Our award winning newsletter, News & Views, contains operating information, technical articles and articles of personal interest to whet your appetite for more amateur radio activity. News & Views received the "Excellent" rating from the Amateur Radio News Service.

We always look for input for the newsletter. Submit information to the editor Mitch W1SJ by the end of the month.

RANV members get together and help organize club activities at the "Steering Wheel" meeting. These meetings serve as a way for club enthusiasts to get together informally and brainstorm ideas for new club activities. The Steering Wheel is held on Tuesday night, 1 week after the membership meeting. Starting December, 2007, our new meeting place is Manhattan Pizza and Pub, Railroad Avenue, Essex Junction. We meet at 6:30-8:30.
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RANV sponsors the WB1GQR repeater on 145.15 MHz. From its 3400 foot elevation in Bolton, we get activity from most of Northern Vermont, Northeastern New York and parts of New Hampshire. If you are traveling throughout the North Country, check into the repeater. Not only do we cover Northern Vermont, but we cover the world through the IRLP Internet Connection.

Details and Operational Status of the repeater.

Take a tour of the repeater site.

Looking for other repeaters in Vermont? Check our handy Vermont Repeater Listing.

RANV holds hidden transmitter hunts, or FOX Hunts four times a year in the Spring, Summer and Fall. Hunt starts at 6:00pm and is held on the 145.15 repeater. Tune to the input, 144.55 MHz to find the Fox.

Rules:
1. The Fox will be located on public accessible property in Chittenden County;
2. The Fox maintain an S-1 signal at I-89 Exit 14;
3. The Fox will transmit 10 seconds out of every minute.

After the FOX is found, everyone gets together at the eatery of the Fox's choosing to exchange stories! Fox Hunts are usually the Second or Third Friday of April, June, August and October.

RANV Fox Hunt Page



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RANV sponsors the Northern Vermont Winter Hamfest, held each year on the 4th Saturday of February at Milton High School in Milton, Vermont. Milton is also the ARRL Vermont State Convention. The Milton Hamfest is Vermont's largest, drawing 500 attendees and filling 10,000 square feet of space with flea market goodies, forums, demonstrations, and happy hams!

Look for the next Milton Hamfest on Saturday, February 23rd, 2008 !

RANV is very active in the annual Field Day exercises held each June. Hams and non-hams can see the inner workings of a competitive amateur radio operation and learn tips from the "pros". From our hilltop location in Williston, we regularly place in the top ten amongst 2-transmitter Field Day groups across the U.S. and Canada.

Results and pictures from the last Field Day.
Details on the next Field Day.

RANV members travel to the 3830 foot summit of Mt. Equinox in Southern Vermont to operate in the September VHF QSO Party. Our station, WB1GQR, is heard from Canada to the Carolinas on 50, 144, 222 and 432 MHz. Our effort has been one of the highest placed operations nationally, finishing in the top 10 in the last several years.

VHF QSO Party Results


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We get together for a picnic every August. Join us for hot dogs, hamburgers, dipoles, DX, swimming, marshmallows and tall stories. Work the pileups as we put our club station W1NVT on the air. And we have pictures to prove it! If you are interested in ham radio and will be in Northern Vermont, stop on by!

RANV members volunteer their time to provide communications and support for a number of community events. Some of the events we have been involved in:

Vermont City Marathon
Multiple Sclerosis Walk
Multiple Sclerosis MS-150 Bike Ride
Charlotte Half Marathon
Greater Burlington Triathlon
Essex Memorial Day Parade
Essex Cabbage Night and Halloween Patrols
South Burlington National Night Out
American Diabetes Association Tour-de-Cure

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The Burlington Area Volunteer Exam Team offers testing for Amateur Radio Licenses. Sessions are held at the Milton Hamfest and following Spring and Fall Ham Radio classes.

Exams are held at other times by appointment. To schedule an exam please call 802-879-6589 or E-mail w1sj@arrl.net.

Exams for FCC Commercial Licenses also are given. These consist of the General Radio Operator's License (GROL), Radar Endorsement, Global Marine Distress and Safety Service (GMDSS) and Radiotelegraph licenses.

Candidates for all examinations should bring two forms of identification, copies of existing license and CSCE (if applicable), pens and pencils and the exam fee of $14 (amateur) or $35 (commercial), cash only please.



Exam Sessions Across New England

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A hearty THANK YOU to the folks at SoVerNet for their generousity in hosting the RANV Web Site.

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