We didn’t do so well.

Last year we scored over 9,900 total points.  This year’s score looks like it will be a bit under 2,300.

There was a notable lack of operators this year.  Some who normally help us were unavailable.  Those of us who were there did the best we could with what we had.  We even had a visitor come by and make some contacts for us!  Thanks Rick – W4PC!

So now we regroup, go on with normal activities, and dream about a day next June when we can once again brave storms, bugs, malfunctions, and heat to participate in our 58th Field Day.

And we must hope that we do not get called out for a REAL emergency.  We are ready, but no one wants a catastrophe!

Wait till next year!!!

The DARC will operate from Point Mallard Park in Decatur again this year. We will be in the picnic shelter behind the main stage. If you need directions, check out the Field Day Locator on the ARRL website. Setup starts at 9:00 on Saturday morning.

We desperately need operators!!  If you want to run a station for a few minutes (or a few hours!) please come by and we will work you in.  The overnight shift is one that is usually productive in contacts but sparse in operators.  Come help us out!

See you Saturday!

The first is the Alabama QSO Party on June 5th and 6th.  See their website for details and rules.

The 2nd activity is, of course, Field Day.  It will be the last full weekend of the month, June 26th and 27th.  We will be operating from Point Mallard, and we hope to do much better than last year’s effort.  Come out and help, watch, or keep us company.  We’d love to have you!

Our club meetings are, as usual, on the 1st Tuesday of each month.  We’d like to see some more faces show up and spend time with us.

And it’s not too early to be planning for Field Day in June.  Ah, the thought of warmer weather, mosquitoes, and contesting.  We are going to do better this year!

Keep talking!

Here’s the breakdown of the scoring.

W4ATD (GOTA call KB4CAY) was credited with 9,922 points overall with 3,143 QSO’s total.

We were #59 out of 2,612 total entries.

We were #12 out of 502 total entries in class 2A

We were #4 out of 189 entries in the Southeastern Division.

We were #2 out of 35 entries in class 2A in the Southeastern Division.

We were #2 out of 29 total entries from the state of Alabama.

We were #1 out of 7 entries in class 2A from the state of Alabama.

From our last good outing (2007) we fell very slightly compared to the total entries.  But we stayed consistent in the division and in the state.

Next year can be even better!  Many thanks to all those who participated or just came out and enjoyed the fun.

See you next June!

President – Bob McKenzie K4MLR

Vice-President – J. Lester Christophe W5GSU

Secretary – Richard Matthews KB4CAY

Treasurer – Ray Frederick KD4VCW

The graveside service and burial were in Cookeville, Tennessee, on Monday, August 10.

His obituary was in Sunday’s Decatur Daily .  SK information has been forwarded to the ARRL.
Club member Bill Blackburn W4ZLU sent this rememberance:

David and I went thru High School together and played in a country band together (Phiffer Ridge Runners). We took the Ham test together in 1953 and both of us passed the Novice however I was the dumb one and failed the General test once. He of course passed his. This is the time the test was given only every 3 months in Nashivlle and you had to send and receive 13 wpm. Then after about 6 weeks you received a license or failure notice in the mail. It was quite a bus ride from Cookeville.

After school I went into the Navy and he later went to the Air Force. After almost 40 years we ended up two blocks from each other.

His “fist” will be sorely missed on the air.

We ran the usual 2 stations, plus the “Get On The Air” (GOTA) station.  We even had a dedicated 6-meter rig this time.

Our overall total score was over 9,900 points!  That, folks, is a record!

Now we wait for October/November and see where we fall in the scoring chart.

Thanks to all who helped out!

It’s almost here!  Field Day is the event that our club really looks forward to every year.

This year we plan to do better than last year.  Of course, looking at last year’s dismal score, that should be pretty easy!

We will operate from Point Mallard Park again, as we have in recent years.  We will have the usual 2 HF stations, plus a dedicated 6-meter radio and a GOTA station.

What we really need are PEOPLE!  If you are in the Decatur area on June 27th or 28th, please stop by.  Call on 2-meters on 147.00.  Hopefully someone will be monitoring the repeater and can direct you to the site.

We’d love to meet new people and make new contacts in person and on the radio.  Come out to Field Day!

Come join us at our meetings on the first Tuesday of each month and learn more about our great hobby!

It’s more than a hobby!!  This is tornado season in North Alabama, and we are ready to provide storm spotter service to the National Weather service.  If you are a trained spotter, call in on 147.00+ during storms and help us keep our families and neighborhoods safe in severe weather.