Get On The Air Program

Mark Wagner, N1ZYZ

GOTAP Coordinator

The Thrill of it All
June was a great month for hams here in the Wagner household. First and foremost, we attended our first field day and had a great time. There were several times when I had to go drag N1ZYY from the 70cm tent in order to go home (next year we will stay...) Andrew also had a great time and did his best to help out as well. It was also good from a GOTAP perspective as I was able to get several GOTAP-ees out to the sight.

The second great aspect of the month was that I passed my General test. It was a great feeling and has really opened up a lot of new areas for me. I strongly urge anyone who is a Novice, Technician or Technician Plus and desires to do some HF work to make the time needed to upgrade.

Speaking of upgrading, here’s a few tips.

  1. Make the time to study. This includes both the written and CW tests.
  2. For CW, I found that spending 10 to 20 minutes at a time with tapes or computer worked well. Of course getting on the air works great too.
  3. For the written test, I used the ARRL book. Since I took the general test, the question pool has changed. If your general book doesn’t say for use after July 1, 1998 you should get the new book. There are five additional questions about RF safety on the test.
  4. Take as many practice tests as you can. There are several programs and web sites available for generating and correcting the tests.
  5. If you are going for the 13 WPM code test, take the 20 WPM test first if possible, even if you think you won’t pass it. Who knows, you may pass and not need to take the 13 WPM. If nothing else, it will make the 13 WPM test seem nice and slow.
  6. For the Advanced test, spend more than a couple of hours the night before to prepare. Trust me, I know.
  7. Have fun.

    Monthly Spiels

    GOTAP is a program that the ARRL has put together in order to help new and existing hams get on the air and stay in the hobby. If you are finding it difficult to get on the air please contact me and I’ll do my best to have the club help you get up an running.

    If you know of anyone who is in need of GOTAP assistance please have them contact me or pass their names along and I will contact them.

    I have been trying to run “code practice” every night by listening and calling CQ on 28.360 MHz. Please NOTE that due to many conflicts this summer, I have not been able to keep a consistent schedule. I would like to change the time to 9:30 PM (local time) with the hope of having more time available. Of course anytime you would like to schedule something please let me know.

    New Hams

    The following folks have recently earned their licenses. Please welcome them and give them an extra special greeting if you hear them on the air.

    Contact Information

     If you are a new ham, or if you are having problems getting on the air, or if you just want to say hi, please contact me. You can reach me on the Nashua repeater (147.045+/224.28-), by phone at 603-424- 1516 or email: markwagner@geocities.com.

    73 de Mark, N1ZYZ

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