May 2025 - Maple Grove Radio Club

MGRC Mission Statement

Maple Grove Radio Club provides education to current and future amateur radio operators, with the goal of serving the public. We are a reliable communications resource for events and emergencies in Maple Grove and surrounding communities.

Radio and Aliens what is not to like? Been trying to find various videos with ham radio in it. If you know of any more films please share!

President's Message

Spring is here! With that comes many outdoor ham radio events and activities. One of which is participating as a Metro Skywarn Spotter. If you want to see what it’s like to run a net or get involved we are looking for more supervisors of the day. Please reach out at the next club meeting or to myself if you would like to participate. We will train you so no worries about your skill level. There’s something for everyone to do. If you are not a spotter and would like to be there are still training opportunities this year. Go to metroskywarn.org and sign up!

Now that May is finally here we look forward to Multiple MS Runs and Rides as well as Field Day coming up in June. We are looking for volunteers to help coordinate a part of field day so we can share the workload. It takes everyone to make these events a success and I strongly encourage you to participate in any way you can.

We also have club POTA events that Ray has been coordinating so far. Thanks for putting these together Ray, I know a lot of members appreciate them! Also if any member want’s to coordinate event there’s no better time than now. Try it out and see if it’s something you like to do. We’re always looking for new and fun events to have as a club.

73,

Zach, KØZTW

Connect with Elmers/Mentors

Additionally, please follow the Maple Grove Radio Club Facebook page for frequent updates on club member activities.

Monthly Meeting

Join Us for a Pre-Meeting HF Operation Session

You are invited to stop by our shack on May 6th from 1730 to 1900 (5:30-7:00 PM) to operate on the HF bands before the club meeting. This is an excellent opportunity, especially for those who have never used their callsign on HF before.

For our Technician class licensees, given the recent amazing band conditions, we should find someone available on the 10-meter band to make contact with you. This session is designed to be fun, supportive, and friendly, making it the perfect environment for both seasoned operators and newcomers.

Come join us and experience the excitement of HF operation. If you have any questions, please direct them to W0ADL@outlook.com.

Free Extra Class License Manual

I would like to give away my Extra Class License Manual to a Technician Class or General Class Club Member. To pass the torch if you will. Please come and find me before or after the monthly meeting. I'm usually in the back before the meeting and move near the front once the meeting has started. Thanks and hope to see you there.

TALARC The American Legion Amateur Radio Club

Club Calendar of Events

Lab Class

Monday May 5th at 1800 (6:00 PM)

Please note the new class time of 1800 (6:00 PM)

The topic for May lab class will be the vertical antenna and many of its peripheral topics that support this type of antenna.

Items that we would like to discuss, as guided by class interest, are, but are not limited to the following: The vertical antenna, choke-balun, ferrites, ground radials, radiation resistance, ground resistance, SWR calculations, shortened vertical w/inductive loading with its advantages/disadvantages, VHF/UHF, J-Pole and others as time allows. Actual demonstrations will be performed.

As always, we welcome general questions on the Ham Radio spectrum and its foundation in the electronics field that you may have. Our goal is to help explain and demonstrate topics or devices for a better understanding of the art of electronics and its foundation to Ham Radio.

Interesting Media and Links

Alan W2AEW shares his electrical engineering talents in these series of circuit tutorials. I love how he shows the schematic for the circuit and explains how the components work together. He also has a ton of ham radio content on his channel check it out.

Ham Radio Perspectives channel hosted by Quin K8QS and Tom WA9TDD have a great dry humor to their videos. In this particular video they get a bit grumpy and share 10 pet peeves they have with amateur radio operators.

Jordan Vk3ACU explains how he made a simple morse code transmitter for 80M. He also demonstrates that the transmitter works. He recommends this as an easy project that makes a real transmitter.

ARRL NEWS

ARRL Ham Radio Open House Events Find Success, Media Coverage

ARRL Ham Radio Open House events across North America have increased public awareness and engagement with amateur radio during April – which is Citizen Science Month.

Centered around World Amateur Radio Day on April 18, ARRL Ham Radio Open House events were held in at least 57 locations. Several more are scheduled for this upcoming weekend. Find the details on them at www.arrl.org/Open-House.

In Vienna, West Virginia, the Parkersburg Amateur Radio Klub, W8PAR, set up its open house in a shopping mall, garnering many impressions in foot traffic – and even more in the local news. The Marietta Times and Parkersburg News and Sentinel newspapers and WTAP-TV each did stories on their activation.

In Yaphank, New York, on Long Island, an event held by the Suffolk County Radio Club was featured in Newsday (paywall). Reporter Joe Werkmeister profiled the club’s event that drew out a crowd of visitors. ARRL Hudson Division Director Ed Wilson, W2XDD, who serves as Vice President of the club, was quoted in the story.

ARRL Public Relations and Outreach Manager Sierra Harrop, W5DX, says the media exposure is invaluable. “News coverage – especially once the stories are shared on social media – multiplies the message in ways we couldn’t even begin to. ARRL’s media monitoring tool tells us that 1.32 million people were reached with the coverage from Long Island alone. All that media placement was earned by ARRL volunteers telling the story of ham radio,” she said.

Many of the clubs which participated have told ARRL they intend to make the open houses a yearly event. Harrop hopes the clubs can build on the momentum of the success. “ARRL Ham Radio Open House was a great introduction for people to what radio amateurs do. Let’s keep those new folks engaged in the clubs, make them feel welcome in the community, get them licensed and have them take part in 2025 ARRL Field Day.”

Clubs that participated in ARRL Ham Radio Open House will be asked to submit visitor counts to show how many people were reached in person. HamSCI and SciStarter, which worked with ARRL to develop and promote the event, are working to track the encounters as part of 1 Million Acts of Science – SciStarter’s nationwide program for Citizen Science Month.

Amateur Radio Helps 2025 Boston Marathon

Over 280 amateur radio operators volunteered during the 129th running of the Boston Marathon on April 21, 2025.

Operators were working at virtually every location connected with the race, including the starting line, the entire course, the finish line, transportation, and various operations centers including the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA), the State EOC Unified Command Center (UCC), and the BAA Race Operations Center (ROC) in Boston. Combined, they performed communications duties that included logistics support as a primary function and backup support for medical and other public safety requests for the race as needed.

“This is one of the largest public service events amateur radio supports in the United States and planning started over 6 months in advance,” said Rob Macedo, KD1CY, of the Boston Athletic Association Communications Committee.

ARRL Teachers Institute Application Deadline April 30

Upcoming State, Section, and Division Conventions

• April 25 - 27 | Big Bear HamEscape, hosting the ARRL Orange Section Convention, Big Bear Lake, California

• April 26 | Delmarva Amateur Radio and Electronics Expo, hosting the ARRL Delaware State Convention, Georgetown, Delaware

• April 26 | Spokane Hamfest, hosting the ARRL Washington State Convention, Spokane Valley, Washington

• May 4 | Warminster Amateur Radio Club – Annual Hamfest, hosting the ARRL Eastern Pennsylvania Section Convention, Bristol, Pennsylvania

• May 10 | Lincoln Amateur Radio Club, hosting the ARRL Nebraska State Convention, Lincoln, Nebraska

• May 16 - 18 | Dayton Hamvention®, Xenia, Ohio

• May 30 - June 1 | SEA-PAC, hosting the ARRL Northwestern Division Convention, Seaside, Oregon

• June 8 | BreezeShooters Hamfest, hosting the ARRL Western Pennsylvania Section Convention, Butler, Pennsylvania

• June 21 | Knoxville Hamfest, hosting the ARRL Tennessee State Convention, Knoxville, Tennessee

Upcoming Contests

• May 1 -- NRAU 10-Meter Activity Contest (CW, phone, digital)
• May 3 - May 4 -- 10-10 International Spring Contest (CW)
• May 3 - May 4 -- Microwave Spring Sprint (CW, phone, digital)
• May 3 - May 4 -- ARI International DX Contest (CW, phone, RTTY)
• May 3 - May 4 -- 7th Call Area QSO Party (CW, phone, digital)
• May 3 - May 4 -- Indiana QSO Party (CW, phone)
• May 3 - May 4 -- Delaware QSO Party (CW, phone, digital)

• May 3 - May 4 -- New England QSO Party (CW, phone, digital)

Board Members