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October 2024 is online now

Today is Tuesday, October 15, 2024 (day 289/2024)
The Raleigh Amateur Radio Society asks that any person who thinks that they might have any contagious disease refrain from attending any in-person RARS events until they are no longer contagious.


Members and non-members are welcome!

In-Person
Ridge Road Baptist Church
2011 Ridge Road
Raleigh, NC 27607
6:00 PM: New Ham / Elmer Meeting
7:00 PM: General Social Period
7:30 PM: Business Meeting and Program

Online
Click here to join the Zoom call anytime after 7:00 PM on the evening of the meeting. Please add your call sign and location to your name in Zoom. Zoom participants will be able to talk amongst themselves until 7:30 PM. At 7:30, Zoom participants will be muted for the meeting but the Zoom chat feature will be monitored in the meeting room so they can make comments and ask questions.

We need VOLUNTEERS to help with set-up and tear-down for the in-person meeting.
See here for more information and to sign up!


We meet in-person for
The Gathering and the RARS Dinner.


See here for a list of presentations and
selected materials
from prior meetings
.

Have an idea for a meeting? Email the RARS Vice President.
Welcome to our newest RARS members
ROBW Robert Wiggins KK6SJN Nathaniel Miles K4JFH Ken Hayes
KJ7ACQ Ian Carrese W7AMD Christopher Heavens KE7UJX Dave Cannon

Current News and Events
Updated October 14, 2024 08:41:29

Next RARS Portable Operating Event
Saturday, October 19, 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Please join the RARS Portable Operating Group at the Jordan Lake Educational State Forest, this coming Saturday, October 19th, from 3:00 PM to  5:00 PM. Please note this is NOT the campgrounds or state park. Next weekend is a Parks on the Air "Support Your Parks" weekend, so we can expect more POTA contacts than usual. We'll set up at the picnic tables in the woods to the right of the first parking lot you enter. As always, no license or club affiliation required, only a passing interest in radio, communications, or electrons. Kids and family are welcome to join. ...

If you plan to bring a HF radio, please drop me a note and specify what bands you can operate. I'll plan to bring band pass filters. Multiband radios are good for minimizing interference. The last time we visited this site we had a mini-Field Day with six stations operating simultaneously. Perhaps we'll be "7A" this go round. Check here for updates if the weather is questionable. We hope to see you there!

For more information, contact Brantley West K4CBW.


Next RARS Gathering and License Exam
Tuesday, October 22, 2024
Ridge Road Baptist Church,
2011 Ridge Road, Raleigh

Part show-and-tell, part maker fair, part operating event, the in-person RARS Gathering on the fourth Tuesday of each month is the place to be if you want to find out about the local ham community, meet other ham radio operators, see hands on demos of old and new ham radio equipment, get on the air, and exchange ideas in a fun forum. Members and non-members are welcome. ...

The meeting starts at 7:00 pm in the Fellowship Hall, but we start setting up at 6:00 pm, and you are welcome to bring your own ham radio equipment and projects to demonstrate, show off, or just work on with other like-minded hams -- we have plenty of tables. You might also find sources of coax, connectors, zip cord, Powerpoles®, and whatnot. For more information about The Gathering, please contact Tadd Torborg KA2DEW.

The RARS Volunteer Examiner Team conducts license exams at The Gatherings in even-numbered months. You do not need to be a RARS member to test with us. Exams start promptly at 6:00 pm so applicants can attend The Gathering, afterwards. Please see our License Classes and Exams page for important information, including the exam requirements. Preregistration is preferred and may be done by submitting the registration form on this page (select the Ridge Rd location and date). For more information about RARS license exams, please contact Richard Hall K7RLH, the RARS VE Chair.


Next RARS Dinner
Tuesday, October 15, 2024, 6:30 pm
IHOP, 7471 Six Forks Road, Raleigh

All members and guests are welcome to attend the monthly RARS Dinner, now on the on the THIRD Tuesday of each month. Informal and Dutch, just bring your appetite and best rag to chew.

IHOP is on the corner of Sawmill and Six Forks Roads. After entering the restaurant, look for our folks in the dining room. For more information about the RARS Dinner, please contact Chuck Littlewood K4HF.


Help Introduce the Public to Amateur Radio
at the NC State Fair!
October 17 – 27, 2024

It's that time of year again! The NC State Fair is approaching quickly, and The NC Ham Radio Exhibit is in need of volunteers to staff the Exhibit, a Special Event Station on Saturdays and Sundays, and a Get On The Air Station for the public on Fridays.

Last year we had over 1,200 visitors to the exhibit looking for more information about ham radio. It's a great opportunity to

  • Answer questions about the hobby,
  • Share about your gear and demonstrate how it works,
  • Provide information on getting licensed and joining clubs, and
  • Explain different programs such as Scouts, SkyWarn and ARES.
Every volunteer receives free admission and free parking for the day(s) of their shift(s). Sign up here for the Exhibit (three four-hour shifts per day) and here for the Special Event and GOTA Stations. ...

Volunteers come from all over North Carolina, representing clubs across the state. This year, the exhibit will include JARSCom, the Johnston Amateur Radio Society’s Mobile Command Vehicle, a converted ambulance filled with radio gear covering every band. The truck will be open for tours and available for calling nets.

The NC State Fair runs from Thursday, October 17 through Sunday, October 27, 2024. The NC Ham Radio Exhibit will be open every day from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Volunteer parking is at the Cardinal Lot. A shuttle operates all day from the Cardinal Lot to Gate 7, which is very close to the exhibit.

Please contact Rodney Warren KO4ZFO at ko4zfo@gmail.com or Travis Russell KN4WJL at kn4wjl@proton.me if you have any questions. Use the links above to sign up!


Upcoming Events

Oct 17-27 NC State FairRaleigh, NC
Oct 19 AB4OZ HamfestRaleigh, NC
Nov 2-3 Stone Mountain HamfestStone Mountain, GA
Nov 3DST ends at 2:00 AMMost of the US
Nov 17 JARSfestBenson, NC
Feb 7-9 Orlando HamCationOrlando, FL
Apr 5 RARSfestRaleigh, NC


Oct 14 - Oct 21 WA7BNM Contest Calendar


ARRL News
Catch this replay of the March 27, 2024 ARRL Roanoke Division Town Hall.

powered by Surfing Waves

RARS Has Worked All States!

Thanks to three years of Field Day logs, the 2024 NC QSO Party, and a final push by Tom N4TL, the Raleigh Amateur Radio Society has earned the ARRL “Worked All States” award in the “Mixed” category!




RARS Website News
RARS-L Email Bounces
Messages from RARS-L, the members-only email reflector, are once again experiencing excessive bounces when trying to be delivered to members' email addresses. Our service provider has been notified, but the cause remains a mystery. The delivery of messages from RARS-L has been suspended indefinitely. There is no estimated resolution time. Please use the RARS Discord server instead. Thank you for your patience.
Recent Changes to the RARS Website
  • A page with a link to join the RARS Discord Server has been added to the website. Discord is an instant messaging, voice-over-IP, and video platform, that allows conversations among members to take place in chat rooms and voice/video channels categorized by topic. No need to see reams of messages about topics you're not interested in!
  • The Field Day page has been updated with our plans for 2024
  • A new page describes RARS's equipment loan program
  • Links where we tell you to contact someone now open a RARS Communication Form addressed to that person, rather than directing you to the Club Contacts page.
  • Call signs in the membership roster and elsewhere on the website link to QRZ.com profiles
  • The Zoom link for the General Membership Meeting has been added to the meeting announcement at the top of this page.
  • For those interested in RARS's history, here is a list of RARS officers and EXciter editors going back to RARS's founding in 1969, and here is a list of RARS founding, charter, life, and honorary members, both of which are also linked from the About RARS page
  • The link to sign up for the RARS-L email reflector has been moved from the About page to the For Members Only page.
  • A new page with the list of Board nominations for 2024 has been added
  • Back issues of the EXciter are now available on the “Wayback Machine”, in addition to the News & Exciter page
  • Meeting presentations have moved to here and are linked from the RARS General Membership Meeting announcement at the top of this page
  • FCC Topics of Interest has moved to the News & Exciter page
  • Why You Should Be A RARS Member Today! has moved here and is linked from the Join/Renew Membership page
  • Looking for RARS Club polo shirts or brochures to promote the Club? Go to the bottom of the For Members Only page
  • The menu on the left side of each page has been reorganized into logical chunks with lines separating the chunks. The Home button is suppressed if you are on the home page.


Dick Bitner Benevolent Fund
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RARS · P.O. Box 17124 · Raleigh, NC 27619-7124
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