Spring weather has arrived, and our yearly club summer events are nearly here. Mark these dates on your calendar and enjoy these club gatherings. The calendar on our club website lists all of these events as well as good hamfests and conventions that are approaching. A signup sheet is available at meetings and breakfasts, and a link is available upon opening each event in the calendar.

     Tech Night, March 26th, will feature an interesting presentation by Tom, WA2IVD, on DC Power Supplies and Why Good Power Is Important.   

The fun Tallgrass Prairie Preserve POTA event will be on April 18th. Many folks enjoy caravaning or carpooling to this POTA from the Gardner, KS start point, with a group breakfast at Beto Junction on the way and an ice cream pit stop at Braums on the way back. Folks report this as a top event of their year, so if you've never participated in this POTA, contact Jim Andera for travel details and get on his email list.

 Ensorfest26 is scheduled for May 9th. This family event grows larger each year and is full of history with tours of the house, old and new cars, and the arts, featuring quilts, as well as 3 music bands throughout the day. SFTARC has a goal this year of supporting Ensorfest with 10 or more volunteers, who can contact Jeff Darby to sign up. We also want to support the Ensor Museum tours in June and September with 3 or more members who can contact Marty Peters to sign up. 

     Planning for Field Day in June was started with a sign-up list now circulating at meetings and breakfasts. There are teams ranging from operators and loggers to those coordinating equipment and antennas, so sign up and join in on the fun. Part of our club charter is to promote radio knowledge, fraternalism, and individual operating efficiency. All of this is distinctly apparent at our weekly breakfasts, so if you haven't yet, make it a habit of enjoying all of this each Saturday morning at Perkins in Gardner (see the Club Contact List  https://sftarc.org/index.php/about-us-main-menu/contact-us-main-menu if you need more information on these events).

     The core team will meet in Gardner at about 5:50 am and then convoy down to the Tallgrass, stopping at BETO Junction (Hwy 75 and I-35) for breakfast. Those who wish to travel individually could meet the rest of the SFTARC team at BETO or at the Tallgrass on their own schedule. The goal is to arrive at the Tallgrass by 9 am and have at least one station on the air by 10 am. Members take turns operating the stations and logging contacts, with everyone participating in the setup and the take down of the stations.  We are usually taking down the stations between 2 and 3 pm, returning to the Olathe area generally before 6 pm.

     These Tallgrass operations have been enjoyable events for the club.  The National Park Service has been delighted to host us, and we often get curious questions from park visitors--making the event good PR for amateur radio.  And while you are there, you may want to take in some of the park exhibits or walk one of the walking trails.

     Coordination for this event will be primarily via email exchange. If you are interested in participating in the Tallgrass event on April 18th, please add your name to the signup list that will be available at the SFTARC breakfasts or send an email to Jim at k0nk@arrl.net.

     Most of the students held General Class Licenses, a couple had Tech licenses and were using the class to move up to General then Extra. At least two students already held an Extra ticket and were in the class as a review. All 22 students that started the class were eager to learn. Illness and life-events forced a few of students to drop the class—while the rest worked to digest the wide range of technical concepts presented in the ARRL’s Extra-Class License manual.

    Without a doubt, the SFTARC’s method of teaching could be considered “Old Fashioned.” In an era where most ham classes are taught by some version of question-and-answer memorization, the SFTARC has stuck with teaching the subject matter so that students can build a foundation of knowledge on which they can later expand. Many students supplemented the in-class instructions with a variety of Q&A exercises, including the ARRL’s online practice question that are synchronized to the chapters in the book. 

     PowerPoint presentations were used as the primary teaching tool, supplemented by in-class exhibits ranging from a hand-held antenna for satellites work, to observing modulation on both an oscilloscope and a spectrum analyzer simultaneously to an up-close look at tower-climbing safety gear. And there were also mini presentations presented just before or after break time. These short presentations covered a variety of topics to expand one’s horizons and to be fun at the same time.

       The Salvation Army in Olathe was also a key player in the success of the class, by providing the venue for the classes and exam session. SFTARC Treasurer, Marty Peters, KEØPEZ, helped by ordering the license manuals. And thanks go out to Jeff Widgren, KCØJAZ, for loaning us a projector for many of the classes to make the presentations more visible to the student in the back of the room.