Winter Field Day 2024 Announcement!

Jackson County Amateur Radio is participating in Winter Field Day 27th-28th January at the Stevenson City Park Pavilion (https://maps.app.goo.gl/avemEiYvC8vv8qvb8). Our goal is to operate up to four stations for up to 24 hours. The number of stations and duration of operations depends on you! Please follow the link below to fill out the WFD registration form: https://forms.gle/CQWCs2khTauf9Bxa8

JCAR will be having demonstrations suitable for all experience levels prior to WFD, starting at 0900 26 January 2024.Setup begins at 1100. WFD starts at 1300 and goes until 1259 27 January 2024. Tear down will begin at 1300. All times are CST. Even if you aren’t interested in operating, your presence is greatly appreciated during setup, tear down, and throughout field day if you want to learn more about field operations. You do not have to be a club member or even a licensed amateur to be part of WFD.

If you want to camp overnight, the city of Stevenson charges $30 per campsite with water and electricity. A couple of club members will likely reserve a couple campsites for others to use.

We will be operating outdoors. You should bring space heaters, either electric, kerosene, propane, any that don’t use an open flame. We will have a designated warming area for the safety of those out there in case someone gets too cold. Dress according to the weather and you will most likely have a very comfortable and enjoyable experience.

If you want to bring any off-grid power sources, WFD is the perfect time to try them out. It’s okay if they fail. We will have outlets available.

We will be using K4SCO exclusively during WFD. Operators can log using any method they choose, but the logs must be legible and must contain all required WFD information: Call sign, class, category, location identifier, frequency, date, and UTC time. Familiarize yourself with the WFD rules here: https://winterfieldday.org/rules.php

Please be respectful of the operators while they are making contacts. If you want to talk to an operator, be patient and wait until they have a free moment. If you want to hang out and have a conversation, please take it somewhere away from the operators. You’ll be asked to leave if you repeatedly distract or interfere with an operator.

There will be food and beverages if you bring them. There will likely be coffee, water, sodas, and snacks brought for all by the operators. Want grilled meats? Bring a grill and meats. Bring your smoker and get a nice brisket going. There are several places to eat nearby, and anywhere that delivers food will most likely deliver to the park.

One of the most important things you can do if you can’t make it out to Winter Field Day at all is to make contact with our stations. You help the operators and the club by working the club once per band and mode.

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