SARA Work Party 1
Ice Station WØJH 2014
Release to Listen Award 2013
Split Rock Lighthouse 2012
2021 W0TBC Memorial Award
SARA Work Party 3
Fitzgerald Crew 2011
Split Rock 2013
Kilo Parks Award
SARA Field Day 2011

SARA This Week April 3 – April 9

Good morning!

The Stillwater Amateur Radio Association monthly meeting will be Saturday April 9th in Auditorium A at The Gables at Boutwells Landing, 13575 58th Avenue Oak Park Heights MN  55082. The program will be “Preparing for POTA Activation.” Boutwells Landing’s COVID protocol requires face masks in the common areas of the facility (you may remove them in the meeting room). You will need to sign in at the reception desk upon entry. The sign in process includes a non-contact temperature check and answering some quick health screening questions on the sign in form. Do not arrive before 9:00 AM as the desk is not staffed until then. The meeting will begin about 9:20 AM to allow all to process through the reception desk. The meeting will also be livestreamed via the SARA Webex Room, beginning as soon as the equipment is operational from the meeting room.


Technician License Classes continue through April 21

SARA is conducting an 8-week in-person Technician License class on Thursday evenings. Classes are held at the Stillwater Public Library from 6:00 PM to 7:50 PM. The current Technician Class license exam question pool expires June 30, 2022. The textbook is the ARRL Ham Radio License Manual 4th Edition, available online from arrl.org, ham radio retailers, and Amazon. This week’s session will be at the Lake Elmo Public Library, located at 3537 Lake Elmo Ave N, Lake Elmo, MN 55042


SARA VE Session Thursday April 28

The SARA VE team led by Shel NØDRX will be conducting a VE Testing Session Thursday evening April 28th beginning at 6:00 PM. The session will be at Boutwells Landing in Auditorium B. Pre-registration will be required. For more info, contact Shel NØDRX at n0drx at hotmail dot com.

If you are testing for the first time, be sure to register for a FCC Registration Number (FRN) before the test session. Go to https://apps.fcc.gov/coresWeb/regEntityType.do to register.

The FCC released a Public Notice on March 23, 2022, stating that the amateur radio application fees, including those associated with Form 605 application filings, would become effective on April 19, 2022. The Federal Communications Commission’s authority to impose and collect fees is mandated by Congress.

The $35 application fee, when it becomes effective on April 19, will apply to new, modification (upgrade and sequential call sign change), renewal, and vanity call sign applications. The fee will be per application.

Administrative updates, such as a change of name, mailing or email address, will be exempt from fees.

Volunteer Examiner (VE) teams will not have to collect the $35 fee at exam sessions.

Once the FCC application fee takes effect, new and upgrade applicants will pay the $15 exam session fee to the ARRL VE team as usual and pay the $35 application fee directly to the FCC by using the CORES FRN Registration system (CORES – Login).  VEC and VE team licensing procedures will not change.

When the FCC receives the examination information from the VEC, it will email a link with payment instructions to each successful candidate. The candidate will have 10 calendar days, from the date of the application file number being issued, to pay. After the fee is paid, and the FCC has processed an application, examinees will receive a second email from the FCC with a link to their official license. The link will be good for 30 days.


SARA POTA Challenge ’22

The Challenge is underway! Spring is here and warmer weather is ahead. Look for POTA activations by SARA members to increase. Activators: be sure to post planned activations on the POTA Scheduled Activations. Activators can also drop a note to the SARA groups.io page to give members advance notice. If you are not on the groups.io, sign up now at https://groups.io/g/StillwaterMNAmateurRadioAssoc

February stats on the radioham.org website. Be sure to check POTA spots regularly for activations.

The goal of this club activity is to encourage SARA members to get on the air; as a park activator, as a park hunter, or both. Awards are planned for both activators (most parks, activations, qsos & park to park) and hunters (most parks, most qsos). Contacts with all POTA stations count. And it doesn’t get any easier for hunter credits as only the activator needs to submit their activation log. Be sure to sign up for an account at parksontheair.com.


Technical Topic Thursdays

The April 7th session will be a gathering of the willing – “what’s on your workbench?” session. The previously mentioned topic “Preparing for a POTA Activation” has been moved to the Saturday Apr 9 meeting program.

Topic: SARA Tech Topic Thursday – “What’s on your workbench?” Group Discussion
Time: Apr 7, 2022 07:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)

Coming May 5th: Tim Duffy K3LR of DXEngineering for a Tech Topic Thursday on Coax.


SARA’s Summer in the Parks

Starting May 12, the weekly Eyeball QSO Party moves outdoors for the summer months. We will visit different Stillwater-area parks throughout the summer with Eyeball QSOs, POTA activations, hands-on radio, POTA portable operating tips and tricks, Mobile Station Show-n-tell, and more possibilities plus a picnic or two. Valley View Park in Oak Park Heights will be a regular location, on the schedule for May 12 (New Ham Night), June 2, June 23, July 14, Aug 4, Aug 25 and Sept 15. Other weeks could see us at Lowell Park in downtown Stillwater along the St Croix National Wild & Scenic River, along Brown’s Creek State Trail or the Gateway State Trail, or nearby MN & WI State Parks for “Late Shift” POTA activations. Watch the SARA This Week bulletin for details each week.


SARA Connections

We offer multiple ways to stay connected with SARA. They include groups.io, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

SARA groups.iohttps://groups.io/g/StillwaterMNAmateurRadioAssoc (SARA Members only)

SARA on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/527705810939785

SARA on Instagram: sararadioham

SARA on Twitter: @saraW0JH


SARA Wearables

SARA members can order shirts, hats, and jackets emblazoned with the SARA club design. Order yours at www.hamthreads.com. Orders with the SARA club design qualify for the club discount.


This week’s SARA activities

SARA’s on-air and virtual activities are a great way to stay connected with others. These activities provide healthy social contact while maintaining personal distancing.

  • “Sunday Fusion” Digital Voice Hangout Apr 3
    19:00 Central (00:00 UTC)  
    SARA Repeater 147.060+ MHz (DCS/DTCS 026 Normal)
    or connect via WIRES-X to the W0JH-Room 63969
    System Fusion digital voice hangout to expand use and familiarity with the digital voice capabilities available on the WØJH repeater.
  • SARA Top Band Ragchew
    Nightly
    20:00 Central (01:00 UTC)
    Frequency:  1.966 LSB +/- QRM
    Alternates: 21.316 MHz +/- QRM (USB) 50.166 MHz +/- QRM (USB)
  • SARA Monday Morning Ragchew Apr 4
    08:15 Central (14:00 UTC)
    Frequency:  3.856 LSB +/- QRM
  • SARA Two Meter Tuesday (TMT) Round Robin Ragchew Apr 5
    Time: 7:00 – ~8:00 pm Central (or until we finish!)
    SARA Repeater 147.060+ MHz (DCS/DTCS 026 Normal)
    The Tuesday evening on-air round robin ragchew
    An HF Afterglow follows with the Top Band Ragchew on 160 meters
  • SARA Technician License Class Session 6 Thursday April 7
    Time: 6:00 PM – 7:50 PM Central
    Lake Elmo Public Library
    3537 Lake Elmo Ave N, Lake Elmo, MN 55042
  • SARA Virtual Tech Topic Thursday April 7
    Time: 7:00 PM (00:00 UTC) 
    “What’s on your workbench?” Discussion
  • SARA Second Saturday Breakfast March 12
    Time: 7:30 AM
    Perkins Restaurant 2050 Frontage Road, Stillwater
  • SARA Monthly Meeting Saturday March 12
    Program: “Preparing for a POTA Activation” – Bob WØGAF, Brian KB9TBB,and Brad VE3MXJ
    Meeting Starts 9:20 AM, (14:20 UTC) doors at Boutwells open at 9:00 AM
    Boutwells Landing, North Entrance, 13575 58th Street North, MN 55082
    Livestream via WEBEX