Insurance Update

ECOA members will be pleased to read that the Association has now updated our liability insurance coverage from $2 million per member to $5 million per member. 

This outstanding insurance coverage is included in the low annual membership price of $20 per member. 

ECOA is determined to provide Ontario hams the best insurance coverage, for the lowest cost. 

Details of the liability coverage will be posted on our main website on the next update.

2013 AGM

NOTICE:

The ECOA 2013 AGM will be held on Saturday 25th May.

This year the AGM will be held at the Don Montgomery Centre, Scarborough, located at 2467 Eglinton Ave East.

We hope to see all of our members out for this event.

Canwarn Training 2013

Folks, some additional locations have been added to the spring training dates. Specifically, we have added two sessions in Huron County on April 25, confirmed the venue in Dufferin County on May 15 and added sessions in Belleville on May 25 and Renfrew on June 5. Training in Northwestern Ontario will take place during the week of June 3 with specific dates and venues being announced in the next training update.

Thanks to all of you who have replied to the canwarn.ontario@ec.gc.ca account with the session you plan to attend or emailed Bill Hoad at bhoad@xcelco.on.ca with your intent to attend the Sarnia session. If you plan on attending a session but haven't yet RSVP'd, please feel free to do so in the coming days.

The response so far indicates that we will again have a strong turnout this year. Thanks again for being a part of this worthwhile program.

April 16 – 7 PM – Leamington – Kinsmen Recreational Complex – 249 Sherk St
April 17 – 7 PM – Sarnia – Upper Hall Clearwater Arena – 1400 Wellington St.
April 18 – 7 PM – London – Fanshawe College Building T Room T1003 – 1001 Fanshawe College Blvd. – Free parking at any metered spots on campus after 6 PM
April 20 – 9 AM – Hamilton – Nash Auditorium Chedoke Hospital – Sanatorium Road – free parking in lot across from the auditorium
April 25 – 1 PM – North Huron (Wingham) – North Huron Wescast Community Complex – Hot Stove Lounge – 99 Kerr Drive
April 25 – 7 PM – South Huron (Exeter) – Exeter Firehall – 55 William Street
April 27 – 9 AM – Orillia/Rama – Rama Fire Hall – 7454 Williams Road in Rama
April 27 – 9 AM – Ottawa – Nepean Sailing Club – 3259 Carling Ave., Nepean
May 1 – 7 PM – Kitchener - Bingemans Conference Centre – 425 Bingemans Centre Drive
May 4 – 9 AM – Toronto – Environment Canada Headquarters – 4905 Dufferin St
May 8 – 7 PM – Toronto – Environment Canada Headquarters – 4905 Dufferin St
May 14 – 7 PM – Peterborough – Public Library – 345 Aylmer St. North
May 15 – 7 PM – Dufferin County – Centre Dufferin Recreational Complex – 200 Fiddlepark Lane - Shelburne
May 25 – 9 AM – Sudbury – Lionel E. Lalonde Centre, 239 Montee Principale, Azilda.
May 25 – 10 AM – Belleville – Belleville Library 3rd Floor Conference Room - 254 Pinnacle St
May 26 - 1 PM - Espanola - Pinewood Inn, 378 Centre St.
May 26 – 7 PM - Elliot Lake - Renaissance Centre (tentative), 20 Veterans Way
May 27 - 7 PM - Sault Ste. Marie - Delta Sault Ste. Marie, 208 St. Mary's Drive
May 29 – 7 PM - Timmins – Holiday Inn, 30 Algonquin Blvd West.
May 31 – 6:30 PM - North Bay - OPP Communications Centre - 877 Gormanville Road
June 5 – 6:30 PM – Renfrew – Best Western – 760 Gibbons Road

Regards,

Geoff Coulson
Warning Preparedness Meteorologist
Environment Canada

RaDAR-America Contest

Rapid Deployment Amateur Radio, often referred to by its acronym RaDAR, is a concept for operating an amateur radio station anywhere, anytime and even in adverse environmental conditions. This concept supports the amateur radio service’s emergency communications mandate and ECOA is very pleased to support this excellent concept.

Marcus KD0JKM is organising a RaDAR-America Contest - an event aimed at promoting the use of Rapidly Deployable Amateur Radio stations throughout North and South America. This contest is for all licensed radio amateurs.

A choice is made prior to the contest to participate in one of the defined categories. The points system is so structured as to encourage portable operation, especially moveable stations.

This contest will take place at the same time in South Africa (the Nation from which the idea originated), as it will here in the Americas - the first Saturday of April (the 6th) and first Saturday of November (the 2nd) starting at 14:00 UTC and ending at 18:00 UTC (4 hours operating time)

For more information on the RaDAR-America Contest, visit the website HERE.

This is an outstanding opportunity to shake off the winter dust and test out your Go-Kits and portable antennas.

Greater Toronto Area ARES Nets

Amateur Radio stations anywhere in the Greater Toronto Area are invited to check into the evening nets of the Toronto ARES Group.  The nets begin with a call out to roll call stations but the Net Control Station (VE3NCS) will also issue a call for any station anywhere to check in.

All weeknight nets start at 8.00 PM.

The Net on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday nights is a SIMPLEX net on 147.405 MHz. You must transmit a PL tone of 103.5 hz.

The Monday night net is held on the VE3TNC repeater (147.270+) in downtown Toronto. No tone required.

The Wednesday night net is held on the VA3GTU repeater 4B (444.850+) in downtown Toronto. 103.5 tone required.

The Friday night net is held on the VA3GTU repeater 4C (443.750+) in Scarborough. 103.5 tone required.

On Saturday nights additional nets are held at 8.30 PM on repeater VE3RPT (147.060+) and at 9.00 PM on 6 Meter repeater VA3ECT (53.390-).

On Sunday evening three nets are held at 8 PM a net is held on the VE3BEG repeater (224.860-). At 8.30 PM a simplex net is held on 446.025 MHz. At 9.00 PM a 6 Meter simplex net is held on 52.525 MHz. None of these 3 nets require a tone.

At 5.30 PM on Sundays, the GTA Regional Net is held on the CN Tower repeater VE3TWR 145.410-(103.5) and 444.400+.

By participating in any of these nets you are putting your radio on the air and ensuring that it is working properly.  You are also informing all the other Amateur Radio Operators in Toronto that you are on the map. That you exist.

Being an Amateur Radio Operator means you talk on a radio with other Amateur Radio Operators.  Checking into the ARES Nets is your best easy way to do that on VHF and UHF.

Well Done!

Most emcomm groups take part in the ARRL Field Day, but how many take part in the SPAR Winter Field Day?  Being able to do your job in the cold or the heat is paramount, and the same is true in emcomm. 

Our emcomm groups in Eastern Ontario all took part in Winter Field Day this year, setting up for the weekend and erecting antennas in -16C weather.   Not only did these groups deploy to isolated locations, some with electricity, some with batteries, and operate for the full 24 hours, they had to live, sleep, and cook in those conditions as well.

This is Canada, not all of our emergencies will take place in good weather.  In fact statistics tell us we have a greater chance of being called out in the winter than we do in the summer.  How would your group do?

Well done to the Eastern Ontario groups who practiced their winter operating skills.  They are really living up to ECOA's motto: "Utrinque Paratus" - Ready for Anything.

Western Sector Announcement

The ECOA Executive is extremely pleased to announce the appointment of Brett Gilbank- VE3ZBG, as the new Sector Manager for ECOA's Western Sector.

As Sector Manager Brett will be responsible for: Bruce County, Grey County, Huron County, Perth County, Lambton County, MIddlesex County, Oxford Regional Municipality, Essex County, Kent County, and Elgin County.

The ECOA Executive also looks forward to hearing of the CANWARN expansion in this Sector.  Brett brings a high level of experience to this position and we look forward to watching Western Sector grow over the next few months.