Peter Jago, the last remaining member of WCARC, approached WCNLRF and asked if they'd like to take over the West Carleton Amateur Radio Club.They agreed and Gord became the President and Kieran became Treasurer.

Gord began working at Sillicom research, and Peter Williams VE3TFP joined as Secretary. Later, Brian Crook VE3CRG, also of Sillicom, joined to help out. Other employees, John Heckman and Gavin Hurlbut (VE3GJH) wrote their exams and joined. Gavin sold Gord his copy of the Borland C compiler, so Gord started compiling and distributing versions of JNOS for folks to use. You can still see Gord's call in some of the binaries floating around!

Kieran, Peter and Gord, were experimenting with 9,600 bps modems in TAPR/MFJ TNCs, coupled with UHF TEK radios and rolling versions of JNOS so they could learn more about TCP/IP. Kieran set up VE3OSQ BBS and Peter started experimenting with satellites. This is when Gord took over IP administration of the 102 and 103 subnets, so that we could make a routeable RF subnet. With Barry VE3JF's help, Gord was able to NFS mount hydra.ampr.org's disk on his home SUN station, through the 9,600 bps radios. Kieran could get a path to Ottawa on 56 Kbps, so the idea was floated to make a link that extended from Ottawa to Belleville, Kingston, backhaul on 9,600, drop off at 1,200 bps. Kingston had a subnet, Belleville had a subnet, Renfrew had a subnet, Arnprior had a subnet, and of course Ottawa west had a subnet. Gord designed it so that it was all CIDR routeable.

Eventually, the UHF radios and cans from Gord's home system became part of the 9,600 bps link at Lavant. Peter supplied a PC and a version of JNOS. Phil VE3CIQ, supplied RF design, and George Sampson VE3GWS supplied access. The group met at Barrie VE3BSB's place to get support for an Ottawa-west/Belleville link.

The 90's

As Gord relates "By this time, WCARC had reached a membership of 35 strong as I recall, and was meeting in the Legion building in Stittsville, but the air was really smokey in there. Somewhere in here, Manfred VA3MWK, of IGS fame joined the club and we had a web page on his company's server. Anyway, my wife, Trudy VE3TRD and I had Julie in 1995, and I became too busy so Peter VE3TFP took over the reins of the club'.

MORE TO COME - if you can fill in some or all of this period, please forward to the webmaster

2005

In 2005, our exec included President Tom VA3NFA, Secretary Graham VE3BYT, Treasurer Ken VA3KA and VP/webmaster Rick VE3CVG. Highlights of the year included a family tour to the Diefenbunker in the spring, lead by Tom, 903MHz Xvrtr build program co-ordinated by Rick VE3CVG, our relocation to Sobeys in Kanata as a meeting centre, VE3WCC/R rover co-ordinated by VA3NFA in the September VHF contest. The club was well represented at several local ham flea markets. Our closing meeting for the year was our election, with Christmas snacks and lots of prizes.

2006

For 2006, the same executive was elected. Our meetings continued at Sobeys. The opening meeting included an excellent talk by VO1NO about war communications. Early in 2006 we successfully activated our 903 beacon on 903.37MHz (roughly). The RF parts came from Rick VE3CVG and the ID controller came from Gord VE3PPE. The beacon is located near NRC courtesy of Phil VE3CIQ.

Throughout the first quarter, the club continued to add members.

2007

In 2007, WCARC had a total of 26 members, with an average turn-out of 10 members per meeting. In January, Tom, VA3NFA hosted/test the club 432 CW beacon, our 903 beacon was heard in south-western Ontario during a tropo opening, VA3WK gave an overview of the latest digital proportional radio control equipment.

In February, VE3AA (Dave Goodwin), President of Radio Amateurs of Canada, gave a “RAC Update” . We also had the first presentation to WCARC by the Ottawa Amateur Radio Digital Group (OARDG) (Rick VE3CVG and Ken VA3KA) on D-STAR.

In March, we initiated a group order of PCB antennas organised by Tom, VA3NFA, and Rick, VE3CVG and Doug, VE3XK gave a talk an demo on Tellurometers.

In April we had discussions on Hydro Smart Meters that are using 900 Mhz; Dale, VE3XZT talked on WinDRM digital voice using the PC sound card; Rick, VE3CVG showed a 10GHZ feed suitable for a 2 foot dish; and several members attended the Iroquois Flea-market. Also, D-STAR Ottawa (VA3ODG) became operational from the Ottawa YMCA HQ building on Argyle Street, Ottawa.

In May, the Club had a Diefenbunker Tour attended by several members and some family members. Also WCARC had a presence at the Stittsville Flea Market, along with a demos, and giveways by OARDG members who are also members of WCARC.

In June, VA3NFA and VA3CDD participated in VHF Contest as local rovers assisted by other club members.

In July, VA3SAX talked about Microwave Software-Defined Radio (uW SDR) project; we had a discussion on the June 6m opening to the west and Pacific.

In August, VE3NVK (Andy) showed his SoftRock-40 kiit (40M SDR receiver); VO1NO showed his control and switching for his 160m beverage antenna farm.

In September, at the OARC Hamfest, WCARC had a club table, presentation by VA3NFA on Roving and VE3XK on D-STAR.

In October, we discussed a potential future project (Dxpedition and Balloon launch) promoted by Graham VE3BYT and earlier by Barry VE3BSB; Rick showed the 10Ghz DEMI, Transverter kit; siscussion, led by VE8CF (Karl) on “Free Energy”.

In November, Tom, VA3NFA donated a box of VHF engineering stuff for beacon use; we discussed a June 2008 VHF/UHF QSO Party DxPedition; VE3BYT outlined a proposal for a comprehensive club project (eg Balloon launch); VE3XK showed crimping tools for N connectors.

2008

President Al (VO1NO/VE3) wrote (this is an excerpt, because we just would not have space for everything Al said) - 2008 was a busy and exciting year for the West Carleton Amateur Radio Club. Among other things, the club initiated a comprehensive beacon project, participated in a grid expedition, and got its constitutional affairs in order.

The Beacon Project was undoubtedly the club’s most important undertaking this past year. Under the leadership of Doug VE3XK, the club assembled a professional-quality set of VHF/UHF beacons and associated antennas. The decision to use commercial-grade equipment in lieu of a more ‘home-brew” approach cost the club more money, but resulted in a thoroughly stable and reliable arrangement that should give years of trouble-free operation. Given that Ottawa is fast becoming a focal point of weak-signal VHF/UHF activity, the beacons will permit local Amateurs to calibrate their equipment, and will alert others to propagation openings.

In June several members of the club travelled to FN04xa for the ARRL June VHF QSO Party. Led by Al VO1NO, the team consisted of Doug VE3XK, Ken VA3KA, Barney VA3BGB, Andy VE3NVK, Dean VA3CDD, and Jeremy, N0CALL. The team stumbled upon an excellent operating location overlooking Lake Ontario! Previously a well-kept secret of Rovers, the site enabled the team to put outstanding signals into the northern USA. A score of 80,620 points gave the team the top Canadian position, and #3 in its category in all of the ARRL Central Region. Our efforts were very much appreciated – the club received a letter of thanks from Bill VE3CRU/Rover, who included several gifts and handouts to encourage the club to return to the site next year. Al has agreed to head the Grid Expedition Committee for 2009.

The Constitution and Bylaws formed the third focus of the club in 2008. The Constitutional Committee, made up of Doug VE3XK and Dean VA3CDD, continued work begun the previous year. Draft documents were distributed early in the new-year, and feedback was incorporated in the succeeding versions. Following a line-by-line review at the August meeting, the club’s new Constitution and Bylaws were unanimously approved by the membership, and formally incorporated the following month.

Club members are also involved in several other projects. Graham VE3BYT actively liaises with members of the Perth group to coordinate WCARC participation in their high altitude balloon launches (with Montessori School). Rick VE3CVG and Ken VA3KA have taken leadership roles in the formation of the Ottawa Amateur Radio Digital Group, devoted to the establishment of a D-STAR network in the region. Many other members are busy with their own projects of varying degrees of complexity.

The Repeater Committee under Dale VE3XZT has accomplished a great deal in the past 2 months. The IRLP node is once again functioning after being shut down in the summer when John VE3IAO moved. An ID EPROM has been received from Hamtronics, and all club repeaters will ID using the VE3WCC callsign.

The club had a variety of interesting guest speakers and entertainment. January saw the kickoff of the Beacon Project with a briefing by Doug VE3XK. In February Dale VE3XZT and Ken VA3KA described Frequency Division Multiplex Digital Voice, and included an interesting practical demonstration. March was Project Night! Among the projects exhibited were the beacon cabinet by Doug VE3XK, a temperature sensor with associated microprocessor and mini-transmitter by Graham VE3BYT, and a CW station controller project by Dave VE3KL.

In April Ernie VA3OEB gave the first of 2 presentations dealing with his experiences as a radio operator during the Second World War. The first covered the time he spent at sea in the Merchant Marine, which included having 2 ships sunk underneath him! Ernie’s second talk was given in July, and described how he and others intercepted enemy radio communications at the Ottawa Monitoring Station.

In May Barrie VE3BSB described the high-altitude balloon launch conducted by the Perth ARES group. The following month Al VO1NO briefed all present on the club’s plans for the Grid Expedition to FN04xa for the ARRL June VHF QSO Party. Also that evening, Doug VE3XK provided an update on the Beacon Project, including some interesting antenna radiation diagrams.

The Constitution and Bylaws were discussed and approved at the August meeting. In September Al VO1NO delivered a detailed description of Low Band Receive Antennas. The following month Bertrand VE2ZAZ gave a very interesting presentation on his experiences using EME – Earth Moon Earth, or Moonbounce. Ken VE3SRS concluded the year’s entertainment with a talk on his time operating as VE8RCS in Alert.

Membership peaked at 28 members. Although a relatively small club, the West Carleton Amateur Radio Club has a well-deserved reputation for technical expertise and excellent operators. This is no accident – it has taken a lot of hard work by a number of very dedicated individuals to put the West Carleton Club where it is. I ask you to join me in a round of applause for those people, and for the success of the club in general. I also remind everyone that each and every member of the club has something to offer – please remember this the next time the club needs a volunteer!
73
Al Penney, VO1NO, President

2009

On December 1, 2009, President Al Penney, delivered the following Annual Report:

Once again, the West Carleton Amateur Radio Club has had a busy and productive year. Among other things, the club made significant progress on its comprehensive beacon project, finished first in a grid expedition during the ARRL June VHF QSO Party, and initiated a 5.8 GHz telephone project to assist the club’s future contest ambitions.

Under the leadership of Doug VE3XK, the club assembled a professional-quality set of VHF/UHF beacons and associated antennas and power supply. Following successful trials, the beacons were relocated from FN15wg to FN15vf in July 2009. The stacked antennas, mounted on a single common mast, should launch most of the power at an elevation angle of 20-30 degrees above the horizon. Due largely to the dedication of WCARC members, Ottawa is fast becoming a focal point of weak-signal VHF/UHF activity, as evidenced by a very complimentary mention in CQ Magazine. The beacons will permit local Amateurs to calibrate their equipment, and will alert others to propagation openings.

In June, several members of the club returned to FN04xa for the ARRL June VHF QSO Party. Led by Al VO1NO, the team consisted of Doug VE3XK, Ken VA3KA, Barney VA3BGB, Andy VE3NVK, Stephen VE3LWX, Glenn VE3XRA, Bill VE3NNQ, and Air Cadets Erin, Abigail, Michael and Dalton, all of whom are studying to earn their Basic licenseAmateur Radio in a course taught by Al VO1NO. In a very busy weekend, they made 496 QSOs and 176 multipliers for a score of 134,816, a significant improvement over the previous year. This was enough to finish first in any category in Canada, and first in the ARRL Central Region in the Multi-Op category. The club is looking forward to defending their excellent results in next year’s competition, by which time the Air Cadets should be licensed!

Later in the year, Doug VE3XK reported to the club that certain 5.8 GHz cordless telephones could be used as Amateur transceivers. Given enough telephones, the club could greatly increase its Grid Expedition score by lending them to rovers passing through the area, and because of rules that permit multi-op stations to work their own operators on microwave frequencies. In a trial, Doug and Barney VA3BGB determined that far from being limited to a few hundred feet as advertised, the telephones actually had ranges measured in kilometres. Based on this, the club approved the acquisition of a number of these phones, and several members are actively investigating how to connect high gain antennas to the devices.

In January the club presented a plaque to Manfred VE3WK in appreciation for his donation of two complete repeaters. A similar presentation was made to Kieran VA3KS in September for his donation of antennas and other equipment, the sale of which greatly bolstered the club’s bank account. In November, both ManfredManfred and Kieran, as well as Phil VE3CIQ, were inducted as the club’s first lifetime members. Phil’s place of honour is due to his invaluable assistance in obtaining and maintaining access to commercial towers for the club’s repeaters and beacons system.

The club had a variety of interesting guest speakers and entertainment. January saw Al VO1NO deliver a presentation titled “Chase Me Charlies”, an account of how the Allies developed electronic countermeasures to Nazi radio-controlled bombs in World War II. In February club members watched a video presentation on the 3Y0X DX’pedition to Peter 1 Island in 2006. In March, club members received 3 presentations. Doug VE3XK gave a detailed briefing on the club’s repeaters, and Rick VE3CVG demonstrated a portable Web server. Rick also unveiled the WCARC Minutes Generator software that he developed with his friend Bob Chambers. This excellent program permits the club secretary to generate meeting minutes much more swiftly and accurately than previously possible, and is now in use by the club.

In April Dave VE3KL described the excellent attributes of the NEC2 antenna software developed by Dutch Ham Arie Voors. In May, Al VO1NO briefed the membership on the club’s Grid Expedition in June. Due to scheduling difficulties with Sobey’s, the June and July meetings were held in the Diefenbunker, thanks to Brian Jeffrey VE3UU and the Directors of the Diefenbunker Museum. The June meeting featured a roundtable discussion on all aspects of the Expedition, from antennas to food, and photos of the event were displayed at the July meeting.

August was the Club’s Show and Tell evening. Of note, Peter VA3PJ displayed several pieces of radar equipment in which he had played a part in developing. Doug VE3XK also gave an update on the status of the club’s beacons. In September Air Cadet Erin Burrell, a member of the Grid Expedition, demonstrated the CO2 powered car that she had built for her technology class. Inspired by the expedition, she painted “VE3WCC” on either side! The members also watched an interesting presentation called “Zoom” on the powers of 10. To cap off the evening, Al VO1NO described Operation Crossroads, the American atomic bomb tests in the Bikini Atoll in 1946.

In October Michael VE3WMB described HF Portable Operations, and demonstrated several innovative techniques and pieces of equipment. The following month Norm VE3LC spoke about Amateur applications for Bluetooth technology, especially appropriate given the new law that bans the use of handheld communications devices while driving.

Membership peaked at 32 members. Attendance at the meetings also increased significantly over 2008.

Some “off-site” activities by club members should also be recognized. Ken Asmus VA3KA gave a presentation on our grid expedition to FN04xa, to the Ontario VHF Association October meeting in Toronto. Doug Leach VE3XK also gave a presentation on our VHF/UHF beacon project. Several towers were disassembled in the field and the tower sections and antennas placed in storage for sale by WCARC, for fund-raising. WCARC exhibit tables at Iroquois (April), Smith Falls (May) and Carp (September) raised substantial revenue for club activities. Doug VE3XK also gave a presentation on the VHF/UHF beacon project to the Ottawa Amateur Radio Club. Our WCARC web site, under web master Rick Bandla VE3CVG continues to provide a comprehensive display of club activities for members and others interested in our many past projects. Finally, Al VO1NO is engaged in teaching a Basic Course to a group of 10 Air Cadets and parents.

Although a relatively small club, the West Carleton Amateur Radio Club has maintained a well-deserved reputation for technical expertise and excellent operators. This is no accident – it has taken a lot of hard work by a number of very dedicated individuals to put the West Carleton Club where it is. I ask you to join me in a round of applause for those people, and for the success of the club in general. I also remind everyone that each and every member of the club has something to offer – please remember this the next time the club needs a volunteer!

73
Al Penney
VO1NO
President

2010

On December 7, 2010, President Al Penney, delivered this Annual Report:

Once again, the West Carleton Amateur Radio Club has had a busy and productive year. Among other things, the club completed its comprehensive beacon project, finished second in a grid expedition during the ARRL June VHF QSO Party, supported the development of D-Star Radio, sold its repeater system, and completed a 5.8 GHz telephone project that was used in the contest. Additionally, many club members built Bluetooth-radio interfaces to comply with upcoming changes in Ontario’s driving regulations.

Under the solid leadership of Doug VE3XK, the club’s professional-quality set of VHF/UHF beacons have continued to put Ottawa on the VHF/UHF map. Other than an occasional truncation in the last character of the grid identifier, the system has performed flawlessly. Reception reports have been received from as far away as Florida and British Columbia. The beacons also permit local Amateurs to calibrate their equipment, and will alert others to propagation openings. Extra bands are being considered for next year, including a 1296 MHz beacon, and possibly even a 10 GHz beacon.

In June several members of the club returned to FN04xa for the third year in a row to take part in the ARRL June VHF QSO Party. Led by Al VO1NO, the team consisted of Doug VE3XK, Barney VA3BGB, Glenn VE3XRA, Greg VA3OMP, Sam VE3CMS, Drew VE3UIN and Air Cadets Erin and Laura. In a very busy weekend, they were credited with 330 QSOs and 130 multipliers for a score of 65,520 points. This was down from the previous year, but was enough to finish second in our category in Canada. Our decline in the standings this year can be attributed to propagation conditions and to having fewer operators this time. The pitiful excuses ranged from “I’m getting married that weekend” to “I have a sucking chest wound”! Nevertheless, the club is looking forward to regaining top position next year!

One success story out of the contest was the 5.8 GHz telephone system project. Glenn VE3XRA took on the task of transforming a normally short-ranged home telephone system into something that would support communications over a range of several kilometres. By mounting the main unit at the focal point of a satellite TV antenna, Glenn was able to obtain the desired increase in performance. It was used to good effect during the contest, obtaining several extra grids and many points for the team.

In May the owners of the tower that housed the club’s VHF and UHF repeater systems requested that the club remove them. When the club began investigating possible sites to relocate the repeaters, it became apparent that most would require sizeable annual payments. In July however the Almonte Amateur Radio Club approached the Executive with an offer to purchase both systems. Following a vote, the membership approved the sale. This is a win-win situation for both clubs. The Almonte club has two repeaters located at publicly-funded locations available for their emergency communications obligations. On the other hand, the footprint of these repeaters is generally similar to the West Carleton’s previous setup, and being open repeaters they are still available to West Carleton members.

The club had a variety of interesting guest speakers and entertainment. January saw two presentations. Bert VE2ZAZ briefed everyone on his Bluetooth-radio interface kit. Interest was so great that more than 30 were eventually sold to club members. Barrie VE3BSB described the high-altitude balloon activities of the Lanark Space Agency in a presentation titled “Amateur Radio Journeys to the Edge of Space”. The agency must be doing something right, as they recently set a new world altitude record for amateur balloons.

There were also two presentations at the February meeting. Glenn VE3XRA gave an update on the 5.8 GHz phone system, while Michael VE3WMB spoke about “New Digital Modes and Old Hellschriber”. In March Rick VE3CVG described the past, present and future of D-Star radio, and in April Ray VE3FN spoke about Amateur Radio Microwave Communications. It should be noted that at the April meeting the membership voted to support the Ottawa Amateur Radio Digital Group’s efforts to develop D-Star Radio in the area with a $300 donation.

Dave VE3KL gave a technical description of the many uses of ferrites in Amateur Radio at the May meeting. June saw another technical presentation as Bert VE2ZAZ spoke about Spectrum Analyzers and Network Analyzers. It included a demonstration of an analyzer so big that required 3 men and 2 horses to get it up the steps!

In July Al VO1NO described the club’s Grid Expedition for the June VHF Contest, while in August fellow-grid expedition member Glenn VE3XRA spoke about radio astronomy and his interesting career experiences as a radio astronomer. Al VO1NO was the guest speaker again in September. In a presentation titled “A Race on the Edge of Time” he described how the British developed not just radar, but an entire air defence system as well, and how it defeated the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain.

October and November marked a return to purely Amateur Radio topics. In October Andy VE3NVK described the wide range of digital modes available using the fldigi software. The following month Greg VE3YTZ delivered an informative talk on TAPR’s Software Defined Radio project.

Membership peaked at 32 regular members and 3 life members. Attendance at the meetings remained very high, with 26 at the February meeting – possibly a club record:
January 15
February 26
March 18
April 19
May 14
June 15
July 16
August 12
September 11
October 16
November 16

Although a relatively small club, the West Carleton Amateur Radio Club has maintained a well-deserved reputation for technical expertise and excellent operators. This is no accident – it has taken a lot of hard work by a number of very dedicated individuals to put the West Carleton Club where it is. I ask you to join me in a round of applause for those people, and for the success of the club in general. I also remind everyone that each and every member of the club has something to offer – please remember this the next time the club needs a volunteer!

2011

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