Seminars - 2009

This information is from 2009.
Please check back for updated information after Jan 1, 2010.

Let these Sea-Pac seminars catch your interest and open the door to new ham radio adventures. The presenters below volunteer their experience to share with you their knowledge and skills on the many facets of this great hobby. What ever your interests are, you’re sure to acquire new knowledge to take home and enjoy.

Below is an overview of the seminars Sea-Pac is presenting this year. This will help you select the seminars of interest. A thank you to presenters is always appreciated. And as a courtesy to all, be sure your hand-held radios and cell phones are turned off during the seminar.

Friday Seminars:

Everything You Wanted to Know About Bats
Curt Black WR5J, EPA Environmental Scientist
11:00 AM – Riverview A,B&C Follow up with the Live Field talk at 8:30 PM (See below)
Technical Advisor to Bats Northwest and helps with their annual Bat Ambassador training. Curt holds a B.S. in Geology, B.S. in Zoology and a Masters in Hydrogeology. Curt enjoys nature sound recording, Amateur Radio and Natural History. Enjoy Curt’s bat video & audio presentation for all ages.

Outpost Messenger Program
Vern Smith KA7DCQ
12:30 PM – Riverview A,B&C
Vern is a member of Clark County, Washington ARES/Races Group and was one of the first Packet Radio Stations operating in the Portland area back in the early 1980’s. A presentation on the “Outpost Messenger” software program by Jim Oberhofer KN6PE.

DXpedition in the Caribbean
Budd Drummond W3FF
2:00 PM – Riverview A,B&C
A presentation on the “Buddies in the Caribbean” DXpedition where 8 operators show up with just suitcases and go portable for seven days. Did you work them? Attend and find out how this DXpedition unfolded and worked the world.

DX on a low budget with light radio gear, but with LOTS of QSO’s
Bob Norin W7YAQ
4:00 PM – Riverview A,B&C
A travelogue with detailed planning and preparation aspects of this 3-week trip to Fiji and Tuvalu in the South Pacific.

Live Field Talk About Bats
Curt Black WR5J, Environmental Scientist
8:30 PM Mill Pond Park – Directions will be given at the 11:00 AM Seminar. (See above)
Join Curt in a walk through Mill Pond Park and observe bats in their natural habitat.

Saturday Seminars:

Emergency Management – Oregon
Vincent Van Der Hyde K7VV
10:00 AM – Seaside A&B
A three-part presentation of ARES/RACES in Oregon. Oregon Emergency Management in disaster situations, the growing use of the Oregon ARES Digital Network (OADN) and where Oregon ARES/RACES is headed at both state and local levels.

Ideas for teaching Ham Radio Classes and where ham growth occurred in 2007-2009
Delvin Button N7QMT
10:00 AM – Seaside C
A presentation on some of the successful techniques for teaching technician and general license classes. Also view a map presentation that shows the Northwest Division ham growth over the past few years

Emergency Preparedness
Nicole Stacy – Clatsop County Red Cross Coordinator
Tom Manning – Volunteer Coordinator to the Clatsop County Sheriff’s Office
10:00 AM – Riverview A&B
A presentation on many types of emergency preparedness, which will cover everything from you at your residence to evacuation situations. Will include discussion on Tsunami preparation.

Ham Law
Phil Kane - K2ASP
10:00 AM – Riverviw A&B
Phil, a lawyer and an engineer, is an F.C.C. veteran working many years in the San Francisco Office. Phil is ready to discuss the many legal aspects of our hobby such as part 97, CCR and interference issues. Join Phil for a lively discussion of your rights and responsibilities.

High Performance Software Defined Radio – The next generation
Dan Quigley N7HQ, Software and Electronics Engineer
11:00 AM – Seaside C
Do you use computer software software for designing radio circuits? Here is a great presentation on advancing the capabilities of software defined radios. Dan worked for Microsoft during the 1990’s as well as founding Premise Systems, Inc., a building automation software. He most recently worked for Motorola as Senior Director of Enterprise Engineering.

Constructing a 4-square 40 meter array at your QTH
Wilse Morgan WX7P
11:00 AM – Seaside A&B
Are you in to antennas? A fascinating presentation about the construction and use of four vertical antennas resonant on 40 meters, placed in a “4-square” array, electrically switched from the shack for maximum gain in the desired direction. Very handy during contesting.

Learn how to Beat Morse Code
Bill Balzarini KL7BB
11:00 AM – Riverview A&B
Come and learn how to Beat the Morse Code, the “Original Digital Mode”, sent one bit at a time. Tips on listening ahead, writing behind, all while building a code buffer. Apply this method from 5 to 40+ words per minute and beyond.

Introduction to Antenna Modeling
Ed Clulow N7TL
11:00 AM – Riverview C
Introducing ARRL’s EZNEC antenna modeling software. Learn how to use this limited issue software to explore the features of the antennas described in ARRL’s Antenna Book.

ARRL Forum
Dave Sumner K1ZZ, CEO of the ARRL
Jim Fenstermaker K9JF, Director, ARRL NW Division
1:00 PM – Seaside A&B
An opportunity to meet with Dave Sumner and Jim Fenstermaker and find out what the ARRL sees as the future of Amateur Radio.

Ride The Terminator @ 66º 33’ North Latitude
Bill Balzarini KL7BB
1:00 PM – Riverview A&B
At the intersection of 66º 33’ North Latitude and the Dalton Highway, 300 miles South of the Arctic Ocean, the 2008 ARRL special events station W1AW/KL7 operated for 2 weeks with the HF bands open to all corners of the world utilizing the earth’s sunrise-sunset “Terminator” band. This Arctic Circle Zone is very active during the Alaskan Summertime.

The Why & How of Airmail in the Oregon ARES Digital Network
Bruce Bjerke K7BHB
1:00 PM – Seaside C
Oregon Section ARES/RACES Digital Network (OADN) introduced Airmail in 2005. This presentation reviews the features and benefits of Airmail. This non-technical discussion covers the topic, module by module, using actual examples from the most recent SET.

Making the most of D-Star
Dan Smith KK7DS, Software Engineer for IBM’s Linux Technology Center
1:00 PM – Riverview C
Discussion of the design and implementation of D-RATS, a software tool to leverage the D-STAR slow-speed data channel. Hear and see an overview of the D-STAR system and summary of current functionality provided by D-RATS.

How to hook the D-Star & DV Dongle to the Internet
Steve Hatch WA7DAD
3:00 PM – Riverview C
An advanced presentation about how to hook the D-Star Server and DV-Dongle up to the Internet. What the NEW features are, what the “New Global Reflectors” for D-Star do, and how to use them.

Construction & Design Ideas
Jeff Damm - WA7MLH
3:00 PM – Seaside C
Jeff will bring you an interesting presentation on RF-HF construction & design ideas including home brew crystal filter design.

High Performance Transceiver Design
Eric Swartz WA6HHQ, COO of Elecraft Inc
3:00 PM – Seaside A&B
A presentation of the high performance features in a state of the art transceiver. If you are considering a new rig for your station, be sure and attend.

How to connect Ham Radio to the Internet from a remote location
Miguel Mayorga KC7IGT
3:00 PM – Riverview A&B
Do you backpack or visit remote areas? Find out how one ham utilized his laptop & cell phone to get his home station on the air via the Internet.

Sunday Seminars:

Wind up a great weekend with this final seminar on Sunday morning before the Grand Prize Drawings.

Display, Demonstration and Discussion of Portable Emergency Antennas
Ralph Javins N7KGA
8:30 AM Seaside A,B&C
A presentation of antenna types for portable use during an emergency, with commentary on the operating characteristics of each type. Helps you make a decision on what antenna type you may want to take depending on what you are trying to accomplish on each amateur radio band. Bill Drummond will be present to recommend antenna types.