Montgomery County ARES Weekly Nets

For over 50 years, Montgomery County ARES members have met weekly on the air for announcements and training on Tuesdays at 8 PM. Nets are usually conducted on the MARC repeater, 146.955 (- offset, 156.7). If you don’t hear us on that repeater, look for us on the MCACS repeater, 443.900 (+ offset, 156.7), or on 146.445 MHz simplex. There is no net on the first Tuesday of the month, when MCACS members meet online instead. See the calendar for meeting details.

Other Standing Activities

Maryland-DC ARES Monthly Digital Emcomm Challenge

Maryland-DC ARES provides a monthly opportunity to develop skills in and practice using Winlink and other digital messaging modes using both HF and VHF/UHF FM radios. Each month, participants are given a list of digital messaging tasks for that month’s exercise. The tasks are designed to develop proficiency in one or more features of Winlink, VarAC, Fldigi, or other radio-based messaging systems. Participants can carry out one or more of these tasks over a period of several days at a time of the operator’s choosing. If you want do develop your digital messaging skills on HF or VHF FM

Interested parties can send a Winlink message to MDCWINLINK-1 requesting to be added to the distribution list. The information that you will need to participate in monthly Check-ins and Challenges will be sent out via Winlink messages. Challenge Announcements will be sent approximately 2 weeks before the Challenge. If you do not want to use Winlink you are welcome to participate using VarAC and/or Fldigi, but must send your commercial email address to bill.n3xl@verizon.net, to be added to the MDC Winlink distribution list. The commercial email option is not open for Winlink users.

ETO-Sponsored Advanced Winlink Training

A national-level organization, the EmComm Training Organization (ETO), also sponsors weekly training activities that focus on developing proficiency using the basic and advanced features of the Winlink Messaging System. They generally provide one simple training activity each week, and they conduct several large-scale exercises each year. Participation in any week’s activity is optional, but regular participation over a period of several months will enable you to take advantage of the many features and tools that are part of the Winlink system. The tasks are well-designed, and ETO provides feedback on your progress. See their website at https://emcomm-training.org/index.html to get started.