Welcome to 2025! May the new year bring you good times and lasting memories! Here at SFARC, the new year means more opportunities to engage with the community and demonstrate the many uses of amateur radio.

One of the best ways to do just that is through our monthly VE sessions, the first of which will take place on the 6th. I love meeting up with everyone for the pre-session dinners, and getting together with the candidates to discuss what interests them in ham radio always opens up new perspectives into the hobby. I highly encourage you to help out by Elmering candidates at the VE sessions because everyone has something to share. Help someone out, and perhaps even learn a thing or two yourself.

Our next club meeting will take place on January 10th at 7:30 PM at the Confluence Church Gym in Auburn, California and on Zoom at zoom.w6ek.org. Please welcome Scott (KM6RFB), who put together a comprehensive portable communications backpack inspired by medic bags. We all have plenty of radio gear, and sometimes it can be difficult to pack it all together for field use and transport. Come join us as Scott tells us about the items he used to get everything organized, where you can obtain them, and how easy it can be to tidy up your equipment for that next casual outing or an emergency event that requires rapid response and deployment. After hearing about what he’s done, I’m excited to build something like that myself so I can make better use of what I have and hopefully reduce the time it takes to set things up for outdoor operations.

For the contesters out there, January comes with two major events, the North American QSO Party. The CW contest starts at 10 AM on the 11th, and the SSB contest starts at 10 AM on the 18th. Both run for 12 hours, and the playing field is leveled by limiting the maximum transmitter power to 100 W. If you’ve never participated in a contest before or are interested in making contacts with hams all over the world, give the rules a read and get your station set up. It’s also a great way to learn about and experience for yourself how HF propagation is affected by the time of day as the different bands come alive and go quiet.

We finish up the month with our club breakfast at 7:30 AM on the 25th. This month’s breakfast will be at Mel’s Diner in Auburn, and following the breakfast we’ll go on a fox hunt. After a rainy December breakfast, I’m looking forward to better weather and a well-attended radio direction finding event this time around.

Can you believe 2024 is nearing its end? We’ve had a year full of fun and we’ll be wrapping it up with the club Christmas party on Saturday, December 7. I’m really looking forward to seeing all of you at the Confluence Church gym for a night of festivities, a perfect way to celebrate all we’ve accomplished this year.

Don’t forget, we’ll be meeting at Mel’s in Auburn at 7:30 AM on the 28th for breakfast, followed by a fox hunt at 9:00 AM. Hopefully you’ve kept your appetite after all the parties and gatherings and can join us for great food and social time.

It’s been an honor serving as the club vice president, and I look forward to an awesome 2025.

Wishing you all a wonderful holiday season,

Jim Zheng
W6JCZ

The month of November brings with it an event-filled week, starting with a club VE session on the 4th. Come join us and get your license to transmit, or upgrade to receive additional band privileges. More than just an exam session, we provide one-on-one mentoring before and after the test so you’re ready to get on the air with confidence!

Our club meeting on the 8th features a great presentation on battery-operated power sources from Brian (KM6MDM). If you’ve ever been interested in building your own power source for taking out into the field, emergency back-up, or to enhance your electronics DIY skill set, join us for an informative night as Brian goes over what he used to put together his battery box, what motivated him to build it, and what he uses it for.

The next day many of us will gather at Beales Point for a Parks On The Air activation. Starting at 8 AM on the 9th we’ll have 3 HF stations you can use to make contacts with others all over the world. Take a moment to hang out with friends and family, and bring some food for a picnic. This is a great time to experience field operation away from your home station and enjoy the view of Folsom Lake.

Our monthly club breakfast will take place on the 30th, where we’ll meet at Mel’s Diner in Auburn at 7:30 AM for some great food before we head off on a special radio direction finding event! Bring your friends and family for a relaxed hunt through the park as you have fun while learning about the techniques and skills that go into RDF!

Wishing you all a great Thanksgiving!

As we head into the first double-digit month (and last quarter) of the year there are plenty of activities lined up. The California QSO Party, that one weekend where the world wants to talk to 6-calls, starts at 11 AM on the 5^th and runs through 3 PM on the 6^th. I’ll be working CW from home this year, so come find me on HF and get Yolo County in your log.

The second week of October is filled to the top with club events, starting off with our monthly VE testing session at 7 PM on the 7^th. We’ll be meeting at Smokey Pit Barbeque for our pre-session dinner, and everyone is invited to join the fun regardless of whether you’re proctoring, Elmering, testing, or just stopping by. We always have a great time helping new and upgrading hams discover their next step into the world of amateur radio!

Every second and fourth Wednesday of the month we have our “In the Shack” Zoom meeting where we talk about and show off all the projects we’re working on in (and sometimes out of) our radio shacks. On the 9^th, however, we have a special session featuring Kristen (K6WX) who will tell us all about grounding. Whether it’s electrical ground or RF ground, she’s got a lot to tell us about an important aspect in setting up a ham radio station. Everyone is invited, and you’ll likely see some new faces on Zoom at 7:30 PM.

This month’s club meeting will take place at 7:30 PM on the 11th at the Confluence (formerly Crossroads) Church in Auburn. Orion (AI6JB) has prepared a talk about radiosport, complete with tips and hints on how to maximize your score and work contests efficiently. Whether you’re a seasoned contester or new to this exciting side of amateur radio, join us for an informative time. Clyde (AB4CC) has a presentation all about antennas, so whether you’re unsure of which one to buy, setting out to build your own, or want to increase the performance of what you already have, this is one talk you definitely don’t want to miss! If you’re unable to attend in person, we always have an interactive meeting on Zoom where you can join the audience and ask questions just as if you were there.

The following day, we will have our yearly Fall picnic at Recreation Park in Auburn at 4 PM. This year’s event is a potluck, so bring your best and share it with the group while sampling all the great food everyone has to bring. Even though I’ll be at work on the 12^th, I’m not going to miss out on the fun and the moment closing duties are completed I’ll be heading up the hill to join in on the festivities.

We round out the month with our club breakfast at 7:30 AM on the 26^th. After three months of excellent food and atmosphere at Wings we’ll return to the cozy environment of Mels for some great portions and conversations. Following this, the first ever SFARC 24-hour long fox hunt starts at 9:30 AM. Designed to simulate an on-air jammer, this event will take you within 20 miles of downtown Auburn as you put your radio direction finding skills to the test. Remember, you don’t have to hold an amateur radio license to attend, and all you need is a receiver and the ability to locate the hidden transmitter! Have fun, make awesome memories, win great prizes, but first and foremost stay safe out there!

73 DE W6JCZ