Club News
Amateur radio is all about community. Icom knows that ham clubs play a big role in bringing hams together to network and learn from one another on an ongoing basis. As a way of giving back, Icom has launched a promotion exclusively for ham clubs and the Ak-Sar-Ben Amateur Radio Club has been chosen as one of those clubs!
The February 12 Ak-Sar-Ben ARC meeting will once again be held on ZOOM and starts at 7:00 pm (club members will be getting an email with the Zoom information) 
The program will start at 7:30pm. The program will be presented by Will Jourdain AA4WJ of ICOM America. One of Will's topics will be the new IC-705 QRP Portable Radio. He will discuss some of the unique technical aspects of the 705's interface and I/O and also on many of the features of the radio, which include DSTAR and WLAN/Bluetooth. There will be time for questions and answers
Club members will get the link to the Zoom meeting via the email that they have on file with the membership secretary. If you aren't getting those emails.. reach out to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to ensure you have provided them with your latest email address.
Non-club members are welcome to attend the program and can sign up here https://tinyurl.com/AARCFeb2021 to be sent the link to the meeting. The invitation to non-members will be sent out after 4:00pm on 02/12/2021
What a great program! EME 6M DX -
You can learn more about this interesting aspect of ham radio at Lance's Site "https://bigskyspaces.com/w7gj/Welcome_to_6m_EME.htm"
The recording of the presentation will be available soon for those that missed out!
The January meeting which will be held via Zoom, The Ak-Sar-Ben Amateur Radio Club is pleased to bring you "The Trials and Tribulations of 6 Meter DX" by Lance Collister, W7GJ the world renowned 6 meter EME (earth Moon Earth) DXer. During the program, he will share many aspects of 6 Meter EME DXing: from equipment, antennas to modes and operating techniques. to his own special moon tracking software (GJTRACKER) to software and DXPeditions Lance promises to share his expertise and experiences with this interesting aspect of Amateur Radio.
Lance was first licensed in 1965 and became hooked on 2m DX early on. His interest in that led him to 2 meter EME and he placed first world wide on 2 meters in the ARRL EME Competition in 1983. Later that same year he became the first civilian to contact space when he talked to Owen Garriot W5LFL aboard the STS-9 mission. He helped develop the Maidenhead Grid Awards, which later became the ARRL's VUCC(VHF/UHF Century Club). He has earn his DXCC on 2m EME and is credited by the ARRL with completing fourteen "firsts" from the USA to a new DXCC country. In the Mid 1990s he moved He has made EME DX-peditions to numerous locations around the world and in 2021 he is planning to activate the Austral Islands and Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia.
Please join us for an informative and entertaining evening as Lance takes us to the moon and back.
Club members will receive the invitation link via the email provided for HamClubOnline. The meeting will start at 7:00. With the program starting about 7:30.
If you are not a club member but your like an invitation to the meeting please click here to fill out this form and the Zoom link will be sent to you
One major impact of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and the resulting COVID-19 - has been on large gatherings. That is frustrating to say the least. But at least we live in a time where technolgy can allow us to get together and conduct club business. The club has been using the video conferencing platform Zoom for many months, and all in all it has been a great tool and keeps us moving forward during these last few months.. And it looks like at least through the winter the gathering restrictions will continue.
Thanks to Zoom, not only have we been able to continue to meet safely, we have had club members who have moved away from Omaha log on and attend meeings. Its allowed those who don't have transportation to attend and be involved again, and it has allowed some fantastic programs, including a great presentation by the one and only Bob Heil of Heil Sound. (Video coming soon!)
We understand that not everyone has internet to be able to attend meetings held on Zoom, but as mentioned it has allowed people who would not otherwise be able to attend to a meeting. There is no one way to meet that will meet everyone's needs. And maybe you think you need a whiz bang computer and all sorts of equipment. So here are some common misconceptions
1) You don't need a web camera - if you are logging in on a computer, you can see and hear the presenation, and those in the meeting will see a block with your name - oh.. and Zoom works on tables and smart phones too! Many people turn off the camera an just have a blank box or a photo instead.
2) You don't need a ton of bandwidth for video. - If you have a slow connection - Zoom will decrease the image quality to keep you with the group
3) You don't even need a computer- if you have a free long distance (most phones do) you can call into the meetings and hear what is going on
4) Video conferencing is expensive - Zoom is free for the attendees - you can even host meetings (with some restrictions) for free -
a Paid subscription if you are hosting a lot of meetings is available and is just over $10 a month - the club had been using a member's account, but voted at the December meeting to obtain one for club use.
5) Video conferencing is complicated - but it can be intimidating and we also understand that some of you might be uncomfortable learning Zoom in with "the crowd". Its okay.. lots of people forget to mute their microphone or they forget to unmute their microphone. Its just like learning a new mode.
But, to help out our club members.. if you would like to learn more about Zoom.. maybe join a training meeting.. or just try it out without a bunch of people.. we have your back. Send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we will work with you to set up a meeting where you can come in and learn to navigate with one of the club's Zoom "experts".
Current Ak-Sar-Ben ARC members only --- If you haven't been getting the invitations with the log in instructions please check with This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to ensure we have your current email address.
Non-AARC members can check the latest meeting info to see how to join our meetings.
The ballots were mailed - and counted and the results were announced at the December 11th Meeting...
Please give you support to the following people for 2021. They stepped up to serve the club.
| President | Pat Connell WØOJU |
| Vice President | Howard Parks AEØZ |
| Board Member | Dave Rice NØJSB |
| Board Member | Dan Buchholz NØPOT |
Contacts for the officers can be found under Club Contacts from the menu on the left. Or those who have signed on to Ham Club online - you can find each officer's FCC information as well as emails and phone numbers that were provided when they joined. They welcome your constructive comments and will gladly listen to all suggestions.
The November meeting of the Ak-Sar-Ben Amateur Radio Club will feature a presentation by Dr. Robert Heil (K9EID).
Bob is the founder of Heil Sound, which for over fifty years has produced a variety of professional and amateur radio audio. Bob also is also one of the hosts of the Ham Nation pod cast.
Bob’s presentation will include a brief history of Heil Sound and how he became interested in amateur radio along with a variety of other topics .
Other topics will include speech articulation studies and how they impacted our modern audio devices, including demonstrations proving the findings, and he will discuss how to adjust the audio of your radio and maximize the benefits of these audio tools.
Lastly, he will address his favorite subject: Phasing. Bob promses a great demonstration about this important factor in amateur radio.
The November business meeting will be held via Zoom and begins at 7:00 pm, Club members will receive an invitation via the email on file with the membership secretary.
If you are not receiving those emails, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Non Club members are welcome can get an invitation to the meeting by filling out this form: https://tinyurl.com/AARC2020Nov and should plan on logging about 7:30pm on November 13, 2020
Approved Plan for 2020 Election of Askarben Radio Club (ARC) 2021 Officers and Directors
During This Period of COVID Restrictions on Public Meetings
October 10, 2020
Summary
At the October 9 ARC monthly membership meeting, the voting participants unanimously adopted the following two motions.
First motion: Suspend Article 3 Section 1C of the ARC bylaws requiring in-person voting and nominations for the 2020 election of 2021 Officers and Board members.
Second Motion: Adopt the proposed mail-in ballot process (as defined below for the 2020 election of 2021 Officers and Board members). Publish this year’s process in November’s issue of HamHum and on the ARC website.
The Ak-Sar-Ben Amateur Radio Club Meeting will be on Friday October 9th at 7:00 pm - and will take place on Zoom. An invitation will be sent to club member via their HamClubOnline account.
Following a short business meeting there will be a presentation “Ham Radio Hearing Aids”. featuring an Audiology Researcher at Boys Town National Research Hospital.
Topics to be covered include: the science of hearing, what causes general hearing loss, how can ham radio causes hearing loss, how is hearing loss determined an measured, how can hearing loss be mitigated in ham radio, the history and science of technology used to improve hearing, how does different hearing aid technology work or interface with ham radio, cochlear implants when all else fails, and what to do when you suspect an hearing loss in you or a family member.
Boys Town is considered one of the leading experts both nationally and internationally on all aspects of hearing related research.
The September Meeting of the Ak-Sar-Ben Amateur Radio Club will be held via Zoom on September 11, 2020 @7:00 pm.
After our business meeting the program will be about Amateur Radio Direction Finding (ARDF) This program will be presented by Bob Frey, WA6EZV. Bob is an ARDF competitor who has participated in 18 US National ARDF Championships and 4 ARDF World competitions and is a 2 time US ARDF National Champion. He has also been Co-chair of three National Championships and serves on the ARRL ARDF Committee.
Bob will give us insights into this fun and challenging amateur radio activity. The AARC would like to invite everyone to attend the program, which will start about 7:30.
To receive the meeting invite, please send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we will include you on the invitation to the Zoom meeting.