August 24, 2021 Wilderness Road Amateur Radio Club Monthly
Meeting AGENDA.
Meeting via Dennis’ Zoom account. (Thanks Dennis!)
Meeting called to order by President Mike May at 1931.
Attendees: 11 members;
• Ken Douglass (KY4KD), Peter Rock (KJ4ND), Andy Rose (KI6SEP), Dennis Weiskircher (K3KZU),
Harold Miller (AF6MB), Mike May(KF4FMQ), Doug Collins (KA4SWT), Chris Galbreath (KG4UQL),
Janie Taylor (KI6SER) ), Gene Klaus (KO4IVI) , William Waldschmidt (W9WA)
Previous meeting was July 27, 2021. Motion to accept Minutes of that meeting as published (via email)
by Chris, 2nd by Peter. Passed by acclimation.
Treasurer’s Report:
• $ Starting balance.
• ($11.00) Postage for QSL Bureau to process cards
• $ Ending/current balance.
Past Activities Report:
• TALARC D-STAR: Monday, August 2. There were 40 total check-ins including Net Control from 15 states (including 2 from Alaska) and 1 Canadian Provence. “Veterans After Net” by Gene is appreciated by attendees and is a draw for attendance in the Net. (see Appendix for details)
• Monthly coffee via Zoom: Friday, August 6, 9 A.M.
• Coordinated participation in contest via Zoom in August 14 – Kentucky State Park and some participation in Maryland QSO Party.
Old Business:
• Bourbon Chase Relay Race:
o Canopy practice occurred this past Saturday, August 21
Successful: found awkward parts & worked out solutions. Documented
everything to ease setup.
Asked for 5 members to help, only 4 did (Mike, Harold, Gene, David).
New Business
• Bourbon Chase:
o Communications & planning only are working in these monthly meetings:
Counting this meeting, we only have 2 before the Race.
o Dress rehearsal:
Plan is to fully set up both Spotting Station and Display Station in the Race Day
locations.
Saturday, August 28 or Sunday, August 29: which is best for most people? What
time? Expect it will last 4 hours including unpacking & setup, communications
practice, and breakdown & packing.
Need for Dress Rehearsal was decided upon during last Race’s post event
meeting.
• Example of the need: in 2018 & 2019, the lag from spotting to
completion of communication was 2 minutes for 40% of the runners. In
2018, 3 minutes covered 78% of the runners. To cover 78% in 2019 we
needed 8 minutes.
One person has signed up for dress rehearsal in addition to those at the canopy
practice.
o Andy expressed concern that the lack of sign-ups for the rehearsal, dwindling people
signed up to participate in the race itself, & the lack of responses to emails indicate that
insufficient members are interested for Club to be successful.
We had 14 members committed in April, with 12 still signed up as of this
morning but only 7 indicated they can attend the dress rehearsal. (5 didn’t
reply) With participation numbers continuing to drop, there will not be enough
member support in the Bourbon Chase in mid-October. (During discussion,
another pulled out, and one stated he might have to pull out but wouldn’t know
until early October. These take us down to 10 => numbers do indeed keep
dwindling. We need 9-11 per shift.) It is worth noting that of the 7 signed up
for the rehearsal, 5 participated in the canopy practice which means we have 5
who know how to set up the canopy and 2 to learn how to set up everything
else including the spotting station.
Concern about our exposure to COVID may be driving down numbers. Given the
recent large surge, members may be nervous about potential exposure during
the Race and unwilling to commit to the Race and, therefore, perhaps unwilling
to participate in the rehearsal. (note: only one of the 11 people signed-up for
the Race have expressed concern for the rehearsal)
We continue to agree that the rehearsal is essential for success.
o Janie made a Motion that we pull out of Bourbon Chase. Andy 2nd. Pass by majority
although several attendees did not vote in favor. These non-in-favor members did not
express opinions during the discussion and were not asked for opinions after the vote.
• Future Activities:
o Monthly Coffee via Zoom Friday, September 3, 9 AM.
o TALARC D-STAR: Monday, September 6. Remember you can check in via EchoLink from
your computer or smartphone to either node KY4RW-L or use EchoLink’s search mode on
“Danville”.
o Contest on September 18, Saturday, 1300 – 1700. The contest will be an FT8 Play Day
and includes training. Coordination via Zoom. Reminders and link for Zoom will be sent
out shortly before.
• Next Monthly meeting: Tuesday, September 28, 2021 at 1930, open forum at 1900.
Adjournment
Motion to Adjourn by Dennis, 2nd by Chris; Passed by acclimation. Adjourned at 2017.
Minutes respectfully submitted
Andy Rose
KI6SEP
WRARC Secretary
