Here is the slide show from Jeff’s excellent presentation at the last breakfast meeting. Download and view the presentation to get more details or see what you might have missed if you missed the meeting. THE MAP
Training
21 posts
California Shakeout Drill UPDATE #2THURSDAY OCT 20, 2022 12:30 PMYou can participate in a special annual emergency net with organizations across California. TCARES and TC Office of Emergency Services are planning an emergency NET to demonstrate the TCARES repeater infrastructure during a simulated communications outage following a simulated major earthquake incident. We are looking for MAXIMUM PARTICIPATION!Our goal is to see check-ins from Pinecrest to Jamestown, from Mariposa to Angels Camp, and from Modesto to Yosemite National Park! (AND ALL POINTS IN-BETWEEN) ALL TCARES REPEATERS WILL BE LINKED, Use the one that works best for you. CHECK-IN format.It will […]
With the potential for massive failures of our land lines and mobile phone infrastructure, during a wildfire, there is increased interested in developing neighborhood based radio watch groups. Everyone in a neighborhood can participate with a Family Radio (FRS), General Mobile Radio (GMRS) or Ham Radio and enable local area or county-wide communications without physical infrastructure. When all else fails, these radios will work. The cost of the radios range from $20 (FRS) to $40 (GMRS) to $100 (Ham). Key to success is identifying interested individuals from each local neighborhood throughout the entire county. If you […]
Monday NOVEMBER 22, 4PM on ZOOM. Email Rich Combs at richsfpd@gmail.com for link. Residents of Tuolumne County interested in Fire Safety and Emergency Communications are invited to an online presentation by Alan Thompson, Satellite Internet Field Engineer of El Dorado Networks of Placerville. Alan helped restore Internet service at several downed cell-phone towers in Paradise shortly after the Camp Fire. What he saw there and learned later about the colossal emergency communications failures during the fire, turned him into an “Accidental Advocate” for fire safety […]
Disaster Communications Exercise 5 May 2020 After Action Report Executive Summary By Jim Piper K6MEDDST Radio Communications Volunteer American Red Cross CA Gold Country Region The DST Radio Communications component of the CA Gold Country Region “activates” during disaster responses to augment communications between the headquarters DOC in Sacramento and service sites. It does so by way of coordinating with our partners in the amateur radio community to “be there” when we need them to assist in moving our disaster messages when the public […]
PUBLIC NOTICE Federal Communications Commission 445 12th St., S.W. Washington, D.C. 20554 DA 20-467 ORIGINAL PDF FILE Released: April 30, 2020 WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATIONS BUREAU CONFIRMS THAT AMATEUR RADIO SERVICE OPERATOR LICENSE EXAMINATIONS MAY BE HELD REMOTELY The Amateur Radio Service provides opportunities for self-training, intercommunication, and technical investigations for qualified persons of any age who are interested in radio technique solely with a personal aim and without pecuniary interest. To operate an Amateur Radio Service station, an operator must have an FCC license. The […]
This workshop is for all interested in becoming a ham radio operator, or is a new ham radio operator. This is an informational workshop with live demonstrations. Additional study before or after is recommended. Sign up at the bottom of this page. AGENDA: When all else fails…. Emergency Preparedness What is an FCC License? How to prepare and take a FCC test Basics of a Transceiver How to operate and use a radio How repeaters work Repeater demonstration HF Demonstration Go Kit Demo FAQ, […]
TCARES was asked by the Motherlode Bike Coalition, on short notice, to provide radio communications for a bike event on Saturday August 24. More info about the event can be found here. A request went out to the club for 2 or 3 hams to assist. N4NED, KM6NCU and WA6N volunteers to work the Old Priest Grade from 6 am to 9 am. The CHP closed the road and were stationed at the top and bottom of the grade. We set up three stations […]
Field Day is an annual amateur radio exercise, widely sponsored by IARU regions and member organizations, encouraging emergency communicationspreparedness[1] among amateur radio operators. In the United States, it is typically the largest single emergency preparedness exercise in the country, with over 30,000 operators participating each year. Field Day is always the fourth full weekend of June, beginning at 18:00 UTC Saturday and running through 20:59 UTC Sunday. Since the first ARRL Field Day in 1933, radio amateurs throughout North America have practiced the rapid deployment of radio communications equipment in environments ranging from operations […]
I have only been a licensed ham operator since August 23, 2011, so most of the history of the hobby comes from what I hear from other hams who have been in the hobby longer than I have. But I have been in the emergency services as a fire fighter and medic for 38 years. I have observed the evolution of the emergency services in America generally and in California specifically over that time. My observations have lead me to think that perhaps The […]
DOWNLOAD FLYER HERE Have you ever wondered what Ham Radio is all about? Come to this FREE Saturday workshop to learn about Ham Radio. See demonstrations and equipment, talk to local Hams, see what you will need to learn to get your own license, You can even talk to other Hams on our radios, take practice examinations using the FCC questions and take the FCC exam if you want. Self-paced study guides will be available for $23 if you want to learn more and […]
Is TCARES Teaching? The Tuolumne County Amateur Radio & Electronics Society (TCARES) is planning a class that will teach interested folks the basics of amateur radio necessary to pass the FCC required Technician Level Amateur Radio Examination. This class is in the planning stages, tentatively commencing in the spring of 2019. It will be about 10 weeks long with one class meeting each week, most likely on Saturdays. The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) training material will be used for the curriculum. Students will […]
Decibels: Pesky Little Critters In our telecommunication careers, we may have all used dBs in our work. Here is a little background and how we use them in amateur radio. Decibels are a form of mathematical shorthand using logarithms. Logarithms probably originated with the ancient Greeks. Logarithms have the property expressing large values or ratios in more easily understood human terms. Decibels originated when the engineering of analog telephone circuit became more complicated. The Bell System of fond memory in the 1920’s needed a way […]
Sonora Radio Communications Class Beginners: Learn radio communications for all ages. Advanced: Study for the Technician and General license. Cost: FREE! (sign up below) When: JAN 5, 2019, 9 AM til Noon. Where: 14535 Peaceful Valley Road, Sonora CA (New address) How will you communicate with family during emergencies? Learn how to use all types of hand held mobile and base station radio equipment. Find out what frequencies you can use without a license and start communicating right away. This class offers guidance on starting […]
By Jim, N6TP, n6tp@arrl.net We are familiar with the formula for a half-wave dipole. It appears in the antenna handbooks and in various test questions for amateur radio license exams. It goes like this. Divide the operating frequency in MHz into “468” and the answer comes out in feet. For example: 468 divided by 7.150 MHz equals 65.5 feet! If we do a little rounding, we will cut our half-wave dipole to 65 feet 4 inches. Let’s look a half-wave dipole. As the name implies it is […]