Holiday Meet-Up 2023

After a 3-year hiatus, we are excited to announce the Waltham Amateur Radio Association’s Holiday Meetup! It’s a chance to enjoy good food, great company, and share our passion for amateur radio.

Date: Wednesday , December 13, 2023
Time: 6:00 to 8:00 PM
Venue: Great Wall Restaurant, 609 Great Rd, Bedford, MA 01730

Cost: $32 per person (includes Chinese buffet and one ticket for the raffle)
(Cash bar available)

This is the perfect opportunity to meet other radio enthusiasts, swap stories, and maybe even win a prize in our raffle. Whether you’re a seasoned ham or new to the hobby, you’ll find a warm welcome.

Please RSVP to WARA Treasurer Rich Comer K1RBC by December 6th to help us plan accordingly.

The last WARA Holiday Party was on December 18, 2019. As it turns out, this was the last such event to be held at Sichuan’s Garden. The restaurant closed not long after the party. No, the closing was not our fault. (Photo by George Maier, W1LSB)

November 29, 2023 Meeting Announcement

The November 29 Waltham ARA meeting will be fully remote. W6BSD, Fred Cirera, has graciously offered to present again, this time on amateur radio folklore. In his presentation “Myths and Fairytales”, he involves the audience, asking them questions and requesting their thoughts on each slide. This can lead to some pretty interesting discussions.

Join us online via Zoom: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/2695622043?pwd=WEJwSkhYYWtyZndjbitJQXFFNWY4dz09

Meeting ID: 269 562 2043
Passcode: 362611

One tap mobile:
+13126266799,,2695622043#,,,,*362611# US (Chicago)
+16469313860,,2695622043#,,,,*362611# US

Find your local number: https://us06web.zoom.us/u/kvk7xrZVv

Report on Field Day 2023

For this year’s ARRL Field Day in June, the Waltham ARA partnered with the Montachusett ARA (MARA). We operated from the summit of Mt. Wachusett in Princeton, MA in Class 3A (3 transmitters, in the field on emergency power). We also operated a “Get on the Air” (GOTA) station for new hams, future hams, and Technician class operators. Over 1,000 contacts were made with other FD participants around the country, and in a few other counties, including an FT8 digital contact with New Zealand.

GOTA Coach Ned, W1NED, coaches GOTA operator Izzy, no call yet

Field Day 2023 Photo Album

Though off the grid, the CW and Digital stations shared a single log file using N1MM Logger+ and an on-site wifi network. The columns in the log excerpt below are: Time, Call, Frequency, Mode, Class, Section. For example, the first contact shown was on FT8 on the 15-meter band with KF0X in Arizona:

Log excerpt – A very productive 5-minutes on CW and FT8

The Waltham ARA Repeater Site in Prospect Hill Park

boston skyline from prospect hill waltham amateur radio association WARA
WARA Repeater Site looking towards Boston – KG1T

Great picture of the repeater site – from Mt. Wachusett!

While at Boxboro a fellow HAM W1AWX introduced himself and showed me this great pic of WARA’s site taken from almost 40 miles away! Thanks Arthur! -Ron / KG1T

WARA Repeater Site from Mt. Wachusett w/ 2000mm lens

“The Jack and Sal Radio Show”

An artistic 04/64 listener named Ruth (that is all we know about her) has sent us this masterpiece of caricature, and provided this name for the commuting-time discussions on our flagship repeater.

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