SGARS Events

The John Moyle Memorial Field Day Contest is on again this year on the weekend of the 18th and 19th March. Members of the St. George Amateur Radio Society will be taking part in the contest on the Saturday afternoon and evening at a remote location at Oakdale (about 25km west of Camden).

The contest runs from midday Saturday to midday Sunday, but the plan is for the club station VK2LE to operate in the 6 hour section from about 2pm to 8pm.

Any members interested in taking part in the contest should contact Peter O'Connell VK2EMU at vk2emu@gmail.com

Morse Code, past and present by Col VK2BCC

Colin VK2BCC will present a talk on morse code covering history from Samual Morse's code of the 1830's, the world wide pre-telephone telegraph network with a focus on Australia's Overland Telegraph Line and the East West line across the Nullabour.

Marine Radio from before the Titanic to its closure in 1999. Morse in military use in wartime, and in many other services, including of course Amateur Radio

And finally the learning process based on the original manual of the Marconi School of Wireless here in Sydney.

73 and 77-New code - Morse Code forever.

In recognition of Don, the St. George Amateur Radio Society will be holding the "Don Edwards Memorial slow Morse contest" on the weekend of the 20th and 21st of May 2023.

The contest will be in two sections, 80 metres on the Saturday evening from 6pm to 9pm (0800 - 1100 UTC) and 40 metres on the Sunday afternoon from 1pm to 4pm (0300 - 0600 UTC). Amateurs can enter either or both sessions. The contest will be open to all VK and ZL amateurs.

Many amateurs have rarely or never used Morse code since they passed their exam or never needed to learn Morse code for their licences. This contest is to encourage inexperienced or rusty operators to try their hand or fist at Morse. For this reason, the contest will be a "Slow Morse contest" with a speed limit of 10 words per minute, no keyboards or screens - all sent by hand and received by ear. 

To encourage those amateurs who never sat for or passed a Morse exam for their licence, they will be able to claim an extra 2 points per session. For more information and contest rules can be found here.

Digital Mobile Radio (DMR) network has been active in Australia for a number of years now, providing local, national and international voice communications. The VK DMR network now includes over 50 DMR repeaters in most Australian states, over 800 VK registered DMR users, with nearly 300 registered hotspots.

Tony VK2ALE, will share his experience on getting started with DMR including equipment selection, registration and radio configuration aka code plug, how to utilise connections both locally and internationally, and between various DMR networks.

Come along to hear Tony's informative presentation at the June SGARS information gathering to be held in the scout hall, Donnelly Park, Kyle Parade, Connells Point near South Hurstville. Doors open at 7.15 pm. Meet up with fellow amateur radio operators, browse the disposal and enjoy a warm cuppa. Members and visitors are most welcome.

The Field Days provide VHF-UHF operators with the opportunity to "head for the hills" and see how far distant and how many stations they can work.

The Field Days have separate sections for single and multiple operator stations. The duration of the Field Day is 24 hours, but there are also 8-hour sections for operators who may not be able to camp overnight. Most club stations prefer to operate for the full 24 hours.

The Field Days also generate plenty of activity from home stations, so there is also a separate Home Station section.

Full details can be found here;

https://www.wia.org.au/members/contests/vhfuhf/

Training and Assessment for Amateur Radio Licence. Obtaining an amateur radio licence is easy with the Foundation entry level accreditation. There is no morse code to learn, you don't need technical qualifications and there are no age limits.

The St George Amateur Radio Society (SGARS) hold weekend amateur radio licence training courses and assessments, within the St George/Sutherland Shire.

The St George Amateur Radio Society conducts Foundation courses and Licence assessments for all grades. The next training and assessment weekend is scheduled for July 2023; 15th and 16th at our training venue at Sutherland 2232.

Courses and assessments are run in compliance with current public health restrictions and COVIDsafe guidelines.

Foundation licence courses are held over a single weekend (Saturday and Sunday), being review of the Foundation Licence Manual, practical training, followed by assessment  in theory, regulations and practical. Candidates will need to have read and be familiar with the contents of Foundation Licence Manual, prior to attending the weekend course.

Standard and Advanced licence assessments are held on Sunday. Candidates will need to have undertaken self study in theory and regulations prior to attending the assessment session.

Advance booking is necessary to meet the current lead time requirements of the government selected outsourced examination provider, AMC. Bookings required by COB Friday 30th June 2023. Late bookings cannot be accepted, as examination materials are provided specifically for each candidate.

For any further information please contact our education team via email to education@sgars.org

The event is NOT a contest. There are no prizes, certificates or other enticements to participate and therefore, participation is free. Each station's operators decide how they will operate their station regards modes and bands while complying with their amateur licence. Participants are not committed to being on the air during the entire period - only as much as they can. There are no restrictions on aerials or power. We wish operators to enjoy themselves and have fun whilst making contact with as many amateur radio stations as possible. We request that stations take time to work other lighthouses or lightships as well as the slow operator, or the newly-licensed or QRP stations.

For further information go to https://illw.net/index.php/guidelines

Some good news, this year the combined guide and scout event, Endeavour Boree Regatta is returning to Bonna Point at Kurnell. The Boree committee would be pleased if Jamboree On The Air (JOTA) could once again be part of the land activities.

With COVID-19 still active in the community, there will be some changes to the way the JOTA radio station would operate, to try and keep everyone safe. Whilst the details are yet to be confirmed, changes would probably include reduced numbers in the radio tent at any one time, using hand sanitiser when handling a microphone, etc.

If your available over the weekend Friday 20th, Saturday 21st, Sunday 22nd or part thereof, the SGARS JOTA coordinator would pleased to hear from you. Besides having a passion to share the hobby of amateur radio, you would also need a current Working With Children Check. All radio equipment, antennas, power supplies etc will be provided.

Please take a few minutes to read this Information Sheet 

Please indicate your expression of interest by email to jota_coordinator@sgars.org