McHenry County Wireless Association
Propagation report as of Wednesday, December 11, 2024 7:31 AM CST
MCWA Meeting Minutes of November 6th, 2024
DRAFT
President Dan Larson (KD9M) called the November 2024 hybrid meeting (in-person and by Zoom) to order at 7:01PM. The Pledge of Allegiance followed, led by Dave K9AT.
Board members present were:
Attended:
President Dan Larson KD9M
VP Wendell Smith N9REP
Treasurer Joe Robin N9OK
Secetary Lyle Giese W9LRG
Director Glenn Otto K9OK
Director Gary Kaatz W9TD
Past President Ralph Iden WB9ICF
There were 31 members in attendance and 4 via Zoom with 0 guests:
President Dan KD9M thanked the outgoing board members for their contributions to the club:
Andrew White K9AJW
Bob Temes KD9IDD
Kent Dulaney K9KMD
Awards and license upgrades
None.
Approval of Minutes
The meeting minutes from the October 2024 meeting were previously posted to the MCWA website for review. Gary W9TD moved to accept the minutes, Roger KF9D seconded the motion. Hearing no objections, the minutes were approved.
Membership and Financial Reports
Joe Robin, N9OK presented the membership and financial reports for October.
Opening Balance $9841.57 10-01-2024
Deposits $69.70
Interest $.0.08
Expenditures $66.11 (DigitalOcean, Google Drive, PO Box, WinTrust Bank)
Final Balance $9,845.24 10/31/24
Total membership is 154 members. That includes 138 Full members , 14 Family members and 2 associate members.
Dave K9AT moved to accept the Treasurer’s report and Dave NT9E seconded the motion. Hearing no objections, the treasurer’s report was approved.
Dues are payable via PayPal MCWAPaypal@gmail.com $10/year. Be sure to select ‘Sending to a friend’ when paying via PayPal. Checks can be sent to:
Joe Robin N9OK
4410 Billingsgate Lane
Woodstock, IL 60098
Be sure to include your call sign!
Old Business
None
New Business
Dan KD9M is working on scheduling a BoD meeting.
New Updates from Membership
At Field Day in June, the production members from the show “Static” (running at that time at the Raue Center for the Arts) visited the 415 ARC Field Day activities where they were introuduced to all aspects of amateur radio. Many of the attendees tried their had on CW and also made their first phone contacts. They made a montage of items from their show, including a signed playbill. The montage was presented to Gary (W9GD).
Future Events
Gary W9GD announced that the 415 group will hold a Winter Field event Jan 25th & 26th at his place in Crystal Lake. All are welcome. He requests that you contact him to confirm you are coming to this event, so they can plan operators and food!
Hamfests
Sterling Rock Falls Amateur Radio Society Hamfest , Dixon, IL 03/16/2025
Tri-County WI HamFest 2025, Fort Atkinson, WI 03/16/2025
Contests and Activities
NOVEMBER
ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, CW 2100Z, Nov 2 to 0300Z, Nov 4
WAE DX Contest, RTTY 0000Z, Nov 9 to 2359Z, Nov 10
10-10 Int. Fall Contest, Digital 0001Z, Nov 9 to 2359Z, Nov 10
ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, SSB 2100Z, Nov 16 to 0300Z, Nov 18
CQ Worldwide DX Contest, CW 0000Z, Nov 23 to 2400Z, Nov 24
Wrap up
The next regular meeting will be Tuesday, December 3rd, at the Algonquin Township meeting room. Open “eyeball” QSOs start at 6:30 PM, with the meeting starting at 7:00 PM. Formal program is a report on the recent Fox Hunt.
Sam KC9GPY motioned to adjourn, and Joe N9OK seconded. The meeting was adjourned at 7:40 PM.
Prepared by Lyle Giese (W9LRG), MCWA Secretary.
MCWA Meeting Minutes of October 1st, 2024
President Dan Larson (KD9M) called the October 2024 hybrid meeting (in-person and by Zoom) to order at 7:00PM. The Pledge of Allegiance followed, led by Dave Holmgren (K9AT).
Board members present were: Director – Glenn Otto (K9OK), Director – Gary Kaatz (W9TD), Secretary – Andrew White (K9AJW), Treasurer – Bob Temes (KD9IDD), Vice President – Wendell Smith (N9REP), President – Dan Larson (KD9M) and Past President – Ralph Iden (WB9ICF)
There were 41 members in attendance with 3 guests:
Mark KE9BGW (New Member)
Joy KE9BME (New Member)
Sonja Delpalazzo
Awards and license upgrades
None.
Approval of Minutes
The meeting minutes from the September 2024 meeting were previously posted to the MCWA website for review. Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY) moved to accept the minutes Bob Temes (KD9IDD) seconded the motion. Hearing no objections, the minutes were approved.
Membership and Financial Reports
Bob Temes (KD9IDD) presented the membership and financial reports for September.
Opening Balance $9,980.50 2024-9-1
Deposits/Interest/Credits $0.09 (Interest)
Expenditures $209.02 (DigitalOcean, Zoom, PO Box)
Final Balance $9,841.57 2024-9-30
Total membership is 151 members. That includes 149 full members and 2 associate members.
John Kalenowsky (K9JK) moved to accept the Treasurer’s report and Dave Whaley (NT9E) seconded the motion. Hearing no objections, the treasurer’s report was approved.
Old Business
2024 Nomination Committee
Wendell Smith – N9REP
Glenn Otto – K9OK
Gary Kaatz – W9TD
New Business
Election Part 2 – Nominees:
Secretary – Lyle Giese (W9LRG)
Treasurer – Joe Robin (N9OK)
Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY) moved for nominations to be closed and the open positions to be filled by acclamation. With no one opposed, the vote passed.
Ralph Iden (WB9ICF) received an e-mail a couple weeks back from one of our members asking what different members are using for their primary HF rig. The data is hard to parse out, but he is going to put together a PDF with the results. In summary, there were 45 responses with the largest brand being Yaesu followed by both Kenwood and ICOM.
New Updates from Membership
Ralph Iden (WB9ICF) brought a few freebies from his parts store that are sitting in the back of the room for anyone that is interested. He has VGA cables and a few other things. In future meetings, he’ll bring a bunch of working USB cables.
Joe Robin (N9OK) participated in the CQ Worldwide RTTY contest over the weekend. He worked several MCWA members during the contest.
Lyle Giese (W9LRG) put together one of Ralph’s tape measure yagis and posted his results to his webpage. http://www.w9lrg.com/2m_tm.html
Future Events
Hamfests
MRC91 Friendly Fest 11/02/2024
Milwaukee, WI
Tri-County Wi HamFest 2025 3/16/2025
Fort Atkinson, WI
Contests and Activities
OCTOBER
California QSO Party 1600Z, Oct 5 to 2159Z, Oct 6
Makrothen RTTY Contest 0000Z, Oct 12 to 1559Z, Oct 13
10-10 Int. Fall Contest, CW 0001Z, Oct 19 to 2359Z, Oct 20
Stew Perry Topband Challenge 1500Z, Oct 19 to 1500Z, Oct 20
Illinois QSO Party 1700Z, Oct 20 to 0100Z, Oct 21
ARRL School Club Roundup 1300Z, Oct 21 to 2359Z, Oct 25
CQ Worldwide DX Contest, SSB 0000Z, Oct 26 to 2400Z, Oct 27
NOVEMBER
ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, CW 2100Z, Nov 2 to 0300Z, Nov 4
WAE DX Contest, RTTY 0000Z, Nov 9 to 2359Z, Nov 10
10-10 Int. Fall Contest, Digital 0001Z, Nov 9 to 2359Z, Nov 10
ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, SSB 2100Z, Nov 16 to 0300Z, Nov 18
CQ Worldwide DX Contest, CW 0000Z, Nov 23 to 2400Z, Nov 24
Wrap up
The next regular meeting will be Tuesday, November 5th, 2024, at the Algonquin Township meeting room. Open “eyeball” QSOs start at 6:30 PM, with the meeting starting at 7:00 PM. Formal program is TBD.
Dave Whaley (NT9E) motioned to adjourn, and Joe Robin (N9OK) seconded. The meeting was adjourned at 7:48PM.
Prepared by Andrew White (K9AJW), MCWA Secretary.
MCWA Meeting Minutes of September 3rd, 2024
DRAFT
President Dan Larson (KD9M) called the September 2024 hybrid meeting (in-person and by Zoom) to order at 7:05 PM. The Pledge of Allegiance followed, led by Dave Holmgren (K9AT).
Board members present were: Director – Glenn Otto (K9OK), Secretary – Andrew White (K9AJW), Treasurer – Bob Temes (KD9IDD), Vice President – Wendell Smith (N9REP), President – Dan Larson (KD9M) and Past President – Ralph Iden (WB9ICF)
There were 39 members in attendance with 3 guests.
Awards and license upgrades
None.
Approval of Minutes
The meeting minutes from the August 2024 meeting were previously posted to the MCWA website for review. Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY) moved to accept the minutes and Bob Temes (KD9IDD) seconded the motion. Hearing no objections, the minutes were approved.
Membership and Financial Reports
Bob Temes (KD9IDD) presented the membership and financial reports for September. MCWA has a membership of 148 members including 12 family members and 2 associate members.
Opening Balance $10,680.73 2024-8-1
Deposits/Interest/Credits $0.08 (Interest)
Expenditures $700.31 (DigitalOcean, Field Day
Expenses)
Final Balance $9,980.50 2024-8-31
Gary Kaatz (W9TD) moved to accept the Treasurer’s report and Dave Whaley (NT9E) seconded the motion. Hearing no objections, the treasurer’s report was approved.
Old Business
None.
New Business
Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY) motioned that we accept by acclamation those positions that have been unopposed. Dan Larson (K9DM) will be President, Wendell Smith (N9REP) will be Vice President and Gary Kaatz (W9TD) will be the Director.
Nomination Committee Report for next month will include nominees for Secretary and Treasurer.
The 2024 Committee Members are:
Glenn Otto – K9OK
Kent Dulaney – K9KMD
Chair to be appointed by President
New Updates from Membership
None.
Future Events
Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY) mentioned that Route 66 on the Air is coming up soon and he suggests people participate as it is a good bit of fun.
JoAnne Maenpaa (K9JKM) printed off some spare parts for Ralph’s yagi antenna that he discussed last month. Let her know if you are interested in 3D printed parts for that build.
Ralph Iden (WB9ICF) is starting to plan for the Lake County Maker Faire. Please reach out to Ralph if you have any ideas or are interested in helping out.
Hamfests
Racine Megacycle Club Freefest
Location: Racine, WI
08/10/2024
ARANCI Hamfest
Location: Lake Village, IN
08/11/2024
ORC Annual Regional Fall Swapfest
Location: Cedarburg, WI
09/07/2024
HRO Superfest
Location: Milwaukee, WI
09/20/2024 – 09/21/2024
Midwest Superfest, ARRL Illinois Section Convention
Location: Chillicothe, IL
09/21/2024 – 09/22/2024
Radio Expo
Location: Belvidere, IL
09/22/2024
Contests and Activities
SEPTEMBER
WAE DX Contest, SSB 0000Z, Sep 14 to 2359Z, Sep 15
ARRL September VHF Contest 1800Z, Sep 14 to 0300Z, Sep 16
ARRL 10 GHz and Up Contest 0600 local, Sep 21 to 2400 local, Sep 22
144 MHz Fall Sprint 1900 local-2300 local, Sep 23
CQ Worldwide DX, RTTY 0000Z, Sep 28 to 2400Z, Sep 29
OCTOBER
California QSO Party 1600Z, Oct 5 to 2159Z, Oct 6
Makrothen RTTY Contest 0000Z, Oct 12 to 1559Z, Oct 13
Wrap up
The next regular meeting will be Tuesday, October 1st, 2024, at the Algonquin Township meeting room. Open “eyeball” QSOs start at 6:30 PM, with the meeting starting at 7:00 PM. Formal program is TBD.
Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY) motioned to adjourn, and Gary Kaatz (W9TD) seconded. The meeting was adjourned at 7:41 PM.
Prepared by Andrew White (K9AJW), MCWA Secretary.
MCWA Meeting Minutes of August 6th, 2024
Vice President Wendell Smith (N9REP) called the August 2024 hybrid meeting (in-person and by Zoom) to order at 7:00 PM. The Pledge of Allegiance followed, led by Dave Holmgren (K9AT).
Board members present were: Director – Glenn Otto (K9OK), Secretary – Andrew White (K9AJW), Vice President – Wendell Smith (N9REP), and Past President – Ralph Iden (WB9ICF).
There were 40 members in attendance with 2 guests.
Awards and license upgrades
None.
Approval of Minutes
The meeting minutes from the July 2024 meeting were previously posted to the MCWA website for review. Erich Kraemer (KC9CUK) moved to accept the minutes and Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY) seconded the motion. Hearing no objections, the minutes were approved.
Membership and Financial Reports
Wendell Smith (N9REP) presented the membership and financial reports for September. MCWA has a membership of 146 members including 12 family members and 2 associate members.
Opening Balance $11,025.60 2024-7-1
Deposits/Interest/Credits $20.10 (Dues, Credits and Interest)
Expenditures $364.97 (DigitalOcean, Field Day Expenses)
Final Balance $10,680.73 2024-7-31
John Cankar (W9JM) moved to accept the treasurer’s report and Roger Scott (KF9D) seconded the motion. Hearing no objections, the treasurer’s report was approved.
Old Business
None.
New Business
New Updates from Membership
Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY) mentioned The 415 now has a website: http://www.the415ARC.com Please check it out if you get a chance.
Ralph Iden (WB9ICF) brought his tape measure yagi and presented on its uses for fox hunting. What is a fox hunt? It’s a fun activity for clubs and young people. It’s family friendly and requires very little expertise to enjoy. Besides being a lot of fun, it has practical uses as well. Fox hunting can be used to tune your skills in tracking down transmitters and other sources of interference, whether intentional or unintentional. In the May 2021 MCWA meeting, Pete (K9PW) did a great presentation on fox hunting. A group buy of the VK3YNG Sniffers was placed and several members own them. We would like to put these to use with an introductory fox hunt.
Based on the success of our recent POTA gathering, Ralph and John (K9JK) would like to organize a fox hunt for anyone interested. What is needed to participate:
-2m radio receiver that can pick up the fox’s transmission
-An attenuator (if not built in) to help corner the fox when you get near
-A directional antenna
-A desire to have fun with your fellow hams
If you want to build your own antenna, you can build a 3-element beam for well under $20 or less if you already have some of the parts.
-12’ steel tape measure
-3’ piece of 1/2” PVC pipe
-PVC end caps
-3D printed boom mounts
-3D printed handle mount
-18” RG-174 cable with BNC or SMA if using an HT
-#4 ½” sheet metal screws
If you’re interested and would like to build an antenna or participate in the upcoming fox hunt, subscribe to the project subgroup by sending an e-mail to Projects+Subscribe@K9RN.groups.io to get added to the distribution list. If you have your own setup and would like to join the fun, e-mail Ralph at wb9icf@arrl.net.
Erich Kraemer (KC9CUK) is making a portable communications vehicle out of an old ambulance – The Hambulance. They’ve got a lot of stuff done in it and are now installing gear. Over the weekend they installed the AC unit and heater. More updates to come along with a website in the future.
John Dewey (KA9CAR) updated more log files to our K9RN LotW and got us some digital QSLs confirmed back.
Future Events
Hamfests
Racine Megacycle Club Freefest
Location: Racine, WI
08/10/2024
ARANCI Hamfest
Location: Lake Village, IN
08/11/2024
ORC Annual Regional Fall Swapfest
Location: Cedarburg, WI
09/07/2024
HRO Superfest
Location: Milwaukee, WI
09/20/2024 – 09/21/2024
Midwest Superfest, ARRL Illinois Section Convention
Location: Chillicothe, IL
09/21/2024 – 09/22/2024
Radio Expo
Location: Belvidere, IL
09/22/2024
Contests and Activities
AUGUST
10-10 Int. Summer Contest, SSB 0001Z, Aug 3 to 2359Z, Aug 4
ARRL 222 MHz and Up Contest 1800Z, Aug 3 to 1800Z, Aug 4
North American QSO Party, CW 1800Z, Aug 3 to 0600Z, Aug 4
WAE DX Contest, CW 0000Z, Aug 10 to 2359Z, Aug 11
ARRL 10 GHz and Up Contest 0600 local, Aug 17 to 2400 local, Aug 18
North American QSO Party, SSB 1800Z, Aug 17 to 0600Z, Aug 18
ARRL Rookie Roundup, RTTY 1800Z-2359Z, Aug 18
World Wide Digi DX Contest 1200Z, Aug 24 to 1200Z, Aug 25
SEPTEMBER
WAE DX Contest, SSB 0000Z, Sep 14 to 2359Z, Sep 15
ARRL September VHF Contest 1800Z, Sep 14 to 0300Z, Sep 16
ARRL 10 GHz and Up Contest 0600 local, Sep 21 to 2400 local, Sep 22
144 MHz Fall Sprint 1900 local-2300 local, Sep 23
CQ Worldwide DX, RTTY 0000Z, Sep 28 to 2400Z, Sep 29
Wrap up
The next regular meeting will be Tuesday, September 3rd, 2024 at the Algonquin Township meeting room. Open “eyeball” QSOs start at 6:30 PM, with the meeting starting at 7:00 PM. Formal program is GridTracker by Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY).
Roger Scott (KF9D) motioned to adjourn, and Dean Hettel (WC9C) seconded. The meeting was adjourned at 7:36 PM.
Prepared by Andrew White (K9AJW), MCWA Secretary.
MCWA Meeting Minutes of July 2nd, 2024
President Dan Larson (KD9M) called the July 2024 hybrid meeting (in-person and by Zoom) to order at 7:00 PM. The Pledge of Allegiance followed, led by Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY).
Board members present were: Director – Glenn Otto (K9OK), Secretary – Andrew White (K9AJW), Treasurer – Bob Temes (KD9IDD), Vice President – Wendell Smith (N9REP), President – Dan Larson (KD9M), and Past President – Ralph Iden (WB9ICF).
A total of 45 members were in attendance and 0 guests.
Awards and license upgrades
Gill Etheridge (WW9GIL) upgraded to General.
Approval of Minutes
The meeting minutes from the June 2024 meeting were previously posted to the MCWA website for review. John Kalenowsky (K9JK) moved to accept the minutes and Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY) seconded the motion. Hearing no objections, the minutes were approved.
Membership and Financial Reports
Bob Temes (KD9IDD) presented the membership and financial reports for September. MCWA has a membership of 146 members including 12 family members and 2 associate members.
Opening Balance $11,130.61 2024-6-30
Deposits/Interest/Credits $70.08 (Dues, Credits and Interest)
Expenditures $175.09 (DigitalOcean, POTA Supplies)
Final Balance $11,025.60 2024-6-30
Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY)moved to accept the treasurer’s report and John Cankar (W9JM) seconded the motion. Hearing no objections, the treasurer’s report was approved.
Old Business
None.
New Business
The ARRL Foundation is announcing the return of the Club Grant Program for 2024. This program offers up to $25,000 to projects that will transform ham radio. Past examples include but are not limited to: get on the air projects; ham training and skills development through mentoring; STEM and STEAM learning through Amateur Radio; station resources for use by the ham community; and emergency communications and public service projects that emphasize training
As of yesterday (July 1st) LoTW is back on the air. If you have large uploads from a contest or DXpedition, please wait a week or two before uploading to give LoTW a chance to catch up.
New Updates from Membership
Roger Scott (KF9D) did 3 SOTA activations in Wisconsin over the weekend. It was for the W9 Association anniversary weekend.
Trek 100 – John Cankar (W9JM)
John gave a quick overview on the Trek 100 from 3 weeks ago. The event took place on Saturday, June 8th in Waterloo, WI. There were over 1,000 riders that participated which was over 34% increase in ridership from last year. The MACC Fund met their fundraising goal. It’s a typical “Century” cycling event with 4 different routes. Overall the event was a success, but the solar flare did cause some issues with SAG communications. John thanked all members of MCWA that participated. Next year’s date is Saturday, June 7 2025.
MCWA Field Day – Dan Larson (KD9M)
MCWA held field day at Rush Creek Conservation area this year. We had smoked pork from Dan for food. We laid out our lines in the trees on Friday afternoon and hoisted the antennas on Saturday. We had several visitors including a Conservation Officer for the McHenry County Conservation District. This year we tried something new with our generators. John Dewey (KA9CAR) setup a transfer switch to seamlessly switch between generators when refueling. The system worked well and was a safety improvement on fueling a hot generator. We only had 4 hours and 15 minutes of storm delay and worked 85/86 ARRL Sections with 21 DX Entities. Our total DX Mileage was 210,450.
415 Field Day – Gary Dembski (W9GD) and Sam Haldiman (KC9GPY)
415 had 30 GOTA operators. They were also able to operate on a few satellites. The cast of Static showed up to support the 415 with their field day operations. Static is a Morse Code Musical presented at the Raue Center in July. Contact Sam (KC9GPY) for specifics on the dates. The 415 will be getting a group together on Friday, July 19th at 7pm. Reach out to Gary if you’re interested in attending as he needs to know final numbers by noon tomorrow (7/3). Sam will be presenting for 2 min before each performance to give a quick rundown of ham radio and Morse Code. The 415 will also be raffling off a practice code oscillator at the start of each show. Dinner was a huge hit as always and they had 50 people attending dinner. The VE Testing group at the 415 had 6 people take their license test.
Future Events
Hamfests
South Milwaukee ARC Swapfest
Location: Oak Creek , WI
07/06/2024
Hamfesters 89th Annual Hamfest
Location: Peotone, IL
08/04/2024
Racine Megacycle Club Freefest
Location: Racine, WI
08/10/2024
ARANCI Hamfest
Location: Lake Village, IN
08/11/2024
ORC Annual Regional Fall Swapfest
Location: Cedarburg, WI
09/07/2024
HRO Superfest
Location: Milwaukee, WI
09/20/2024 – 09/21/2024
Midwest Superfest, ARRL Illinois Section Convention
Location: Chillicothe, IL
09/21/2024 – 09/22/2024
Radio Expo
Location: Belvidere, IL
09/22/2024
Contests and Activities
JULY
13 Colonies 1300Z, Jul 1 to 0400z Jul 8
RAC Canada Day Contest 0000Z-2359Z, Jul 1
North American QSO Party, RTTY 1800Z, Jul 20 to 0559Z, Jul 21
CQ Worldwide VHF Contest 1800Z, Jul 20 to 2100Z, Jul 21
AUGUST
10-10 Int. Summer Contest, SSB 0001Z, Aug 3 to 2359Z, Aug 4
ARRL 222 MHz and Up Contest 1800Z, Aug 3 to 1800Z, Aug 4
North American QSO Party, CW 1800Z, Aug 3 to 0600Z, Aug 4
WAE DX Contest, CW 0000Z, Aug 10 to 2359Z, Aug 11
ARRL 10 GHz and Up Contest 0600 local, Aug 17 to 2400 local, Aug 18
North American QSO Party, SSB 1800Z, Aug 17 to 0600Z, Aug 18
ARRL Rookie Roundup, RTTY 1800Z-2359Z, Aug 18
World Wide Digi DX Contest 1200Z, Aug 24 to 1200Z, Aug 25
Wrap up
The next regular meeting will be Tuesday, August 6th, 2024 at the Algonquin Township meeting room. Open “eyeball” QSOs start at 6:30 PM, with the meeting starting at 7:00 PM. Formal program is TBD.
John Dewey (KA9CAR) motioned to adjourn, and Dave Whaley (NT9E) seconded. The meeting was adjourned at 8:00 PM.
Prepared by Andrew White (K9AJW), MCWA Secretary.