--- Ham Holiday Welcomes K9EID, Bob Heil
--- First Annual WGD Awards HamCom
--- Austin Summerfest
--- Field Day 2013
--- Planned Events
--- Upcoming Hamfests and Conventions
--- Ham Holiday Welcomes K9EID, Bob Heil
The Central Oklahoma Radio Amateur’s (CORA) are geared up and ready
for the 2013 40th Annual Ham Holiday event that will take place July
26-27th in Oklahoma City. Hosted this year at their NEW LOCATION, the
Bricktown Hotel/Conference Center, the CORA group is especially pleased
to welcome Bob Heil, K9EID as their Special Guest Banquet Speaker.
Check at the door for remaining availability to this year’s banquet
to be held on Friday night.
The hamfest will feature technical and non-technical programs, DXCC
Card Checking, VE testing and the ever popular flea market as well.
ICOM America is a major commercial vender at this event and their
representative, Ray Novak, N9JA, will be there to answer all of your
questions about ICOM products. This year’s Grand Prize is an ICOM
7410 HF/50MHz Base Station!
Be sure to stop by the ARRL Booth and say hello to the ARRL volunteers
and Director Woolweaver. The ARRL Forum will be held on Saturday
morning at 11:00 AM.
--- First Annual WGD Awards Presented at HamCom
The First Annual West Gulf Division Awards were present at HamCom in
June. The Division received multiple nominations for each category and
the distinguished panel of judges had quite a job on their hands
selecting the winners. We extend our congratulations to the following
category winners:
2013 WGD Ham of the Year – William Sepulveda, K5LN
2013 WGD Young Ham of the Year – Luke Leal, KC5LSL
2013 Excellence Award (EmComm) – Stuart M. Rohre, II, K5KVH
We would also like to thank the Judges who represented the Division and
their respective Sections:
Coy Day, N5OK, for the West Gulf Division
Philip Robinson, KB5ASY, for the North Texas Section
Eddie Manley, K5EMS, for the Oklahoma Section
Lee Cooper, W5LHC, for the South Texas Section
Bill Roberts, N5NPR, for the West Texas Section
Nominations for the 2014 WGD Awards are now being accepted by Director
Woolweaver, and must be submitted by April 15, 2014.
--- Austin Summerfest, Texas State Convention
The 30th Annual Austin Summerfest designated as the 2013 West Gulf
Division Texas State Convention will be held on August 2nd and 3rd.
The Summerfest organizers are pleased to announce that their location
has changed and this year’s event is being hosted at the Crowne Plaza
Hotel, 6121 N IH 35, Austin, TX 78752.
The Keynote Speaker at the ARRL Forum will be the ever popular Riley
Hollingsworth, K4ZDH and there is just no telling what topics he will
touch on this year! Riley always speaks to a packed crowd so be sure
to get to the ARRL Forum early for a seat! Mr. Hollinsworth is the
retired Special Counsel for the Spectrum Enforcement Division of the
FCC's Enforcement Bureau.
Pre-registrations must be postmarked by July 24th to save $2 on
admissions. General admission at the door will be $10. This year’s
Grand Prize is a Yaesu FT-857D and the Featured Prize is a Yaesu
FT-7900R. A special Bonus Prize (and also the Pre-Registration Prize)
is a Yaesu FT-60R. With each registration, you receive one (1) ticket
that is good for all of the prizes. Additionally, for every qualifying
room night that you spend at the Crowne Plaza, you will receive an
additional five (5) bonus tickets (up to a total of 10). You may also
purchase additional prize tickets at the door for $1 each.
You are encouraged to make your reservations now at the Crowne Plaza
now. Please make all reservations by phoning (800) 227-6963 (NOT the
local hotel reservation desk). Ask for the Austin Summerfest Convention
rate of $99/night (so you can confirm that you are registering for the
convention). This rate is offered from 3 days prior to and until 3
days after the dates of the convention, based on guest room
availability. You are encouraged to extend your stay and make use of
as many of these nights as they can. If anyone has problems making
reservations through the (800) 227- 6963 number, call Kees (pronounced
“Case”) Talen at (512) 258-4282 and he will resolve the problem.
Director Woolweaver and Vice Director Stratton will look forward to
seeing everyone at the Austin Summerfest. Please stop by the booth and
say hello!
---2013 Field Day
Field Day is always a great opportunity for the WGD Leadership to be
out and about in the community visiting with folks and seeing how great
the Division Amateur’s come together to operate in collective force.
Several of the Division Leadership members tendered Field Day reports.
Director Woolweaver spent the weekend in North Texas, in part with NTX
SM Chris Brewer, N5GMJ. Starting in the Fort Worth, Director
Woolweaver crisscrossed the area from far West Forth Worth, North to
Denton, South to Arlington and East to Sachse – exploring fourteen
(14) Field Day sites and visiting countless people as it seemed like
the entire amateur community turned out for Field Day. While visiting
the Lockheed Martin ARC, David and Chris assisted in the installation
of an antenna mast. Director Woolweaver was especially pleased to have
an opportunity to meet Dallas Sheriff Lupe Valdez at the DARC and
participate in the DARC Tech Net on Saturday evening. For the 2013
Field Day event, DARC teamed up with members of the University of Texas
at Dallas ARC, Dallas REACT, Dallas Makerspace and the Texas
Astronomical Society of Dallas to create a supersized event that
enabled them to share knowledge and continue their efforts of team
building, experiences and fun. In addition to Sheriff Valdez, three
members of the Dallas County Sheriff Command Staff and a City of Dallas
Police Corporal attended the DARC event held annually at Flag Pole Hill
in Dallas.
Vice Director Stratton concentrated on the South Texas/Houston area for
his Field Day travels. He visited eight sites spread from Katy to
College Station. According to Stratton, “It was HOT, but it was
fun!”
Assistant Director Paul Gilbert, KE5ZW and his YL Barbara, KC5GFR
visited multiple Field Day sites in the Austin area including
Williamson County, ARC, Ham Buds, Austin ARC, Hay-Caldwell ARC and the
Alamo Area Repeater Organization. While Paul and Barbara were visiting
the Austin ARC, Texas Representative Jason Issac (District 45-R serving
Blanco and Hayes Counties) took time away from the Legislative Special
Session, to see what Amateur Radio was all about. Accompanied by
President Lori Schmidt, KM5MQ, Jeff Schmidt N5MNW did an excellent job
of explaining amateur radio and the details of Field Day activities to
the Representative. Paul and Barbara also enjoyed a great meal with
the Alamo Area Repeater Organization and they wish to thank everyone
for their hospitality that day!
John, AE5B and Carla, K5RLA Dyer, Assistant Directors in West Texas
visited the Key City ARA in Abilene on Saturday afternoon and then
traveled to Midland to visit the Midland ARC’s site Saturday evening
and Sunday morning.
--- Planned ARRL Events for K5RAV and N5AUS
Director Woolweaver, K5RAV and Vice Director Stratton, N5AUS plan to
attend the following upcoming events:
K5RAV
-- ARRL Second Board Meeting, July 19-20, Windsor, CT
-- Ham Holiday, OK State Convention, July 26-27, Oklahoma City, OK
-- Austin Summerfest, Texas State Convention, August 2-3, Austin, TX
-- Texoma Hamarama, October 25-26, Ardmore, OK
N5AUS
-- ARRL Second Board Meeting, July 19-20, Windsor, CT
-- Austin Summerfest, Texas State Convention, August 2-3, Austin, TX
ARRL Convention and Hamfest events are a great place to visit with the
Division and Section Leadership! Each event will also include an ARRL
forum where you can receive additional insight into Division and
Section matters.
At any time that you have a concern or just want to say hello, contact
Director Woolweaver at K5RAV@arrl.org. Visit our website at
www.arrlwgd.org; follow us on Twitter at ARRL_WGD and on Facebook at
ARRL West Gulf Division.
-- Upcoming Hamfests and Conventions
07/26/2013 | Oklahoma State Convention (Ham Holiday)
Location: Oklahoma City, OK
Type: ARRL Convention
Sponsor: Central Oklahoma Radio Amateurs
Website: http://www.hamholiday.com
08/02/2013 | Texas State Convention (Austin Summerfest 2013)
Location: Austin, TX
Type: ARRL Convention
Sponsor: Austin Amateur Radio Club & Texas VHF-FM Society
Website: http://www.austinsummerfest.
09/07/2013 | Gainesville Hamfest 2013
Location: Gainesville, TX
Type: ARRL Hamfest
Sponsor: Cooke County Amateur Radio Club
Website: http://www.gainesvillehamfest.
09/13/2013 | ADA HAMFEST
Location: Ada, OK
Type: ARRL Hamfest
Sponsor: Ada Radio Club, Durant Amateur Radio Club, & Shawnee Radio
Club
10/25/2013 | Texoma Hamarama
Location: Ardmore, OK
Type: ARRL Hamfest
Sponsor: Texoma Hamarama Association
Website: http://texomahamarama.org
11/09/2013 | NCTECH 2013
Location: Azle, TX
Type: ARRL Hamfest
Sponsor: Tri-County Amateur Radio Club (WC5C)
Website: http://www.wc5c.org/WC5CClub/
------------------------------
ARRL West Gulf Division
Director: David A Woolweaver, K5RAV
k5rav@arrl.org