for creating your own QSL cards using MS Word software. 

Download the March-April 2025 Communicator

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1j3uFaNl853TqxRvRBrzX_FxMtY0GA-vu/view?usp=sharing

 

Link to SARC’s Basic On-Line Basic Ham Class Overview:

Welcome to our courses.pdf - Google Drive.  We are now taking registrations for the next on-line course, which starts on April 7^th.   Cost is $80 per student unless you qualify for a family, group or student rate.

 

SARC Webpage, SARC Blog and SEPAR Blog: 

SARC – Surrey Amateur Radio Communications

 

Do You Want to Join Surrey Amateur Radio Communications?
Reply to membership@ve7sar.net.

 

WANTED OR FOR SALE BY MEMBERS

Locally Designed and Manufactured RX80M Foxhunt receivers for sale $125 CAD: 

See how it’s done here  https://youtu.be/YK3gETNc2jU and order from membership@ve7sar.net.

 

Summer Job Wanted
Successful Kwantlen summer course graduate and SARC member, Grace VA7LZT, graduates Grade 12 this year and is looking for a summer work experience opportunity, desirably in a technical field. Contact graceliu4132@gmail.com.

 

73, John VA7XB
membership@ve7sar.net

SARC Bulletin for March 5, 2025

 

This bulletin, issued during the first and third week of each month, provides a quick reference for SARC member activities, resources and links.  If you have relevant information that you would like to include in the next bulletin, please respond.  Unsubscribe option is offered at the end.

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

VB7MAN Special Event Station – Operation Manna 80

BC hams will join other amateur organizations in the Netherlands, England, Poland and Australia in honouring the memory of those who participated in Operation Manna, a humanitarian mission carried out near the end of WWII by the RAF and Allies in dropping food supplies to the starving population of the German-occupied Netherlands.  BC hams, by pre-arrangement, may book use of the callsign VB7MAN, which will be available only during the months of April and May 2025.  The full story of Manna 80 can be found at https://manna80.radio/ .  Also check callsign database - QRZ.com for updates on VB7MAN, including a Google Calendar link to reserve your spot. 

 

 

Parks-on-the-Air (POTA) Brochure Available
Members who do POTA are frequently approached by passers-by enquiring what we are doing. For this purpose, John VE7TI has created a SARC POTA brochure that can be given to those looking for additional information. The .pdf file is available for download at https://bit.ly/POTAbrochure.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Radio Society of Great Britain Commonwealth CW Contest (March 8-9)

This is the last call for CW operators.  Once known as the "BERU," the CC involves amateurs in the 56 member countries of the Commonwealth of Nations and their associated territories only. This gives us an exclusive shot at some very interesting DX.  Rules at: https://www.rsgbcc.org/hf/rules/2025/rcwc.shtml. 

SARC March General Meeting (March 12)

This will be an in-person meeting at the Surrey Fire Service Training Centre with Shawn VE7BD presenting on surge protection and noise reduction.  Watch for the notice.

Burnaby ARC Swap Meet (March 22)

To be held at the Salvation Army Cariboo Temple, 7195 Cariboo Rd, Burnaby. Doors open for sellers at 8 am, buyers at 9 am until noon.  SARC has reserved 2 tables for sale of surplus items, and members are welcome to bring their own ham items to sell.  For more information see: Swap Meet – BARC.

World Amateur Radio Day (April 18)

World Amateur Radio Day is not a contest but rather an opportunity to “talk” about the value of amateur radio to the public and our fellow amateur colleagues. It is also a great opportunity to promote your radio club and amateur radio in local media as a lead-up to ARRL Field Day.  See World Amateur Radio Day for further information.   

SARC Annual Foxhunt (May 10)

Mark your calendars … SARC’s foxhunt and BBQ held annually at Crescent Park in South Surrey is open to members, family members and others.  You do not have to be a ham to participate.  Bring your own 80m receiver, or we have loaners available.  Further details, including sign-up information, will be provided in a later bulletin.   Also … Search & Rescue has a training event on Saturday, May 10^th and also because this is the day of our annual foxhunt, the OTC will not be available for our use.

WinLink News

SARC has two Winlink Gateways, one at Surrey Firehall 1 using callsign VE7HME-10 on 145.710 MHz and a second on Concord tower at 100th Ave and King George Blvd using callsign VE7ADQ-10 on 145.770 MHz, packet 1200 Baud and VARA FM Wide capable.

Horace VA7XHB has started a Winlink net. Every 1^st and 3^rd Monday, participants will get a Winlink message that includes: 1) a question or request for action; 2) a tip;  3) results of previous week's question/action.  You have until the following Sunday to reply using any Winlink mode including Telnet.  To participate, send a Winlink message to VE7ADF.

Also There will be a Tsunami Exercise for Winlink on March 29.  

Watch for more information in next bulletin.

Every Saturday Morning (except when other scheduled events conflict)

Members, spouses and prospective members are invited to join the SARC Breakfast social every Saturday morning from 7 to 9:30 am at Denny's Restaurant 6850 King George Blvd, followed by Operations & Training Centre ("OTC") activation from 9:30 am to noon at 5756 142 St. Surrey.  At the OTC you may get help with your radio issues, operate the station radios including satellite station, participate in contests, write the exam, or join in workshops and training.  Or just engage in friendly discussion with your fellow hams. 

SARC Official Calendar

Your official reference for dates and times of events is the SARC Google Calendar, which is updated as details change, so please check the homepage on the SARC website: www.ve7sar.net.

NETS & REPEATERS

Tuesday Nets

Join the SEPAR net every Tuesday at 7:30 pm and the SARC net at 8 pm on either of the repeaters: North repeater is on 147.360 MHz tone 110.9 Hz and South repeater is on 147.360 MHz tone 103.5 Hz.  IRLP (node 1736) and Echolink (node 496228) are only available on the North repeater.

Sunday Monthly 220 MHz Net (next one is March 30)

Join the 220 MHz net taking place at 7:30 pm on the last Sunday of every month on VE7RSC repeater 223.960 MHz -1.6MHz tone 110.9 Hz, with net control, Shawn VE7BD.  This is not a "chat" net – just check in, exchange signal reports, and get on with your evening.

Yaesu System Fusion (YSF) repeater 443.775 MHz+ tone 110.9Hz

This repeater is connected full-time to CQ-Canada (VE1AO) room 40678 – home to the Cross Canada C4FM Weekly Net on Wednesday 6 pm PST or 0200 UTC. Located on the Concord high-rise in Surrey, it is one of the few System Fusion repeaters in BC that is WIRES-X capable (i.e. it connects to the Internet). Using your Yaesu C4FM radio, you can use this repeater to talk to the world.  It is connected to the highly fault-tolerant BC WARN Internet system, which is designed to remain operational during most internet outages. Familiarity with WIRES-X on our YSF repeater can play a crucial role in emergency preparedness.

Net Reminders

"Net reminders" for those running or participating in various nets are automatically sent out by AdvancedAmateur.ca.  If you are forgetful like me, you may want to receive reminders by signing up at Net Reminders.

 

PROJECTS AND AD-HOC GROUPS 

Satellite Station Project
Dino VE7NX is available to coach those who wish to learn how to make satellite contacts using SARC's new satellite station.  Contact him at dimtchog@gmail.com or reply to this email if you would like to learn more.

 

 Contesting Group

To participate in scheduled contests, or if you wish to operate the club station radios on your own time, please reply to membership@ve7sar.net.  Coaching will be provided as needed. See WA7BNM Contest Calendar: Home for a complete list of available contests.

IC-7300/IC-9700 Special Interest Group

This group is hosted by John Schouten VE7TI, with the most recent update on p31 of the March-April 2025 Communicator.

POTPOURRI

Do You Want to Learn CW?

Check out the Long Island CW Club, which has a comprehensive and highly-regarded on-line program for learning and mastering CW: https://longislandcwclub.org/#. 

 

Vancouver Area Frequency List

Reg VA7ZEB has created a Vancouver Area Frequency List of useful frequencies across several services including Amateur, EmComm, Broadcast, Weather, LADD, Regional Road, FRS/GMRS, Railway, Airband and Marine. It can be easily downloaded in Generic CSV, Chirp and RT Systems format, or you can download it in PDF format for printing.

 

Incoming QSL Bureau

Any member wishing to receive in-coming QSL cards should send Ken VE7BC an email at ve7bc27@gmail.com or call/text him at 604-816-5775 and the cards will be collected for local distribution by Shawn VE7BD.  Or, if you are simply wondering if Ken has any cards for you, please contact him or visit the BC Incoming QSL Bureau for the list.

 

Download the March-April 2025 Communicator:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1j3uFaNl853TqxRvRBrzX_FxMtY0GA-vu/view?usp=sharing

Free VE7DXE Advanced Certification Course: ve7dxe@hamshack.ca

Link to SARC’s Basic On-Line Ham Class Overview:

Welcome to our courses.pdf - Google Drive.  We are  now taking registrations for the next on-line course, which starts on April 7^th.  

SARC Webpage, SARC Blog and SEPAR Blog: SARC – Surrey Amateur Radio Communications

Do You Want to Join Surrey Amateur Radio Communications?

Reply to membership@ve7sar.net.

WANTED OR FOR SALE BY MEMBERS

Locally Designed and Manufactured RX80M Foxhunt receivers for sale $125 CAD: 

see how it’s done here  https://youtu.be/YK3gETNc2jU and order from membership@ve7sar.net.

 

Summer Job Wanted

Successful Kwantlen summer course graduate and SARC member, Grace VA7LZT, graduates Grade 12 this year and is looking for a summer work experience opportunity, desirably in a technical field. Contact graceliu4132@gmail.com.

Unsubscribe
To discontinue receiving bulletins or, if you are receiving them in duplicate, please reply to this email with either UNSUBSCRIBE or DUPLICATE COPY in the subject heading, and the distribution list will be revised accordingly.

73, John VA7XB membership@ve7sar.net

 

 

SARC Bi-weekly Bulletin 2025-02-19

SARC News

Issued during the first and third week of each month, it provides a quick reference for member activities, resources and links.  If you have relevant information that you would like to be included, please respond. Unsubscribe option is offered at the end.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

VB7MAN Special Event Station – Operation Manna 80

BC hams will join other amateur organizations in the Netherlands, England, Poland and Australia in honouring the memory of those who participated in Operation Manna, a humanitarian mission carried out near the end of WWII by the RAF and Allies in dropping food supplies to the starving population of the German-occupied Netherlands.  Other nations are signing on as this is being written.  BC hams may book (by pre-arrangement) use of the callsign VB7MAN, which will be available only during the months of April and May 2025.  The full story of Manna 80 can be found at https://manna80.radio/ .  Also check Callsign Database - QRZ.com for updates on VB7MAN, including a Google Calendar link. You can reserve your spot to use the callsign anywhere in BC after March 1st. 

SARC’s 6m Beacon Disabled

SARC’s 6m beacon VE7SAR/B was in operation briefly from the roof of the OTC running 2w CW on 50.070 MHz until it was disabled by strong RF from a nearby antenna during the CW contest last weekend.  It’s now under repair.

10 GHz and 24 GHz

SARC’s 10 GHz beacon VE7SAR/B has been running continuously at Concord tower in Surrey since Sept 2024.  The 24 GHz beacon running 24 mW, recently assembled and tested on the bench, is awaiting delivery of a slot antenna from Holland – installation at Concord is planned for March 2025. 

On a related note… Scott VA7SC and Dino VE7NX went to Cypress Mountain early February to attempt a cross-border contact on 10 GHz and 24 GHz with the Seattle area hams by bouncing signals off Mt. Olympus. It was not successful, but they are planning to try again from another location when the weather improves.

Parks-on-the-Air (POTA) Brochure Available

Members who do POTA are frequently approached by passers-by enquiring what we are doing. For this purpose, John VE7TI has created a SARC POTA brochure that can be given to those looking for additional information. The .pdf file is available for download at https://bit.ly/POTAbrochure.

UPCOMING EVENTS

 ARRL International DX Contest for SSB (Mar. 1-2)

Calling for operators.  Rules at: https://contests.arrl.org/ContestRules/DX-Rules.pdf

RSGB Commonwealth CW Contest (Mar. 8-9)

Calling for operators.  This is one of the best contests for VE stations because Commonwealth countries are the quarry.  Rules at: https://www.rsgbcc.org/hf/rules/2025/rcwc.shtml

SARC March General Meeting (Mar. 12)

This will be an in-person meeting with topic TBA.

Burnaby ARC Swap Meet (March 22)

To be held at Salvation Army Cariboo Temple, 7195 Cariboo Rd, Burnaby. Doors open for sellers at 8 am, buyers at 9 am until noon.  SARC has reserved 2 tables for sale of surplus items, and members are welcome to bring their own items to sell.  For more information see: Swap Meet – BARC.

Winlink Training & Winlink Net

In follow-up to the Winlink workshop held in December, Horace VA7XHB continues to be available (by appointment) on Saturday mornings to assist members in setting up Winlink,  If interested, contact Horace at horace@zyserver.com with your name, callsign, make and model of radio and interface.  Note that SARC has two Winlink Gateways.  One is at Surrey Firehall 1 using callsign VE7HME-10 on 145.710 MHz and a second is on Concord tower at 100th Ave and King George Blvd using callsign VE7ADQ-10 on 145.770 MHz.  Packet 1200 Baud and VARA FM Wide capable.

Horace has started a Winlink net. To sign up, send a Winlink message to VE7ADF.

The reply you receive will include 1. a question, 2. a tip, 3. results of previous week's question.  You have until Sunday of the same week to reply using any Winlink mode including Telnet.

Every Saturday Morning (except when other scheduled events conflict)

Members, spouses and prospective members are invited to join the SARC Breakfast social every Saturday morning from 7 to 9:30 am at Denny's Restaurant 6850 King George Blvd, followed by Operations & Training Centre ("OTC") activation from 9:30 am to noon at 5756 142 St. Surrey.  At the OTC you may get help with your radio issues, operate the station radios including satellite station, participate in contests, write the exam, or join in workshops and training.  Or just engage in friendly discussion with your fellow hams.  The OTC is located at 5756 142 St. Surrey.

SARC Official Calendar

Your official reference for dates and times of events is the SARC Google Calendar, which is updated as details change, so please check the homepage on the SARC website: www.ve7sar.net.

NETS & REPEATERS

Tuesday Nets

Join the SEPAR net every Tuesday at 7:30 pm and the SARC net at 8 pm on either of the repeaters: North repeater is on 147.360 MHz tone 110.9 Hz and South repeater is on 147.360 MHz tone 103.5 Hz.  IRLP (node 1736) and Echolink (node 496228) are only available on the North repeater.

Sunday Monthly 220 MHz Net (next one is Feb. 23)

Join the 220 MHz net taking place at 7:30 pm on the last Sunday of every month on VE7RSC repeater 223.960 MHz -1.6MHz tone 110.9 Hz, with net control, Shawn VE7BD.  This is not a "chat" net – just check in, exchange signal reports, and get on with your evening.

Yaesu System Fusion (YSF) repeater 443.775 MHz+ tone 110.9Hz

This repeater is connected full-time to CQ-Canada (VE1AO) room 40678 – home to the Cross Canada C4FM Weekly Net on Wednesday 6 pm PST or 0200 UTC. Located on the Concord high-rise in Surrey, it is one of the few System Fusion repeaters in BC that is WIRES-X capable (i.e. it connects to the Internet). Using your Yaesu C4FM radio, you can use this repeater to talk to the world.  It is connected to the highly fault-tolerant BC WARN Internet system, which is designed to remain operational during most internet outages. Familiarity with WIRES-X on our YSF repeater can play a crucial role in emergency preparedness.

Net Reminders

"Net reminders" for those running or participating in various nets are automatically sent out by AdvancedAmateur.ca.  If you are forgetful like me, you may want to receive reminders by signing up at Net Reminders.

PROJECTS & AD-HOC GROUPS

Satellite Station Project

Dino VE7NX is available to coach those who wish to learn how to make satellite contacts using SARC's new satellite station.  Contact him at dimtchog@gmail.com or reply to this email if you would like to learn more.

Contesting Group

To participate in scheduled contests, or if you wish to operate the club station radios on your own time, please reply to membership@ve7sar.net.  Coaching will be provided as needed. See WA7BNM Contest Calendar: Home for a complete list of available contests.

IC-7300/IC-9700 Special Interest Group

This group is hosted by John Schouten VE7TI, with the most recent update on pp 37-41 of the January-February 2025 Communicator.

POTPOURRI

Do You Want to Learn CW?

Check out the Long Island CW Club, which has a comprehensive and highly-regarded on-line program for learning and mastering CW: https://longislandcwclub.org/#. 

Vancouver Area Frequency List

Reg VA7ZEB has created a Vancouver Area Frequency List of useful frequencies across several services including Amateur, EmComm, Broadcast, Weather, LADD, Regional Road, FRS/GMRS, Railway, Airband and Marine. It can be easily downloaded in Generic CSV, Chirp and RT Systems format, or you can download it in PDF format for printing.

Incoming QSL Bureau

Any member wishing to receive in-coming QSL cards should send Ken VE7BC an email at ve7bc27@gmail.com or call/text him at 604-816-5775 and the cards will be collected for local distribution by Shawn VE7BD.  Or, if you are simply wondering if Ken has any cards for you, please contact him or visit the BC-QSL Blog for a list of cards held. 

Download the January-February 2025 Communicator 

Available in LARGE or SMALL format, or read it on-line like a magazine.  If you have information of interest to the ham community or would like to contribute an article for publication in the next issue coming out March 1^st, please contact SARCcommunicator@outlook.com.

Free VE7DXE Advanced Certification Course: ve7dxe@hamshack.ca

Link to SARC’s Basic On-Line Ham Class Overview

Welcome to our courses.pdf - Google Drive.  The current course commenced Jan. 6, 2025 with 33 students registered.  We are now taking registrations for the next course, which starts on April 7^th.   

SARC Webpage, SARC Blog, SARC News, and SEPAR Blog

SARC – Surrey Amateur Radio Communications

Do You Want to Join Surrey Amateur Radio Communications?

 Reply to membership@ve7sar.net

Locally Designed and Manufactured RX80M Foxhunt receivers for sale

$125 CAD - See how it’s done here  https://youtu.be/YK3gETNc2jU and order from membership@ve7sar.net.

 

Summer Job Wanted

Successful Kwantlen summer course graduate and SARC member, Grace VA7LZT, graduates Grade 12 this year and is looking for a summer work experience opportunity, desirably in a technical field. Contact graceliu4132@gmail.com.

73, 

~ John VA7XB membership@ve7sar.net

SARC Bi-weekly Bulletin 2025-02-05

SARC Bulletin for February 5, 2025

Issued during the first and third week of each month, this bulletin provides a quick reference for SARC activities, resources and links for the following weeks.  If you have relevant information that you would like to be included, please respond. 

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Parks-on-the-Air (POTA) Brochure Available
Those of us who do POTA are frequently approached by passers-by enquiring what we are doing. For this purpose, John VE7TI has created a SARC POTA brochure that can be given to those looking for additional information. The .pdf file is available for download at https://bit.ly/POTAbrochure.

A First CW POTA Activation for Dmitry VA7DVO!

I missed posting this in the last bulletin, but better late than never… Dmitry Sevostiyanov VA7DVO is a graduate of SARC’s CW class and, after honing his skills with regular weekly practice, has put his CW to use on a POTA (Parks on the Air) activation. Here is his report: “Last week I did my first CW POTA activation. I made 15 QSOs before my brain fried. I was at Mud Bay Park (CA-3245, Boundary Bay Wildlife Management Area) running 60W on 20 meters using a tiny telescopic antenna but still managed to get coast-to-coast to Maryland. I had to ask for a lot of repeats, but the people were patient with me. CW is still hard on my brain, and I'm drained right now, but very excited.” 

SARC is now on 24Ghz!

On Jan 22, 2025, two members of the Surrey Amateur Radio Communications Society completed what is believed to be the first 24 GHz terrestrial contact in BC.   Scott VA7SC was in grid CN89nb at Crescent Beach transmitting just 1 mW into a 24” dish, and Dino VE7NX was in CN89lc at Boundary Bay 10 km away delivering 80 mW into a 12” dish. SSB signals were loud and clear.  Congratulations to Dino and Scott for this amazing achievement!

BC QSO Party
9 SSB operators and 4 CW operators participated on behalf of VE7SAR, making 1583 Qs for a score of 1,494,996. Well done, team VE7SAR.

UPCOMING EVENTS

SARC General Meeting (7 pm Feb. 12)
This meeting will be held on Zoom.  Featured presenter is Andrew Walker VA7YAA who will tell us all about WoAD, which brings the functionality of Winlink to your Android device. Developed in Vancouver by VA7YAA, WoAD can interface with everything from a TH-D75 via Bluetooth to a UV-5R via a CM108 sound card to send messages using packet data over the Winlink Global Radio Email system.

ARRL DX Contest for CW (Feb. 15-16)
Head’s Up!  We will be calling for CW operators shortly.  Contest Objectives are to encourage W/VE stations to expand knowledge of DX propagation on the HF and MF bands, improve operating skills, and improve station capability by creating a competition in which DX stations may only contact W/VE stations.

Winlink Coaching (Saturday mornings with Horace by prior arrangement)
In follow-up to the Winlink workshop held in December, Horace VA7XHB will be available on Saturday mornings to assist members in setting up Winlink.  If interested, contact Horace at horace@zyserver.com with your name, callsign, make and model of radio and interface.

Related Item … SARC now has two Winlink Gateways
One is at Surrey Firehall 1 using callsign VE7HME-10 on 145.710 MHz and a second is on Concord tower at 100th Ave and King George Blvd using callsign VE7ADQ-10 on 145.770 MHz.  Packet 1200 Baud and VARA FM Wide capable.

Every Saturday Morning (except when other scheduled events conflict)
Members, spouses and prospective members are invited to join the SARC Breakfast social every Saturday morning from 7 to 9:30 am at Denny's Restaurant 6850 King George Blvd, followed by Operations & Training Centre ("OTC") activation from 9:30 am to noon at 5756 142 St. Surrey.  At the OTC you may get help with your radio issues, operate the station radios including satellite station, participate in contests, write the exam, or join in workshops and training.  Or just engage in friendly discussion with your fellow hams.  The OTC is located at 5756 142 St. Surrey.

SARC Official Calendar
Your official reference for dates and times of events is the SARC Google Calendar, which is updated as details change, so please check the homepage on the SARC website: www.ve7sar.net.

NETS & REPEATERS

Tuesday Nets
Join the SEPAR net every Tuesday at 7:30 pm and the SARC net at 8 pm on either of the repeaters: North repeater is on 147.360 MHz tone 110.9 Hz and South repeater is on 147.360 MHz tone 103.5 Hz.  IRLP (node 1736) and Echolink (node 496228) are only available on the North repeater.

Sunday Monthly 220 MHz Net (next one is Feb. 23)
Join the 220 MHz net taking place at 7:30 pm on the last Sunday of every month on VE7RSC repeater 223.960 MHz -1.6MHz tone 110.9 Hz, with net control, Shawn VE7BD.  This is not a "chat" net – just check in, exchange signal reports, and get on with your evening.

Yaesu System Fusion (YSF) repeater 443.775 MHz+ tone 110.9Hz
This repeater is connected full-time to CQ-Canada (VE1AO) room 40678 – home to the Cross Canada C4FM Weekly Net on Wednesday 6 pm PST or 0200 UTC. Located on the Concord high-rise in Surrey, it is one of the few System Fusion repeaters in BC that is WIRES-X capable (i.e. it connects to the Internet). Using your Yaesu C4FM radio, you can use this repeater to talk to the world.  It is connected to the highly fault-tolerant BC WARN Internet system, which is designed to remain operational during most internet outages. Familiarity with WIRES-X on our YSF repeater can play a crucial role in emergency preparedness.

Net Reminders
"Net reminders" for those running or participating in various nets are automatically sent out by AdvancedAmateur.ca.  If you are forgetful like me, you may want to receive reminders by signing up at Net Reminders.

 

PROJECTS AND AD-HOC GROUPS 

Satellite Station Project
Dino VE7NX is available to coach those who wish to learn how to make satellite contacts using SARC's new satellite station.  Contact him at dimtchog@gmail.com or reply to this email if you would like to learn more.

50 MHz and Up
SARC’s 50 MHz beacon project is nearing completion.  Watch for future announcements.<![if !vml]><![endif]>

Contesting Group
To participate in scheduled contests, or if you wish to operate the club station radios on your own time, please reply to membership@ve7sar.net.  Coaching will be provided as needed. See WA7BNM Contest Calendar: Home for a complete list of available contests.  

IC-7300/IC-9700 Special Interest Group
This group is hosted by John Schouten VE7TI, with the most recent update on pp 37-41 of the January-February 2025 Communicator.

POTPOURRI

Do You Want to Learn CW?
Check out the Long Island CW Club, which has a comprehensive and highly-regarded on-line program for learning and mastering CW: https://longislandcwclub.org/#.

 

Vancouver Area Frequency List
Reg VA7ZEB has created a Vancouver Area Frequency List of useful frequencies across several services including Amateur, EmComm, Broadcast, Weather, LADD, Regional Road, FRS/GMRS, Railway, Airband and Marine. It can be easily downloaded in Generic CSV, Chirp and RT Systems format, or you can download it in PDF format for printing.

 

Incoming QSL Bureau
Any member wishing to receive in-coming QSL cards should send Ken VE7BC an email at ve7bc27@gmail.com or call/text him at 604-816-5775 and the cards will be collected for local distribution by Shawn VE7BD.  Or, if you are simply wondering if Ken has any cards for you, please contact him.

Download the January-February 2025 Communicator 

in LARGE or SMALL format, or read it on-line like a magazine.  If you have information of interest to the ham community or would like to contribute an article for publication in the next issue, please contact SARCcommunicator@outlook.com.

Free VE7DXE Advanced Certification Course

ve7dxe@hamshack.ca

Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC) Advanced Certification Course

Please contact the course instructor Dave Goodwin, VE3KG, at regulatory@rac.ca to register for RAC’s Advanced course.

Link to SARC’s Basic On-Line Ham Class Overview 

Welcome to our courses.pdf - Google Drive.  The current course commenced Jan. 6, 2025 with 33 students registered.  Next course starts on April 7^th.

SARC Webpage

SARC – Surrey Amateur Radio Communications

Do You Want to Join Surrey Amateur Radio Communications?
Reply to membership@ve7sar.net.

Locally Designed and Manufactured RX80M Foxhunt receivers for sale $125 CAD:

see how it’s done here  https://youtu.be/YK3gETNc2jU and order from membership@ve7sar.net.

 

Summer Job Wanted

Successful Kwantlen summer course graduate and SARC member, Grace VA7LZT, graduates Grade 12 this year and is looking for a summer work experience opportunity, hopefully in a technical field. Contact graceliu4132@gmail.com.

73, 

John VA7XB  membership@ve7sar.net