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Many of us drive regularly and deal with the varied issues associated with driving, how ever small or large, on the highways. I may be able to offer some information that will make your commute four times safer! Whether you are going down the street to the convenience store or several states away to visit relatives or friends takes concentration. That “special advice” is – park your cell phone or park your vehicle, use one at a time. It has been determined that using a cell phone increases your chance of a vehicle incident four times. Amazingly with all the ads on television, radio and in print that people still choose to drive distracted, they think they can “multitask” in other words drive four times less safely. Do not kid yourself, we humans cannot “multitask”. What many consider “multitasking” is only quickly shifting your focus from one task to another for a short time span. In other words distract yourself from one task to another. Just remember there are others who are placed in harm’s way when you drive distracted.
Some may feel this is all hype but just Google the term “distracted driving” and read what has happened to others involved in distracted driving situations. By the way there are some distracted driving situations that cannot be published. Not because of the content but because the people involved were killed due to the distracted driving issue.
Just think before you pick up the cell phone to read a text or answer a call, otherwise that may be your last time you see your cell phone. Let’s remember distracted driving is not only a cell phone issue. How many times have you seen a driver looking at a map or reading a newspaper while driving down the interstate? Remember that distracted driving is also considered as bad if not worse than driving under the influence. Folks, it is ALL distracted driving, that distracted action can kill you and others. Be safe – park the vehicle or park the distraction.
So, you’re motoring down the road to your destination, when you hear an unfamiliar noise from your cell phone. Best thing to do is safely pull off the road then check your phone for the reason for the noise. When you check the cell phone you find out it just received an alert for a tornado for an area just down the road.
Sound plausible? It is. America’s wireless industry is helping to build a Weather-Ready Nation through a nationwide text emergency alert system, called Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA), which will warn you when weather threatens. Many phones have this capability.
For details about this service click on the WEA logo to the left.
 The Quad-County Amateur Radio Club is a WRN Ambassador “Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ and the Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ logo are trademarks of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, used with permission.”
 The Quad County Amateur Radio Club will operate Field Day June 25-26, 2016, at the Clearfield County Fairground Community Building, yes we’ve been there before. Operating hours are scheduled to be from 2:00 PM Saturday to 2:00 PM Sunday, antennas have to be installed after the VE exam session. All amateur radio operators are welcome as well as the general public. Since the public as well as a number of Clearfield County officials and TV stations have been invited, as Club secretary, I ask that members please wear their Club shirts if possible. Thank you – in advance.
Volunteer examiners are reminded that the exam session is scheduled for June 25, 2016 at 11:00 AM. 
Operations are scheduled to start 2:00 PM, Saturday June 25, continuing through the night, with the hopes of taking advantage of any changing propagation characteristics. There is to be a Get On The Air (GOTA) station activated. The GOTA station will give new hams and those not even licensed, the opportunity to experience operating the HF bands under the supervision of a licensed amateur radio operator.
Location Coordinate information: 41°01.840 N 78°26.540 W.
Follow the route depicted by orange arrows, on the map, after you turn off Rte. 322.
You can also try the inserted interactive map to zoom and obtain directions. You can use the satellite view on the small map to compare the orange arrow map to the right.
If you operate APRS, there will be an object beacon to help you locate the Field Day site.
Please consider what will make Field Day comfortable for you, like in the real deal you will be responsible for your own comfort and personal operating conveniences such as chairs, clipboards, pens, pencils, paper. flashlights, etc. – remember to mark your property -. The main equipment will be provided, such as transceivers and antennas. I do not recall that the building is handicapped accessible. If you have a spare HF radio or antenna to bring, all the better as a just in case but only 2 will be on the air plus the GOTA station. Additionally if possible, please bring along some type of food to share.
Plans are in motion to have breakfast Sunday morning and some picnic style food for later times.
To help with the items and food for Field Day, please down load the 2 page checklist and email the Club secretary (secretary@qcarc.org) as to the items that you will supply. I’ll try to keep all the updates current on the download list. If you have anything to add, please email your input to the Club secretary.
Amateurs who are attending the QCARC Field Day, please advise the FD Coordinator by email at secretary@qcarc.org . This info is for overall planning purposes.
 License exams for all license classes will be given at the Field Day site on Saturday, June 25th at 11:00 am. The location is the Community House on the Clearfield County Fairgrounds. The address is North Weaver Street and Stadium Drive, Clearfield, PA 16830.
There is a $15.00 fee, payable to ARRL for as many exams as you can pass. Retests at the same session incur an additional fee. Those taking tests must present a photo-ID, a copy of their existing license (if licensed) and any CSCE forms.
 The Millcreek Adventure Race, sponsored by the Brookville YMCA, is set for June 4, 2016.
Chuck Shaffer, KC3EAJ has requested amateurs to provide public service communications for this race. His main focus is the orienteering course between Millcreek & Frozen Toe.
The actual race covers eighty four miles and there are opportunities for as many ham operators to participate as arrive to assist. Chuck will find a place for you. It would be great if 4-5 hams would make it out to assist with the race.
This will be the second year Amateur Radio has been requested to assist with this race. However, if you have helped with the northern leg of the Baker Ultra Challenge, you will recognize much of the terrain. There are safety checkpoints, and orienteering points that he would like covered.
The race starts at 7 a.m. with an 8-mile run in a loop around the Millcreek Boat Launch area just outside of Strattanville. From there, the opening runner tags off to a swimmer who goes on a 2-mile round trip before tagging to the next teammate who bikes 23 miles from Millcreek to Cook Forest State Park at the Clarion River bridge.
The biker then tags a kayaker who boats back to Millcreek some 12 miles away. An orienteer duo or individual awaits the Kayaker there for a 10-12 mile trip to find three checkpoints in the forest between Millcreek and Frozen Toe, which is just north of Corsica.
The final stage starts at Frozen Toe where the successful orienteer team tags off to the anchor leg, who finishes the day on a 9.74-mile run into Brookville and the finish line at the YMCA.
ANY radio amateurs wishing to help with this Public Service Event, Please contact me at KA3YCB@ ARRL.net.
Kevin Snyder, KA3YCB
Although we have recent memories of snow, the summer heat really is on the way. All too many times we hear of children or pets left in a vehicle during hot summer days, sometimes with a heartbreaking ending. There are days when the temperature may seem rather low but with the sun shining through the vehicle windows, the vehicle becomes a greenhouse and the interior can heat up quickly to dangerously high levels.
View more information on this serious topic that can effect everyone at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/heat/index.shtml
 The Quad-County Amateur Radio Club is a WRN Ambassador “Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ and the Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ logo are trademarks of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, used with permission.”
The Quad County Amateur Radio Club will hold a “New Ham Radio Operator Event” at the regular meeting on June 17, 2016. The meeting will be held at the Penn State Du Bois Campus, Smeal Building at 6:30 PM. This event is open to those who recently obtained their amateur radio license and who have been licensed but inactive for some time. The meeting is also open to the public who may be interested about amateur radio.
The Quad County Amateur Radio Club, which serves amateur radio operators in; Clearfield, Jefferson, Elk and Cameron Counties, was founded in 1975. Regular meetings are held monthly on the third Friday, 6:30 PM at the Penn State Du Bois Campus. For more information visit the Club website at www.qcarc.org
Sometimes we peer out the window and the sky looks ominous then the wind picks up and possibly it begins to rain or hail. What may happen next can be a matter of protecting our life and property, a good reason to understand the difference between Watches and Warnings. Being prepared is a relatively simple matter, there are several good methods to personally become involved that will help yourself, your family and friends. The National Weather Service SkyWarn Spotter program is a great way to become actively involved and you do not have to be a weather background! A more passive manner may be purchasing a NOAA Weather Radio that will sound an alert when various forms of weather effect your locale. Cell phone are also a good method as many have an alert function built in as well as the availability of weather apps that can be configured to match your needs.
If you are having a problem setting up your system whether it is a NOAA Weather Radio radio or cell phone app, you can obtain help through the Quad County Amateur Radio Club, A Weather Ready Nation Ambassador. Check the announcement panel at the top of the home page for meeting dates and times.
 
The Quad-County Amateur Radio Club is a WRN Ambassador “Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ and the Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ logo are trademarks of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, used with permission.”
Already this Spring has proven that we should be prepared for some of our wildest weather! One of the best aids in keeping abreast of developing weather issues is the NOAA Weather Radio system. Having a radio at home provides an advantage to be aware of upcoming severe weather. Some of the later models of amateur radio transceivers have the NOAA frequencies programed from the factory. For the latest NOAA weather radio operational information that may effect your area and what frequencies cover your area, check out the web site at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/nwr/ .
 Remember that saying, “Turn Around Don’t Drown”. There is more to that than just the rhyming of the saying, it really is life saving information! Ignoring that life saving information not only effects the people who decide to cross a flooded area but also the emergency responders whose lives are needlessly placed in jeopardy when they get involved in a rescue of someone that fails to heed the warning.
The Quad-County Amateur Radio Club is a WRN Ambassador “Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ and the Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador™ logo are trademarks of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, used with permission.”
June 22, 2016 – petition dismissed.
Download the entire document 3 pages.
There is a Petition for Rule Making (RM 11760) that asks the FCC to grant lifetime Amateur Radio Licenses. The FCC is seeking comments on this petition that would revise §97.25 to indicate the license is granted for lifetime as opposed to the current 10 year term.
Individuals may submit comments through the FCC’s Electronic Comment Filing System.
Additionally, the complete article on this petition can be read at the ARRL web site.
The New Year of 2016 just arrived but there are some amateurs already anticipating 2017. That anticipation for 2017 stems from a recent announcement that researchers at the Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology, part of Virginia Tech University are preparing to send an amateur radio transponder into a geosynchronous orbit in 2017.
Even though amateur radio satellite communications is not new, this satellite brings the geosynchronous feature of 24 hour, 7 day availability to amateurs in the Americas. Therefore amateurs can expect the satellite to be in the approximate same position, which means less to deal with to locate and maintain a signal to use the satellite. It is hoped that the satellite will significantly help during disasters.
Currently there are plenty of questions relating to the anticipated launch. It is likely the answers will raise even more questions. For the press release you can access the Virginia Tech website.
SkyWarn Recognition Day has come and gone! I was able to contact 16 stations, for the time that I was on the air band conditions were rather weak not to mention the QSB. For my efforts I was able to print the certificate inserted below. It’s not all that big of a deal but it’s something to show for the effort. After all, one of the aspects of ham radio is communicating regardless of conditions and it was a National event to participate in.
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