A Good Day For

Local Amateur Radio Enthusiasts

By Shannon Hicks

Ham radio operators and enthusiasts had the opportunity to attend a pair of seminars, shop for new equipment, and network with fellow operators during a HamFest held at Edmond Town Hall on Sunday, September 13.

The Candlewood Amateur Radio Association (CARA) hosted the event, which ran from 8:30 am until 12:30 pm in the town hall’s gymnasium as well as the rear parking lot at 45 Main Street. It was sanctioned by the American Radio Relay League, the national organization of amateur radio operators.

Outdoors, tailgaters, vendors, and a pair of special vehicles were all on display in the town hall parking lot. Derby’s Officers Emergency Management vehicle was at the show with a team of operators, as was an American Red Cross Emergency Communications Response Vehicle.

There were also between 35-40 tailgaters set up outside, said CARA member Joe de Groot (AB1DO), one of the show’s organizers. The majority of those who attended the show were there during the show’s early hours, which made the commercial and tailgating vendors very happy. Five vendors were set up indoors, while the rest were outside in the sunshine.

“Everybody wants to get their early to get the first crack at whatever is being sold, which we saw, and then things died down around 11,” said Mr de Groot. “It was such nice weather, so people probably had plans for the afternoon.

“We planned for the show to end by 12:30, and by then a lot of [vendors] had already left,” he continued.

“It went fabulously well, though. The vendors were happy, we were very happy, and the weather was terrific.”

Indoors, a pair of seminars were included with the $6 admission fee. The first, at 10 am, was “Travel Ready HF Station, proven on multiple airline flights,” presented by Gene Gregory (K77CE). At 11 am, Jonathan Taylor (K1RFD) presented “Internet Linking.”

Raffle drawings were held all morning, with many ticket holders picking up hats, T-shirts, books and related amateur radio items. The big prize of the day, however, was a Yaesu FB 2800 — a complete mobile rig — that went to lucky ticket holder Bill Muir.

Betsey Doane, the Connecticut session manager of ARRL, was pleased with the show.

“We had a very good turnout and a lot of good conversation,” said Ms Doane, who shared a table with Ron Lane, the assistant section coordinator.

The majority of the people who visited Sunday’s show, Mr deGroot said, are not associated with CARA but they were amateur radio operators.

“That makes it a very successful day for us,” he said.

CARA’s next event will be its annual field day, in June 2010. The club has meetings on a regular basis, however, and a website (Danbury.org/CARA) offers information about its mission and members.