KD5NWS Introduces Royal Rangers to Ham Radio

Charles O’Dell KD5NWS has one wish for his boys in Royal Rangers: a ham station at every Royal Ranger Pow-Wow in the United States.

Pow-Wow is a camp-out held once a year throughout the U.S. In June 2011, the Oklahoma-Southern Kansas-Northern Texas regional Royal Rangers' Pow-Wow was held near Bell Cow Lake near Chandler, OK. About 5,000 boys attended from all over the country. The boys participate in paint ball, swimming, hiking, and blacksmithing. They learned camping and other skills.

O’Dell set up a Ham station at the Pow-Wow to promote Ham radio to the boys and range leaders.

“It was a great success,” O’Dell said. “The boys and leaders were very interested.”

The boys made contacts with 50 other hams and one in Canada. Dolph Grolock KB2AW of Luther, OK, helped set up and took photos of the event.

Royal Rangers is an outreach of the Assembly of God church; however, many independent churches sponsor Royal Rangers programs as well. A boy can join by attending a meeting. He does not have to be a member of the church. In addition to local meetings and events, Royal Rangers sponsors a National Camporama in Eagle Rock, Missouri.

O’Dell has been involved in Royal Rangers since 1963.

If you would be interested in helping with the Ham station next year, please contact O’Dell at KD5NWS@aol.com.

Opportunities to Practice Radio Communications

There are several upcoming opportunities to practice Radio communications in Oklahoma:

• Dam Jam 2011, 20th Anniversary Event - September 10th. 500+ bikers in a 75 mile ride in Pryor, OK. Mobile operators (handhelds could be useful as well) are needed to help with sag, sweeps, and support. 6am-4pm. Fuel reimbursement, meal in the park, and volunteer shirts available for those who commit in advance. Contact Jim Beach damjamjim@gmail.com or Tom Stroud kd5oph@tulsahamradio.org. 

• Bike MS 150 - September 17th and 18th. 800 bikes in a 150 mile ride from Tulsa to Oklahoma City with a stop overnight in Chandler, OK. Safety, sag and sweep operations. Fuel reimbursement; food and drinks along the route; and breakfast, lunch and dinner on Saturday and Sunday. Most of the communications will be on repeater so mobile units will be the choice of the day. Bike racks would be a plus if you are not in pick-up truck. You can work both or just one day. Contact Tom Stroud, 918-695-3735 or kd5oph@tulsahamreadio.org.

• Williams Route 66 Marathon - October and November, approx. 5,000 in attendance). Williams Committee is renting a private repeater and private band radios. Training day will be scheduled. Contact Tom Stroud, 918-695-3735 or kd5oph@tulsahamreadio.org for more information.

Boy Scout Fall Festival Needs Ham Operators

The Boy Scouts have their Fall Festival on September 17th at the Jack Graves Scout Reservation in Broken Arrow, OK.

We are looking for a team of 2-4 that would like to attend this event and represent ham radio to the scouts. Contact Tom Stroud KD5OPH, 918-695-3735 or email at kd5oph@tulsahamradio.org for more info and to sign up.