Subj : Amateur Radio Newsline (B) To : All From : Daryl Stout Date : Thu Jan 19 2023 20:33:28 IN THE US, FIELD DAY: IN THE WINTER? JIM/ANCHOR: So have you started planning for this year's Field Day? You may be thinking to yourself, there's plenty of time for that. Right? But that's not what Amateur Radio Newsline's Mark Abramowicz (Abram-o-vich) tells us as US ham clubs and groups are already planning for a different kind of Field Day - Winter Field Day. MARK: I'd be willing to wager a lot of hams listening to this report haven't ever heard about Winter Field Day. Sure, maybe a few have read stories in the magazines over the years about groups of amateurs going out somewhere in the woods during the winter - especially in snow - and setting up tents with one or two stations, wire antennas and gathering a hardy group of "polar bears," I mean operators, to activate them. But, there really is a Winter Field Day and it's coming up fast - Saturday, Jan. 28 and Sunday, Jan. 29. You may be surprised to know it's an activity that dates back to 2007. That year, a group of Texas hams came up with a plan to stir up some activity on the bands during the winter while challenging operators to set up stations similar to those activated for the ARRL's Field Day in June. A loosely knit group calling itself The Society for the Preservation of Amateur Radio was behind the first few Winter Field Day events. But, its small group of members quickly realized they needed some help, and handed over the activity in 2015 to the newly formed Winter Field Day Association. That group set up some basic rules and categories that have led to a blizzard of competition that has spread across the U.S. and beyond. The Winter Field Day Association's mission is simple: It believes hams should practice portable emergency communications in winter environments because of the special challenges presented by freezing temperatures, snow, ice and other hazards. WFD is designed to sharpen preparedness under those subpar conditions. Last year, more than 2,500 logs were submitted. This year, the 16th year for the event, the organizers are hoping for at least that or more. You can find more at the Winter Field Day website included in the script for this story at our website, arnewsline.org. Oh, and one more thing. As with the ARRL's Field Day, you don't have to actually leave your home shack to take part. Make yourself a nice cup of hot chocolate or your favorite hot beverage, fire up the HF radio, and get on the air and contact those stations that are "out there in the cold" looking for you and other "polar bears" during this 24-hour event. I'm Mark Abramowicz, NT3V. [FOR PRINT ONLY, DO NOT READ: https://www.winterfieldday.com ] ** KFF MARATHON CHALLENGE GETS IN THE RUNNING JIM/ANCHOR: Hams operating in natural settings or chasing QSOs there have just embarked on a year-long challenge to score big. Stephen Kinford, N8WB, tells us about this radio marathon. STEPHEN: The fourth annual KFF Marathon Challenge kicked off on the first of January, encouraging participants in the Worldwide Flora and Fauna awards program to strive for their best scores once again this year, either as activators or hunters. KFF is the designation of the WWFF program for activation sites within the United States and its territories. Awards are available for the Top North American Hunters, Top DX Hunters, and Top Activators. Some of the more interesting sites include the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge, the Guam National Wildlife Refuge, Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska and Choctaw National Wildlife Refuge in Puerto Rico. Other parks, islands, caverns and protected areas are located throughout the United States mainland. For details visit the WWFF-KFF page on Facebook. This is Stephen Kinford, N8WB. (WWFF) ** BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including the N5OZG (N 5 OH ZED G) repeater in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Sundays at 8 p.m. --- SBBSecho 3.15-Win32 * Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (954:895/7) .