[ARRL-OK] Route 66 On The Air

[AE5MH]

>From the last few emails I've received, there appears to be a great deal of
confusion about ownership or permission to operate a special event call
sign.

The owner or trustee of a special event call is the person who applies for
and is granted it.  In the case of the Citrus Belt Amateur Radio Club "Route
66 OTA" special event Oklahoma city station, that person would be me.  They
coordinate who they wish to have as trustee and offer by invitation the
opportunity to register with the NVEC (several months ago).  
As with any special group call, the sole ownership (and liability) of the
call is the trustee who is completely responsible for the use of the same
during the period of it's being granted.  

In this case the call W6K for the period of 12-20 September is in
conjunction with the Route 66 OTA special event, and that trustee is me.

I don't mean to get philosophical here so I promise to be brief.
Anyone may use the call in the manner of good amateur radio principles and
practices my operate as W6K (with prior permission) for the entire period as
long as they abide by a few very simple rules.

a.  They receive prior permission from me.  This would include a way I may
contact you as the "Sub-trustee" during the use of the same. (Good operating
practice) b.  In order to keep things simple, I offer myself as POC for
frequency band de-confliction as most who have operated for several years
know that more than one W6K on the same band and mode just gets confusing to
all parties concerned. It is also been found that the low bands are most
important since a great majority wish to go straight to 20 mtrs, many of the
adjoining states are left out and have a great difficulty getting that
"Clean sweep" so we need operators, especially on the low bands and digital
modes.  De-confliction on the digital modes isn't usually an issue as these
operators will already know who is using the call and will coordinate
directly.  (Good operating practice) c.  Keep a log.  Were not exactly
talking about DXCC credit here so do your best.  If I get a card (with
SASE), I'll send a card.  Personally I am not interested in who (although
maybe where might be nice) you contacted, just validation of how many
contacts, states etc.. Having a log to fall back on will make that easy
information to gather. I will ask at the end of the event for compiling
totals information (Good operating practice) d.  (Optional, but highly
encouraged) Special event stations such as the OK Heritage Museum, Pops, the
Cowboy Hall of Fame that people are actually travelling to in order to
operate, and have made a considerable effort to set up portable stations
should take a frequency priority to those operating from a home QTH when
frequency de-conflictions occur.  
d.  (Optional) As QSL manager for this event I do have costs associated with
the printing.  In past years operators have made donations to help cover
these costs (not required).  

Conflicts are usually very easily resolved..  The trustee is the final
authority if for some strange reason some conflict may arise that hasn't
already in the last 10 years.

As Trustee, I query most of the operators of previous years and it has been
a general consensus that the event sterile of a specific club ensures that
none of the others clubs get their corn flakes all yellowed up.  IE.. Not
being affiliated with any one specific group is more beneficial to the
event.  
I will repeat this "ANY GROUP IN THE CENTRAL OK AREA MAY USE W6K FOR THE
PERIOD AS LONG AS THEY ABIDE BY THE MANDITORY RULES LISTED ABOVE

On another note: Some may have at one time been under the false assumption
that a club had ownership of this event.  This is an erroneous
misconception.  One club has sponsored the printing of QSL cards, and at
that time as a member of that club I posted them as a POC.  For several
years that has not been the case.  That was the extent of any implied
ownership or sponsorship.

Bill Wilburn has contacted me, and IF CORA or any other organization wishes
to operate a special event or have some type of affiliation to this event
I'll certainly listen to what they have to say, as with any other group.
Personally if anyone would be best suited it might be CORA.  This however
does not eliminate the necessity of a call sign trustee as with any other
club repeater or call sign. I have performed as trustee for this event for
many years and have no interest in turning it over to anyone at this time.

Requesting this special event call sign actually happened about 5 months
ago.

I’ll keep doing this as long as it’s still fun.  It’s people that spread ill
conceived perceptions and incorrect attitudes like this that occasionally
challenge my enjoyment of the events such as these.  If it was their
intension, they have succeeded.

Please feel free to pass this along to anyone that thinks they have “a
better” idea of how I should handle this.  

I feel better now and will turn you over to your regularly scheduled banter.

Oh yeah, if anyone wishes to discuss this further with me, please feel free
to do so, however it would be best suited offline/direct as to not interfere
with the normal threads of these reflectors.  I'm in the book.

73 and See you on Route66OTA.
AE5MH/Mark