2019 CLUB EVENTS

December 15, 2019: Christmas Dinner & Meeting, Smethport, PA
The club members gathered together at the McKean County DES building on a wintry Sunday afternoon for the annual general meeting and to celebrate the holiday season.  Each member brought a dish to pass and the food was wonderful: beef on weck, deviled eggs, pistachio salad, homemade rolls, organic salad, assorted cookies...just to name a few!  The Christmas surprise box that was raffled off as a fundraiser contained an HT with accessories.  It was won by a 10 year old who hopefully will become an amateur radio operator in the future.  

We ended the festivities with an uplifting presentation from 
Joe Shupienis, W3BC,  the ARRL WPA Section Manager. He made the trip all the way from DuBois in blistery winter conditions just to see us.  Thanks, Joe!

Happy holidays and best wishes for 2020!
October 12-13, 2019: PA QSO Party at Elk Lick Scout Reserve, Smethport, PA
Some of the club members participated in the PA QSO Party at the Elk Lick Scout Reserve near Smethport, PA for the third year in a row.  A few stayed the night at Orlos Lodge.  The bands were less than stellar, so we only managed 483 contacts.  However, we were able to get the clean sweep for the first time in club history (worked all 67 Pennsylvania counties)!  Congrats to all who participated!  

August 25, 2019: Club Picnic, Bradford, PA
Our annual club picnic was held at the Foster Township Community Park just outside of Bradford.  We set up a CW and SSB station in the morning and ate a delicious meal around 1:30 PM.  Two of our newer operators made their first HF contact on this day!  Congrats!
It was a nice day!

June 22-23, 2019: ARRL Field Day, Marshburg, PA
The club has used the Marshburg area for Field Day and other radio events on numerous occasions over the past eighty years.  The club decided to use this area once again for Field Day 2019.  The Black Bear Campground, located at 4930 Route 59, was a gracious host for this event.

We had a total of 13 participants (operators and visitors). We operated as W3VV and 5A (5 transmitters, 100% generator power) for the 24 hour period.  We made 128 CW QSOs and 309 SSB for a total of 437  (up from 195 total last year). Other than the COLD night, it was a good adventure!

We would like to extend a special thanks to the wonderful staff of the Black Bear Campground for their hospitality and accommodations. 

June 15, 2019: Kinzua Bridge POTA Activation, Mt. Jewett, PA
The club and McKean County EMCOMM collaborated to activate the Kinzua Bridge State Park for Parks on the Air (POTA K-1366).  The event lasted from 0900 until almost 1700.  Even though it was rainy and the band conditions were less than stellar, it was a good time.  A total of 90 QSOs were made (63 SSB and 27 CW-QRP).  Thank you to McKean County EMCOMM and everyone else who participated in this event.