Article
from: Lake Country Echo July 8, 1999
Article
from: Lake Country Echo July 8, 1999
Local ham radio enthusiasts show their stuff
Club members
participate in emergency communication exercise
Area ham radio operators participating in "field day" exercises at the East Brainerd Mall included Paula Persons of Brainerd, Darrell Schneider of Crosslake, Joe Bayliss of Brainerd, and Mark Persons of Brainerd.
Making nationwide contacts from one of the two radio operating positions in the trailer are R.J. Savey of Jenkins and Joe Bayliss of Brainerd.
Dark rain clouds on Saturday provided a more realistic "emergency" background for communication exercises by Jon Livingston and John Luce, both of Brainerd.
Brainerd Area Amateur Radio Club participated in the annual Field Day national emergency communications exercise sponsored by the American Radio Relay League, a national ham radio organization.
Licensed area ham radio operators practiced their communications skills with other hams all over the country, all of whom were using emergency power sources.
Ham radio can provide local and national communications even if commercial power fails, such as during storms or other national disasters, or during "Y2K" service interruptions should they occur.
Local hams operated from tents and trailers at the East Brainerd Mall, using the club's portable crank-up tower mounted on a trailer.
The National Field Day ham radio exercise was conducted this past weekend, from noon Saturday, June 26 to noon Sunday, June 27.
Photos for the Country Echo by Fred Anderson.