Huntington Beach RACES

We’re having two training workshops to focus on the FDOC dispatch area and field stations for the upcomming dispatch drill. Please attend one of these workshops. We’ll be meeting at the FDOC located in the basement and gathering in the parking area. 18311 Gothard Street, Huntington Beach, CA  92648. Please use caution driving on the property. Use the KH6FL/Repeater (City Hall Machine) for assistance arriving and parking.

When using the suction cup mount on fiberglass or other non-metallic surfaces you may find that your antenna will work significantly better if you provide a ground plane or counterpoise for the antenna to work with. Without a ground plane, most mag mount antennas perform poorly and exhibit a high VSWR. Two solutions to this problem are shown in the attach photos. In the first photo, 3 brass rods are shown spread out perpendicular to the antennas whip forming the ground plane; in the second photo, 4 orange stranded wires are shown. When using stranded wires, a small amount of tape is used to hold the wires in position on the fiberglass roof forming the ground plane.  The length of the rods or wire radials should be approximately 10% longer than a ¼ wavelength at the operating frequency. For 2 meters a ¼ wavelength is 19 inches, so the radial should be about 21 inches. The radial length is not critical something in the ballpark of 21 inches will in most cases work fine for a temporary antenna setup. We’ll be discussing these technical issues as well as other fundamentals of FDOC operations and Field Station operation.

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HB RACES will be workshopping procedures for our Fire Dispatch Communications capability on Monday, March 30, 2009 at 7pm in the EOC. We’ll have the Police Dispatch Shift Supervisor helping us learn the normal flow of dispatch information. We’ll also be focused on how we pass traffic, setup a station on city fire apparatus, dispatch terminology and much more. This training and related field exercise focus on how to quickly replace lost communications links to all fire apparatus in the city. In the event that Huntington Beach’s primary fire communication is unavailable HB RACES is prepared to activate a communications network that provides a backup means of dispatching resources within the city. HB RACES has practiced this communications network in the past and is anxious to once again show the Huntington Beach Fire Department that they can rely on HB RACES for professional communications within the city in times of need. The strong RACES and CERT programs within Huntington Beach are just one more example of how our city is committed to all our residents and visitor’s safety and security.

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2009 Baker to Vegas Communication Team

Huntington Beach RACES Baker to Vegas Communication Team will provide mobile communications support to the Huntington Beach Police Department Running Team’s participation in the 25th Annual Baker to Vegas Relay Race.

HB RACES looks forward each year to providing the best communications resource for the Huntington Beach Running Team. We use this event as an opportunity to practice implementing a reliable communications net in a difficult environment and fostering our working relationships with the Huntington Beach Police Department. This year 15 RACES communicators will provide radio communication support to the running team.

HB RACES provides live tracking of the runner’s position via APRS ham radio equipment during the race. The position reports are available via any Internet connected PC at Huntington Beach Runner Position Report Huntington Beach has a 5pm (PDT) start time on Saturday, March 14th.

HB RACES communicators follow the Huntington Beach runner and are available at the upcoming stages to provide updated position reports and assistance to runners waiting for their leg to start. The stage communicator will have the unofficial leg times for the running team and any special instructions relayed from the team captain.

HB RACES Communicators are available at the Hunting Beach Running Team’s Staging Suite at the Hilton – Las Vegas. Runner status information and unofficial leg times are available. Call the room and ask for the RACES communicator. We can assist you in getting messages to the racecourse runners. Cell phone coverage is spotty along the course, but our ham radio resources provide 100% coverage of the racecourse allowing voice communication to all participants and the follow van.

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W6OCC/75 Special Event Station QSL Card

Huntington Beach RACES sends congratulations to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department who will observe the 75th Anniversary of Orange County Communications.  OCC is now named the Communications & Technology Division of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department. The celebration will occur on Monday, March 2, 2009, from 0900 to 1500 hours (formal presentations at 1300 hours), at 840 N. Eckhoff Street in Orange. OC RACES will operate a Special Event Station during the celebration hours, using the W6OCC/75 call sign, in the OCRACES emergency communications response vehicle. QSL cards will be sent, upon request, to radio amateurs who work our station on 14.320 MHz, 7.230 MHz, 3.960 MHz, and the 146.895 MHz repeater. More info is available at www.ocraces.org

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Our weekly HB RACES two meter net is held every Monday at 7:15 pm on the KH6FL repeater, 145.140 Mhz, -600 Khz, CTCSS 127.3 hz. Immediately following the two meter net we hold a net on our 440 repeater. The 440 net is on the WD6AWP repeater, 447.940 Mhz, -5.00 Mhz, CTCSS 100.0 hz. These weekly nets are a chance to practice good radio operating techniques, ensure your radio station is operational, gain experience in operating in a controlled net situation, and to help train future net control operators. Peter, N6RAS, is the Net Supervisor for the month of February 2009. Direct questions and concerns about our Fubruary weekly nets to Peter.

Our net is open to CERT members and visitors. Join the fun. Everyone is welcome to listen and check into our  HB RACES weekly nets.

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The Challenge Cup / Baker to Vegas Relay 25th Anniversary Race will be held March 14 – 15, 2009. The Huntington Beach Police Department Running Team (team #42 this year) will again participate and has asked for HB RACES assistance for logistical communications duringthe race. Communications support for the running team has become an regular event for RACES and renews bothour friendships and our working relationships with the Huntington Beach Police Department. Our communication resources and skills in this remote and extremelychallenging environment both impress the officers and challenge us to learn and do better each year. http://www.bakervegas.com/

Radio Baker Vegas communications coordination is the site to visit to learn more about radio communications duringthe event. We must coordinate our radio support operations with Radio Baker Vegas to minimize interference between the hundreds of radio users that weekend. http://b2v.org/

We’ll have a Baker to Vegas Workshop (RACES Team only and anyone wanting to learn how we do it) on Monday, March 9th in the EOC at 7pm. We’ll talk about the communication’s drill and get everyone up-to-speed.

The HBPD final briefing (RACES and the PD Team) is on Tuesday, March 10 at 5pm in the PD Training Room A.

Live Tracking of the race will be available via internet at b2v.findu.org

Contact Margret, KE6OAR if you have any immediate questions.

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General Membership Meeting.  February 9, 2009  @ 7pm. in the EOC

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The 2009 Surf City Marathon is here. Sunday, February 1st, Super Bowl Sunday.  (We are home before the Game!)
On this Monday night net (Jan. 5th.)  Please let me know if you wish to volunteer.  This is our biggest event so we can use all the help we can get.  You may also e-mail me at events@hbraces.org. I need to know this week if you are volunteering.  Please do not wait, between meetings and planing I only have three weeks go put this together. 

There will be a  RACES Surf City Marathon meeting in the EOC on Monday night January 26th. at 7pm. If you are  volunteering YOU MUST MAKE THIS MEETING! At the meeting you will get information and paperwork for the event.  If you wish to see more about the Marathon check out there Web page at…. http://www.runsurfcity.com/

I will do my best with requests,  but I may have to make changes.

Thank You for Volunteering,
Steven Albert,  HB-RACES Events Officer

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The HB RACES two meter net is held every Monday at 7:15 pm on the KH6FL repeater, 145.140 Mhz, -600 Khz, CTCSS 127.3 hz. Immediately following the two meter net we hold a net on our 440 repeater. The 440 net is on the WD6AWP repeater, 447.940 Mhz, -5.00 Mhz, CTCSS 100.0 hz.

CERT members and visitors are welcome. Everyone is welcome to check in.

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