The 147.21 repeater has been down for an extended period of time due to several problems… including the recent snow fall which has blocked access to the site.

The repeater had been experiencing a loss of receive sensitivity which could be due to receiver problems or duplexer cavity problems. Tripped circuit breakers are also suspect since the control functions are also down.

The back-up cavities were being tuned and the Technical Crew was waiting for them and a way through the snow drifts.

Bob WB2DUW mentioned in his report at the last meeting that a new receiver, if not a whole new repeater, would be needed soon.

We have received word from Dave WD2K who said, "You have $20.00 toward a new receiver for .21!! Anyone want to match??" Anyone wishing to join Dave in contributing to the Repeater Fund should see Stan WA2UET at the next meeting.

Dave WA2FTI is looking into the possibility of

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We now have our very own registered internet address for the Club’s web site. QSL.net is hosting the site for us on their server. The address couldn’t be simpler: http://www.rvwars.com Check it out…. Add it to your Favorites and/or bookmarks.

January Meeting: January 20, 2003 -- 7:00 p.m. 911 Center 6th & State St, Hudson NY (Conference Room in Basement)

applying for a public service grant from Banks in Columbia and Greene Counties.

We are fortunate in having two fine gentlemen heading up our Technical Committee. Bob WB2DUW and Marty N2LDR braved the snow drifts and hiked up the Hill to the repeater site to make repairs to the receiver and control circuitry.

The 147.21 repeater is back on the air after several days of silence. It was good to hear “Ol’ Rip” IDing the repeater again!

Our thanks go out to Ken N2SQW and Greene County ARES for the use of the 147.09 repeater during the time that .21 was down. It’s good to know that such a fine backup is available in case of an emergency.

The ARRL/VEC has announced that its exam fees for 2003 will be $12, a $2 increase from the 2002 rate. The fee applies to all exams taken at ARRL-sponsored test sessions, including retests taken on the same day by those who have failed exams, at sessions that permit it. According to the ARRL Letter, increased operating costs forced the fee hike. While this decision applies only to ARRL/VEC-sponsored test sessions, most other VECs often follow ARRL/VEC's lead on test fees.

burns from the straight key contacts. Progress, solid state rigs, repeaters, software controlled radios (check out www.ralabs.com), linking via the Internet, smaller is better, QRP is in (again), multi-function, multi-mode, digital voice, etc.

January: looking back and looking forward. Where have we been and where are we going with our personal lives? Our careers? Our hobbies? What would we do the same? What would we have done differently? Have we set realistic goals for ourselves? If you believe all of the newscasts, we are certainly in for some unsettled times both short term and long term. However, if we step back and take a good look, the difficulties on the horizon are nothing that we as a nation and as a culture have not weathered in the past and then become stronger because of the adversities. The technology has certainly changed, but has human nature changed?

I only make one resolution each for each New Year and that is to do my best not to make the same mistakes this year that I made last year. It’s much more fun to keep making new mistakes! Let’s enjoy our memories of days gone by. Let’s treasure the lessons learned. But, that was then, this is now! Let’s do our best to build a bright future for our personal lives, for our professional lives and for our beloved hobby. Happy New Year to all and my sincere best wishes for a bright future!

73 for now…AR SK de K2WG

Rip Van Winkle Amateur Radio Society VITAL STATISTICS President — Wayne Gearing K2WG Vice President — David Clapper WA2FTI Secretary — Erika Goetz KC2DMI Treasurer — Stan Engel WA2UET Historian — Ken Goetz N2SQW Newsletter — Dave Watrous WD2K Interim Newsletter — David Clapper WA2FTI Repeaters — 147.21 222.24 449.925 BBS — 145.03 K2RVW-4 DX Cluster — 145.71 K2RVW Club Call — Kilo 2 Rip Van Winkle E-mail — rwv@rvwars.com Web Page — http://www.rvwars.com

The times they are a changing” and so must we. Gone are the days when our ranks abounded with skilled engineers and technicians and we now more resemble the general population. All this of course means that we have to recruit skilled folks, learn from the folks who have so generously kept us going all these years or buy new gear for our sophisticated system.

Actually the best of all worlds is each of us doing what we can do in one of these categories. If I can’t find the time to learn how to contribute to the maintenance of our repeaters, etc. then I had better be willing (and able) to find a new member with those skills and the willingness to trudge through a blizzard loaded down with tools and parts to keep us on the air. Yep, happens all the time.

Now if I can’t do that I better get my hand in my pocket and pull out the wallet. It may be painful but no one wants to be a freeloader do they? Of course there is the way it has been done all these years. Lean what you can from the old timers, Work as ground crew if you can’t climb (I think I still have the broom assigned to me), do what you can do and still keep the wallet handy.

This method has worked for many years but as the real doers in the club (a small group who we all know) get a little longer in the tooth we need to think about upgrading the equipment so that it will require less maintenance than the aging stuff up there now. The bucks saved on the newsletter could help if folks paid their dues (HINT!!) and a couple grabs for the old wallet can do the rest.

Many of the folks maintaining the site built it many years ago (28-29?) and did such a good job it won’t take much to keep things going for years to come. We have a responsibility to them, each other and the hobby to take on this responsibility. Standing back so we can shout “You da man” may be popular but we need to do more to keep the tradition alive.