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   The ARES E-Letter   
      
   July 20, 2016   
   Editor: Rick Palm, K1CE   
      
   In This Issue:   
      
    *  Pikes Peak ARES Provides Major Support to International Hill Climb   
    *  Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon: Run to Remember   
    *  Letters: A Proposal for an ARES Standard Headset   
    *  FEMA Mobile App for Apple, Android, Blackberry Platforms   
      
      
   We hope that you value the ARES E-Letter as your source for current events,   
   after action reports, tips, and developments in the amateur emergency/disaster   
   communications community. Can you think of anything we could do to improve the   
   newsletter? We would appreciate your opinion! Please click on this link to   
   take a brief survey. Thank you for subscribing to the ARES E-Letter! -- Rick   
   Palm, K1CE   
      
   One survey respondent wrote "my main feedback is the lack of Lessons Learned   
   from the various events reported. It's great that the overall result of these   
   events was successful, but hams can almost always see ways to improve their   
   response 'next time.' Most of those of us who have been in ARES(R) for some   
   time know what we should do. It is What Went Wrong from which we can learn. It   
   is those Lessons Learned that could be helpful to everyone else. Keep up the   
   good work." - Rich Stiebel, W6APZ, Palo Alto, California [We took Stiebel's   
   suggestion, and added a lessons learned summary at the conclusion of the   
   Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon communications report in this issue - ed.]   
      
   Steve Hansen, KB1TCE, of Knox and Waldo counties (Maine) ARES/RACES, wrote   
   "The ARES E-Letter should provide some coverage to the National Traffic System   
   (NTS(TM)) as both ARES and NTS are public service entities of the ARRL . . ."   
   [A recent ARRL news item reported "NTS was formally created by ARRL in 1949.   
   It continues the long-standing tradition of formal message handling via   
   Amateur Radio, an integral component of the Amateur Radio Service. NTS would   
   not be possible without the thousands of volunteers who keep the distribution   
   network running."] Other NTS news: ARRL Programs and Services Committee   
   Appoints Bud Hippisley, W2RU, as NTS(TM) Eastern Area Chair; and ARRL Programs   
   and Services Committee Expresses Appreciation, Support of NTS.]   
      
      
      
   ARES Briefs, Links   
      
   Philippines Ham Emergency Radio Operations Network Bracing for Effects of   
   Super Typhoon (7/8/2016); West Virginia ARES Units on Alert for Possible   
   Activation in Wake of Flooding (6/28/2016); Nepal Amateur Radio Earthquake   
   Response Presentation Available (6/27/2016); Dog Head Fire Largely Contained,   
   ARES Teams Expected to Stand Down in a Few Days (6/22/2016)   
      
      
      
   2016 ARRL Hurricane Season Webinar: Tomorrow Night!   
      
   The ARRL will sponsor a 2016 Atlantic Season Hurricane Webinar on Thursday,   
   July 21, at 8 PM ET (0000 UTC on Friday, July 22, UTC). The approximately   
   90-minute session will address the role of Amateur Radio during the 2016   
   Hurricane Season. Anyone interested in hurricane preparedness and response is   
   invited to attend this online presentation.Topics will include a   
   meteorological overview of the upcoming season; Amateur Radio station WX4NHC   
   at the National Hurricane Center: Who We Are and What We Do; ARRL Media and   
   Public Relations; the Hurricane Watch Net (HWN); theVoIP Hurricane Net, and   
   ARRL coordination and interface.   
      
   The program will include presentations by representatives of the National   
   Hurricane Center and WX4NHC, the VoIP Hurricane Net, the HWN, the Canadian   
   Hurricane Centre, and the ARRL. Webinar registration is open to all, but   
   should be of particular interest to radio amateurs in hurricane-prone areas.   
   The webinar will conclude with a Q&A session. For additional information,   
   contact ARRL Emergency Preparedness Manager Mike Corey, KI1U.   
      
      
      
   Contesting as Training for Public Service -- Webinar, This Sunday!   
      
   A free ARRL webinar "Contesting as Training for Public Service," hosted by   
   Ward Silver, N0AX, will take place on Sunday, July 24, 8 until 10 PM EDT   
   (0000-0200 UTC on July 25). All are invited to join the audio-slide   
   presentation online or via telephone.   
      
   "Think of contests as a ham radio fitness center," Silver said. "Public   
   service teams are always looking for enjoyable activities to improve operator   
   skills. Just as sports provide good physical exercise, contests are great at   
   developing radio skills, and both are a lot of fun." Silver pointed out that   
   contests originated as a way to hone traffic-handling skills and develop an   
   effective station.   
      
   In addition, ARRL Emergency Preparedness Manager Mike Corey, KI1U, is seeking   
   anecdotes from radio amateurs who have activated an emergency operations   
   center (EOC) for a bona fide contest, such as ARRL November Sweepstakes or a   
   state QSO party -- but not ARRL Field Day, a SET, or SKYWARN Recognition Day.   
      
   "Just a brief overview of event, results, number of participants, interesting   
   outcomes," Corey said, in describing what he's looking for. Contact Corey via   
   e-mail.   
      
   The presentation will be available via YouTube following the webinar.   
      
   Upcoming Meetings   
      
    *  Aug 14 - Aug 17: Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials   
       Annual Conference & Expo - Orlando, FL   
    *  Sept 8 - Sept 10: 30th Anniversary National CERT Conference - Universal   
       City, CA   
      
   __________   
      
      
   Pikes Peak ARES Provides Major Support to International Hill Climb   
      
   If this were a video, a baritone voiced announcer using an ominous tone and   
   deliberate articulation would lead off the narration - "Over twelve miles   
   long, with one hundred and fifty-six turns, and four thousand seven hundred   
   and twenty feet in elevation gain . . ."   
      
   June 26, 2016, saw the 100th anniversary of the Pikes Peak (Colorado)   
   International Hill Climb. First held in 1916, it is the second oldest   
   motorsports event in the United States; only the Indianapolis 500 has been   
   around longer and only by about 3 weeks. One hundred vehicles would make the   
   race from the starting point at 9,390 feet above sea level to the 14,110 foot   
   summit. That is, if they make it to the top - not all do. For many, a good run   
   is under 10 minutes, though two made it in under 9 minutes this year.   
      
   The race would be impossible for organizers to conduct without an army of   
   volunteers. Though the race occurs the same day as Field Day, members of   
   Region 2, District 2 Colorado ARES were glad to once again support the Hill   
   Climb, as we have done for years. Otherwise known as Pikes Peak ARES, Region 2   
   District 2 deployed 27 operators along the course to provide vehicle tracking,   
   alternate communication, course status, weather observations, and other   
   functions. One operator comes from Texas each year to support the race, while   
   most of the others are locally based.   
      
   The radio calls start off slowly: "Start nine nine start," "roger, nine nine   
   start." Once there are multiple vehicles on the course at the same time, the   
   pace of radio communications and messages becomes lightning fast:   
   "Eighteen-Mile, three nine Eighteen-Mile," "Devil's one zero Devil's," "Ragged   
   one seven four Ragged", and the replies "roger, three nine at eighteen mile,   
   one zero Devil's, and one seven four Ragged - there was a double, other   
   station go." "Low Gear two seven stopped in the groove above Low Gear," and   
   the reply "copy two seven in the groove above Low Gear."   
   "Liaison," "Liaison go," "Course is red, Liaison," "Control copies course is   
   red." That entire exchange would consume only 20-25 seconds! Such exchanges   
   can run together very long stretches of time unless something happens to stop   
   vehicles. The pace is so fast that only tactical calls are used with FCC i-d's   
   announced every ten minutes to stay legal.   
      
   With vehicles launching from the starting line as frequently as every 60   
   seconds, this is not an event for a novice operator; it calls for strict net   
   discipline, use of very specific terminology, being able to pick out hard to   
   read vehicle numbers as they go past at speeds of over 100 mph, noticing if   
   something is amiss with a vehicle like a leak, loss of power, etc, and being   
   ready to quickly adapt from normal race pace to a full-on emergency in   
   seconds. Led by veteran race operators Don Johnson, K0DRJ, at Net Control, Al   
   Glock, KC0PRM, at Liaison with race officials, and Dan Martin, KD0SMP, as the   
   Mission Coordinator, the team handles many hundreds of calls during the event.   
   Listening to K0DRJ work, one imagines an operator with four hands - he is not   
   unlike those operators who can keep ten calls in their head as they work a   
   contest pile-up.   
      
   When a racer slammed into a guard rail and needed to be helicoptered off the   
   course, the ability to get the initial report to race officials and to   
   maintain control of the net was a testament to the skills of all the   
   operators, especially the reporting station and the three leadership   
   positions. This can very easily be a life or death situation; in 2014 a racer   
   crashed and died during the race and in 2015 a racer crashed and died during a   
   practice run. In 2013, a vehicle rolled and flipped about 12 times in a   
   non-fatal incident. The amateur radio operators also were the first to notice   
   debris and fluid on the course, alerting Race Safety officials who closed the   
   course until the hazard could be cleared. There were no fatalities this year   
   and the racer who was evacuated appears to be doing better at this writing.   
      
   Weather on "America's Mountain" can be temperamental. It can be 70+ degrees   
   down at the start line and 40 degrees at the summit. Even though it was the   
   end of June, the start of the race was delayed as snow and snow melt was   
   cleared from the top of the course. Afternoon storms can build up quickly,   
   dumping rain, hail, and snow on an area in minutes. Lightning is always a   
   concern, especially above tree line and at Devil's Playground, so named   
   because of the propensity for lightning to jump from rock to rock. In 2015,   
   six people in a car were struck by lightning just hours after the racer   
   fatality during practice. As the clouds began to build up, the weather   
   spotting skills of Pikes Peak ARES operators came in to play. With just a few   
   racers left to go, snow pellets, rain, and hail began to fall and while the   
   precipitation was nowhere near the reportable conditions for the National   
   Weather Service, it was a huge concern for the racers.   
      
   Last year a storm cell moved in during the race and dumped so much hail that   
   the snow plows could not get the road cleared and the race was shortened to   
   only six miles. This year, the only car to not go to the summit due to weather   
   was an exhibition vehicle driven by a quadriplegic, which stopped half way up.   
      
   The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb makes for a long day - getting in   
   queue at the gates at midnight to head up the mountain at 2 AM, finding   
   positions in the dark, being completely self-sufficient for the duration, and   
   not coming down until after the downhill parade of race and support vehicles   
   are past -making it back through the gates to the mountain about 17 hours   
   after heading up. This, while tens of thousands of operators around the rest   
   of the country enjoy Field Day festivities. The mountain and Colorado weather   
   often throw curveballs at us. Spectators often do things they are not supposed   
   to. Racers crash and vehicles break.   
      
   Through it all, Pikes Peak ARES and associated amateur radio operators perform   
   magnificently, providing a vital volunteer service year after year. We were   
   excited to be a part of the 100th anniversary of such a prestigious event and   
   look forward to next year! - John Bloodgood, KD0SFY, Emergency Coordinator,   
   Region 2, District 2, Colorado ARES (Pikes Peak ARES)   
      
      
      
   Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon: Run to Remember   
      
   April 26, 2016 saw the 16th running of the Memorial Marathon for the   
   destruction of the Murrah Federal Building and the loss of lives that occurred   
   in 1995. Since its first run in 2010, the role of the Amateur Radio community   
   has grown as the Marathon has grown.   
      
   After the first few runs and as the number of runners increased, the   
   organizers realized that a better communication system needed to be developed.   
   In the initial years, contact between the Start/Finish line and various points   
   on the course were attempted by cell phone, which proved to be unreliable,   
   with many areas not able to contact the Control's base. Thus, event   
   organizers/managers turned to radio amateurs for more reliable communication   
   services.   
      
   As the Marathon grew from several hundred runners to today's 25,000+, and as   
   additional courses/runs were added, the communications requirements have   
   become more demanding, complex and critical. The Marathon itself consists of a   
   full 26 mile course, with a half Marathon of 13 miles as well as a "walker's   
   course" and a children's course, all starting, at various times from the same   
   point, returning to that point, but using slightly different course layouts.   
   In addition to the single runners, there is also a Relay course for team   
   participation. The coordination of radio communications along the various   
   courses as well as between the police, fire and EMS service for the City of   
   Oklahoma City has grown into a complex, but interoperable system.   
      
   Primary communication is handled through the Office of Emergency Management   
   (OEM). The OEM is tasked with overseeing cooperation/coordination among all   
   involved City, County and State organizations as well as keeping the Marathon   
   officials informed of any emergency situations/conditions and traffic that may   
   impact the runners on, and the spectators along the Marathon course. There are   
   several radio amateurs assigned to the OEM base of operations who are   
   responsible for getting messages out to on-course directors to ensure public   
   safety.   
      
   Working down to the next level, the amateurs establish stations at several   
   points on the course. Other operators are assigned to the Medical Tent (the   
   "MASH") located at the start/finish line. This group keeps the Medical teams   
   informed of any emergent situations on the courses involving runners and   
   spectators. If an injury occurs, the MASH is informed of the person's   
   condition and if EVAC transport is needed. This information is radioed to the   
   MASH from operators assigned to the First Aid stations positioned along the   
   course.   
      
   Communications for SAG vehicle dispatch and coordination are handled through   
   the SAG net control point located near the start/finish line. Each SAG has an   
   operator on board who maintains contact with the SAG net. Each vehicle has an   
   APRS/radio station aboard and active so that SAG control can look at a   
   computer screen and determine which vehicle is closest to where a pick up is   
   needed. This system has been used successfully for the last several years. One   
   rule for SAG pickups: all runners picked up must be transported and seen at   
   MASH to ensure health and safety.   
      
   New for this year, the amateur group was asked to provide additional operators   
   to help move supplies, water and ice among the various check points. Last   
   year, some check point staffs ran out of ice, water and other supplies while   
   others had too much. A "water net" was established to cover this issue, and it   
   worked successfully.   
      
   Hard data: Ninety operators were deployed this year, with more being needed.   
   Ten primary repeaters were employed, with many simplex frequencies and backup   
   repeaters available in case there was a failure.   
      
   Lessons Learned   
      
   All communication systems remained open and viable over the event's course,   
   thanks to advance, rigorous direction to all operators that the various nets   
   were strictly controlled. Net and operator discipline prevented informal cross   
   talk and mixed or missed messages, thus promoting smooth and reliable traffic   
   handling with no garbled nor duplication of messages, and allowing for   
   response times to be kept as short as possible. This was particularly   
   important for emergency/priority messages/calls for the SAGs to pick up and   
   transport runners who needed assistance and keeping the MASH informed of the   
   runner's condition on route and ETA.   
      
   We also returned to the practice of using runner bib numbers for   
   identification purposes to reduce confusion and duplicate calls, and ensure   
   that the correct person was picked up at the right station. There was one   
   incident where the station calling for assistance did not give the bib number;   
   there were two runners that needed assistance at one station at the same time.   
   One runner left the check point on their own (only to need pick up further   
   down the route) and the case of the other runner who was picked up by a SAG   
   vehicle should have been referred to EMS/EVAC for pick up due to the severity   
   of the runner's medical issue. This incident will be studied by the amateurs'   
   administration and medical staff for protocols review and improvement for next   
   year.   
      
   The final key point that came out of this year's marathon was simple: The   
   separation of special services (SAG, water, medical and control) made it   
   easier to achieve one of the best marathons run yet in Oklahoma City. Planning   
   before the event and a thorough review and anticipation of possible problems   
   were also very helpful. Two things hold true for this and any other incident,   
   event or exercise: First, you can never plan for all contingencies (but you   
   can try), and second, you can never have too many radio operators! -- Carl   
   Rod, AB1IG, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma   
      
      
      
      
   Letters: A Proposal for an ARES Standard Headset   
      
   In response to a letter from Douglas McCray, K2QWQ, in June 2016 QST, and   
   study by the San Luis Obispo (California) Emergency Communications Council,   
   the council has put forth a proposal for an ARES standard headset connector.   
   As an example of a good ARES standard, the ARES/RACES standard Powerpole(R) DC   
   connector is now well understood, accepted and used in the field. Also, of   
   course, there are a number of time-tested, well-accepted standard RF   
   connectors on the back panels of our radios, such as the SO-239, and on the   
   ends of our HF coax - the ubiquitous PL-259 or "UHF" connector, for example.   
   But, as McCray points out, what about the microphone? This is the most   
   complicated connector to standardize so it's not surprising that it's the   
   last. But can we do it? There are lots of different mic connectors in use in   
   the field -- some are easy to obtain, such as the RJ series connector, while   
   others are more difficult to come by. There is a wide range of audio levels to   
   consider: from about -60 to about -20 dBm. Further complicating things is that   
   there are several different push-to-talk (PTT) schemes; some mic elements need   
   power, some don't; and some mics have lots of extra functions.   
      
   We are asking your readers for feedback on our proposal, which can be found   
   here. A survey platform for submitting feedback can be found here and/or   
   readers can e-mail me at wb9vxy@arrl.net Thank you! -- Tom Tengdin, WB9VXY,   
   San Luis Obispo, California   
      
      
      
   FEMA Mobile App for Apple, Android, Blackberry Platforms   
      
   The FEMA app is available with the following features:   
      
    *  Alerts from the National Weather Service: Receive severe weather alerts   
       for up to five locations across the U.S. and see information about how   
       to stay safe.   
    *  Disaster Reporter: Upload and share photos of damage and recovery   
       efforts.   
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       stay safe before, during, and after over 20 types of hazards, including   
       floods, hurricanes, tornadoes and earthquakes.   
      
   ______   
      
      
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   )\/(ark   
      
   Always Mount a Scratch Monkey   
      
   ... And smart women won't buy an entire pig just to get a little sausage.   
   ---   
    * Origin:  (1:3634/12.73)