Tag: Ham radio

Monthly Meeting – February 26

Posted on By Michael M
Meetings

Our monthly meeting, held on the fourth Wednesday of the month, is Wednesday, February 26, 2025, at 7:00 p.m.

At this month’s meeting we are going to do a show and tell. We’ve done that before and it has been very successful. This is where you have an opportunity to talk about a project that you are working on or have completed, and bring any items you like to add to the discussion. There are a lot of new hams in our club, so everything from elementary to advanced projects will be beneficial. New hams, let’s hear what you’re doing! And if you need help, this is a great time to get it. 

As always, we welcome everyone to our meetings and activities, members and non-members, whether licensed or not!

Location:
Cox Science Center and Aquarium
4801 Dreher Trail North, West Palm Beach, FL 33405
https://www.coxsciencecenter.org

Join us in our Forums here – https://wpbarg.com/phpbb/

Testing – Saturday, February 1

Posted on By Michael M
Testing

We Will Be Testing Saturday, February 1

Now is the opportunity to sit for your technician or upgrade your current license.

We are accredited to administer all elements of the FCC Amateur Radio exams, and we do so every OTHER month, on the first Saturday of the month, at the Cox Science Center in West Palm Beach.

Testing begins at 10:00 a.m. When you get to the front door let them know you are here for the amateur radio exam and they will get you to our room. Below is an ARRL link on what to bring Saturday.

What to Bring – Click here

Any questions, register and post on our forms here – Click here
Walk-ins are welcome.

Contact us directly here – Click here

Cox Science Center and Aquarium
4801 Dreher Trail N, West Palm Beach, FL 33405

WPBARG Winter Field Day 2025 – WOW!

Posted on By Michael M
Events

As far as I can tell, this was our first full Winter Field Day, and it was a huge success! We had a pilot run last year at John Prince Park that was a lot of fun.

So many people came together and worked hard to ensure the success of this event. We operated from Saturday morning through the night, for a bit over 24 hours straight. That does not include all the hours people spent setting up and taking down the equipment, to say nothing of the work spent in the months before during planning stage.

The event attracted dozens of people, including hams outside our organization and people who are looking at getting involved in amateur radio operations. 

In the future we will be having an award ceremony, recognizing those people who contributed to this fun and successful event. Due to the overwhelming success of Richie’s 2024 Year in Review music video presentation at our last meeting, maybe we can talk him into doing the same for this year’s WFD. 

Until then, if you’re registered on the website, here’s a sneak peek at some early photos – https://wpbarg.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=725 If you’re not registered, join us! It’s free, and we will never share or sell your information.

In this photo you can see a portion of our antenna farm on top of the hill. Below that is our operations tent.  Behind the operations tent is our food service tent, and below to the right of the operations tent is our power tent (partially obstructed by a tree in the photo), where we ran 4 Honda inverter generators. [zoom in for a better view]

Here is a night shot of our operations, with the power tent to the right in the foreground. There are a lot more on our Forum.

Monthly Meeting – January 22

Posted on By Michael M
Meetings

Our monthly meeting, held on the fourth Wednesday of the month, is Wednesday, January 22, 2025, at 7:00 p.m.

We will be finalizing our plans for the Winter Field Day, and discussing more ideas for the coming year.

Richie has put together another fantastic presentation. This one is all fun! It’s a music video of our year in review. 

As always, we welcome everyone to our meetings and activities, members and non-members, whether licensed or not!

Location:
Cox Science Center and Aquarium
4801 Dreher Trail North, West Palm Beach, FL 33405
https://www.coxsciencecenter.org

Join us in our Forums here – https://wpbarg.com/phpbb/

Winter Field Day 2025 – January 25-26

Posted on By Michael M
Activities

South Florida is the best location for Winter Field Day!

Winter Field Day is quickly approaching. This is going to be an outstanding event! We have tents, tables, chairs, generators, lighting, all the necessary radio equipment, and an amazing location. Additionally, we will have personnel supplies, including a motorhome for operators to rest and nap! We have secured Phipps Park from the city of West Palm Beach and we will set up our antennas on top of a hill, while our stations will be at the base. The location is outstanding and beautiful!

Never been to a Field Day or not familiar with it? Don’t worry! This is a great time to get started and we will help you with that. Don’t have your license yet? No problem! In addition to our operator radios, we have a station set up for first timers. With supervision – which we will provide – you will be able to work the radio. One of our operators will be right next to you, assisting you with making contacts with others hundreds and even thousands of miles away. 

We work with today’s youth, so if you have an interest in STEM, you don’t want to miss this event. If you’re a minor, you will need to have a parent or guardian with you. 

As with everything we do, it’s SFL… Safety, Fun, Learn. 

Phipps Park – 4715 S Dixie Hwy, West Palm Beach, FL 33405

For more information and map of the location, click here – https://wpbarg.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?p=2347

If you’re a member of WPBARG, click here – https://wpbarg.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=707

Note: Our monthly meeting, and the first meeting of the year, will be January 22nd, 7:00 pm, at the Cox Science Center. In addition to discussing Winter Field Day, Richie has put together another fantastic presentation. This one is all fun! It’s a music video of our year in review. 

Saturday in The Park – December 28

Posted on By Michael M
Activities

December is the only month we do not hold a meeting, but we still hold our Saturday in the Park event, which, this December, will be on the 28th.  

This is where we get together for laughs and fun, while we play radio. Come join us!

Set-up starts at 10:00 a.m. Some folks like to get there a little earlier.

Directions can be found here – Saturday in The Park & Directions – WPBARG Forums

In Google maps, just type in: WPBARG Saturday in the Park.

As always, everyone is invited… members, non-members, participants and observers, come one, come all! Come out and meet us!

We Will Be Testing Saturday, December 7

Posted on By Michael M
Testing

Now is the opportunity to sit for your technician or upgrade your current license.

We are accredited to administer all elements of the FCC Amateur Radio exams, and we do so every OTHER month, on the first Saturday of the month, at the Cox Science Center in West Palm Beach.

Testing begins at 10:00 a.m. When you get to the front door let them know you are here for the amateur radio exam and they will get you to our room. Below is an ARRL link on what to bring Saturday.

What to Bring – Click here

Any questions, register and post on our forms here – Click here
Walk-ins are welcome.

Contact us directly here – Click here

Cox Science Center
4801 Dreher Trail N, West Palm Beach, FL 33405

WPBARG Family Picnic – October 26

Posted on By Michael M
Activities

As the dog days of summer are behind us, the cooler weather approaches and we will be kickoffing our Saturday in the Park by hosting a picnic with it.

Do you have portable gear? Bring it! It’s a picnic and a Run What You Brung, Saturday in the Park!

In addition to the picnic, we’re going to have some portable fun. Don’t have any portable gear? No problem… we share! Come on out, have some fun, and maybe get some ideas if you’re thinking of building your own go box, or share your ideas with others who may be considering building theirs.

This is where we get together for laughs and fun, while we play radio. Come join us!

We will also be hosting an equipment sale, and the deals will be made!

Set-up starts at 10:00 a.m. and usually wraps up by 2:00. Some folks like to get there a little earlier.

Directions can be found here – Saturday in The Park & Directions – WPBARG Forums

As always, everyone is invited… members, non-members, participants and observers, come one, come all!

Jamboree On The Air 2024

Posted on By Michael M
Activities

The third full weekend in October is Jamboree on The Air. This year, JOTA is October 18-20. The Gulfstream Council is looking for volunteers to come to Camp Tanah Keeta to set up radio stations and help get scouts on the air. More information available at https://www.gulfstreamcouncil.org/JOTA204. If you are interested in volunteering, you will need to complete the Youth Protection Training at scouting.org

If you are not available to go to the park physically, please consider getting on the air and making contact with some scouts. The Leader’s Guide has a list of suggested frequencies for JOTA activity

We Will Be Testing Saturday, October 5

Posted on By Michael M
Testing

Now is the opportunity to sit for your technician or upgrade your current license.

We are accredited to administer all elements of the FCC Amateur Radio exams, and we do so every OTHER month, on the first Saturday of the month, at the Cox Science Center in West Palm Beach.

Testing begins at 10:00 a.m. When you get to the front door let them know you are here for the amateur radio exam and they will get you to our room. Below is an ARRL link on what to bring Saturday.

What to Bring – Click here

Any questions, register and post on our forms here – Click here
Walk-ins are welcome.

Contact us directly here – Click here

Cox Science Center
4801 Dreher Trail N, West Palm Beach, FL 33405