[Editor’s note: Some of us are not familiar with The Big E. I did some searching, and it appears to be an event in West Springfield, MA. The URL later in this message took me to a website for 2022. If this is something in which you are interested in participating, please contact Larry (W1AST) for more information.]

We are doing another ham radio booth at the Big E this September. The dates are Friday, September 15th through Sunday, October 1st. The goal is to introduce Ham radio to the general public, show that it is still relevant, and to interest the public in signing up for ham courses. Just like last year there are two shifts per day with each one being 6 hours long. Each shift requires 3 people in the booth this year. We are making changes in the layout of the booth to make it more friendly to the public in the hopes to draw more people in.

4th of July Parade Wolfeboro, New Hampshire

Field Day 2023

4th of July, 2022 Parade Float

President Bob Nelson N1EUN with Ryan and Mark

____________________________________

4th of July Parade, Wolfeboro, New Hampshire 2021

Hello everyone. Thank you David N1DOU, Rich K1RBC, Don W1DND, Brian K0BCL, Frank W1WU, Jane W2REX, Jim NX3Z, John K1UAF and Ryan  for your help on the 4th of July parade. Our efforts contributed to the parade’s success. Also, we had positive feedback from our first ever LRRA parade entry. Bob N1EUN President of LRRA

___________________________________

Our first Ham Radio Flea Market was a great social event and place to find good deals on equipment and parts. We even had a drawing for a door prize.

Our goal was to have two a year, one in the spring and the other in the fall. Most ham radio clubs sponsor at least one flea market a year.

The LRRA Flea and Ve was very well attended and a great place to connect an entire community. Our ham radio flea market ended up being a multi-purpose event.

People were buying and selling equipment and parts. Many new hams get their first radio at a flea market. Quite a few old and newer radios changed hands at good prices. Equally important is finding parts and test equipment. We hams usually stock up on hard to find parts for future projects and repairs.

There was a lot of information on local club activities. It was a great time to find out what groups were active in our neighborhood and what they were doing. Lots of memberships got sold at our flea market.

Entry fees were five dollars which covered our costs. Vendors usually donate prizes and we had a door prize. The admission ticket entered you on our drawing plus we offered a 50-50. These events were fund raisers for our club. Often, you can win a new radio, sometimes an expensive one.

At 1pm we held a Ve session for testing. We were happy to announce our testers passed their tests.

In the earlier days of amateur radio, most people built most of their own equipment. New parts were expensive, so hams started holding flea markets to share the wealth in their community. Sometimes they are also combined with auctions. In addition, many larger clubs hold a “hamfest” or “swap meet” which is the same idea. Our first LRRA Flea and Ve was a success!

Our first LRRA Flea and Ve Ossipee, NH April 2109

Ham radio field day 2019

Lakes Region Repeater Association’s Field Day was held the fourth full weekend of June 2019. Every year is the opportunity for thousands of amateur radio enthusiasts throughout the U.S and Canada to set up temporary communications stations and make contact with Hams.

Our licensed hams operators spent the weekend practicing community outreach, emergency preparedness, and technical skills. LRRA was basically in radio heaven.

A contest is held each year with individuals, clubs and teams trying to make contact with as many stations as possible over 24 hours. Field Day 2019 took place with over 35,000 people taking part.

Our Field Day began at 18:00 UTC Saturday and ran through 20:59 UTC Sunday. We packed our camping equipment, threw up some temporary antennas, and spent the next 24 hours spinning the dials on our radios, because this not-to-be-missed event was rich in history, tradition and technology.

If you are curious about what exactly is Field Day, it is an annual event conducted by the American Radio Relay League.  Amateur radio operators across North America setup their equipment in fields, parking lots, and parks.

We set up our ham radio field day 2019 at Constitution Park in Ossipee, New Hampshire using off grid electricity and in make-work conditions. Operators then make contact with similar groups across North America.

ARRL Field Day stresses emergency preparedness. During our exercise, we took “Field” Day literally; we erected radio masts and towers, each bearing several antennas, in a parking lot at Constitution Park.

We used generators to provide power to ham radio transceivers. We worked through logistical problems like transpiration, food, shelter and other accommodations for our group for up to 24 hours.

Field Day is rarely a single-man operation. In fact, Field Day is frequently used to highlight to the public, the virtues and utility of ham radio in an emergency situation.

LRRA has demonstrated in the past a wide range of technologies, including single sideband voice, Morse code, and a number of digital modes including APRS, packet radio, as well as satellite communications.

« ‹ of 2 › »

Lakes Region Repeater Association’s second Flea and Ve.  Our Flea and Ve is a place to buy, sell, and swap amateur radio, electronic, and computer equipment. Hams and non-hams alike are welcome.

These Hamfests are a convention of amateur radio enthusiasts, often combining a trade show, flea market, and various other activities of interest to amateur radio operators (hams).  “Hamfests” were noted as early as 1924 in the U.S.

Our hamfest event was organized by our amateur radio club. We enjoyed our social gathering and promotion of the amateur radio hobby.  Our semiannual event is held over a weekend on Saturday and last from 8am to 1pm. We feature a flea market where the attendees buy and sell radio and related equipment. The equipment found at our hamfest can vary significantly from the newest high-tech gear to used, refurbished, or even antique equipment.

Haggling or bargaining is the most common means of sale at our flea market. Equipment that originally sold at great expense to commercial users (such as public safety agencies) can often be found at a fraction of the price. Likewise, accessories which are no longer available from manufacturers may be found, and many sales of complete systems are made to buyers who only need one or two components.

Cardboard junk boxes are a common site at our flea market. They sit on the tables or floors and frequently contain scraps and remnants from finished projects or equipment long-since gone.

Some hamfests feature demonstration and sales booths manned by vendors and manufacturers of commercial amateur radio equipment. This is something we are considering for the future.

Hamfests may also include meetings of amateur radio clubs, seminars on technical, operational, or legal aspects of amateur radio.

At 1pm we hold a session for examinations for technical, general, or advance license.

Our hamfest is becoming a popular tradition. We included a food vendor, staffed by volunteers, with the proceeds going into our Repeater Fund.

Our second LRRA Flea and VE Ossipee Town HallFall 2019