It’s May already! That means Hot RF Nights is happening! This time we’re doing it earlier than we’ve ever done so we can enjoy some nicer weather and a new larger venue. On the 17th, amateur radio operators and emergency communications personnel from all over the area will spend an afternoon checking out each others’ setups, exchanging ideas, learning a thing or two, all while enjoying great food and social time. Whether it’s you car, truck, van, or RV, bring it by so we can all admire your work and get inspired to take radio out into the field. No mobile install? No problem, because go kits big or small have stories to tell! Whatever it is you’ve got, come show it off and be a part of the action.

The first full week of the month is its busiest, with a club VE session on the evening of the 5th. Come join us and help out with showing new and upgraded licensees what ham radio is all about! Our club board meeting is on the 8th, and following that is the general meeting on the 9th. With so much of our lives happening on digital devices, it’s important to safeguard our data. Smitty (WB1G) has an excellent presentation on how to store, preserve, and ultimately retrieve important data so you’re left with peace of mind in case emergencies arise. Come join us and learn all about how you can take control of your digital assets and make sure it’s all there when you need it!

Field Day is in June, and we’ve got a T-shirt design contest going on this month! We’re accepting submissions starting on the 2nd and we’ll take designs until the end of the 16th. For more information on the contest, head on over to http://w6ek.org/contest. The winner will be announced on the 19th, and I look forward to what you all come up with for this year’s Field Day T-shirt!

73,

Jim Zheng (W6JCZ)
SFARC Vice President

Welcome to April! What’s coming up next is no joke, because Hot RF Nights, our annual ham radio themed car show, will take place in May! That’s right, on May 17 amateur radio operators and emergency communications personnel from all over the area will spend an afternoon checking out each others’ setups, exchanging ideas, learning a thing or two, all while enjoying great food and social time. Whether it’s you car, truck, van, or RV, bring it by so we can all admire your work and get inspired to take radio out into the field. No mobile install? No problem, because go kits big or small have stories to tell! Whatever it is you’ve got, come show it off and be a part of the action. Need something to get you in gear? SFARC will be there to strut our newest rigs, just in time for Field Day in June!

Closer than all that is the club VE session on the 7th, a club meeting on the 11th, and our monthly breakfast and radio direction finding exercise on the 26th. We’re not quite through with events after that, because this month we’ve got a special special session on the evening of the 30th with Craig (KM6LYW), developer of the DigiPi, a complete ham radio digital interface built around the Raspberry Pi. Operate APRS, WinLink, FT8, RTTY, and a whole lot more with one ultraportable device that integrates neatly into your existing station. This is one event you won’t want to miss, and even if you’re a seasoned DigiPi user there’s always an opportunity to learn about how others are using theirs and show all the cool things you’ve done with yours!

Hope to see you around, whether it’s in person on online!

Jim Zheng (W6JCZ)
SFARC Vice President