tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-120569592012-01-29T17:25:16.997-05:00The SPARC web site is at http://www.qsl.net/sterling.SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comBlogger2731100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-87252479471881028822012-01-29T17:13:00.002-05:002012-01-29T17:25:17.005-05:00

SPARC's monthly meeting was held January 4th at the Eastern Loudoun Sheriff's Office. There were 18 members in attendance.During member introductions, Charles, K3SR showed some QSL cards collected from Thule, Greenland while he was stationed there. Paul, K4PDF, mentioned that he has obtained amateur radio handbooks from the year he was born and also from the year that he graduated high school.

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-1944679897726788762012-01-29T16:35:00.000-05:002012-01-29T16:36:01.448-05:00

Hi,Another month has one by and it is time for our monthly meeting.I had a great month. I worked three contests: ARRL RTTY RU, NAQP SSB, and BARTG RTTY Sprint. Had fun in all. In addition, a neighbor gave me a few of his old computers and I now have a few more running in my basement. I also has the opportunity to give a presentation on the Virginia QSO Party to a group of 14 in the

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-31743975946271368512012-01-02T16:30:00.003-05:002012-01-02T17:05:54.827-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on Dec 7th at the Eastern Loudoun Sheriff's Office. There were 19 members at the meeting.We had a brief business meeting and finalized plans to activate the W&OD caboose in Herndon on Dec 10th. SPARC hosts visitors to the caboose and operates a 2-meter station in conjunction with the Holiday Model Train Show.Preparations are continuing for the 2012 Virginia QSO

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-14512377447261608262012-01-01T20:29:00.001-05:002012-01-01T20:29:17.006-05:00

Hi,It is time for our first meeting of the new year. This coming Wednesday at 7PM at the East Loudoun Sheriff's Station.I had a great month. Helped out at the Herndon Caboose Special Event station. Thanks to Henry, K2BFY, and Bill, W1FL. We had a great time and several club members showed up. See our web page at http://www.qsl.net/sterling/OSE/2011_Herndon_Caboose_SES/2011_Caboose_SES_Pics/

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-28375793073297679942011-12-30T06:01:00.000-05:002011-12-30T06:02:29.935-05:00

An email from FrostfestAll of us at RATS hope that you are enjoying a wonderful holiday season! Plans are well underway for Frostfest 2012 with many, many vendors on board, and many more yet to come! Don't forget to purchase your flea market tables and admission tickets at www.frostfest.com. You can save $1 on your tickets, and get in a half hour earlier than buying at the door. Purchase

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-17680290624705630542011-12-27T19:59:00.000-05:002011-12-27T20:00:53.320-05:00

Hi,Pictures posted at:http://www.qsl.net/sterling/OSE/2011_Herndon_Caboose_SES/2011_Caboose_SES_Pics/2011_Herndon_Caboose_SES_Pics.htmlIf you have some more pictures, please send them to me and I will add them to the site.73, Gordon, NQ4K

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-64521454033177760432011-12-10T05:51:00.000-05:002011-12-10T05:52:22.483-05:00

Hi,Henry, K2BFY, will be running a special event station at the Herndon Caboose on Saturday, 10 Dec, from 1000 - 1600. He will be setting up a few minutes before.This is in conjunction with the Annual Herndon Holiday Model Train Show.Please come on out and join Henry for some conversation and visit the show.Pictures from last year:http://www.qsl.net/sterling/OSE/2010_Herndon_Caboose_SES/

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-16285595620401276512011-12-04T19:44:00.003-05:002011-12-04T20:09:38.489-05:00

SPARC’s monthly meeting was held November 2nd at the Eastern Loudoun Station of the Sheriff’s Office. There were 20 members present.Following member introductions, we had an excellent presentation by Paul Savidge, N4PSS, on the mission and operations of SKYWARN. The objective of SKYWARN is to improve weather safety by providing timely and accurate weather observations of on-the-ground events.

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-62496861054758967702011-12-04T16:33:00.001-05:002011-12-04T16:33:50.024-05:00

Hi,It is time for our December monthly meeting. 7 December 2011 at 7 PM.I have a good month. I worked the CQWW DX CW contest. Had a lot of fun. Unfortunately I missed both of the ARRL November Sweepstakes. Oh well, there is next year.Refreshments will be by Don, K7CS.We have two interesting presentations. Dick, W2YE, will discuss QSL'ing, a topic on which he is a long standing expert. Then Don,

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-79428173174569460242011-10-30T19:26:00.002-05:002011-10-30T19:30:40.533-05:00

SPARC’s monthly meeting was held October 5th at the Eastern Loudoun Station of the Sheriff’s Office. There were 20 members present. This was our first meeting at the new location and many thanks go to Jim, KF4PQL, for making the arrangements. This is an excellent facility for our meetings.Following member introductions, we discussed upcoming activities. It was confirmed that Chris Patton will

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-10823152272306078912011-10-30T18:53:00.001-05:002011-10-30T18:53:43.521-05:00

Hi,It is time for the November meeting. This Wednesday, starting at 7 at the Eastern Loudoun Station, Office of the Sheriff.I had a great month. I thoroughly enjoyed the CQWW DX Phone contest this past weekend. I worked 15M only. Got 206 QSOs, 70 entities, 24 zones, for 54,896 points. 15M was really open. I got a few Japan stations for the first time in several years. It looked like several club

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-50314841553602023822011-10-10T18:58:00.005-05:002011-10-25T18:39:39.936-05:00

Hi,Subject says it all.http://www.qsl.net/sterling/Sterlingfest/2011_Sterlingfest/2011_Pics/2011_Sterlingfest_Pics.htmlI had a good time. Nice to see everyone and have the opportunity to talk for a while.If you have some more pictures, please send them to me.73, Gordon, NQ4K

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-88843893646850164192011-10-08T05:58:00.001-05:002011-10-25T18:40:23.234-05:00

Hi,This is Sterlingfest today. We are putting up a special event station. One HF radio (from Dick, W2YE). We will be running off of batteries (from Ray, KD4RSL) under a canopy (from Mark, KI4OBT)and sitting on chairs (from Gordon, NQ4K).Set up starts at 9, Fest starts at 11 and it is all over at 5.This should be a fun time. We sit around and chat, work the radio a little, and talk to

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-61337376925260465552011-10-02T17:56:00.001-05:002011-10-02T17:56:42.551-05:00

Hi,It is time for the October SPARC meeting. The month has gone by very fast. Since the last meeting, I have worked the Worked All Europe DX Contest (DARC-WAEDC-SSB), Scandinavian Activity Contest (SAC-CW) and the CQ WW RTTY DX Contest (CQ-WW-RTTY). I had fun in all of them.Remember that this month we will be meeting in our new location. See our web page for the location. http://

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-75811031587652957002011-09-20T19:21:00.004-05:002011-09-20T19:53:53.907-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on Sep 7th at the Claude Moore Recreation Center. There were 17 members present.The meeting started with member introductions and our annual "show and tell". Notable achievements included Bill, KJ4VTH, who recently upgraded to Extra class. Congratulations Bill!!Gordon, NQ4K, gave a report on the sale of ham gear from Art Nevins, WA4NTP. Nearly all of the equipment

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-85292993596083211632011-09-17T05:15:00.000-05:002011-09-17T05:16:05.866-05:00

Hi,Jim, KF4PQL, has found a new meeting location for our monthly club meetings. Effective with the October 2011 meeting, the location will be:Office of the SheriffEastern Loudoun Station46620 East Frederick DriveSterling, VA 20164The meetings will start at 7 PM.Jim took the initiative to find a new location for our meetings. Please thank him when you see him next.73, Gordon, NQ4KOn, 9/16/2011 4

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-22957330884049143032011-09-04T19:10:00.000-05:002011-09-04T19:11:04.512-05:00

Hi, It is time for a new SPARC year to start. The summer has passed by fast. The first meeting of the year is on Wednesday, 7 September, at 7 PM at the Claude Moore Community Center. As we have done for the past several years, the first meeting allows us to renew friendships and is a "Show and Tell." Please bring a ham-related item and tell us about it. This can be something new or

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-35847686492018847582011-07-27T18:56:00.001-05:002011-07-27T18:56:30.093-05:00

Hi,We have some radio equipment to sell.Art, WA4NTP, and Sarah, N4GVM, are downsizing and offered their station to "let beginning hams buy the equipment through SPARC with half the sale price going to SPARC and the other half to me." Art is a past member and president of SPARC in the 1980's.There is a complete station. He boxed up the equipment before his last move 15 years ago and has not

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-90272245866119910402011-07-27T18:55:00.000-05:002011-07-27T18:56:08.244-05:00

THIS IS YOUR LAST WARNING!!!! DON'T MISS THE PIZZA PARTY!!!I've already heard from quite a few of you. If you plan to attend andyou haven't sent me a note yet, please drop me a quick e-mail.------------------------------------------------------------------------August is coming up and that means it's time for our annual pizza party!!Make sure you get it on your calendar.We'll share a truck

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-65629942458083031012011-07-27T14:05:00.000-05:002011-07-27T14:06:08.129-05:00

Hi,As many of you may remember, Jim, KF4PQL, had a popular Saturday morning show called Jim's Jukebox on the radio station in Leesburg for many years.More recently, Jim has combined his love of old records and broadcasting with periodic appearances on WNMB.See below for information on his next appearance.73, Gordon, NQ4KOn, 7/26/2011 10:55 AM, JAMES PURKS emailed::Gordon,I am planning to do

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-27153539359234943362011-07-11T19:48:00.000-05:002011-07-11T19:49:11.536-05:00

Dick, W2YE, reports: Hi, key SPARC Field Day folks. Here is the results of our activity as I have submitted to ARRL. The documentation package will be mailed shortly. Let me know if you see any problems. Despite a revised location and new software package, I think our results were outstanding. If my submission is accepted as submitted, we actually broke 10K points!

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-5770841980295351832011-07-11T19:46:00.001-05:002011-07-11T19:48:09.092-05:00

Bill, WF1L, emails:Here's a link to a new type of video ham instruction and education series put on by Bob Heil and Gordon West. The "show" is a recurring series called Ham Nation and this show they interviewed W3LPL and W3RA about the W3AO Field Day station along with soldering instruction, questions about operating practices and other topics of ham interest.See http://twit.tv/hn7I thought it

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-56161119662592550342011-06-26T19:28:00.001-05:002011-06-26T19:28:26.270-05:00

Hi,I did not believe I could have more fun at Field Day than last year, but I did. The site was very nice. We were closer together, we got much more visitor traffic, we had more people at the GOTA station, the weather was pleasant, we had one more tent for more shade, we had some new members come out for the first time, we got a satellite QSO, we had a few exciting moments at the

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-42618615561471569492011-06-24T21:34:00.000-05:002011-06-24T21:35:08.486-05:00

Hi,We got a good start on field day this evening at the Antenna Rope Hanging. Many people showed up and we had a very enjoyable 1-1/2 hours.We have a new leader in the rope hanging contest - the sharp-eyed sling-shotters who put the line over light towers. Don, K7CS, scored 0 ropes hung. Dick, W2YE, scored 0 ropes hung. Bill, WF1L, scored 1 rope hung (using Dick's EZ-Hang slingshot and

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-22215671204117883922011-06-12T04:50:00.000-05:002011-06-12T04:51:09.088-05:00

Hi,A reminder.The Virginia QSO Party Awards Ceremony is today at the Manassas Hamfest. Probably at 1000. See http://www.w4ovh.net/hamfest.htm.Come on out and join us.73, Gordon, NQ4K

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-36808780445379352642011-06-05T12:53:00.002-05:002011-06-06T15:40:33.506-05:00

Hi,Both events at the Herndon Festival went off very well.On Saturday, the Booth was supported by Jim, KF4PQL; Dick, W2YE; Paul, K4PDF; Chris, TBD; John, KK4AHY; Gordon, NQ4K; and George, a friend of SPARC. Eric, AJ4LN, and Duane, K4UW, stopped by and visited for a while. We had several people stop by our booth and indicated that they would be interested in learning more. It was a long day,

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-46114835069934552502011-05-30T20:04:00.001-05:002011-05-30T20:04:50.563-05:00

Hi,It is time for the monthly meeting for June on Wednesday. This month has gone by very quickly.I had a full month. Worked on Virginia QSO Party and updated plans for Herndon Festival (4-5 Jun) and Field Day (25-26 Jun). Also worked the CQWW WPX CW contest this past weekend (only 20 QSOs on 40m).Refreshments will be by Jim, AF4MO.The presentation will be by Bill, KJ4VTH, on "JT65 Digital Mode

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-91122471580953066012011-05-30T15:26:00.003-05:002011-05-30T15:41:31.814-05:00

We had our monthly meeting on May 4th at the Claude Moore Community Center. We had 16 members and two guests at the meeting.We had a brief business meeting to discuss plans for the club's participation in Herndon Fest and Field Day. Herndon Fest is coming up on 4 and 5 Jun. We will operate an information booth and amateur station on the 4th and provide radio support to the festival's 5k/10k races

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-77068744014831723672011-05-01T19:42:00.001-05:002011-05-01T19:42:50.433-05:00

Hi,It is time for the May Club Meeting. Should be a very full evening.I had a great month. Did not get on the radio. Worked on Virginia QSO Party. We had a great log scoring party on 23 Apr. See http://www.qsl.net/sterling/VA_QSO_Party/2011_VQP/Pics/Log_Scoring/2011_Log_Scoring.html. In addition, 5 members (Eric, AJ4LN; Dick, W2YE; Don, K7CS, Duane, K4UW: and Gordon, NQ4K) got together to

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-64474212083153145992011-04-27T18:39:00.003-05:002011-04-27T19:17:36.162-05:00

SPARC's monthly meeting was held on Wednesday, April 6th, at the Claude Moore Community Center. We had 19 members in attendance.During member introductions, Gordon, NQ4K showed his certificate for achieving first place in Virginia for the 15 meter phone category in the ARRL International DX Contest. Congratulations to Gordon!!!Dick, W2YE, announced that he is seeking a letter manage to help out

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-5356679924099467192011-04-12T15:24:00.001-05:002011-04-12T15:24:46.225-05:00

On, 4/11/2011 5:27 PM, Bill McCourt - WF1L emailed::Gordon,SPARC came in 8th nationally in Local Club Category! Woo Hoo!Bill - WF1L

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-40985143683253914332011-04-03T20:29:00.000-05:002011-04-03T20:30:27.277-05:00

Hi,It is time for the monthly meeting. Wednesday, 6 Apr at 7:00 PM.I had a great month. I worked the ARRL DC SSB contest, the VQP Party (botha t home and at K4NVA), and the CQ WPX SSB contest. In addition, I have been accepting the electronic logs as they come in. As I said, a good month.Refreshments will be provided by Jim, KF4PQL.The presentation for this month will be "Henry on CW." Henry,

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-36126080453310013962011-03-20T16:33:00.003-05:002011-03-20T17:13:24.135-05:00

The monthly SPARC meeting was held on Mar 2nd at the Claude Moore Community Center. There were 16 members in attendance.Dick, W2YE, provided the QSL bureau report. The past two months have seen a lighter than usual delivery of incoming cards. He currently has an opening for one letter manager. Contact Dick if you are interested in volunteering.Gordon, NQ4K, provided a summary of the

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-81836420415782784582011-02-27T21:48:00.001-05:002011-02-27T21:48:56.741-05:00

Hi,It is time for the March monthly meeting. The time has been flying by.This was a good month for me. I worked the Mexico RTTY contest, helped out at the technician license class and examination session SPARC held, and ran a special event station at our church for a father-son event. A busy month.We had a successful license class and examination. Four hams were newly licensed. Hopefully they

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-91025353918327206772011-02-20T19:44:00.001-05:002011-02-20T19:44:50.625-05:00

Hi,Duane reports that several of the people who took exams at our examination session have been awarded licenses.See names and pics at: http://www.qsl.net/sterling/Licensing/licensing.html73, Gordon, NQ4KOn, 2/20/2011 9:24 AM, Duane Durst emailed::Gordon,Two new Sterling hams received their license 2/17/2011. They took theirexams last Sundayat your home: The data is available on QRZ.COMRichard

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-59170250438510952822011-02-13T15:37:00.001-05:002011-02-13T15:37:53.266-05:00

Hi,These events are over.The technician class fun to teach and enjoyed by all. It started on Saturday at 0800 and was over at 1000 on Sunday. Five people attended. The instructors were: Paul, K4PDF; Henry, K2BFY; Mark, KI4OBT, Jim, KF4PQL; Kevin, W4KLS; and Gordon, NQ4K.The License Examination Session was Sunday afternoon. We had eight people take the test, including a class student who

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-52704979195906895602011-02-10T19:44:00.004-05:002011-02-10T20:03:23.666-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on Feb 2nd at the Claude Moore Community Center. There were 12 members in attendance.We had a brief business meeting to discuss upcoming activities:Preparations continue for the Virginia QSO Party. Gordon, NQ4K, and Mark, KI4OBT, will be doing several club presentations in February. Dick, W2YE, will again host the club station at his home. He will prepare and

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-27910470223138352862011-01-30T15:57:00.001-05:002011-01-30T15:57:46.410-05:00

Hi,Another month has gone by quickly.I had a great month. I worked the ARRL RTTY contest (80m only, 100 QSOs, 3700 pts), the NAQP SSB contest (15m only, 7 QSOs, 35 pts), and the BARTG Sprint (80m only, 30 QSOs , 300 pts). Not great scores but I enjoyed it.Refreshments will be provided by Dick, W2YE.The primary activity for this meeting will be the practice setup of our Field Day computers. I

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-84564840836570913992011-01-16T15:18:00.002-05:002011-01-16T15:39:54.748-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on Jan 5th at the Claude Moore Community Center. There were 19 members present.The meeting began with introduction of the new club vice-president, Jim Purks, KF4PQL. Actually, Jim has held this position in the past and we appreciate his offer to fill in for this opening. Jim stated that he is seeking program suggestions for future meetings. He would also like

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-26032714744355115172011-01-02T19:03:00.000-05:002011-01-02T19:04:16.757-05:00

Hi,Another year has gone by and it is time for the first meeting of 2011.I was very busy this past month and did not get many radio things done. My YSL got tired of waiting for me to put in more electrical power outlets in by radio room, so she hired an electrician to do the work. I worked the ARRL 10M contest for a total of 2 QSOs. Oh, well, a new year is here and maybe I will work at it a

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-42128821526801387222010-12-23T07:34:00.000-05:002010-12-23T07:35:03.587-05:00

Hi,The web page for the 2010 Herndon Caboose special event station conducted in conjunction with the 5th annual herndon train show have been updated.See http://www.qsl.net/sterling/OSE/OSE.htmlBill, WF1L, did an excellent job coordinating the event. And thanks to the many people who contributed to make it a success.73, Gordon, NQ4K

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-68703173133921102272010-12-18T22:25:00.001-05:002010-12-18T22:25:46.788-05:00

On, 12/18/2010 12:34 PM, Ray Anderson emailed::On Sunday, February 27, 2011, the Vienna Wireless Society ARC will hostits 35^th annual Winterfest.Help us make it a success.Spread the word to the ham community; talk about it at your clubmeetings; pass along the information flyer that is found at:*http://www.viennawireless.org/flyer/2011.01.pdf*Additional information is at:*http://

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-50829532541635652502010-12-14T09:33:00.000-05:002010-12-14T09:35:28.121-05:00

Hi,Tom, WA2BCK, gave a presentation on Tips for Contesting at the November SPARC monthly meeting. In this presentation, he summarized his experience to help others achieve their contesting goals.The presentation has been posted to our club web site at:"http://www.qsl.net/sterling/Contesting/WA2BCK_Tips_on_Contest_Operating.pdf"I enjoyed the presentation and hope that you will also.73, Gordon,

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-46222350921108049612010-12-13T20:05:00.003-05:002010-12-13T20:20:46.565-05:00

SPARC held their December meeting on the first of the month at the Claude Moore Community Center. Sixteen members attended the meeting.After member introductions, the group discussed upcoming activities, including the planned operation from the W&OD caboose in Herndon on Dec 11th.SPARC is also planning a Technician class and exam session for the weekend of Feb 12th and 13th. Gordon, NQ4K, will

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-5357708696384998512010-12-13T17:47:00.000-05:002010-12-13T17:49:07.786-05:00

Hi,Bill, WF1L, and Kevin, W4KLS, got a nice sriteup in the Herndon Patch, on on-line newspaper. Seehttp://herndon.patch.com/articles/amateur-radio-club-hosts-open-house#This was a very successful event. We had many visitors and several young folks had an opportunity to make a contact on the radio.Please pass along your thanks to Bill, WF1L, for organizing the event, and Henry, K2BFY, for

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-25098552058551518392010-12-05T17:28:00.001-05:002010-12-05T17:28:37.389-05:00

SPARC: Here are the 2 radio related museums in the DC area that we talkedabout at this week's meeting. I've visited both, and recommendvisiting them next time you are in their areas when they are open. Thefirst one is next to BWI. The second is out 50, near 301, on the waytowards Annapolis.National Electronics Museum - http://www.hem-usa.org/Radio & Television Museum - http://www.radiohistory.org

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-68069276453409100952010-12-05T11:54:00.000-05:002010-12-05T11:55:05.077-05:00

Here's the link to the MAARC Meeting schedule. (http://www.maarc.org/calendar_of_events.htm) Click on the December meeting to get directions to the Sully Center (Meeting Site).Most Meetings have a tailgate before the meeting and after the meeting is the auction. Non Members have to pay a small fee to participate in the auction.Lots of fun and you won't believe the bargains that can be had at

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-32023770138644400962010-11-28T11:24:00.001-05:002010-11-28T11:24:46.776-05:00

Hi,The last meeting of the year, the December meeting, is the coming Wednesday.I had a great month. I worked the three big ham contests. the ARRL Nov Sweepstakes CW and Phone contests and am working the CQWW DX CW contest - 40M only, so I am taking a break now until the band opens up again later this afternoon. Having a lot of fun.Refreshments for this month will be provided by Kevin,

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-310305064300932182010-11-14T19:54:00.008-05:002010-11-15T17:44:16.297-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on Nov 3, 2010 at the Claude Moore Community Center. Fifteen members attended. Following member introductions, we discussed upcoming club activities.SPARC will operate a 2 meter station from the W&OD caboose on Saturday, December 11th. The station supports the Herndon Holiday Train Show and will operate from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Set up is at 9:00 AM. Bill, WF1L,

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-12348380167040995082010-11-02T14:56:00.000-05:002010-11-02T14:57:06.900-05:00

Congratulations Sparcies!We placed 15th Nationally and 1st in Virginia for our 3A category forField Day!Way to go, Team!Bill - WF1L

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-24973944440312654652010-10-31T18:36:00.000-05:002010-10-31T18:37:02.174-05:00

Hi,It is time for the November monthly meeting. Again the past month has flown by.I personally did few ham related things this past month. Worked the CQWW Phone contest, started working on the plan for Technician Class and Exam, and started soliciting for sponsors for Virginia QSO Party plaques. A good month overall.Refreshments for the meeting will be provided by Paul, K4PDF.The presentation

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-34073344985592827062010-10-13T18:38:00.002-05:002010-10-13T19:11:48.281-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on Oct 6th at the Claude Moore Community Center. There were 13 members present.Following member introductions, Dick W2YE provided a report on the QSL Bureau. Although there has been some turnover in letter managers this year, he currently has only two letters (B&F) that are not assigned. Please contact Dick if you can help out.Ray, KD4RSL, provided the

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-46663390311439317992010-10-11T17:55:00.000-05:002010-10-11T17:56:03.688-05:00

Hi,We had a very successful event.Thanks to all for making this an excellent event. Dick, W2YE, Mark, KI4OBT, Russ, W3RST, Ray, KD4RSL, Gordon, NQ4K, and Duane, K4UW were among those there at the start, helped with the set-up, worked the booth, and stayed until the end.Pictures are posted at:http://www.qsl.net/sterling/Sterlingfest/Sterlingfest.htm73, Gordon, NQ4K

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-51265903381175987532010-10-11T17:44:00.000-05:002010-10-11T17:45:17.109-05:00

SPARC: Here is the info about Saturday's LARG event that was mentioned atthe last meeting:-------------------------------------------------Title: Riley Hollingsworth, K4ZDH At October LARG Meeting at VFWDate: Saturday October 16, 2010Time: 8:30 am - 10:30 amLocation: VFW Post 1177, 401 Old Waterford Rd NW, Leesburg VA 20176Notes: A SPECIAL Monthly Meeting on the

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-69874743688727328792010-10-09T06:51:00.000-05:002010-10-09T06:52:22.175-05:00

Hi,Sterlingfest is today. See http://www.qsl.net/sterling/Sterlingfest/Sterlingfest.htm for more information. Setup at 0900, begin at 1100, and end at 1700.Please come out to help out at the booth for a short time, work the radio, talk to passers-by, and be enthusiastic with other club members. Then take the opportunity to walk around the festival.It looks like it will be a great weather day.

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-66504093412765024952010-10-01T08:12:00.003-05:002010-10-01T08:12:27.501-05:00

Hi,Another month has gone by and it is time for our monthly club meeting.I had a great month. The butternut vertical has been working well. I worked the CQWW RTTY contest for a couple of hours for 67 QSOs in between doing some home maintenance (window repair). Also bought a G5RV to replace the doublet made of stereo speaker wire, which broke once again.Refreshments for this month will be

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-45368837473933045232010-09-19T10:54:00.004-05:002010-09-19T11:18:02.347-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on September 1st at the Claude Moore Community Center. There were 14 members present. The meeting agenda included member introductions, reports from club officers, a show-and-tell session, and prepartions for the upcoming club station at SterlingFest.During introductions, Charles, K3SR, reported that he is celebrating 50 years as a ham. Congratulations!!Dick,

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-29614816371989768362010-08-29T13:32:00.000-05:002010-08-29T13:33:04.145-05:00

Hi,Another year has gone by and it is time for the first meeting of the new club year. Wednesday, 1 September 2010, at 7:00 PM.As always we will start with our round of introductions where we all recount our radio activities over the past summer.Then as we have done at our first meeting for the past several years, we will have a "Show and Tell." All should bring a ham-related item (or

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-8873397067180353952010-08-29T09:43:00.002-05:002010-08-29T10:00:27.181-05:00

The "unofficial" end of summer is rapidly approaching. SPARC celebrated with their annual pizza party at Joe's Pizzaria on August 4th. We had 19 members and guests at the party and shared more pizza than we could actually finish. The highlight of the party was our special guest, Hannah Huhn, the wife of SPARC's first president. She shared many memories from the early days of the club. Thanks

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-87181113464503435282010-08-20T09:42:00.001-05:002010-08-20T09:42:44.581-05:00

Flyer for widest dissemination:http://www.vbhamfest.com/flyer/vbhamfest.pdfVisit the VBHamfest website at:http://www.vbhamfest.com/

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-4380537490531883292010-08-16T19:46:00.000-05:002010-08-16T19:47:12.307-05:00

Hi,We need a volunteer for the position of Vice-President.As we previously announced, Bud, W4KSN, has resigned as Vice-President of SPARC. We will miss Bud - he was a very enthusiastic and energetic member of SPARC.The position of Vice-President is not difficult and the responsibilities are negotiable.1. Run the monthly meeting in the absence of the President.2. Help with identifying speakers

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-27128747872324310922010-07-14T21:17:00.001-05:002010-07-14T21:17:36.351-05:00

Hi,Pictures from Virginia QSO Party Awards Ceremony and Field Day have been posted to our web site.http://www.qsl.net/sterling/VA_QSO_Party/2010_VQP/2010_VQP_AC_Pics/2010_VQP_AC_Pics.htmlhttp://www.qsl.net/sterling/Field_Day/2010FD/2010FD_Pics/2010FD_PicsPlease email mistakes and omissions to me.have a great summer and see you in Aug at the Pizza Party.73, Gordon, NQ4K

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-46329898500302623672010-06-27T15:37:00.001-05:002010-06-27T15:37:45.794-05:00

Hi,It is over. A good 24 hours of operating.I wish to thank every one who participated. You did a great job and I hope that every one had good time.We managed to keep all the radios operating almost all the time. We had plenty of operators and I believe everyone had the opportunity to get on the air. We even had a few future hams come out and get on the air for the first time.Dick, W2YE, will

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-59048745246137259102010-06-26T07:39:00.000-05:002010-06-26T07:40:00.841-05:00

Hi,Antenna rope hanging went well. Dead-eye Dick, W2YE, and dead-eye Don, K7CS, eash did one tower. Dead-eye Russ, W3RST, had a really good hanging and did three.Set up starts at 1000 today. For people who have not been to our field day before, come on out, look for someone doing something, and ask if you can help. There is always things to do to get ready.Operations start at 1400. 15 minutes

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-14247557701449304692010-06-24T20:16:00.001-05:002010-06-24T20:16:32.022-05:00

Hi,Field Day is upon us. Should be a good weekend. Might be a little hot, but the humidity should be OK.Events start tomorrow Friday, at 7 PM at Park View High School with stringing the ropes for putting up the antennas. Takes about an hour, if dead-eye Dick, or dead-eye Russ, or dead-eye Don can work their magic with their EZ HANG SlingShot & Reel Device for installing wire antennas.Please

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-64354909216569108882010-06-21T14:38:00.002-05:002010-06-21T14:41:30.499-05:00

Hi,On Saturday, we mailed the Virginia QSO Party plaques that were not picked up at the Manassas Hamfest.Today, Monday, we mailed the certificates to all participants. Again, to those who did not pick up there certificate at the Awards Ceremony.If you do not receive a certificate in the near future, please email and we will mail a replacement.73, Gordon, NQ4K

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-430825218171611742010-06-19T17:09:00.001-05:002010-06-19T17:09:47.939-05:00

Hi,See: http://www.qsl.net/sterling/HerndonFest/HerndonFest.html73, Gordon, NQ4KOn, 6/9/2010 5:31 AM, Bud Aiello emailed::For all the SPARC members that assisted on Saturday and Sunday at theHerndon Festival activities I would like to say Thank You! With out you itwould have been a long boring weekend and we SPARC would not have beensuccessful. Despite a couple of HT issues on Sunday morning

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-91878390559555090162010-06-12T19:09:00.003-05:002010-06-12T19:39:19.022-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on June 2nd at the Claude Moore Community Center. Sixteen Members were present.The annual election of officers took place at this meeting. All existing officers were re-elected to their current positions. Congratulations and thanks for the unselfish support. The officers are: President: Gordon, NQ4K Vice-President: Bud, W4KSN Treasurer: Ray,

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-81840429841277346892010-06-01T03:21:00.001-05:002010-06-01T03:21:59.368-05:00

Hi,Another month has come and gone very quickly and it is time for the June Meeting on Wednesday, 2 Jun 10.The only ham radio thing I did this month was work on the log metadata for the Virginia QSO Party. The plaque awardees have been identified and we are rapidly coming up on the awards ceremony at the Manassas Hamfest.Refreahments this month will be provided by Bruce, KJ4MFF.We will not

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-24449374929844115042010-05-16T09:58:00.003-05:002010-05-16T10:36:20.618-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on May 5th at the Claude Moore Community Center in Sterling. Sixteen members were present.Our guest speaker for the meeting was Mike Gray, Plans Chief for the Virginia Emergency Operations Center. He provided an informative presentation on the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, including their ties with the amateur radio community. The Department of

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-14322189937190985432010-05-04T20:16:00.000-05:002010-05-04T20:17:18.160-05:00

The Wednesday May 5, 2010 SPARC meeting will feature Guest Speaker MikeGray, Plans Chief from the Virginia Department of EmergencyManagement/Virginia Emergency Operations Center. Mr. Gray's presentationwill discuss the Virginia Emergency Operations Center and Amateur Radio.Please attend!Bud Aiello, w4ksn

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-48259077906393555162010-05-02T20:39:00.001-05:002010-05-02T20:39:28.678-05:00

Hi,It is time for the May SPARC meeting.The past month has gone be extremely fast. We held the VAQP scoring party at my QTH. Don, K7CS; Dick, W2YE; Red, N3TG; Henry, K2BFY; and Bud, W4KSN; and I scored about 40 paper logs. See the pictures and logs metadata at our web site: http://www.qsl.net/sterling/VA_QSO_Party/QSOParty.htmRefreshment for the meeting will be provided by Bill, WF1L.We have

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-34167378942750496042010-04-14T18:22:00.005-05:002010-04-14T18:56:32.448-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on April 7th at the Claude Moore Community Center. Eighteen members were present and we began the meeting with member introductions and discussion of activities this past month.The business portion of the meeting began with a discussion of the recent Virginia QSO Party. Logs are still being flowing in and, as of the meeting date, 243 logs had been received --

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-54423118425535156902010-04-04T18:22:00.000-05:002010-04-04T18:23:02.498-05:00

Hi,Another busy month has gone by and it is time for the April SPARC Monthly meeting.I had a very full month. I worked the Virginia QSO Party from my home station and also worked a shift at K4NVA station at Dick's, W2YE, QTH. Had a lot of fun. The electronic logs have been coming in. We have about 200 now, they are continuing to come in and we have not opened the paper logs yet. I also worked the

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-61562756191006771172010-03-14T15:00:00.002-05:002010-03-14T15:10:56.879-05:00

I attended this weeks meeting of the Vienna Wireless Society to do a presentation on the Virginia QSO Party. While there, Lee, KD4RE, asked if I could pass the following invitation to SPARC members.QCWA Chapter 91 would like to invite radio amateurs in the area (in particular members of SPARC) to our March 20th lunch meeting for a presentation by Dr Kerry Kingham (WA4BQM) on Sunspots. I know this

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-37433537842333171492010-03-14T10:21:00.005-05:002010-03-14T12:14:02.103-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on March 3rd at the Claude Moore Community Center. There were 23 members and guests in attendance.Our meeting started with a round of member introductions. Bruce, KJ4MFF, announced that he had successfully completed upgrade of his license to Extra class. Congratulations to Bruce!Our presentation this month was on software defined radios and we were fortunate to

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-54241926608117743172010-02-28T16:59:00.001-05:002010-02-28T16:59:40.003-05:00

Hi,Another month has gone by and it is time for the March meeting. We have a full agenda for the evening.I did not do much for the past month. I missed all the contests. Antennas still down. I did however set up a special event station our our church and several young men came by and were able to make contacts. It was a lot of fun, but my station is still in pieces in the

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-43876264508664790252010-02-14T11:09:00.003-05:002010-02-14T11:46:23.149-05:00

Our monthly SPARC meeting was held Feb 3rd at the Claude Moore Community Center. Fourteen members were in attendance.The meeting kicked off with member introductions and discussion of our ham activities since the last meeting. Dick, W2YE, announced that he completed all the requirements for the WAS Triple Play Award (he is recipient #377). This award requires a voice, CW, and digital QSO with all

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-56507448141701822982010-02-05T15:44:00.001-05:002010-02-05T15:44:51.186-05:00

Hi,I like a little history and often wondered when SPARC started, who were the founding members, when we picked up the QSL buro, and when we started to sponsor the Virginia QSO Party. Our web site has good record from about 2001 forward, but nothing older.Duane, K4UW, a SPARC member from almost the beginning of the Club, has volunteered to be our historian, gather some of our history, and

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-82887088135064606672010-01-31T17:39:00.001-05:002010-01-31T17:39:40.259-05:00

Hi,Another month has gone by extremely fast. It is time for the February meeting - Wednesday, 3 Feb at 7:00 PM.I worked only one contest this past month. The North American CW contest with 125 QSOs for 5000 pts. Then in the storms that followed, both my antennas came down. Have not fixed them yet.Bud, W4KSN, has arranged for Mike Gray from the VA Department of Emergency Management to come and

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-59822160445623679722010-01-10T17:06:00.008-05:002010-01-10T17:40:20.849-05:00

We held our first meeting of the new year on Jan 6th at the Claude Moore community center. There were 18 members present at the meeting.Along with introductions of the members, Bill WF1L gave a report on the special event station held in the W&OD caboose next to the Herndon train depot. This was a fun event as we got to set up a station inside the caboose on December 12th and 13th. For this event

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-30774544427617654322010-01-10T12:14:00.000-05:002010-01-10T12:15:19.270-05:00

Dear Radioamateur OM,on behalf of the contest committe of HA-DX contest I would like to remind you that the next HA-DX contest is going to be organized between 16th January 1200 GMT and 17th January 2010 1159 GMT.We ask you to take part in the contest and propagate and popularize the contest among your radioamateur friends.The most important issues regarding the contest:Bands: 160, 80, 40, 20,15

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-76681688643228702702010-01-10T12:13:00.000-05:002010-01-10T12:14:05.579-05:00

Hi dear Operator , With this message we would like to remind you that the LZ Open Contest will take place next Saturday: January 16 2010 from 00:00UTC untill 06:00UTCWe invite you to take part in the contest - your participation will be highly appreciated.We are sending invitations to more then 2000 contesters all over the world and we hope that this year the LZOPEN will be one of

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-65840590401301900142010-01-09T23:06:00.001-05:002010-01-09T23:06:55.785-05:00

Hi,I worked the NAQP CW Contest this evening. Had a very good time considering that I do not know code. Once again CWDecoderXP came to the rescue. It is not over yet, but it is getting late and the activity on 40M has died down, so it is over for me. 125 QSOs, 38 sections, 5000 points, all on 40M.Heard Don, K7CS, a couple of times. Sometimes he was running sometimes search and pounce. I

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-48011112057579871242010-01-04T16:36:00.000-05:002010-01-04T16:37:42.424-05:00

Hi,I worked the ARRL RTTY contest this weekend. Had fun. 175 QSOs, 42 multipliers, 7,350 pts. I stopped when several people told me that I had a severe buzz on my signal. I will have to track that down. I did make contact with Dick, W2YE. I see that Don, K7CS, also submitted a log. Anybody else?I want to remind people that the meeting on Wednesday is also a gift exchange. Something small,

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-32476583379762540452009-12-30T20:06:00.000-05:002009-12-30T20:07:12.569-05:00

Hi,Another month has gone bye and it is time for our January meeting.I had a good month. Worked the ARRL 10M contest (29 QSOs on 15M). I turned on an old Clegg Venus and it worked (at least it received. I had an old National power supply and learned when it crackled that it also had a speaker in it that was connected to the radio. Also have a Clegg Apollo 6 amplifier, but have not hooked it

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-55767012479111013492009-12-09T20:04:00.002-05:002009-12-09T20:12:03.344-05:00

Reminder: SPARC will operate a special event station from the W&OD caboose in Herndon this weekend, Dec 12th and 13th. Thanks to Bill, WF1L, for organizing the operation. We'll operate on HF (80m, 40m, 20m, 15m, and 10m) and VHF (simplex on 146.580 and on various local repeaters when they are not busy). Henry, K2BFY, has created a web site with more details on the event. You can check it out at

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-61872292119388642142009-12-07T19:59:00.004-05:002009-12-07T20:50:01.961-05:00

SPARC held their monthly meeting on Dec 2nd, at the Claude Moore Community Center. We had 18 members in attendance and two guests.The meeting began with a round of member introductions and discussion of everyone's ham radio activities. Several members reported participating in the ARRL November Sweepstakes, both phone and CW.This month's presentation was from two members of the 23rd Battalion of

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-83887797088713795892009-11-29T19:47:00.000-05:002009-11-29T19:48:15.410-05:00

Hi,Another month has gone by and it is time for our December meeting. Wednesday, 2 Dec 09 at 7:00 PM.This has been an exciting radio month for me. I worked 4 contests in Nov. ARRL SS CW (40M only, 10 QSOs, 200 pts), WAEDX RTTY (80M only, 57 QSOs, 1,596 pts), ARRL SS Phone (15M only, 52 QSOs 2,652 pts), and CQWW DX CW (40M only, 137 QSOs, 28,356 pts). In addition, I moved a Butternut vertical from

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-29540680659761368502009-11-27T10:18:00.000-05:002009-11-27T10:19:13.817-05:00

Hi,One of the big US contests is this weekend. 2009 CQWW DX CW. Lots of people will be on the air. The rules are at: http://www.cqww.com/.This is one of the contests that SPARC enters as a club. Your part inthis endeavor is to work a few stations and send in a log with "SterlingPark ARC" as the club name.Please take the time to get on the air for a few minutes and make a fewcontacts. You can tell

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-23206442026892398462009-11-20T19:09:00.000-05:002009-11-20T19:10:11.650-05:00

Hi,One of the big US contests is this weekend. 2009 ARRL November Sweepstakes Phone. Lots of people will be on the air. The rules are at: http://www.arrl.org/contests/rules/2009/novss.html.This is one of the contests that SPARC enters as a club. Your part in this endeavor is to work a few stations and send in a log with "Sterling Park ARC" as the club name.Please take the time to get on the air

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-82783287890492633972009-11-18T20:53:00.000-05:002009-11-18T20:54:20.246-05:00

Hi, Bud, W4KSN, emails: This evening on the SPARC 6 Meter Round Table we touched on RF Safety Compliance for Amateur Radio Stations. Section 97.13c of the FCC Rules state: (c) Before causing or allowing an amateur station to transmit from any place where the operation of the station could cause human exposure to RF electromagnetic field levels in excess of those allowed

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-64044732512479745472009-11-08T16:58:00.008-05:002009-11-09T17:50:02.863-05:00

The monthly SPARC meeting was held Nov 4th at the Claude Moore Community Center. There were 18 members in attendance. As is customary, the meeting began with member introductions and discussion of ham activities in the past month. Special congratulations to Bruce, KJ4MFF, for successfully upgrading to General class and to Gordon, NQ4K, for his certificate in the CQ WW contest.Bill, WF1L,

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-31999083541057496612009-11-01T21:04:00.001-05:002009-11-01T21:04:41.390-05:00

Hi,Another month has gone by and it is time for the Nov meeting.I had a good ham radio month. My major accomplishment was working the CQWW DX SSB contest. I only worked 15M for 97 QSOs and a total of 15,812 points. It was fun.This month, the refreshment service will be from Dick, W2YE.We have a few items of Club Business to go over. First, we can review our club participation in contests. The

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-39256452006660867782009-10-13T18:32:00.008-05:002009-10-13T19:05:38.056-05:00

Our monthly meeting was held Oct 7th at the Claude Moore Community Center in Sterling. We had 16 members attend. After member introductions and activity reports, the business agenda included several topics.We reviewed rules for the 2010 Virginia QSO Party and agreed that no significant rule changes are required. There was some discussion on changing the operating times for the event and this may

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-37000592534595950702009-10-12T16:06:00.004-05:002009-10-12T16:14:20.252-05:00

The Sep 18th edition of The Observer in Herndon featured an article about SPARC and our special event station at the Herndon Depot and Museum. SPARC operated as K4H from the depot grounds to celebrate 150 years since the arrival of rail service to Herndon. The article begins on page 3 and gives a very positive report of our activity.73,--MARK KI4OBT

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-9319933743714258392009-10-12T08:54:00.009-05:002009-10-12T09:17:29.154-05:00

Despite a couple hours of light rain in the morning, our station at Sterlingfest on Oct 10th was a big success. We discussed amateur radio with several members of the community and even a couple prospective new members. We only logged a handful of contacts during the day, but highlights include a QSO with WW2SUB, another special event station operating from the USS Batfish (submarine) in Muskogee

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-16583263616480343892009-10-09T14:27:00.000-05:002009-10-09T14:29:02.686-05:00

On, 10/7/2009 1:31 PM, Dan Blasberg emailed::Map at http://bit.ly/Pmv1nDear Local ARC,G and G Electronics of Maryland is having a "yard sale" this comingSunday, October 11th at our store location in Gaithersburg, MD.Over the past 30 years of being in business, you all have seen ourdisplays at the various Washington area hamfests, but there is a store(warehouse) too. We are downsizing the

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-59751372466555541082009-10-08T20:59:00.002-05:002009-10-08T21:03:04.977-05:00

Reminder: SPARC will operate a station this Saturday, October 10th, at the annual Sterlingfest. We can use volunteers to help set up, operate, and close down at the end of the day. Setup time begins at 9:00AM and the event runs from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM. We always have a lot of visitors, so come out and help us promote amateur radio. See the SPARC web site for the event plan and a map showing the

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12056959.post-85098177193762296242009-10-04T14:47:00.001-05:002009-10-04T14:47:47.141-05:00

Hi,Another month has gone by and it is time for the October SPARC meeting. Unfortunately I will not be there: I will be in Vermont at a wedding. Please be nice to Bud, W4KSN, our vice-president.This was a light month for me. I worked the CQWW RTTY contest on 80M for 86 contacts. Was told that I had a lot of hum on my signal so I guess I will be putting some chokes on everything. Sat in a on

SPARC'iehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01178591185110588516noreply@blogger.com