On the Air
Goat Cook-off
The club has operated an Amateur Radio demonstration station at the annual Goldthwaite Championship Barbecue and Goat Cook-off for the past several years. At this event our booth offers some shade and conversation to many visiting hams among the several hundred folks shopping in the vendor area. The Goat Cook-off is held the fourth weekend in April. Our booth will be set up on the fourth Saturday. |
Jamboree on the Air
Jamboree-on-the-Air is held the third weekend in October. The radio stations are operated by licensed amateur radio operators. Many Scouts and leaders hold licenses and have their own stations, but the majority participate in JOTA through stations operated by local radio clubs and individual radio amateurs. Each year, MCARC provides equipment and technical support for the local scouts during the event. Boy and Girl Scouts and Guides from all over the world speak to each other by means of Amateur (ham) Radio. Since 1958 when the first Jamboree-on-the-Air was held, millions of Scouts have met each other through this event. With no restrictions on age or on the number of participants, and at little or no expense, JOTA allows Scouts to contact each other by ham radio. Alan Brown reported on the 2014 Jamboree on the Air: Members of the Mills County Radio Club supported an activity with the local area Scouts, on Saturday, October 18th.. We set-up a ham radio station at the Scouts Building, and made over-the-air contacts with stations in several of the US states and Mexico City. 
We explained only two of the many methods to communicate via ham radio, voice and telegraph.
All of the Scouts were able to use voice to chat with the many stations we contacted. And there was quite an interest in the old time telegraph method, as well. Before we knew it, we had spent two hours of fun in what seemed like about 30 minutes! |
Awards
We were first in the state of Texas and 18th in the nation during Field Day 2011.
 We won Worked All States in CW during Field Day 2011:
 We won Worked All States with 20 meter voice in 2013:
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Recent Field Day Scores
I have dug into the ARRL databases and pulled Field Day information for more than a decade. The older stuff will be harder to access, but it can be pulled out of QST archives. 2002: AA5NZ; GOTA-AA5QV Class 2A; QSOs-435; Score-1570; Participants-11 Mills County Hams 2003: N5ZMO; GOTA-AA5QV Class 2A; QSOs-244; Score-1088; Participants-18 Mills County Hams 2004: No submission 2005: K5TRO; GOTA-WA5NQR Class 2A; QSOs-386; Score-2068; Participants-23 Mills County ARC 2006: K5TRO; GOTA-WA5NQR Class 2A; QSOs-428; Score-1962; Participants-10 Mills County ARC 2007: K5TRO; GOTA-N5QBU Class 2A; QSOs-405; Score-2022; Participants-15 Mills County ARC 2008: K5TRO; GOTA-N5QBU Class 2A; QSOs-519; Score-2734; Participants-10 Mills County ARC 2009: No Submission 2010: K5TRO; GOTA-N5QBU Class 2A; QSOs-1702; Score-6696; Participants-25 Mills County ARC 2011: K5TRO; GOTA-N5QBU Class 3A; QSOs-2232; Score-8876; Participants-29 Mills County ARC 2012: No Submission 2013: K5TRO; GOTA-N5QBU Class 2A; QSOs-1199; Score-4064; Participants-11 Mills County ARC 2014: K5TRO; GOTA-N5QBU Class 2A; QSOs-1174; Score-4210; Participants 20 Mills County ARC |
ARRL Field Day
According to ARRL.com, ARRL Field Day is the single most popular on-the-air event held annually in the US and Canada. Each year over 35,000 amateurs gather with their clubs, friends or simply by themselves to operate. ARRL Field Day is not a fully adjudicated contest, which explains much of its popularity. It is a time where many aspects of Amateur Radio come together to highlight our many roles. While some will treat it as a contest, most groups use the opportunity to practice their emergency response capabilities. It is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate Amateur Radio to local elected community leaders, key individuals with the organizations that Amateur Radio might serve in an emergency, as well as the general public. For many clubs, ARRL Field Day is one of the highlights of their annual calendar. The members of the Mills County Amateur Radio Club, like most other participating hams, treat Field Day as a combination social event, picnic, camp-out, competition, as well as a demonstration of our ability to quickly set up and operate several radio stations not connected to the commercial power grid. Each year we learn something new; each year things seem to go a little smoother. We are justifiably proud of our hobby and welcome every opportunity to show off what we can do. Anyone (old enough to read!) with an interest in communicating by radio is welcome to drop in at our Field Day site. You will be warmly greeted and given the opportunity to see what fun Amateur Radio can be. Check out our Recent Field Day Scores and Awards . Rondel Stevens, Cotton Inks, Lynn and Jack Garner at CW Station  Ronnie Head and Rose Lee Head at voice station  Mike and Melissa Pansini loaned their equipment for the GOTA station  Logan, Derek, and Mikaela Pausewang manned the GOTA station  Mikaela and Derek Pausewang welcomed the Gary McFaddens from Colorado  North Texas Section Manager, Matthew Morris K5ICR, stopped by.
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