Help SFARC
Our repeaters are ALWAYS free to use but not free to maintain. It takes a village, time, and money to keep the W6EK repeaters on the air. Think about helping SFARC by donating; every little bit helps, and it’s tax-deductible.
DONATIONS ARE MADE IN $10 INCREMENTS
Example: QTY 1 = $10 |
HAMS AND HOPS IS BACK: September 30th. 6-8 PM at Knee Deep Brewing Company
NEW FOR THE SUMMER OF 2026!
Dust off your favorite QSL stories and join your fellow operators for an evening of cold brews and good company at:
KNEE DEEP BREWING COMPANY
13395 NEW AIRPORT ROAD,
SUITE H IN AUBURN (NEXT TO WINGS)
SEPTEMBER 30TH FROM 6–8 PM
Banzito’s Tacos will have their food truck onsite for the perfect pairing!!!
Whether you’re a seasoned Elmer or a fresh Technician still grinning over your first contact, this is your chance to ragchew in person, no antenna required! Great beer, great people, and zero band conditions to worry about. Come for the hops, stay for the hams—we’ll be listening for your call! 73 and see you there!
Watts Up This Week
We start of this week’s update with a special announcement from the ARRL.
The ARRL Year of the Club Website Contest winners have been announced. With over 80 entries from ARRL-affiliated amateur radio clubs all over the country, W6EK.org has been recognized by the ARRL as one of the best club websites in the nation!
The judges evaluated entries for layout, content, and accessibility, and are pleased to congratulate the following winners.
First Place: Cumberland Valley Amateur Radio Club (W3ACH), Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
https://www.w3ach.com/
Webmaster: Caleb C. Jacobs, KC3VPB, Webmaster
Second Place: Sierra Foothills Amateur Radio Club (W6EK), Auburn, California
https://www.w6ek.org/
Webmaster: Mike “Smitty” Smith, WB1G, Webmaster
Third Place: Ventura County Amateur Radio Club (K6MEP), Ventura, California
https://k6mep.org/
Webmaster: David Schmidt, AI6VX, Webmaster
Contest winners will be recognized at the 2026 ARRL National Convention in Huntsville, Alabama on August 22 and 23. Winners will also be announced in QST.
A FEW QUICK REMINDERS
SFARC Board Meeting | This Thursday @ 6PM on Zoom
SFARC Club Meeting | This Friday @ 7:30PM in-person or on Zoom
73,
The Sierra Foothills Amateur Radio Club (W6EK)
(530) 492-0920
Website: www.w6ek.org
Group.io: groupsio.w6ek.org
Social: facebook.w6ek.org | twitter.w6ek.org | linkedIn.w6ek.org | instagram.w6ek.org | youtube.w6ek.org
Amateur Radio Exams / VE Testing: September 14, 2026
Looking for a local, comfortable, friendly, and inviting atmosphere to help you successfully pass your ham radio exam? Sierra Foothills Volunteer Examiner Team provides monthly in-person exam sessions with mentors on hand to answer your questions about equipment, local resources, clubs, and events. You’ve successfully passed your ham radio exam, now what?
SFARC Elmers are here to help and guide you!
The Sierra Foothills VE team offers many scholarships. Free exams and Free FCC licenses for all students, youth, and young adults ages 25 and under! Military and First Responders receive a 50% discount on exams!
For more information and to pre-register for an upcoming session, CLICK HERE.
NEXT IN-PERSON DATE: September 14, 2026 @ 7 PM
Watts Up This Week
We have a quiet week ahead with one call out.
As you have no doubt heard, the Fall campout is a little over a month away and there’s still plenty of time to secure your campsite and join us. I could bore you with the same message over and over but instead, read all about it @ https://www.w6ek.org/activities/campout … We also launched some new merch/swag for this year’s campout. Check it out @ https://www.w6ek.org/merch_campout
The final RSVP deadline is September 10th.
COUNTDOWN TO CAMPOUT: Did You RSVP?
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August 2026 Newsletter
Crawler
Watts Up This Week
A quick update for the week.
This Wednesday we have a special “5th Wednesday of the Month” activity. Dust off your favorite QSL stories and join your fellow operators for an evening of cold brews and good company at:
MOONRAKER BREWING COMPANY
12970 EARHART AVE #100 IN AUBURN
JULY 29TH FROM 6 – 8 PM
Whether you’re a seasoned Elmer or a fresh Technician still grinning over your first contact, this is your chance to rag chew in person, no antenna required! Great beer, great people, and zero band conditions to worry about. Come for the hops, stay for the hams, we’ll be listening for your call! 73 and see you there!
PACIFIC CREST TRAIL MEETUP AT DONNER SUMMIT UPDATE
Many photos have been uploaded from the informal meetup we had with Jeff (KW6U) along the PCT. If you took photos, we want them so don’t forget to upload.
LINK: https://www.w6ek.org/media/photos?sfarc_album=359
REPEATER USAGE THIS COMING WEEKEND
The Tevis Cup will be provided priority usage of the W6EK 2-meter repeater on Saturday afternoon, August 1st from 1 pm until Sunday morning at 6 am. During this time, the 2 meter repeater will only be accessible via local RF. AllStar and Echolink connections will be in monitor mode. If you need to use the repeater, listen for traffic, make contact and immediately move to the 220 or 440 repeaters.
DO YOU ENJOY THESE WEEKLY UPDATES?
SOUND OFF HERE -> https://www.w6ek.org/aboutsfarc/survey
73,
The Sierra Foothills Amateur Radio Club (W6EK)
(530) 492-0920
Website: www.w6ek.org
Group.io: groupsio.w6ek.org
Social: facebook.w6ek.org | twitter.w6ek.org | linkedIn.w6ek.org | instagram.w6ek.org | youtube.w6ek.org