CNHARC Field Day 2026 evolving information
Chairperson for questions:
Jonathan Wixson, KB1COL kb1col@yahoo.com 603-832-3293
Staffed Talkin: Gunstock 2-meter repeater 146.985 – PL: 123.0
N1LT is our call sign 4A is our Field Day on-air class NH is our section
Location: Like last year, Field Day will be held at the Belknap County Sportsman’s Association which is a tenth of a mile north of the Laconia Airport at 182 Lily Pond Road Gilford, NH 03249. Some clubs will be roughing it outside. Not us, we’ll even have a kitchen and indoor restrooms! Of course, we’ll be totally off-grid in terms of radios and power.
GOALS: As in the past, CNHARC Field Days will not be driven by maximising contest points but by having fun, sharpening our emergency preparedness skills, trying out some new radios, socializing and gaining new experiences. If you have a namebadge with your call, BRING IT!
We will even have a mini-ham radio flea market !
Did we say FUN?
VE Licensing session: On site Saturday at 9AM
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Intial indoor setup: Friday June 26th between 12-noon and 5PM
Due to anticipated rain, we will focus on inside work, setup tables, radio setups, logging PC’s, network, power distribution, etc
Final setup with antennas and testing: Saturday June 27th starting at 8AM until 2PM
Operating: Saturday June 27th 2PM through Sunday June 28th 2PM (24 hours)
Food: A combination of PotLuck and/or a $20 donation Check with Jonathan (above), KB1COL on the final decision
Radios: Bring your own or use member-provided radios… up to you. But please coordinate with Jonathan, KB1COL (above)
Multi-transmitter RFI Mitigation: CNHARC will provide the required RFI filters for all transmitters as needed
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N3FJP Field Day logging software
- download the latest version here. No charge to download, we are already licensed to use. Bring your own logging laptop if you wish, but we will provide laptops as needed.
N3FJP Field Day logging software license key: This license is hard wired for Field Day use only and for CNHARC using the N1LT call letters only. 28987
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Dave, K1DLM:
1 Buddy Pole hex beam
1 filter board
No Flex radios
Rich, WF1V
Battery back up
6,2,440 beam
Kevin, W1KVM
FT-8 transmitter set up (qrp), laptop, full turnkey
Cal, WA1WOK
Kenwood TS-2000X,IC-7100,IC-705
unspecified antenna(s)
Rick KK1RZ
Yaesu FTX-1 Optima 100W all bands all modes, actual assignment is still TBA
10,20 meter Bazooka antennas (optional)
Off center fed dipole for 40M and 75M bands
Pota performer antenna (optional)
2 generators
Coax (many)
T-Mobile home internet device for DHCP and high-sped Internet access
CAT-6 cables, long runs if needed
Bring Rich Comer’s window interface board
Jonathan, KB1COL
• Reach out to Mike regarding participation in testing the Boy Scout radio equipment
• Provide mast for Rich’s 6m/2m/440 beam antenna
• Bring coffee and donuts for Sunday morning
• Remove fiberglass and aluminum poles from trailer
• Get military masts out of trailer
• Coordinate with Dave about Flex radios (will not use)
• Get mast holder from trailer for Rich’s beam antenna
• Bring cooler for food
• Coordinate with wife about getting groceries for Saturday
• Send starter list version 1.0 (equipment/roles) to Rick by midday tomorrow
• XYL… Get groceries for Saturday
Collaboration
• Jonathan/Cal: Collect $20 each from members for food
• [Note: I’ve combined some similar/duplicate items and removed the duplicates. Also note that some items might be overlapping as the transcript shows ongoing planning discussion. I’ve maintained the original names as spoken in the transcript.]
Summary
Pre-Field Day Planning
The meeting focused on upcoming elections and Field Day preparations. The group discussed recent Field Day planning activities, including a successful antenna construction session at Dave K1DLM’s house where they built and tested a buddy pole hex beam antenna. Jon reported that while a few people had expressed interest, attendance numbers were still being determined as they prepared for the upcoming Field Day event.
Event Planning and Radio Testing
The group discussed plans for an upcoming event, including food arrangements with Cal confirming he would repeat making chili from the previous year. Jon mentioned conversations with Rich Kompf about providing HT programming assistance and offered to help coordinate with Ron Sears for this task. The discussion also covered plans to test Boy Scout radio equipment, including a Yaesu 450D, Kenwood TS430, and TenTech Omni 597, with the goal of getting them operational or properly tagged for future attention.
Field Day Equipment Planning
The team discussed plans for an upcoming field day event, including equipment setup and antenna arrangements. Jon outlined plans to set up buddy pole antennas and an ENDFED dipole, with potential for up to six transmitters using the available triplexer and quadplexer equipment. Cal confirmed he would bring a Kenwood TS 2000X radio and various antennas, while Kevin mentioned he had a complete FT8 setup ready. David Merchant clarified that the filter board could support up to six different users, and while he might not be available on Friday, he had provided hex beam and filter board equipment for the event.
Weekend Gathering Planning Meeting
The group discussed plans for a weekend gathering, with Jon offering to have his wife pick up hamburgers and hot dogs on Friday for Saturday’s event. They agreed to contribute money collectively rather than having a formal potluck setup, with Jon contributing $20. The group confirmed attendance plans for Friday and Saturday, with Charles Rocheleau offering to bring camera and radio equipment and assist with Boy Scout equipment testing on Friday.
Field Day Planning Discussion
The group discussed plans for Field Day, including equipment and logistics. Charles offered to bring a radio and antenna, while Rick suggested having a formal talk-in facility using a portable 2-meter base. David Weiss volunteered to help with the GOTA station and logging setup using N3FJP software, and the group agreed to network the laptops for better logging functionality. The group decided to use the T-Mobile device as the router with a network switch for internet access.
Field Day Preparation Planning
The group discussed preparations for an upcoming field day event, including equipment needs and logistics. David Merchant suggested creating a spreadsheet to track equipment and offered to provide a battery backup unit (EcoFlow) for the event. The discussion covered power supply options, with Rich mentioning his smaller Bluedy unit and Rick confirming he brought a UPS only for the server last year. The group also addressed band and frequency planning, with David explaining they would have five available bands (10, 15, 20, 40, and 80 meters) and discussed potential interference considerations between different operating modes. The group confirmed they would maintain as 4A class for the event, though there was some debate about whether they could realistically operate four stations simultaneously with their available operators.