I volunteered with my ham radio club – the Longmont Amateur Radio Club – to provide support for the city of Longmont’s annual Turkey Trot.

Here’s a video of the event:

A call for volunteers went out soon after the conclusion of the Halloween parade a few weeks back. Of course, I volunteered.

This event was earlier in the day so my XYL made it clear that she wasn’t going to help lug the camera or gear!

Preparation started the day before. We were told that the club’s 2 meter repeater was iffy to raise depending on where you were on the course so that we should bring a better antenna with our HT’s.

Here’s a list of what I brought:

1. Yaesu VX-6r with original and Signal Stick 17″ antenna (charged the night before)
2. Speaker/Mic  – shoulder remote thingy for the Yaesu
3. Osmo Pocket camera
4. Printout of the race course and club’s email
5. Ball point pen
6. Chapstick
7. Multitool pocket knife
8. Coaxsher RP-1 Scout chest harness that contained the above
9. Ultralight backpack with water, snack,  backup Baofeng UV5x3 with Signal Stick 17″ antenna (charged the night before)
10. Hat, gloves, puffy coat (did’t end up using)

The weather forecast called for a cool 50ish degrees going up to maybe 65.  I knew better so I dressed in layers and was prepared to stand for a few hours.

I left the house around 7:20 AM and arrived at the middle school around 7:40. A few fellow hams were there milling about and chatting. It was slightly warmer than the weather forecast which was nice. I signed in at the volunteer table, grabbed an even t-shirt and hung out and waited for everyone else to arrive. At about 8 AM we got together for a short briefing, followed by a group photo. Then we each drove to our assigned tactical stations.

I was station Delta again.  Not being from Longmont, I had just a little trouble finding where I was supposed to be because the road names changed. But I got to my station well in advance and chatted with the other volunteers that were stationed at the same risky corner.

I swapped out my stock antenna for the Signal Stick and notified net control I was at my station. I was easily able to hit the repeater!

9 o’clock rolled around and we all checked in with Net Control and the race started. A few short minutes later the lead runners were already at my station which was probably 1-1.5 miles from the start on the 10k course.

Eventually the runners, including dogs, babies, and puppies went by and I was relieved of my station and was asked to move to another location. I got in my car and saw that the Longmont police already were at the corner and that there were too many cones and not a good place to stop and park without getting in the way unnecessarily so I notified net control and he told me to return to the start/finish. Ironically, I was in my car (i.e. my faraday cage) and the Signal Stick still got out to the repeater!

So I drove back to the start/finish and hung out with Net Control while we watched the runners go by. I also got a chance to observe the responsibilities of Net Control including notifying the Event people whom we were assisting, of the race progress.

Overall the race was uneventful from our perspective, although there was an injury but First Responders were already on location so we weren’t involved in calling for assistance.

This was a fun event to work and unique because this is the first one where I had to go out on course. Having my car nearby meant I didn’t have to lug around everything I might have needed while standing somewhere for hours. We already have some refinements for me to make for next year including using my motorcycle or scooter to be able to go on course where cars can’t or shouldn’t go.

So far this my 4th event that I’ve worked and each event my equipment and strategy gets better and better. Unfortunately, I will be on vacation for the Christmas Parade which I had hoped to be Net Control for but I’m sure there will be other events that I can cut my teeth on in order to help out with being Net Control when needed in the future.

73,

ae0rs