M.A.R.S - Manawatu Amateur Radio Soc

May 2011

Being Prepared

Many of us have in our possession clothing with various inscriptions usually in the form of T shirt or similar.  While I am not a fan of wearing clothing that has the manufactures brand name or includes writing, I have occasionally collected the odd T shirt that says something I am prepared to embrace and stand behind.  One T shirt that some have seen is my ‘Linux and Ham Radio’ black T shirt.  Now,  it is not the Linux part I really want to mention here as you have read and heard much from me on the merits of open source software before, it is the Ham radio part of this T shirt I bring to you. On the back of the T shirt is the slogan ‘When all else fails’.

Something we can all be very proud of is our readiness to assist in times of necessity when all other means of communication no longer work as expected. With the recent global events the reality of disasters and our involvement is well documented, however, what is it we can do to better prepare ourselves for such an eventuality. There is much that will be useful when the call comes, look at the project ideas list you have on your to-do list , there will be things like:

• A spare battery pack for the handheld with a 12 volt charger
• Solar powering the ham shack
• Mobile operation on 80 and 40 meters
• Strengthening of the antenna system to weather storms better
• Practice the disciplines of AREC and get involved in a SAREX
• For myself I have recently added a second battery to the shack 12 volt system to keep my station operational for longer with a power outage

Can I encourage you all in the current environmental climate to not put off that project until a rainy day as by then it may just be too late? Remember, with communications, ‘When all else fails’ ham radio works, let us be like the boy scouts and be prepared.

Cheers

Richie zl2kp / vk2iax