MEETING LOCATION (arrive by 5.45AM, depart 6am)
BRARA Shack
West Delray Regional Park
10875 W Atlantic Ave Delray Beach, FL 33446
Park in the lot by the shack. The annual Everglades Day will use most of the park for visitors to the Locachahee Reserve 4 miles north of The Shack.
CLICK for MAP
Van Seating Plan
Though this will accommodate 14 people, we prefer to limit travelers to 10 to 12 people
PASSENGER LIST (Confirmed and Standby)
As of 2020-02-02
Email John.C N1QFH on VAN and SEAT you want wirehead52@gmail.com
RESERVATION REQUEST
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE YOUR SEAT
If you
- Encounter an ISSUE with the above RESERVATION LINK
- Do not get this RESERVATION REPLY in 2 days
Contact John.C N1QFH at wirehead52@gmail.com
In all cases you will receive an email REPLY to your reservation.
FREQUENCIES
REPEATERS
- Orlando Metro – DMR Brandmeister
- 70CM DMR 443.1625(+) CC-11 TS-1 TG-311037 (DEFAULT 70CM FREQ)
- Orlando Analog
- 2M 146.730(-) PL-103.5
SIMPLEX
- 2M ANALOG 146.550 (DEFAULT 2M FREQ)
- 70CM DMR 441.000 TS-1 TG-99
COMMUNICATIONS PLAN
With this large number of people traveling in 2 vans to Orlando, please try to pair up with someone to help ensure continuity in our group and let us know if you plan on attending any speaking lecture sessions that may last over an hour or two.
Everyone will be given the Passenger Contact sheet at departure time and we’ll do a radio check in the parking lot of all radios.
Once we have arrived at Orlando, at the top of each hour we’ll all check into the 2m simplex frequency 146.55. When we begin to feel we’re all ready to stage for departure, we’ll be making announcements on 146.55 of our status report and plans. This usually occurs between 2 and 3pm with departure hopefully no later than 4pm.
If anyone needs guidance or has a suggestion or question, please use 146.55.
For those with DMR radios we have access to the Orlando DMR Brandmeister repeater and we’ll be using the frequency defined above with TS-1 and TG-311037 which is the BRARA Net TG.
Please note as the day progresses, you may hear people being advised to QSY to various frequencies and TG’s. The fall back frequency will remain simplex 146.55.
If you do not hear anyone on frequency or need assistance, please text John.C N1QFH at 207.239.0268 or someone on your Passenger Contact sheet and let them know your status.
John.C N1QFH will be taking his PI-STAR and WiFi on the trip for those who have the codeplug to connect to The Shack pi-star on freq 434.300 CC-1 TG-311037 and the channel name is “HS-BRARA“. CLICK HERE to download N1QFH recent CodePlug.
FOOD AND RESTROOM PLANS
Suggestion from John.H KE4IDW:
Bring snacks, meds, h2o. What ever you would bring for a day hike.
On the way up and back we stop at Fort Drum on the FL turnpike for BATHROOM BREAK ONLY
Food purchases are always a challenge given large crowds at this stop and this caused us a long wait time last year.
BATHROOM BREAK ONLY AT FT DRUM
BREAKFAST BEFORE WE DEPART FOR HAMCATION
You can bring a food item for the ride or on your way to meet the VAN stop at WAWA’s just as you approach The Shack, they are open 24-7
Once we’re at HamCation, we have done a combination of LUNCH gatherings.
Please keep in mind at lunch time picnic tables are very difficult to obtain so it may be better for lunch folks to be in smaller groups.
Also it helps to have a person find a spare table and SAVE IT for the number of folks for that group
For these groups, a “POINT PERSON” needs to be named to announce on 146.55 simplex when and where at HamCation they want to meet for lunch.
Each group will need a TACTICAL CALLSIGN like “HOGS” or “HAMS” or “OLD FARTS” or ‘DINGBATS”, you get the idea.
And you have to remember what group you belong, no one will do that for you. For those with CRS like me, SOL.
Before we depart for our return to Delray, please take your bathroom breaks and purchase food items for the ride back.
On the return trip BATHROOM BREAK ONLY AT FT DRUM
On the trip up to HamCation, we’ll all be on 146.55 and will coordinate the final plans on LUNCH and GROUP NAMES to make the 3 hour ride pass a bit faster.
PREPAYMENT
For confirmed PASSENGERs, payment for this trip must be completed
- No later than Tuesday 28-January-2020 @ GCARA Monthly meeting
STANDBY passengers: if a reservation opens, we will connect with you on status and payment.
When paying you must include your NAME and CALLSIGN
There are two way to pay for this trip and we do not accept cash.
- Personal Check ($30.00)
- PayPal ($33.00)
PAY BY PERSONAL CHECK: Mail a check for $30.00 to
BRARA
PO Box 480162
Delray Beach, FL 33448-0162
On the check please add “2020 HAMCATION with YOUR CALLSIGN”
PAY BY PAYPAL
You may use PayPal to pay for this trip.
These are the details we need:
- Send Money to: payments@brara.org
- Amount: $33.00 (includes PayPal service fee)
- Nature of the payment: “2020 HAMCATION with YOUR CALLSIGN”
See example after the PayPal payment is processed
Links
Suggestion
- Purchase your Hamcation Tickets ahead of time.
- Check that your handheld radio works and battery charged
Details
Car pooling details follow:
- Travel Date: Saturday 8-February 2020, up and back in 1 day
- Depart Location: BRARA Shack PBC West Delray Park
- Arrival at Shack: 5.45am
- Depart Time: 6.00am SHARP
- Vehicle: ONE or TWO 14-person Chevy or Ford vans
- Max travelers: 12 people per van
- Payment: expected before departure, details to follow
- Approx fee: $25 to $35 per person depending on number of travelers
- Sign Up: first come, first server while available seats last (HAS BEGUN)
- What to bring: your handheld radio, water, rain gear, power bars
- While in transit: perform radio checks and share cell phones
- Break: FL Turnpike mile mark 185 Fort Drum service station
- Arrival at Orlando: approx 9.30am
- Staying in touch: by RF and cell phone
- Planned return: Meet at vehicle approx 2-3pm based on QSL on frequency
- Pickup Location: at ticket booth so you need not walk to vehicles
- Return trip departure: approx 2-3pm
- Break: FL Turnpike mile mark 185 Fort Drum service station
- Arrive at shack: approx 6-630pm
Cost Calculations
The cost per person estimates based on fuel, tolls, van rental, and passengers.
AS OF 16-DEC-2019
