[HCRA] Fwd: KB6NU's Column for November 2013

[Larry Krainson]

KB6NU's latest column:

Hi, all--

Here's my column for November. Happy Holidays everyone.

73!

Dan KB6NU


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Special event stations educate, entertain

By Dan Romanchik, KB6NU

I like special event stations. I enjoy operating them and making contact
with them. Whenever I operate WA2HOM, our club station at the Ann Arbor
(MI) Hands-On Museum, one of the first things I do is to search for special
event stations.

One of the reasons I enjoy operating special event stations is that it's
educational. For example, on November 17, I worked W4D in Mayaguez, Puerto
Rico. They were commemorating the 520th anniversary of the discovery by
Europeans of the island of Puerto Rico. As a result, I learned that on
November 19, 1493 Christopher Columbus landed on the island, naming it San
Juan Bautista in honor of Saint John the Baptist, a name that was later
changed to Puerto Rico (rich port).

Working special event stations is also entertaining. Most times when you
work a special event station, you can tell that they're having a good time.
One time, I worked W4B, operating from the Kentucky Bourbon Festival. Now,
those guys were really having a great time!

How do you find special event stations?
One way to find special event stations is to just tune around. Most special
event stations will be operating at least a 20m phone station, so take a
look at that band first. Also, consult the special event stations listings
in QST or on the ARRL website (http://www.arrl.org/special-event-stations).
KE2YK also has a special events page (
http://ke2yk.wordpress.com/special-event-station-events/).

In addition to working special event stations, you should consider
organizing and operating one of your own. For the past two years, several
members of our Rotary Club who are also amateur radio operators have
operated W8P on the third weekend in February, which commemorates the
founding of the Rotary Club and helps spread the word about the End Polio
Now campaign (http://www.endpolio.org/). It was not only fun to do this,
but I think that we helped raise awareness about polio around the world.

Whatever your reason for holding a special event, you'll want to be
somewhat knowledgeable about your topic. For example, if you decide to set
up a special event station at the local Rutabaga Festival, you might want
to know how long they've been having the festival, how many pounds of
rutabagas are produced by local farms and around the U.S., and maybe even
find a couple of rutabaga recipes that you could send out to stations that
work you.

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When he's not working special event stations, Dan, KB6NU enjoys building
kits and working CW. For more information about his operating activities
and his "No-Nonsense" series of amateur radio license study guides, go to
KB6NU.Com or e-mail cwgeek at kb6nu.com.

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